The document produced far more interest as there had been no mention of it during the debate with the abbot of Tavistock himself. Offering himself as an injured party, the abbot was, it seemed, guilty of inflicting an injury himself by reneging on a transaction. Engelric had produced the king’s writ to prove that an exchange should have taken place. The commissioners were impressed. Having studied the returns for the whole county, they knew that over a thousand estates were surveyed in Devon yet barely a tenth remained in the hands of the men who held them before the Conquest. The fact that Engelric was one of the chosen few showed how much respect he had earned from his new overlords.
‘This man was cheated out of his land by the abbey,’ said de Marigny.
‘I suspect that he was not the only one,’ said Ralph. ‘I will enjoy asking our choleric abbot why he forgot all about this exchange and remembers only the slights inflicted on him.’
‘Let us not get diverted by this,’ warned Hubert, holding the second document. ‘Though this, too, has the feel of authenticity, it does not alter the situation. By diverse means, the holdings at Upton Pyne came into the possession of Nicholas Picard. This old man and the abbot of Tavistock are locking horns in a tussle that neither can win. Later grants make theirs null and void.’
‘Not necessarily, Canon Hubert,’ said Gervase. ‘We do not yet know the substance of the other claims. If they turn out to be fraudulent then the property could still revert to the abbey.’
‘Or to Engelric,’ said Ralph. ‘We must find a just solution.’
‘Ask him why he was allowed to keep his manor,’ suggested de Marigny, eyeing their witness with admiration. ‘He must have been a man of some distinction in his day.’
‘He still is,’ said Gervase.
He spent an hour questioning the old man and extracted a wealth of information from him about the disposition of land before and after the Conquest. In spite of his age, Engelric had a fierce memory for detail. What was most startling was the total lack of bitterness which he displayed. There were no wild accusations, no cries of defiance and no acrimonious recriminations. All that Engelric asked for was land which he once lawfully possessed. Gervase had to curb his natural sympathy for the Saxons and de Marigny had to remind himself that sentiment played no part in judicial decisions, but it was Ralph who was most deeply affected by the evidence that was given.
Engelric’s story was that of Golde’s father. They shared the common fate of so many proud thegns. In listening to the old man’s history, Ralph realised that he might be hearing words from the mouth of his dead father-in-law and it gave him a new insight into the predicament which his wife faced as a young girl in Herefordshire. Canon Hubert was not persuaded that the witness had a legitimate claim but he was quick to plunder the old man’s memory of details relating to other property in the vicinity. Though he might not have advanced his own cause, Engelric had been an immense help to the commissioners.
When it was time to leave, he used the stick to lever himself up again.
‘What will happen now, young man?’ he asked Gervase.
‘Your claim will be considered alongside the others and we will reach a judgement. You will be informed of that decision immediately.’
‘What of my documents?’
‘You may have those back but we may need to see them again.’
Engelric nodded then bestowed an appreciative grin on the table.
‘Thank you for hearing my plea,’ he said politely. ‘I do not have long to live and I would like to have my land restored before I die.’ He looked around warily. ‘A word of warning, friends,’ he hissed. ‘Do not trust the abbot of Tavistock. He takes without giving in exchange. Do not enter into any transactions with him.
He could shame the Devil!’
Gervase smiled, Ralph chuckled and de Marigny asked what the joke was. Gervase’s translation provoked a bout of blustering from Hubert, but the canon soon calmed down. Engelric had been a revelation to them. He was a sure-footed guide through the marshes of property ownership in the county and his insights were invaluable to them. They were sorry to see the old man limp out of the shire hall on his stick.
Saewin hurried through the streets of Exeter to deliver his summons. Uncomfortable memories of his last visit to the house surfaced, but he tried to push them to the back of his mind. This time, at least, he might earn some gratitude. Eldred saw him coming and went into the house to fetch his mistress. The two of them were waiting on the threshold when the reeve came up.
‘Well?’ asked Loretta. ‘Am I summoned?’
‘You soon will be, my lady,’ said Saewin. ‘I came to give you fair warning. The first witness has been examined and sent on his way. The second is now before the commissioners.’
‘Then I am next.’
‘Yes.’
‘Thank you, Saewin. I appreciate your coming in person instead of sending a servant with the message. I will remember this kindness.’
‘That pleases me, my lady.’
‘Engelric has departed, then?’
‘He has,’ he said defensively. ‘But do not ask me what transpired in the shire hall because I am unable to tell you. I take no part in the judicial process. I merely summon the witnesses.’
Loretta smiled. ‘You have already told me what I wished to know.’
‘In confidence.’
‘Yes, Saewin. In confidence.’
She smiled at him again and he felt discomfited. Loretta looked more stately than ever and she was supremely assured. Saewin had forgotten exactly what he had told her about the commissioners, but it seemed to have added a new optimism.
He shifted his feet and tried to excuse himself.
‘How long will it be?’ she enquired.
‘It is impossible to say.’
A studied contempt. ‘She will not detain them for long, surely?’
‘Asa is entitled to advance her claim.’
‘What claim? She has never owned property in her entire life.’
‘The commissoners agreed to hear her.’
‘They might just as well listen to Berold the Jester.’
Saewin winced inwardly. He tried to sound as impartial as he could.
‘Asa has a right to speak,’ he said calmly. ‘They would not have summoned her otherwise. Her claim is somewhat unusual but it is no less valid for that. Your turn will soon come, my lady. It is Asa who is facing the commissioners now.’
‘How do we know that the letter is not a forgery?’ asked Ralph Delchard.
‘I will swear that it is not,’ she said.
‘We need more proof than your word.’
‘Then I will show you another letter from the lord Nicholas.
You can compare the handwriting and see that both were written by him.’
‘Or forged by the same hand.’
‘There was no forgery, my lord.’
‘Do you really claim that Nicholas Picard wrote this?’ he said, holding up the document. ‘What would make a man in his position consider such a strange commitment?’
‘Have you never given a gift to someone you loved, my lord?’
‘Of course. But nothing of this size.’
‘He was generous whereas you are mean.’
Even Hubert smiled at her rebuff. Asa was in no way intimidated by the commissioners. Her manner was composed, her answers clear and unequivocal. Fearing that they might have to use Gervase once more as an interpreter, they were pleasantly surprised to learn that Asa had a good command of Norman French.
It made possible a livelier dialogue.
‘Let us go through it again,’ said Hervey de Marigny as he ran an approving eye over her. ‘We are not trying to catch you out.