Owen, who always rode in my party but never beside me, for we had warned ourselves most severely about the dangers of betraying our relationship and to be continually on the watch lest we betray it, made a discovery. He wanted to tell me, but as no opportunity presented itself, he gave the news to Joanna Courcy, asking her to tell me.

“They have captured The Maid,” she said.

“The English?”

“No…not the English. The Burgundians, who were laying siege to Compiègne. Joan was on the march with three or four hundred men on her way to Crépy when she heard that John of Luxembourg, an ally of the Duke of Burgundy, had started to besiege the town. She went to the rescue of the besieged. Some people think there was treachery. There was a good deal of envy, and some of those who should have been her staunchest supporters, being so jealous of her sought to trap her. Many of them got away in boats when the battle was going against them, and Joan with a few others assisted them in their retreat. There is a strong suspicion that her own soldiers may have betrayed her. In any case, the gates of the city were shut before she could get out. She is in the hands of John of Luxembourg and he has taken her to his castle of Beaulieu.”

“I suppose that is the same as being in the hands of the English?”

“Not quite. He will probably ask a ransom for her. He’s Burgundy’s man…and the relationship between Burgundy and the English is at the moment a little strained.”

“Poor girl. I wonder what will happen to her now.”

Joanna shook her head. “It will be the end of her glory, I am sure.”

The Cardinal was clearly overjoyed, so I knew that his indifference to The Maid had been assumed.

I wondered what I should find when I joined my brother-in-law, Bedford, at Rouen.

Such was the state of affairs in France at this time that our journey to Rouen had to proceed with the utmost care. The fact that the King was one of our party meant that no risks must be taken. I thought of my little ones in England. They would be safe, Joanna was constantly assuring me. Guillemote would defend them with her life.

There were rumors about The Maid. She had escaped, said one. She had been recaptured, said another. Then…there had been no escape. She was still the prisoner of the Count of Luxembourg. She would be sold for a large sum of money, that was certain. And who would be ready to pay that large sum of money to get her into their hands? The English! And what would her fate be when she was their prisoner—she, who had been responsible for turning the tide of war against the English? However much they denigrated her, however much they pretended to ridicule her, they must realize the truth of this.

I must admit that my thoughts were mainly occupied with the desire to get back to my children. Moreover, I could not see a great deal of Owen. He had stressed to me the necessity to be careful. But at least there was the comfort of knowing that he was there.

So cautiously we processed on this slow and tedious journey, and although we had landed at Calais in April it was not until July that we arrived in Rouen.

Bedford was there, anxiously awaiting our arrival. He had changed a good deal. He looked careworn and much older. The events of the last year had naturally had their effect on him.

His great concern was for the King, but he greeted me with the kindliness which he had always extended toward me. He was the sort of man who would never forget his brother’s injunctions to look after me, and would carry out his promise to do so to the very best of his abilities. How differently I felt toward him than I did toward his brother Gloucester.

I was delighted to find that his wife was with him. Because of our relationship, Anne of Burgundy and I had seen each other now and then during our childhood, and we had always liked each other. It would have been difficult not to like Anne. She had grown very beautiful, with a beauty which comes from an inner goodness rather than from features.

I was able to talk to her more freely than to other members of the party—except, of course, Joanna Courcy.

She told me how anxious her husband was.

“The situation here,” she said, “is worse than is generally admitted. It is incredible what this Maid has done. She has even aroused Charles from his lethargy sufficiently to get him to agree to a coronation.”

“Poor Charles!” I said. “He never really wanted a crown.”

“Nor did his brother Jean. How strange that so many fight to attain a crown and that those to whom it comes by inheritance would rather someone else had it.”

“Well, there are always many to fight for it. What a strange position we are in!”

“And you and I, Katherine, now owe our allegiance to a new country…and one which was the enemy of our native land. What a mess it all is! I think that, if there had never been this quarrel between Burgundy and Orléans or Armagnacs, everything would have been different.”

“But my husband was determined to take France.”

“And my husband is determined to follow his brother’s wishes.”

“And we are caught up in it. Your case is different from mine, Anne. I was married to Henry as part of a treaty. You married his brother because you loved him.”

“Yes. I was one of the lucky ones. But you loved Henry. John says that Henry was above all other men. It was such a tragedy. John has never got over it. He worshiped his brother.”

“Henry was the sort of man people worshiped.”

She put her hand over mine and pressed it firmly.

I felt an urge to tell her. Do not be sorry for me, I wanted to say, for I have found a greater happiness than I ever had with Henry. If I could be left in peace with my family, there is nothing else I would ask.

I restrained myself. Anne was a good woman; she would be sympathetic, but her first allegiance would be to Bedford, and if she thought I had broken the law—which many might say I had—she would feel it her duty to tell her husband.

And sitting with Anne, I did realize fully that, however unimportant I had been made to feel, I yet remained the Queen, and it could be that the children I had by a second marriage might have some claim to the throne. Henry was the natural heir, of course, but Edmund and Jasper…oh no, the circumstances would have to be very extraordinary for anyone to think for a moment that they could be in line for the throne. But something of that kind must have been behind Gloucester’s reasoning when he had forced that statute through Parliament. Perhaps there was something in his scheming beyond spite. No…no…the idea was too remote.

I said: “Henry and your husband were such great friends. It was wonderful to see the brotherly love between them.”

“I felt they always wanted to protect each other…and themselves, of course. Their father’s hold on the throne was not very secure, and that made them alert for danger. It drew them together as a family.”

“The Duke of Gloucester does not appear to have the same family feeling.”

“There are some who will always work for themselves and see everything as it affects them personally.”

“And Gloucester is one of those.”

There was a pause and at length she said: “He has caused John a great deal of anxiety. I have worried a great deal. My brother is very angry with Gloucester. It affects his relationship with my husband, for my brother is, I believe, the most powerful man in France.”

“I know. There was the proposed duel.”

“Which, fortunately, did not take place.”

“I believe no one intended that it should.”

“No. But the trouble is still there, and Gloucester has caused it. I could not bear to see the friendship between my husband and brother broken.”

I nodded in agreement and she went on: “And now there is The Maid.”

“She is in the hands of Luxembourg.”

“Yes…and I believe he will sell her to the highest bidder.”

“Poor girl!”

“She has wrought great havoc.”

“To the English,” I replied. “To the French she has brought hope.”

Anne looked a little surprised. I could see that she regarded England as her country now. How lucky Bedford was! I felt a pang of envy. I understood completely their love for each other. Was I not blessed with similar devotion? But they did not have to hide their happiness behind a cloak of deception.

“I am so glad that I found you here,” I said.

“I am with John whenever possible,” she replied. “We hate to be separated.”

“Have you any idea how long it will be before Henry is crowned?” I asked.

“John wants it to be soon. He always wanted it to take place in Rheims. It should. That will mean a great deal.”

“Then why do we not go to Rheims? Why do we stay here in Rouen?”

“I will tell you why. Because there is so much disruption in the country. It is not safe to attempt the journey. The King must not be taken into danger.”

“Is it so bad, then? I thought …”

“The situation has changed considerably since The Maid took Orléans. There are pockets of resistance everywhere. John must be absolutely certain that the King could reach Rheims in safety before he attempts to take him there.”

“How can a simple girl have done so much?”

“John says it is the legend she has created. Somehow she has made the people of France believe that she is being guided by God. John says it is not the girl herself. It is the myth surrounding her.”

“But if there is a myth, she has created it.”

“It is the people who have created the myth.”

I could see that in her eyes all that John did and said was right. And I did not attempt to argue the point further.

As the weeks passed, I began to wish that I had made excuses not to come. I had not thought it would be so long. I had imagined that we would go straight to Rheims, the coronation would take place, and we should all return home. I had reckoned on a few months. How different it was! I certainly should have made excuses not to come.

But should I? When I thought of the consequences of discovery, I would be reduced to a state of terror. It was not for myself I worried, and I supposed they would not harm my little ones; it would be Owen they would seize. I saw that I must take every possible precaution against discovery. I must remember this and not grow too impatient at the delay.

It was brought home to me how precarious the situation was when Bedford and Anne left Rouen for a short hunting trip. I cannot think it was solely to hunt. Bedford would be investigating certain parts of the surrounding country, I supposed, testing its safety before allowing the King to move on. But it was no doubt wise to call this foray a hunt.

There was alarm when the members of the hunt came back without the Duke and Duchess. They were struck with horrified amazement to find that they had not returned.

The enemy were in the neighborhood, they said. Could it possibly be that they had fallen into their hands?

While the awful contemplation of what this could mean gripped us all, Anne and Bedford came riding into the castle. Bedford was pale and tight-lipped. Obviously they had been in great danger.

I learned afterward that they had become cut off from the party and had come very close to a company of French soldiers. By good fortune they had managed to keep hidden until the company passed, but it was only due to good luck that they had escaped capture.

It was an indication of the changed condition of the country and how close the enemy were to Rouen.

I was depressed. As Henry was with us and there could be such danger, there was no hope of our leaving Rouen just yet.

Anne told me about the adventure later. She had been very frightened.

“They were very close,” she said. “We could hear their voices. We were lucky to be in a wood where the trees helped to hide us. Just suppose they had captured John! That would surely have been the end. There is no one who could take his place.”

“You will have to be more careful in future.”

“Oh, we shall be. John says we must take precautions before making the journey to Rheims. They will know the little King is with us. John thinks they would certainly make an attempt to capture him.”

I was filled with alarm. “What do you think they would do to him?”

She was silent. I burst out: “He is only a child. What harm has he done? They would kill him…if they caught him.”

“No. They would not dare. The most likely thing is that they would hold him to ransom. Be calm, Katherine. He will not be taken. He is safe here. John would never allow him to be taken. He has sworn a solemn oath to protect the King and serve him with all his strength.”