A Summer of Discontent

As they talked, Prior Alan strolled towards them with a distinctly uneven gait, and informed Bartholomew and Henry that his hip always ached when he spent too much time climbing on scaffolding — which he said he had been doing that day to oversee the work on Holy Cross Church. Henry offered him a poultice, and they disappeared inside the hospital together.

‘I wonder if his climbs on scaffolding extend to pushing gargoyles on bishops’ nieces,’ muttered Bartholomew as they went on their way.

‘No one tried to kill Tysilia, Matt,’ said Michael. ‘De Lisle was distraught, and was making unfounded accusations in his grief.’ He looked thoughtful for a moment. ‘Of course, it would have been difficult for Blanche to extricate herself from that indictment, given that she publicly threatened to kill Tysilia — the day we found Robert, remember? — and that she had a grudge against de Lisle because of Glovere.’

‘Do you think de Lisle arranged to have the stone pushed himself, so he would be able to accuse Blanche of dirty tricks?’

Michael seriously considered the possibility. ‘If so, then the pusher would have had to be a man he trusted, because he would not have wanted the pig to land on him by mistake. But Ralph was with you, and so I do not think that a likely scenario, Matt.’

‘Is Ralph the only man he would depend on for such a thing?’

‘Yes, I think so. But, unlikely though it sounds, de Lisle loves Tysilia and I do not believe he would risk harming her.’

‘De Lisle is certain it was not an accident. It seems that the north-west transept was actually reasonably safe, but rumours were circulated that it was not. I asked Henry about it, and he thinks the rumours originated with John and Leycestre. Leycestre is obviously good at spreading tales that benefit him.’

‘But it was not safe,’ Michael pointed out. ‘There were bits of broken stone all over the floor, and a pig dropped on Tysilia’s head.’

‘Then they were pushed deliberately, to maintain the illusion of instability. It was not so much the building that fell anyway — it was the scaffolding that was supposed to be shoring it up.’

‘But why did Alan, who is an excellent engineer, say nothing to contradict these rumours?’

‘Because he hopes some wealthy pilgrim will be so appalled by the state of the cathedral that he will donate funds for its restoration. He said as much when we first arrived. Alan seems as dishonest as Robert where money for his engineering is concerned.’

‘He is obsessed with it,’ agreed Michael. ‘But here we are, at the latrines. This is a pleasant way to pass an evening. Why did I allow you to drag me from a perfectly good meal for this?’

‘To catch your killer, Brother. And speaking of killers, if you look towards the Prior’s House, you will see Agnes Fitzpayne meeting Alan. I wager you anything you choose that her presence here is the first stage in the plan to rob the priory. The theft is under way.’

‘Is it my imagination, or is she limping?’ asked Michael, peering through the gloom of dusk to where Bartholomew pointed.

‘She is limping,’ said Bartholomew. ‘But she is wearing her best clothes for her assignation with Prior Alan, and it is possible that her shoes pinch. There is Welles. He is limping, too.’

‘So he is,’ said Michael. ‘But he was not doing so earlier. The more I look around me, the more I realise that many folk walk in a way that is extremely odd. I have never noticed it before, but people really do have distinctive gaits.’

Bartholomew saw that Michael was right, and was aware of a slight throb in his own back, probably as a result of pulling William from the water the previous day.

‘What will you do about that gold thread we found in William’s cross?’ asked Bartholomew, squinting up to where the first stars were beginning to gleam in a sky that was just turning from light to dark blue. ‘Will you question Guido about it?’

‘Yes, of course. But whoever killed William battered him over the head — no blades were inserted in his neck. This makes me suspect — rightly or wrongly — that William’s killer is different to the others’. So, Guido can wait until tomorrow. Today, I want to catch the neck-stabber.’

‘Guido may not be here tomorrow,’ warned Bartholomew. ‘He will have taken the money offered by Leycestre and left.’

‘Then I will follow him. The clan owns a number of carts — his tracks will not be hard to find.’

‘I am not so sure about that. Leycestre is unlikely to pay someone to disappear who will be easily found. Once Guido leaves Ely, you may never see him again.’

‘That may be true elsewhere, but not here,’ said Michael confidently. ‘There are a limited number of paths through the Fens, and people with heavy carts can hardly load them all on to boats. They will not go far.’