I had no option; her growing physical distress was obvious. But in any case the mention of her home village had made me more willing to assist her. ‘I was in Keynsham the night before last,’ I remarked casually. ‘A guest of Sir Lionel Despenser.’ She shot me an incredulous, sidelong glance which lingered pointedly over my homespun clothes. ‘I was looking for a man recently in his employ, a Gloucester man, Walter Gurney, Sir Lionel’s head groom. But he seems to have disappeared.’
As we started down St Mary le Port Street, my companion paused for a moment to catch her breath, palpably excited. ‘Ay,’ she said. ‘Now that were strange. Master Gurney used to drink in the local ale-house now and again. A bit high and mighty my Jacob said — Jacob’s my goodman, you understand — but he’d every right to be. It seems he were a wonder with horses. Sir Lionel were overheard to boast he were the best groom he’d ever had. As for Master Gurney himself, he told my Jacob he was settled for life. He’d never leave Sir Lionel. Not ever. And then a day or so later, he’s gone. No one knows where.’
I mulled this over, while we continued at our snail’s pace down the street. It seemed highly unlikely to me that after such a positive statement as the groom was said to have made, he would have been frightened away by the news that I was about to visit him. He had no reason to think me an emissary of Jane Spicer. And even if he had, he had only to stand his ground and refuse to return to Gloucester, to declare that he was finished with his former life, and what could I have done? Nothing! So why his precipitate flight? It made no sense. And things which made no sense bothered me.
My companion had stopped at a house halfway down the street. ‘This is my sister’s,’ she grunted. ‘Thank you, kindly young man. I won’t trouble you further.’ She was in the act of raising a hand to the knocker when she paused and turned back.
‘I’ll tell you something else Master Gurney told my Jacob, which my goodman thought odd. He said he hadn’t come all the way from Gloucester to offer his services to Sir Lionel just because he’d heard that he was looking for a new head groom. He said he’d come because their two families were. . now how did he put it? Because their two families were linked together — yes, that was it! — were linked together by the past. Now, what do you think he could have meant by that?’
I said I had no idea, but my pulse was racing. I was remembering Henry Callowhill’s words; that he thought there was some connection between the names of Despenser and Gurney.
I was just turning away when I thought to ask my new-found acquaintance’s name.
‘Elizabeth Shoesmith,’ she told me. ‘My goodman’s the village cobbler.’ She gave another wheeze. ‘If you’re in Keynsham again, come and see me. Anyone’ll tell you where our cottage is.’
I thanked her, waited to see her safely inside her sister’s house and then walked thoughtfully back the way I had come.
I was fortunate this time in being admitted at once into the goldsmith’s presence and although his greeting was not effusive, he nevertheless treated me with civility.
‘Master Chapman!’ I had ceased for the moment, I noticed, to be Roger. ‘This is a pleasant surprise. What can I do for you?’
‘You’ve heard about Lawyer Heathersett’s house being broken into last night and himself attacked I suppose?’
‘I have indeed. A lamentable business, and I should have visited him ’ere this had it not been for the Wardens’ Service at St Peter’s.’ He indicated his cloak and hat thrown down on a nearby chair. ‘I was just about to set out when you were announced, and I. .’
‘I understand from Sergeant Manifold that your house, too, was targeted last night,’ I interrupted ruthlessly.
His eyebrows shot up in annoyance, but he answered smoothly enough. ‘I should have expected better of Dick Manifold than to spread my business around this town, but since you ask, yes, there was an attempt to force an entrance through one of the windows last night. One of the shutters in the buttery was found to be half off its hinges this morning, but the thief had obviously been disturbed and made off in a hurry. I’ve very recently had a new consignment of specially fine wine delivered by Master Callowhill. News gets around. No doubt the thief was after a few bottles to sell.’
I shook my head. ‘Forgive me for doubting you, Master Foliot, but you and Lawyer Heathersett were not the only people to suffer the attentions of would-be intruders last night. Someone tried to break into my house, as well.’
The goldsmith exclaimed in astonishment. ‘Sweet Virgin! You, too? This must be some new gang infesting the Bristol streets. I must have a word with the sheriff immediately. The members of the Watch must be increased. Was anything stolen?’
‘No, only a shutter removed from the kitchen window. Luckily, my wife, who, like most women, sleeps with one ear open for the children, heard the noise and roused me. Between us, my dog and I would have caught the man had my younger son not decided to take a hand. I regret to say that he stumbled over a bowl of water on the floor and so alerted our would-be thief, who promptly ran away.’
Gilbert Foliot frowned slightly. ‘You have a dog?’
I laughed. ‘If you can dignify him with that name. As a matter of fact, he was with me when Master Callowhill and I called here last night, but I left him outside for fear of his dirtying your floors. He was one of the curs that run wild upon the downs above Bristol. Some few years back he attached himself to me, refused to be shaken off and through sheer persistence became one of the family. A scrap of a thing, but with a fierce bark and very sharp teeth. We call him Hercules.’
‘Because he isn’t? Yes, I see.’ There was a fleeting smile, then the frown returned deeper than before. My companion reached for his cloak. ‘Now, if you’ll excuse me, Roger’ — it seemed we were on Christian name terms again — ‘I must go at once to see the sheriff. This is a veritable rash of attempted robberies and must be attended to.’
I put out a hand to detain him and was rewarded with another of his haughty stares. ‘Master Foliot,’ I said, ‘there is something else you must know. Yesterday evening, before Master Callowhill and I came to see you, we walked past your shop in St Mary le Port Street and thought we saw a light in the upper floor. At the time, we both imagined we must have been mistaken, so said nothing. But later, after I had parted from Master Callowhill, I went back.’ I then proceeded to tell him all that had happened subsequently, but without saying anything about recognizing the man or where I thought I had seen him before.
‘And you say this man let himself out with a key?’
‘Yes.’
‘And he boarded a vessel bound for Brittany?’
‘So it would seem.’
‘You’re absolutely certain of this?’
‘Not absolutely, no. Sergeant Manifold could find no trace of the man onboard the Breton ship, which could mean one of three things. Either he had been disguised as a member of the crew, or he was hidden very securely where no one would think to search for him, or he had, by that time, disembarked and returned to the city.’ This last possibility had only just occurred to me and I wondered that I had not thought of it before. The man could simply have passed on a message to the captain and left.
‘And who do you think this stranger might be?’ Gilbert Foliot asked uneasily, chewing on one of his thumbnails.
‘A Breton ship,’ I said, a little hesitantly, ‘suggests a Tudor agent.’
The goldsmith nodded, his face grim. ‘It does indeed, a fact worrying enough in itself. But even more worrying for me is how this man came to have a key to my shop and the living quarters above. . You are certain that he had a key?’
‘I’m certain. I heard it turn in the lock of the side door before he let himself out.’ But was I certain? Was my memory playing me false? ‘The fellow must have got in somehow,’ I urged.
Gilbert Foliot was now gnawing at the other thumbnail.