‘He was an uninvited member of the cast.’
‘So I hear.’
‘He livened up the afternoon for all of us,’ said Elias. ‘But I’m sorry that your sister did not enjoy The Malevolent Comedy as much as you. She spoke rather slightingly of it.’
Hoode was alarmed. ‘She disapproved?’
‘Pay no attention to Ursula,’ said Bernice. ‘She has too solemn a cast of mind. Father and I adored the play but she felt that it bordered on blasphemy to poke fun at the priesthood.’
‘Then your sister objected to my performance?’
‘Only to the character you played.’
‘Ursula is more at ease with the Bishop of London,’ said Elias. ‘I heard them talking in Latin earlier on. She’s a studious young lady.’
‘Too much study addles the brain,’ said Bernice, happily.
‘That’s my philosophy as well.’
‘What about you, Master Hoode?’
‘Oh, I admire your sister’s scholarship.’
‘Would you wish to waste your time learning a dead language?’
‘Probably not.’
‘Then you are of the same mind as me. I hoped that you would be.’
Suppressing a giggle, she gazed at Hoode with undisguised fondness. He, meanwhile, was craning his neck to look for Ursula and he was heartbroken to learn that she was no longer in the hall. It was exasperating. Bernice Opie, the sister whom he thought too frivolous and inconsequential, exhibited a clear liking for him while Ursula, the person he had really come to see that evening, would not even speak to him. The irony of the situation was not lost on the sensitive playwright. Bernice’s mother came up to spirit her daughter away, leaving Hoode alone with Elias. Nudging his friend, the Welshman spoke in his ear.
‘Bernice is there for the taking, Edmund.’
‘I’d never dream of doing such a thing.’
‘Would you not like her to sing to you in bed afterwards?’
‘Shame on you, Owen!’
‘Ah, I see,’ said the Welshman, chuckling. ‘You’d rather make love to her sister in Latin.’
Though he would not be involved with the third performance of the play, Nicholas Bracewell nevertheless turned up at the Queen’s Head that morning. The first person he spoke to was Alexander Marwood. The book holder’s request was promptly refused.
‘No, no,’ said the landlord. ‘That’s out of the question.’
‘But I’d have the ideal view from that room.’
‘Find another place from which to spy, Master Bracewell. You’ll not make use of our bedchamber. My wife would never permit it.’
‘I’d only be in there during the play,’ said Nicholas.
‘No man is allowed into that room.’
Marwood spoke with the cold finality of someone who was only permitted to share the bedchamber himself on sufferance. It was his wife who controlled what happened within those four walls, and that meant a series of lonely nights for the harassed landlord. The joys of marriage had been all too fleeting in his case. Indeed, they now seemed so distant that he began to wonder if they had ever occurred.
‘Why did you want to go in that room?’ he asked, eyeing Nicholas warily. ‘You’ll not see much of the play from up there.’
‘I’d be looking at the audience.’
‘What pleasure is there in that?’
‘I do it out of necessity rather than pleasure,’ explained Nicholas. ‘The Malevolent Comedy has an enemy and I believe that he may be among the spectators this afternoon.’
Marwood was disturbed. ‘To cause more mischief on my property?’
‘Not if I can catch him in time.’
‘You did not catch him when he poisoned that young lad, or when he had a dog set loose upon you.’
‘I’m ready for him now,’ said Nicholas, ‘and I’ll not be hampered by my role as book holder. All I need is a vantage point from which to see the whole yard and watch the spectators.’
‘I sense trouble ahead.’
‘The play has made you healthy profits so far.’
‘What use are they if someone is bent on destroying me?’
‘Master Hibbert is the target here. You are quite safe.’
‘I’d be safer still if the play was cancelled,’ said Marwood, sourly.
‘It’s been advertised for this afternoon.’
‘Then I blame Master Firethorn for putting my yard in danger again. Whenever you play this comedy, you are waving a red rag at a bull. Choose something that will not goad this villain into action.’
‘But that’s the only way we may be able to ensnare him,’ argued Nicholas. ‘In staging this play, we’re also setting a trap.’
‘And I’m the one who’ll be caught in it.’
‘You stand to reap the benefits of a full audience.’
‘I stand only to suffer,’ moaned the landlord. ‘I’ve done nothing else since I let your accursed troupe into my yard. Westfield’s Men have brought murder, mayhem, fire, riot and ruination down upon me. And now you wish to invade our bedchamber! It’s too much, sir!’
Wringing his hands, he scurried off across the yard in a state of agitation. Nicholas scanned the windows above him, trying to decide which other room would be suited to his purposes. He was still unable to make up his mind when Leonard ambled over to him, his big, flat, pasty face crumpled with anxiety.
‘What’s this I hear about you leaving the company?’
‘Only for the duration of the play, Leonard.’
‘But what if the play should run for a week or more?’
‘My task is to make sure that it survives today,’ said Nicholas.
‘Then you’ll be keeping yourself out of work.’
‘No, Leonard. I’ll be protecting the company.’
‘Saving the skin of Master Hibbert more like,’ said Leonard with unwonted severity. ‘He’s upset all of us here at the inn with his high-handed ways, and your fellows do not like him either. George Dart tells me that he had you expelled from your post.’
‘Rested only.’
‘That rest could last a long time if he writes more plays for you.’
‘I’ve no power to stop him doing that.’
‘It’s in your interests to let The Malevolent Comedy fail,’ noted the other, ‘and well it may if you do not stand guard over it.’
‘I stand guard over the reputation of Westfield’s Men,’ said Nicholas, proudly, ‘and I’d hate them to falter on my account. I’ll need your help, too, Leonard. You know where every nook and cranny is. I count on you to search them before the play begins.’
‘If you wish, Nicholas.’
‘Then stand close to the stage during the performance, ready to help the actors if trouble breaks out. Keep one eye on the room above where I’ll maintain my vigil. I’ll wave a hand to warn you of danger.’
‘What about the stables?’
‘Lock them.’
‘And the gates to the yard?’
‘They’ll be chained until the performance is over.’
‘You are closing off all the points of attack.’
‘We can never do that completely. We must stay alert.’
‘At least, the dog will not run wild.’
‘We’ve faced fiercer animals than that,’ said Nicholas, smiling as a memory surfaced. ‘In Cambridge, a man once set his dancing bear upon us because our play was getting all the attention. In Exeter, some geese decided to wander across the stage in the middle of a performance. Putting on a play is an act of faith, Leonard. We are hostages to fortune.’
‘It was ever thus. What else can I do this afternoon?’
‘Keep your eyes peeled for that fair-haired gentleman.’
‘He’s not been near the place since.’
‘Has anyone else been asking about Westfield’s Men?’
Leonard nodded. ‘As a matter of fact, they have.’
‘Oh?’
‘About one of them, anyway.’
‘Who was that?’
‘You, Nicholas.’
‘Me?’
‘The book holder and his duties, anyway.’
‘What did you say?’
‘That you do far more behind the scenes than ever is seen onstage. That’s why it pains me to see that Master Hibbert has ousted you like this. George Dart will be a poor deputy.’