Juliana said no more. There was no need. They both knew Daniel had grown much more edgy when he first heard that Agnes had been visited by Jordan le Bolle. Daniel had said that Jordan was never to be allowed into his house again; Agnes was sure that Daniel simply hated the idea of adultery, and wouldn’t have Jordan in the place in case he took Agnes to her bed.
What of it if he did? She was not Daniel’s woman, even if she lived under his roof! The idea that her younger sister’s husband should dictate to her whom she could or could not see drove her to seek to seduce Jordan sooner than she otherwise might have. She told Daniel that his command was outrageous, and moved out into a smaller house within a few days. It was expensive, but she had some money saved, and Jordan offered to help, so she soon learned that a house was cheap enough for a woman who was in love, and loved by a strong man.
Daniel had no right to prevent her seeing whomsoever she wanted. She was about to state this when she noticed how exhausted her sister appeared.
Juliana had closed her eyes. She needed to rest them; they felt sore and rough from lack of sleep. If she sat still for a moment with her eyes closed like this, she knew that she must fall asleep and topple over, but it was so pleasing, so good to sit with them shut, if only for a few moments. She was so tired, she almost mentioned the threat made to them by Agnes’s lover, but luckily she managed to control herself and didn’t say anything. If she told Agnes that her man had said he would kill Juliana and all her family, Agnes would only think she was making it up and call her a liar. It would throw her more completely into Jordan’s arms, and that was one thing Juliana was determined to avoid.
In the end she said, ‘It must be this man who enters our house at night. That is why he is so unsettled.’
‘Does he not worry you as well, Juliana?’
Juliana looked at her. ‘If it is still only Est, we have no need to worry about the poor fellow. Not really.’
‘Who else could it be, though?’ Agnes asked. When she glanced at her sister, she was surprised to see a look of fear in her eyes, as though Juliana was determined not to speak. Almost as though she didn’t trust Agnes.
Jordan le Bolle left the cathedral close with a sense that all was going well.
He had seen Daniel earlier, and the man had looked distraught. Quite devastated, as though his world was collapsing about him. He hadn’t seen Jordan, which was probably no bad thing. If he’d flown off the handle and made rash accusations, it could have been difficult. As it was, Jordan could enjoy his suffering. Especially now, since he’d learned of a fresh shipment of lead. He already had a large store of it, and now he would be able to sell more to the cathedral for their rebuilding.
It was an easy way to make money. Stocks of lead, tin, iron and glass were being brought here from all over the country. Many ships arrived at the quay, and when the sailors went to the brothels intelligent women could sometimes learn what cargo was aboard. Occasionally those sailors could be bribed, too, but that was risky. Jordan had his own men at the docks, and usually it was a simple task to find the parcels or boxes which contained the most important goods, and substitute something else. Then he could sell the stolen items for a profit. Simple, effective and lucrative.
There was a better way to ensure a good profit, though, and that was to have a spy who could warn Jordan which ships were worth looking over. And that was why he was here today, to meet with his most profitable spy. It meant he could tell which were the best cargoes to be taken, which packages and bales deserved investigation without the need to bribe some unknown sailor, constantly running the risk that he might be a fool who would run to the ship’s master to warn him.
Daniel had taken to hanging about the quayside recently. Jordan was unpleasantly certain that the man had learned something. Well, he had done all he could some days ago: he’d put the fear of God into Daniel’s wife, hopefully, which would mean that there was another voice to persuade the sergeant to leave Jordan alone. If Daniel chose to ignore all the good advice he was receiving, that was his problem, not Jordan’s.
He saw Peter up at the entrance to the cathedral and fitted a warm smile to his face.
It was a never-ending source of amazement to him that this place, supposedly full of the most religious men in the land, could in fact be filled with men whose sole interest was to make money for themselves. It was dressed up differently, of course. They protested that it was money to be used to protect others, that it would go to saving souls, and all that nonsense, but they were fooling nobody. At least there were a few honest enough to privately admit that they wanted the money for themselves.
‘My son.’ Peter smiled and held out his hand.
Jordan took it. ‘Father. It is most pleasant to see you again.’
Peter de la Fosse, a tall young canon with a tonsure that was in desperate need of renewal, hurriedly drew Jordan into the cathedral and behind one of the massive pillars supporting the roof. ‘Jordan, there’s another load just arrived.’ He slipped a small parchment into Jordan’s hand.
‘Good. I’ll have my fellows go and meet it.’
Peter nodded, but his face even here in the gloom of the aisle seemed more pale than usual.
‘What is it?’ Jordan asked. He knew the signs. The man was scared again, and that meant his price would soon go up.
‘I am fearful that our actions may be discovered soon. What if someone should tell the Dean that I’ve been talking to you and that we’re collecting so much money? Someone may see, and-’
‘Canon, don’t worry. I won’t let anyone know about you. All you have to worry about is making sure that I remain happy with your work. Don’t forget that. Now, there is something I wanted to suggest to you today.’
Baldwin was feeling the effects of his recent wound. His breath was short as they marched up from the sergeant’s house and along the high street. He was on his way to the inn where he was staying with his wife, Sir Peregrine striding along at some speed as usual by his side, and Edgar padding along quietly behind them both like a great cat.
It was how Baldwin had thought of him when he had first seen Edgar whole and well. He had a certain feline grace and economy of movement that was much like the prized cats in bestiaries: lions and tigers. Much like them, Edgar could move with an apparent laziness that belied his strength and power, but when he was roused he was as fierce as any of the big cats. A man who irked him or caused him to stir would soon realize his mistake.
Edgar had been with him in the hell-hole of Acre, the last Crusader foothold in the Holy Land. Baldwin had gone there a young, callow fellow, determined to prove himself. He was the son of a knight, but being the second son would have no inheritance. Rather than see himself cast into the Church as a second-rate priest, or perhaps a clerk spending his days copying parchments until his eyes were useless, he chose to travel on pilgrimage to the lands over the seas and fight to protect God’s soil. He knew, as did his companions on the journey, that they couldn’t fail. After all, they were English men, the same who had conquered the Scots and the Welsh, beaten the Irish to submission, and kept the French King from their territories. And this was God’s own land. He would not see the land of Christ’s birth wrested from His own people.
Acre had destroyed the faith of many. The kingdom of Jerusalem was lost when Acre fell, and the consequences were far-reaching. Men throughout Christendom, appalled, felt sure that the end of the world was at hand, and men foretold famine, war and plagues.
Baldwin had lost many friends at Acre, but when he and Edgar were both wounded, the Templars saved them both and gave their lives new purpose. Suddenly Baldwin had recognized that he had a new duty. If the kingdom was gone, he must work with all his might to support the warriors of God, the Templars, and help to force the decision to enter a new crusade against the Moorish hordes who had stolen Christ’s country.