He was stunned into silence.
Eleanor wondered if he thought the priest incapable of the sin of lust or had some other reason for such dismay.
“I do not believe Sister Roysia met with the merchant for any wicked purpose, my lady.” Gracia’s eyes never stopped scanning the area despite the presence of her two protectors.
“Tell us more about Father Vincent,” Thomas hissed.
Gracia turned to him. “After watching the craftsman lower himself from the bell tower and flee to the top of an empty house, the priest caught Master Larcher climbing down the ladder into the garden behind. He made the merchant confess he had been meeting Sister Roysia, and I overheard the priest threaten the man with exposure unless he paid for his silence. He said the prioress would refuse to buy his badges if she knew of this.” The child’s lips twitched up briefly. “Father Vincent did not say it was payment to him. He called it a donation to the Shrine of the Virgin’s Lock in expiation of his sins.”
“Did the priest see you, child?” Eleanor had not released the girl’s hand and wondered why Gracia continued to look around so fearfully. She looked behind her but saw nothing that would trouble the girl.
“They both did, and that is the reason Father Vincent hates me,” she replied. “I laughed and he caught me. I swore I would say nothing. How he gets alms for his shrine is none of my affair. Yet he chose not to believe I would keep my word and has since threatened me with hellfire and rocks. When he caught the man raping me, he used that as his excuse to discredit anything I might say. Now I no longer believe I need keep silent.”
Thomas looked at his prioress with a sorrowful look.
“You have said you do not think the merchant and Sister Roysia were lovers,” she said. “Can you confirm or deny whether she and the priest were?”
“Sister Roysia did not couple with the merchant when I saw them, nor do I think she would commit that sin. She was a most devout nun, charitable and kind. As for the priest, she never would lie with him even if the Devil tortured her.” She glanced over at the monk. “She did not like Father Vincent.”
Thomas sighed. “A wise as well as a most virtuous woman.”
“Did the priest know they were not meeting to lie together?” Eleanor saw the child’s eyes widen slightly and knew the cause was not her question. She glanced over her shoulder. Although she thought a shadow moved, she did not see anyone in the narrow street. Squinting to focus, she decided the movement had been imagined.
“Master Larcher did not argue when Father Vincent accused him of that sin.”
“Whatever their purpose was in the bell tower, I think it odd that the craftsman would not protect the nun’s reputation,” Eleanor said. She shifted her position. “You overheard some of their conversations. Why did they meet in such a strange way and in the tower?”
“Sister Roysia heard many things in Prioress Ursell’s chambers, my lady, when visitors came. The nun said that secrets were often whispered while she waited just outside the door on those occasions the prioress was briefly called away. I do not know how she and Master Larcher knew each other. They did not behave as kin, but they were worried about a rumor that an attempt on the king’s life was being planned when he came to Walsingham. Before her death, Sister Roysia told the craftsman that an assassin was nigh. Master Larcher begged her to send him word the moment she found out who the man was.” She looked from one to the other. “Perhaps you will know better than I what he meant when he said: ‘I must send word to my master.’”
Speechless with horror, Eleanor and Thomas stared at each other.
“She gave her word but died soon after.” Gracia suddenly stood up, pulling away from the pair. Her next words came in a rush. “I never again saw Master Larcher in the bell tower. Maybe the nun was hoping to meet him the night she fell to her death. Perhaps she learned who the slayer is. I do not know.” Without warning, the girl fled into the darkness between the two buildings.
Eleanor and Thomas leapt to their feet and spun around. The monk stepped in front of his prioress, but she managed to peek around him.
The only thing they could see in the gloomy street was a trotting dog in search of scraps. Not far from where the two stood, he stopped at a narrow opening and sniffed, then began to growl.
They did not move.
The dog spun around and ran toward the more traveled road.
Nothing in the shadows moved.
Thomas gestured to the prioress to remain where she was with her back protected by the building. Then he edged along the walls toward the spot where the dog had stopped. When he reached the place, he jumped in front of the opening, his fists clenched in defense.
Eleanor’s heart pounded like a drum.
Thomas dropped his hands and leaned into the space to look around. Finally, he walked back to her.
“There is nothing there,” he said when he reached her side.
“The dog saw something,” she said.
“It might have been a rat, my lady, but I think we should leave now.” Thomas whispered. “I do not like this place.”
“Nor do I, “she replied, “and I do not believe the dog saw a rat.”
He bent his head in the direction Gracia had disappeared. “Is the child safe?”
“I pray she is. As for anything overheard, we all spoke too softly.”
“I do not know what caused Gracia to flee.” He looked back at the narrow space and thought for a moment. “Do you think Master Larcher might cause her harm? He knew she had witnessed the encounter with the priest.”
“And she was present when he met with Sister Roysia.”
“And thus the girl knew he was seeking an assassin. The merchant might choose to kill any witness to these discussions, especially a street child who could earn coin by telling enemies about his work.”
“We must find a way to keep her safe, Brother. She also fears her rapist. I did not believe her when she said he had caused no further grief.”
Thomas nodded. “First, let me accompany you back to the priory.”
“After stopping at the chapel where I hope the young mother and her child still wait for me. I pray the babe distracted her enough to forget I was even there.”
When they reached the road that went by the chapel, he hesitated to look over his shoulder and mark the spot where the dog had growled and the alley where Gracia had disappeared.
“Do not seek evil spirits alone, Brother,” Eleanor said, almost putting her hand on his arm but quickly drawing back. “I fear for your soul if you do.”
“I obey, my lady,” he said, but his expression suggested he longed to do otherwise.
***
As the pair disappeared into the Shrine of the Virgin’s Lock, a figure slipped out of the dark street they had just left and into another narrow space between two buildings that had a view of priory and chapel.
When the prioress, monk, and nursing mother reappeared, the phantom watched, until they reached the door to Ryehill Priory, then stepped deeper into hiding and became one with the shadows.
Chapter Twenty-two
Master Larcher gazed down on the street below his shop and belched. His stomach was sour.
He had been in a fine mood until he discovered one of his apprentices asleep. The boy had failed to complete his allotted number of badges, and this laxity caused production to fall behind the obligatory schedule. For each day there was a minimum number to finish. Today’s requirement had not been met. Since the prioress would use any delivery delay as reason to pay less for the next order, no matter what he argued or threatened, he had personally whipped the offending youth to encourage refreshed enthusiasm for responsibility.
“All these youths care about is drink and whores,” he muttered.