The Parliament House

    'Even then, there is still hope,' he told her. 'I will appeal directly to His Majesty. I've been in a position to render him some service in the past and he has been very grateful. A plea to him will surely meet with favour.'

    'Only if it is made on your behalf, Christopher.'

    'What do you mean?'

    'He would hardly lift a hand to help my father. His Majesty once fought at the battle of Worcester - just like the Earl of Stoneleigh. Neither will show any mercy to someone who was in the opposing army. Father is doomed.'

    'You must not think that.'

    'What else can I think?'

    'Look,' he said, moving across to sit beside her, 'there is something you must know. Berate me all you wish but please accept that I have gone to great lengths to protect your father, and to find out who sponsored the attempts on his life.'

    'You and Mr Bale have worked hard on his behalf,' she admitted.

    'And not without success. We found one killer and we will find a second. More to the point, we will discover who has been paying them. Evidence so far points in the direction of the Earl of Stoneleigh.' She was startled. 'Yes, Susan, if we can prove that he is involved then Sir Julius has no case to answer. He may have attacked a Privy Councillor but the earl will lose all protection if arrested on a charge of conspiracy to murder.'

    'And what chance is there of that?'

    'A slim one at the moment,' he admitted, honestly, 'because he is cunning enough to cover his tracks. But we are making definite headway. Do you recall that I asked about Lewis Bircroft?'

    'Yes, he used to come here often at one time.'

    'He stopped doing so because he was badly beaten by a gang of ruffians. Jonathan Bale has spoken to him. At first, Mr Bircroft was too frightened to name the man who had ordered the attack but, at a second meeting, Jonathan managed to elicit that name - not in so many words, perhaps, but it was a clear identification.'

    'The earl again?'

    'Precisely.'

    'Why can he not be arrested?'

    'Because we need more evidence, Susan. And we'll get it.'

    She chewed her lip in despair. 'This is a tragedy,' she said. 'It seems that the Earl of Stoneleigh will do anything to hound Father. Not content with putting a caricature of him on stage, he has now contrived to have him imprisoned in the Tower.'

    'We'll get him out,' said Christopher, purposefully.

    'How?'

    'Wait and see. Meanwhile, think of others who need to be told the news. Sir Julius has friends in the House of Commons. This is a time when they should rally to him.'

    'There's someone else who must be told.'

    'Who is that?'

    'Mrs Kitson,' said Susan. 'She is very fond of my father. This will cause her enormous distress.'

        Orlando Golland was reading his newspaper when his sister called at the house. Seeing the disturbed state she was in, he took her into his parlour and invited her to sit down.

    'Whatever is the matter, Dorothy?' he asked.

    'I came to see if the rumour was true.'

    'What rumour?' 'Sir Julius Cheever has been imprisoned in the Tower.'

    'Never!' said Golland in surprise. 'On what possible charge?'

    'I hoped that you could tell me that, Orlando.'

    'This the first I've heard of it. Where did you pick up the news?'

    'I was visiting my milliner,' she said, 'and I chanced upon Adele Farwell. She had heard it from her husband. According to Maurice, there was a duel between Sir Julius and Cuthbert, Earl of Stoneleigh.'

    'I can guess what provoked that. I saw the report in yesterday's newspaper. One of the earl's plays, The Royal Favourite, was revived at the King's Theatre. Apparently, it contained defamatory matter about Sir Julius. He must have issued a challenge.'

    'But he would stand no chance against Cuthbert.'

    'Are they both locked up in the Tower?'

    'No,' said Dorothy. 'Adele did not know all the details but it seems that the duel was interrupted by officers and that they had a warrant for Sir Julius's arrest.'

    Golland sniffed. 'In that case, they were warned in advance.'

    'It was something to do with Cuthbert being a member of the Privy Council. I was hoping that you could enlighten me.'

    'I wish I could,' he said, going through a list of statutes in his mind to find the one that had been invoked. 'If he is being charged with trying to kill a Privy Councillor, it could go hard with Sir Julius. Are you not relieved now that you and he have parted?'

    'We did not part,' she corrected. 'We are still friends.'

    'Then I'd advise you to distance yourself from that friendship at once, Dorothy. It was an unfortunate relationship from the start. To continue it now may bring opprobrium down upon you.'

    'I cannot simply desert Sir Julius.'

    'You can and you must.'

    'But he will marshal his defence and seek an acquittal.'

    'Even if he is released,' he told her, sententiously, 'it would be foolish to allow this attachment to continue. Do you wish to be known as the intimate of a man who was lampooned in a play?'

    'It would be cruel to turn my back on him, Orlando.'

    'Cruelty to him, kindness to yourself - and to me.'

    'Stop thinking of yourself all the time,' she said, reproachfully. 'I came in the hope of learning more details of the situation, not to listen to you telling me what to do.'

    'I'm sorry,' he said with an appeasing smile, 'but one must always look at the implications of any action. Let me find out more about the case. If it has reached Maurice's ears, it will be all around the House of Commons by now. Sir Julius will not receive much commiseration from there, I fancy.'

    'That's why I must offer him my sympathy.'

    'No, Dorothy.'

    'It's the least I can do.'

    'The gesture would compromise you.'

    'Sir Julius lies in the Tower, facing some awful charge. Imagine how he must feel, Orlando.' She reached a decision. 'I think that I should visit him.'

    'I forbid it!' he said rising to his feet. 'That was too harsh,' he apologised, waving a hand. 'I've no right to give you any commands, Dorothy. I merely advise you - very strongly - to keep away from Sir Julius Cheever. You'll be contaminated with his crime.'

    'But I'm not even sure that he committed one.'

    'If a warrant was issued, there is a charge to answer.'

    'Discover what it was as soon as you can.'

    'I will,' he promised. 'Meanwhile, dismiss all thoughts of Sir Julius from your mind. I insist upon it. I'll not have a sister of mine entering the Tower to visit a felon.'

    'Sir Julius is no felon, Orlando.'

    'He is in the eyes of the law and that is all that matters.'

       Susan Cheever was still trying to cope with the impact of what had happened. It was only when they were being conducted through the Tower that the full seriousness of her father's situation was borne in upon her. Everywhere she looked were high stone walls and armed guards. Feet rasping on the cobbles, they passed tower after tower, each one more sinister and threatening than the one before. She felt oppressed. Built by William the Conqueror six hundred years earlier, the Tower of London had been associated with royalty ever since. It had seen births, weddings, processions, tournaments, banquets, even a royal menagerie and it had hosted many foreign dignitaries for generations.

    All that Susan could remember was that it was closely allied to death. Murders and executions had left a trail of blood behind them. Kings, queens and leading statesmen had perished there. Notorious prisoners had endured agonising tortures before being released by a merciful death sentence. The ravens that inhabited the Tower were harbingers of disaster, birds of prey that alighted greedily on every fresh grave, noisy spectators to a long succession of horrors. When she saw them, Susan felt a chill descend upon her. It was as if she were a prisoner herself, stripped of any rights or self-respect. Even on such a warm day, she began to shiver.