One of the guards stepped before her. ‘My lady ...’
She looked at him questioningly. Something was wrong, she knew. She stepped past him and opened the door.
David was there; he was seated on his chair and at his feet on a stool sat a woman, with dark hair falling loose about her bare shoulders over which her gown had slipped down.
‘David! ‘ she began.
He did not look round.
‘It is the Queen returned from her mission,’ he said.
The woman did not look either. She merely laughed.
‘What does this mean?’ cried Joanna, her heart sinking, her mind telling her what she knew full well. This was the meaning of her attendants’ embarrassed looks, the seeking to detain her from coming to her husband’s apartments.
‘What does what mean?’ asked David languidly.
She had come forward and faced them now. She saw the table on which was food and wine. One of the goblets was overturned and the wine trickled over the table.
‘Who is this woman?’
The woman rose and dropped a curtsey which was full of mockery.
‘Katherine Mortimer my lady at your service—and the King’s,’ she said.
‘And who ... ?’
‘You might say the King’s friend,’ was the answer. Joanna stepped back, her face flushed.
‘I ... I think I understand,’ she said, and walked from the room.
Neither of them moved. She heard them laughing as she went out of the room.
Back in her own apartment she dismissed her women.
It cannot be true, she said to herself. But she knew it was. This was worse than Château Gaillard. There it had been furtive, petty infidelities, which he had made half-hearted attempts to keep from her. This was blatant insult.
She had deceived herself, of course. He would never change. He was weak; he was licentious, a profligate. What hope was there for their marriage? What hope for Scotland? She had been deceived throughout her life. She was foolish; everyone must be laughing at her. They would have known what he was; and she, the one who had thought herself closest to him, was the one who saw least.
The Countess of Carrick was asking to come in.
She was a member of the Bruce family and had been a good friend to Joanna through her troubles. Now she looked at her with great sympathy.
‘You have discovered then,’ she said now. ‘Oh my poor Joanna! ‘
‘Who is the woman?’
‘A low creature whom he met in England. She shared his prison with him.’
‘He has been faithful to her for a long time,’ said Joanna bitterly.
‘She followed him to Scotland. She has been openly with him since you went away.’
‘I shall not endure it.’
‘What shall you do? He’s the King. He will act as he pleases.’
‘What do the people think?’
‘They are ashamed for him. They speak so highly of you. They do not like it—but he does not care.’
‘I cannot stay here and suffer these insults to continue,’ said Joanna. ‘I shall go to England. I will send a messenger at once to ask my brother’s permission to stay at his Court.’
‘It is the best thing,’ said the Countess. ‘I will come with you. I do not care to stay here and see a member of my family behave in this way ... even though he is the King. I wonder what his father would think of him if he were living today.’
‘If he were,’ said Joanna mirthlessly, ‘David would not be King of Scotland.’
‘Aye and Scotland a happier country than it is under the son of Robert the Bruce.’
‘I shall prepare to leave at once,’ said Joanna, ‘for I am determined I shall not stay here to be insulted.’
‘We will leave tomorrow and make our way south. I am prepared because I knew what you would find and what you would feel.’
‘Thank you, Annabella. It is good to have friends. Now, let us make our preparations to leave.’
Edward and Philippa greeted Joanna with a warm welcome. Edward was furious that his sister should have been treated so and said that a residence should be found for her and she should have an income so that she could be completely independent of her husband.
Meanwhile David, learning of his wife’s departure and knowing full well the reason for it, was greatly disconcerted. When he rode out the people were sullen and silent; now and then he heard voices raised against him. The Earl of Mar and several of the lords showed clearly their disapproval of his actions which had led to Joanna’s departure and the Earl pointed out the effect this was going to have on the King of England. The terms Edward had imposed were harsh enough but there was always a possibility that they might be modified. What hope was there of getting Edward to agree to this leniency when his sister had been grossly insulted?
Edward was a stern enemy; he was also a family man, and always most angry if any harm came to those close to him.
Distracted, David was ready to do what he could to remedy the situation except one thing. He would not give up Katherine Mortimer. When the Earl of Mar suggested she be sent back to England he was adamant and declared he would stand out against them all rather than lose Katherine.
The Earl could see that he could well lose his kingdom through that woman and a kingdom without a king could lead to all sorts of trouble. His advice—and this was supported by most of the lords and counsellors—was that David should go at once to England and beg his wife to return with him.
‘It may be,’ said the Earl, out of the King’s hearing, ‘that if he is separated from Katherine Mortimer for a while he might escape from her wiles. It is a chance.’
‘Go to England!’ cried David. ‘Beg Joanna to return. That I will not do.’
‘My lord, you must do this. The Queen is a peace-loving, gentle lady. When she sees what her absence means to Scotland she will return to you. You need not go in too supplicating a manner. You can save that for when you are alone with the Queen. It is known throughout the land that we cannot meet the next instalment of your ransom, so let it be thought that you come to the King to beg him to give you time to raise the money. It is a plausible reason. But the main object is of course to bring the Queen back.’
David was at last persuaded and he set out with a party of eighty horse headed by the Earl of Mar.
It was too much to expect Edward to receive him at Court and he took up his quarters at the priory of Holborn, from where he sent a message to Joanna begging her most humbly to come to the priory to see him.
She came and found him in a very different mood from when she had last seen him. He looked at her apologetically.
‘My dear Joanna,’ he said, ‘I fear I was the worse for wine when we were last together. I want to ask your forgiveness.’
She was silent.
He took her hand which she allowed to remain limply in his. He began to exert his charm, to try to win her confidence. He did not understand Joanna. She was gentle and she hated conflict; she was prepared to endure a good deal in the cause of duty; but she was not weak. And she would never be deceived by him again. He made the mistake of confusing gentleness with weakness. He had to learn that when a woman of Joanna’s nature had made up her mind she could show a firmness of which he could never be capable.
‘You may spare your efforts,’ she said coolly. ‘You want me to come and stay here while you are here because of the effect it will create. I will do so. But do not think there shall be the slightest degree of intimacy between us. I will be with you at ceremonies and that is all. I will help plead the cause of Scotland with the King my brother but I no longer regard myself as wife to you and never shall.’
This seemed victory to David. She would live under the same roof. It would only be a matter of time he was sure before he cajoled her into returning to Scotland with him. And when there she would perforce accept the presence of Katherine. It would not be the first time that a queen had had to agree to live side by side with her husband’s mistress.