Chapter 20 Port of Bayonne, Gascony, May 1370 #2
Jeanette made a wry gesture. ‘We have all thought it. You could marry Constanza, take the throne of Castile and rule as king.’
‘But I would have to fight my way on to that throne,’ he pointed out. ‘And there are many other heiresses I could consider.’
She inclined her head, acknowledging his point. ‘It would be a good dynastic move to make though?’
He shrugged. ‘Would I want to fight my way to a throne? Would I want to unite my blood with that of Pedro of Castile and his mad half-brother? And she has no money.’
‘But she does have the keys to a kingdom, and it would combat the French influence.’
‘And tie me to Castile, when I have interests in England.’
Jeanette suspected he was throwing his objections at her to observe her responses – and perhaps test his own. ‘But the two are mutually bound up in each other,’ she pointed out, ‘and you would be a king.’
‘Do you think that is important to me?’
‘Only you can say.’ Edward’s father was ageing, and his wits were losing their edge, so they heard from their spies.
John might be a threat to Edward’s throne, depending which way he decided to turn.
Their relationship was much improved these days, but Jeanette was not blind to danger, and she would fight for her husband and sons above everything.
And she did suspect that deep down the notion of kingship appealed to John’s sensibilities.
‘You have had the care of Constanza,’ he said. ‘What is she like?’
‘Very young but proud. She has spirit, and she loathes Enrique of Trastamara – perhaps “loathes” is not a strong enough word. She would move the Pyrenees stone by stone if she thought it would destroy his rule.’
He gave her a look of dark amusement. ‘Let us speak clearly then. I know what you are thinking.’
Jeanette raised her eyebrows. ‘Do you indeed?’
‘That my father is ailing. So is Edward, and his heirs are little boys. Perhaps it worries you that I am placed to seize a different crown from that of Castile?’
‘Of course it worries me,’ she answered.
‘I would be foolish not to consider it. You are a man of prominence and ambition, and persuasive when you choose. Once you focus on something, you remain fixed, although some things fate cannot change – perhaps written in the stars?’ She gave him a humourless smile.
‘On the other hand, you are loyal and true, and you love my husband dearly, perhaps more than you love your father. I trust you, but the question is, do I trust you enough?’
He answered her look with a bleak smile of his own.
‘Now we know where we stand, and I thank you for your honesty. I am not your enemy. I swear on my soul I shall be true and faithful to my brother and my brother’s children.
’ He tugged a ring set with an amethyst from his little finger.
‘I swear on this ring, which was my mother’s and I have worn since the day of her death.
I shall help you and Edward in any way I can, and the possession of England’s crown shall never be within my consideration. ’
Taking her left hand, he pushed the ring on to her third finger and looked her in the eyes. She met his gaze full on, but it was an exchange of understanding between them, not challenge. Since he had given his word, she believed him.
‘And you could have the crown of Castile,’ she reiterated.
‘I could indeed.’ A thoughtful look crossed his face. ‘Has Edward spoken to you about returning to England?’
‘Many times recently, and I would not be sad to go. But he feels his failure keenly. He does not want to think he is fleeing a challenge. Has he broached the matter to you?’
John folded his arms and sighed deeply. ‘Yes, earlier, when we were together. He may not have offered me a crown, but he has asked me to take on the duties of governing Aquitaine if he does go to England to recuperate.’
‘You are the only one who could do it.’
Ruling Aquitaine might not be as prestigious as ruling England, but if John married Constanza, he would be King of Castile and could claim that title as soon as they were wed.
Edward needed to return to the cooler English climate away from febrile tensions, to rest and recover.
Sheer grit and determination was keeping him here, and the finality of letting go would have to come from him.
That he had thought far enough along that route to approach John spoke volumes.
‘It is a great sacrifice for his esteem,’ she said, ‘but the only one that makes sense. He cannot continue as he is.’
‘No,’ John agreed. ‘We both see it.’
‘Are you willing to stay?’
He pursed his lips. ‘Conditionally. I do not wish to become so deeply entrenched that I cannot detach should it become necessary. It will depend on whether I take Constanza of Castile to wife.’ A shadow crossed his face, and she could see how much Blanche’s death had affected him.
‘I understand your position. There is still much to discuss, but I am glad we have spoken together.’
‘Indeed.’
They stood in silence for a time until Jeanette broke it by asking him if Alice Perrers was still active at court.
John grimaced. ‘Yes, and deeply entrenched. Like an oyster with a steel shell with a seal over the opening that no knife can penetrate. Imagine that my father has opened his breast and placed that shell inside his heart. How shall anyone dig it out? Some make complaint and strive to change his mind, but he refuses to listen and rages at those who try.’
Jeanette frowned. The situation they had left behind in England had clearly deteriorated, and Mistress Perrers had consolidated her position, especially now she was a mother to the King’s bastards.
‘Men seek to gain her favour by offering bribes and gifts and become bound up in her web or she makes them accomplices. It will be difficult to be rid of her, especially now my mother has gone, for she was also an oyster in my father’s heart, but that shell is now empty and the pearl is in the grave.
She gave him support and love, and she was quietly as strong as an oak tree.
She never failed him; she either had the answer or led him to it.
She was always there. Mistress Perrers has acquired that role, and if my father is dithering, she tells him what to think, and who to promote, and so he does, and then rewards her handsomely. ’
‘At least I am forewarned.’ Jeanette touched his arm. ‘We shall see what is to be done as and when we return.’
John gave her a dubious look. ‘You can try.’
She thought to herself that John too required a strong woman in his life – strong enough to withstand his will, or else bend like the willow and return to the upright, unmoved. Constanza might be that woman, but she was still an unknown quantity.
Tom nudged his brother. ‘Go on, Johan, tell her, or I will.’
Jeanette looked between her sons. They had sought her out in her chamber.
Another sweltering, airless day held Angoulême in its grip, and both shutters and windows were thrown wide to capture any stray eddies of breeze.
Even the cool stone rooms of the castle provided little relief.
Sweat prickled Jeanette’s spine and dampened her armpits.
She was wearing a silk gown today with a low neckline but so envied the men who could just wander around in their shirts and light linen hose and braies. ‘Tell me what?’ she demanded.
Johan shuffled his feet and gave his brother a sidelong almost accusatory look.
‘She has to know,’ Tom said. ‘You are not betraying your lord, you are helping your family – it will come out anyway very soon. Trying to contain gossip is like trying to press honey between two pieces of bread and hoping none will ooze out. It doesn’t work.’
Jeanette regarded her sons. They were of a height, and little to choose between them if a stranger had to judge their ages.
‘Mother needs to know what?’ she asked. ‘If you do not wish to tell me, Johan, because your conscience directs you otherwise, then say nothing. However, your intention has brought you this far, and Tom clearly thinks you need to speak if he is offering to override you.’
Johan puffed out his cheeks and swept one hand through his tawny hair. ‘I have heard there are moves afoot to match my lord with the lady of Castile.’
‘What of it? It is a good proposition.’
Johan swallowed. ‘My lord has a mistress,’ he said.
‘So do many men, including the King. Your father and stepfather are rarities in that respect, although your stepfather had a mistress before he was wed to me. It is not a righteous thing but it is not uncommon, as you well know from spending time at court. What is wrong, is she another undesirable like Mistress Perrers? Are we to beware of her too?’
Johan screwed up his face. ‘He is greatly enamoured of Mistress Swynford.’
‘Mistress Swynford?’
‘Katherine de Roet,’ Johan qualified. ‘She is wed to Hugh Swynford, one of his own knights here with him. You’ll have seen him in the hall sometimes.’
Jeanette’s mind filled with the image of the intelligent, sharp-featured young woman they had seen at the Savoy Palace when visiting Blanche after the storms. She was surprised, and a little disappointed.
‘He is very taken with the lady . . .’ Johan said.
‘Well, he is hardly going to wed her if she is already a married woman. His concern is with Constanza.’
‘But mistresses have influence,’ Tom pointed out. ‘She cares for his children, but she cares for him too.’
Johan nodded. ‘I do not believe they have shared a bed, but he watches her and I have seen the looks that pass between them.’
‘So, they are not actually lovers?’ Jeanette sought qualification.
Johan shook his head. ‘Not yet, but I think he would like to be more intimate with the lady.’