City of Fiends Read online

  City of Fiends

  Cover

  Title Page

  Dedication

  Cast of characters Cathedral & Religious

  Paffards

  De Coyntes

  Avices

  Marsilles

  Prologue

  Chapter One Petreshayes Manor, Yarcombe, East Devon Feast of the Nativity of St John the Baptist, first year of the reign of King Edward III

  Marsilles’ House, Exeter

  Petreshayes

  Cooks’ Row, Exeter

  Petreshayes

  Alley beside Paffards’ house

  Chapter Two Paffards’ House

  Alley beside the Paffards’ House

  Petreshayes Manor

  Paffards’ House

  Precentor’s House, Exeter Cathedral Morrow of the Feast of the Nativity of St John the Baptist

  Chapter Three Combe Street, Exeter

  Petreshayes

  Rougemont Castle, Exeter

  Paffards’ House

  Chapter Four Precentor’s House

  Church of the Holy Trinity, South Gate

  Combe Street Friday after the Feast of the Nativity of St John the Baptist

  Cock Inn, South Gate

  Combe Street

  Chapter Five Cock Inn, Southgate Street

  Cook’s Row

  Ottery St Mary

  Paffards’ House Saturday after the Feast of the Nativity of St John the Baptist

  Chapter Six Taunton, Somerset

  Marsilles’ House

  Road south of Wellington

  Chapter Seven Church near Broadclyst Sunday after the Feast of the Nativity of St John the Baptist

  Exeter Cathedral

  Church near Broadclyst

  Exeter North Gate

  Cathedral Close Monday after the Nativity of St John the Baptist

  Chapter Eight Rougemont Castle, Exeter

  Combe Street near Paffards’ House

  Alley near Paffards’ House

  Road east of Exeter

  Combe Street near the alley

  Chapter Nine Rougemont Castle

  Combe Street

  Edith’s House, St Pancras Lane

  Chapter Ten Combe Street

  Road east of Exeter

  Near alley at Combe Street

  Rougemont Castle

  Combe Street

  Chapter Eleven De Coyntes’ House

  Precentor’s House, Cathedral Close

  Holy Trinity Church

  Chapter Twelve St Pancras Lane

  Rougemont Castle

  Paffards’ House

  Chapter Thirteen Paffards’ House

  Chapter Fourteen Paffards’ House

  Combe Street

  Chapter Fifteen Cock Inn, Southgate Street

  Paffards’ House

  Chapter Sixteen Cock Inn

  Paffards’ House

  Church of the Holy Trinity

  Paffards’ House

  Chapter Seventeen Cock Inn Tuesday after the Nativity of St John the Baptist

  Combe Street

  Precentor’s House, Exeter Cathedral

  Marsilles’ House

  Chapter Eighteen Holy Trinity Church

  Edith’s House, St Pancras Lane

  Paffards’ House

  Combe Street

  Chapter Nineteen Road east of Exeter

  Exeter Cathedral

  Avices’ House

  Precentor’s House

  Chapter Twenty Paffards’ House

  Marsilles’ House

  Precentor’s House

  Combe Street

  Chapter Twenty-one Church of the Holy Trinity

  Combe Street

  Paffards’ House

  Cock lnn

  Paffards’ House

  Chapter Twenty-two Alley off Combe Street

  Paffards’ House

  Chapter Twenty-three Marsilles’ House

  Farm near Clyst St George

  Paffards’ House

  Chapter Twenty-four Paffards’ House

  Exeter Cathedral Wednesday after the Nativity of St John the Baptist

  Talbot’s Inn

  Chapter Twenty-five Precentor’s House

  Church of the Holy Trinity

  Cathedral Close

  Holy Trinity Church

  Alley off Combe Street

  Chapter Twenty-six Rougemont Castle

  Alley off Combe Street

  Alley off Combe Street

  East Gate

  Chapter Twenty-seven Rougemont Castle

  Near Clyst St George

  Gatehouse to Rougemont Castle

  Near Clyst St George

  Chapter Twenty-eight Paffards’ House

  Near Clyst St George

  Paffards’ House

  Outside the Paffards’ House

  Chapter Twenty-nine Near Clyst St Mary

  Rougemont Castle

  Cock Inn

  Chapter Thirty Bishop’s Clyst

  Cock Inn

  Rougemont Castle

  Precentor’s House

  Chapter Thirty-one Paffards’ House

  Marsilles’ House Second Thursday after the Nativity of St John the Baptist

  Rougemont Castle

  Chapter Thirty-two Venn Ottery

  Clyst St Mary

  Combe Street

  Venn Ottery

  De Coyntes’ House

  Chapter Thirty-three Venn Ottery

  Venn Ottery

  Chapter Thirty-four Venn Ottery

  De Coyntes’ House

  Venn Ottery

  Chapter Thirty-five Paffards’ House

  Venn Ottery

  Marsilles’ House

  Exeter

  Chapter Thirty-six Exeter Cathedral Second Friday after the Nativity of St John the Baptist

  Paffards’ House

  Paffards’ House

  Exeter Cathedral

  Chapter Thirty-seven Marsilles’ House

  City Gaol, East Gate

  Exeter Gaol at East Gate

  Marsilles’ House

  Chapter Thirty-eight Combe Street

  East Gate

  Paffards’ House

  Marsilles’ House

  Talbot’s Inn

  Paffards’ House

  Chapter Thirty-nine Marsilles’ House

  Exeter Gaol

  Paffards’ House

  High Street

  Chapter Forty Cock Inn

  Paffards’ House

  Exeter Gaol

  Chapter Forty-one High Street

  Paffards’ House

  Exeter Gaol

  Chapter Forty-two Combe Street

  Exeter Gaol

  Paffards’ House

  Chapter Forty-three Combe Street

  Paffards’ House

  Southgate Street

  Combe Street

  Chapter Forty-four Carfoix

  Paffards’ House

  Smythen Lane

  Combe Street

  Chapter Forty-five Paffards’ House

  Combe Street

  Paffards’ House

  Paffards’ House

  Chapter Forty-six Paffards’ House

  Paffards’ House

  Chapter Forty-seven Paffards’ House

  Cock Inn

  Church of the Holy Trinity

  Chapter Forty-eight Precentor’s House Second Saturday after the Nativity of St John the Baptist

  Cathedral Close

  Chapter Forty-nine Cowley Ford Second Tuesday after the Nativity of St John the Baptist

  Stepecoat Street

  Paffards’ House

  Furnshill

  Road to Bristol

  Glossary

  Author’s Note


  The Last Templar Mysteries

  About the Author

  Also by Michael Jecks

  Copyright

  Cover

  Table of Contents

  Start of Content

  This book is for Andy, Jenny, and all the BERTS Frangles, for ales, for Morris dancing, for cycling, and for all the fun.

  You are the best of neighbours.

  Cast of characters

  Sir Baldwin de Furnshill: Keeper of the King’s Peace and keen investigator of felonies.

  Edgar: Sir Baldwin’s loyal Sergeant.

  Simon Puttock: once a bailiff of Dartmoor, now a farmer near Crediton and friend to Sir Baldwin.

  Edith: Simon’s daughter.

  Peter: Edith’s husband.

  Henry: Edith and Peter’s baby.

  Hugh: Simon’s servant.

  Sir Richard de Welles: Coroner in Lifton.

  Sir Reginald: Coroner in Exeter.

  Sir James de Cockington: Sheriff of Exeter.

  Luke Chepman: successful merchant and member of the Freedom of Exeter.

  Sir Charles of Lancaster: the loyal servant of the Lancaster family, he has become a committed supporter of the former King, Edward II.

  Ulric of Exeter: servant to Sir Charles.

  Cathedral & Religious

  Adam Murimuth: Precentor and Canon at Exeter Cathedral.

  Fr Laurence Coscumbe: Vicar within the Cathedral.

  Fr Paul: Vicar of Holy Trinity at the South Gate.

  Janekyn Beyvyn: porter responsible for all the gates to the Cathedral Close.

  Paffards

  Henry Paffard: a wealthy merchant in Exeter.

  Claricia Paffard: Henry’s long-suffering wife.

  Gregory Paffard: eldest son of Henry and Claricia.

  Agatha: the second child, with the most business acumen.

  Thomas: the third child, a boy of six years.

  John: old bottler to the family.

  Benjamin: Henry Paffard’s apprentice.

  Alice: maid to the Paffards.

  Joan: younger maid.

  De Coyntes

  Bydaud de Coyntes: Gascon merchant.

  Emma de Coyntes: Bydaud’s wife.

  Anastasia: Bydaud’s eldest daughter.

  Sabina: Bydaud’s younger daughter.

  Peg: maid to the de Coyntes family.

  Avices

  Roger Avice: dealer in good wines, who has suffered from debts.

  Helewisia Avice: Roger’s wife; a determined woman from farming stock.

  Katherine: their daughter of sixteen.

  Piers: their son, who died two years before.

  Marsilles

  Juliana Marsille: widow, who struggles to survive.

  Philip: her eldest son, who is trying to build up his family’s business again.

  William: aged sixteen, he is determined to help his brother and mother.

  Prologue

  Relationships are always changing. Sometimes their adjustments are so gradual, we hardly notice them; occasionally they are shattered by shocks that devastate all concerned, but whether they alter with glacial or lightning speed, the effect can be profound.

  In a family, in a village, in a city, the connections that matter most are those with our nearest family and friends, yet they are the ones which are tested daily. These are the people whom we can most easily upset – and yet they are the very ones upon whom we most depend.

  Disputes can occur at the drop of a hat: a misinterpreted expression, a careless word, a hand held too long – all can lead to sharp words, bitterness and rancour.

  Reconciliation may be straightforward if attempted with speed, but it is less certain when allowed to fester. It is better, so they say, not to sleep on a quarrel. But all too often men and women lie weeping into the night over cruel words. Words which were uttered in the heat of the moment and which were never intended to have a lasting impact; or worse, words which were precisely considered – and all the more vicious as a result.

  In the year 1327, all over the kingdom people went about their business in a state of constant worry because they feared what the future might bring.

  Their King, Edward II, had been forced to abdicate.

  The uncertain political situation affected everyone: the merchants and traders of Exeter, just as much as elsewhere in the realm. In such a climate, even mild-mannered people became uncharacteristically quick to take offence; disagreements abounded and could grow into outright feuds, petty disputes into fist-fights. Even murder.

  In one street in Exeter that June, an argument that arose from an ill-considered reckless threat grew to dominate the lives of all about and escalated into a disaster that would overwhelm them all with hideous acts of violence. All for love, for loyalty, or for honour.

  And none of those who were intimate with the victims or protagonists would be untouched by the consequences.

  Chapter One

  Petreshayes Manor, Yarcombe, East Devon

  Feast of the Nativity of St John the Baptist1, first year of the reign of King Edward III

  The smoke could be seen clearly from half a mile away. In the still air of the summer’s evening, the columns rose from the manor’s fires like pillars supporting the sky.

  ‘Hold!’ commanded Sir Charles of Lancaster, peering ahead. There was no sign of alarm. A wood on their left offered some protection, while to the right there were some fields, pasture, common land. All ideal for pursuing their victims, should they escape.

  ‘Here we are, boys,’ he breathed.

  His men stared. There was a heightened tension, the awareness of an imminent fight. Breath rasped, and he heard the soft hiss of a blade being drawn, the jangle of bit, the squeak of leather, the hollow clop of a hoof.

  ‘That’s the manor,’ his guide said. Wat Bakere was a rotund, smiling man, but he wore a scowl today. ‘You’ll find it easy to overrun. Kill them all.’ He was pointing at the church and manorial buildings over at the other side of the dirt road. It curled about the line of the manor, which was a prominent landmark.

  ‘You’re sure they are there?’

  ‘Ulric told you, didn’t he? He said they would be,’ Bakere said, jerking a thumb at the lad behind him.

  Sir Charles nodded.

  He was a tall man, fair and handsome as a Viking, and ruthless as a berserker. During the last civil war he had fought against the King for his lord, Thomas of Lancaster, and when Earl Lancaster was executed, Sir Charles had been exiled. That was five years ago, and when he begged for a pardon for his offences, his King had been gracious. He was rewarded with positions of trust, and given a living once more.

  He asked for no more; he had given his word and his hand to his King, so when Edward II was captured by his enemies, Sir Charles became a recusant knight. He would not renege on the new oaths he had given his King. Instead he left the comfortable billet in the King’s manor at Eltham where he had lived for the last months, and rode into the twilight to take up arms on the King’s behalf.

  Now the King’s son had taken the throne, Sir Charles was a renegade. A felon. Because he would hold to his vow.

  Today, with his band of warriors committed to the King, he would begin the fight to return Sir Edward of Caernarfon, as he was now labelled, to his natural place on the throne of England.

  Sir Charles looked at Ulric of Exeter. He was more trustworthy than Wat Bakere. Bakere had been given to him by Stephen Dunheved, a man who appreciated the value of good information, but it was Ulric, the merchant’s fellow, who had brought the details. Returning his gaze to Bakere, he nodded.

  ‘You were the baker at this manor?’

  Bakere rolled his eyes impatiently. ‘Yes. I told you – I’d been here two years when I left a fortnight ago.’

  ‘But even then you heard that the Bishop and his entourage were to come here?’

  ‘Yes.’ Wat looked up at him, his eyes creased in sardonic amusement. ‘You don’t know what it’s like. They hear their lord’s coming to vi
sit, and all hell is let loose! Rooms must be cleaned, beasts must be slaughtered, money must be counted and recounted, food stores checked so the master can see nothing’s been lost or stolen… there’s no peace for anyone. As soon as his visit was announced, the villeins were driven lunatic by the steward’s demands. So was I. I needed more flour for their food, and the steward was never willing to—’

  ‘What makes a man like you become disloyal to his master, I wonder?’

  ‘I owe them nothing!’

  ‘I see,’ Sir Charles said languidly. He suspected that Wat had been found with his hand in the food bin. Bakers were notorious for making undersized loaves, keeping back the excess flour to sell, or making their own loaves larger than those for others. A greedy little man, this Wat.

  He turned his attention back to Ulric. The scrawny wretch was looking miserable. It was he who had brought confirmation that Bishop James Berkeley was heading this way, and now he knew the consequences of his report, he was regretting it. The lad was too young; he needed his spine stiffened.