Page 329 of A Column of Fire

Someone had told them that Grandpa Ned knew everything, and his great-grandchildren often came running into the parlour with questions. He was endlessly intrigued by what they asked him: How long does it take to get to Egypt? Did Jesus have a sister? What’s the biggest number?

He watched them with intense pleasure, fascinated by the random nature of family resemblances: one had Barney’s roguish charm, another Alice’s relentless determination, and one little girl brought tears to his eyes when she smiled just like Margery.

Inherited traits showed themselves in other ways, too. Alfo was mayor of Kingsbridge, as his grandfather Edmund had been. Roger was a member of King James’s Privy Council. Over at New Castle, Earl Swifty was, sadly, as much of a swaggering bully as Swithin, Bart and Bartlet had been.

The family had grown like a spreading tree, and Ned and Margery had watched its progress together, until her life had come to a peaceful end three years ago. Ned still talked to her sometimes, when he was alone. ‘Alfo has bought the Slaughterhouse Tavern,’ he would say as he got into bed at the end of the day. Or again: ‘Little Eddie is as tall as me, now.’ It hardly mattered that she made no reply: he knew what she would have thought. ‘Money sticks to Alfo like honey on his fingers,’ she would have said, and: ‘Eddie will be after girls any day now.’

Ned had not been to London for years, and would never go again. Strangely enough, he did not pine for the excitement of tracking down spies and traitors, nor for the challenges and intrigues of government. It was the theatre he missed. He had loved plays ever since he saw the story of Mary Magdalene performed at New Castle on that Twelfth Day of Christmas so long ago. But a play was a rare event in Kingsbridge: travelling companies came only once or twice a year, to perform in the yard of the Bell Inn. Ned’s consolation was that he had some of his favourite plays in book form, so he could read them. There was one writer he particularly enjoyed, though he could never remember the fellow’s name. He forgot a lot of things these days.

He had a book on his lap now, and he had fallen asleep over it. Wondering what had awakened him, he looked up to see a young man with Margery’s curly dark hair: his grandson, Jack, the son of Roger. He smiled. Jack was like Margery in other ways: good-looking and charming and feisty – and far too earnest about religion. His extremism had gone in the direction opposite to Margery’s and he was some kind of Puritan. This caused bad-tempered rows with his pragmatic father.

Jack was twenty-seven and single. To the surprise of his family he had chosen to be a builder, and had prospered. There were famous builders in the family’s past: heritage again, perhaps.

Now he sat in front of Ned and said: ‘I have some important news, Grandfather. I’m going away.’

‘Why? You have a successful business here in Kingsbridge.’

‘The king makes life uncomfortable for those of us who take the teachings of the Bible seriously.’

What he meant was that he and his Puritan friends stubbornly disagreed with the English Church on numerous points of doctrine, and King James was as intolerant of them as he was of Catholics.

‘I’ll be very sorry to see you go, Jack,’ Ned said. ‘You remind me of your grandmother.’

‘I’ll be sorry to say goodbye. But we want to live in a place where we can do God’s will without interference.’

‘I spent my life trying to make England that kind of country.’

‘But it’s not, is it?’

‘It’s more tolerant than any other place, as far as I know. Where would you go in search of greater freedom?’

‘The New World.’

‘God’s body!’ Ned was shocked. ‘I didn’t think you were going that far. Sorry about the bad language, you startled me.’

Jack nodded acknowledgement of the apology. He disapproved almost as much as the Catholics of the blasphemous exclamations Ned had learned from Queen Elizabeth; but he said no more about it. ‘A group of us have decided to sail to the New World and start a colony there.’

‘What an adventure! It’s the kind of thing your grandmother Margery would have loved to do.’ Ned felt envious of Jack’s youth and boldness. Ned himself would never travel again. Luckily he had rich memories – of Calais, of Paris, of Amsterdam. He recalled every detail of those journeys even when he could not remember what day of the week it was.

Jack was saying: ‘Although James will continue to be our king theoretically, we hope he will take less interest in how we choose to worship, since it will be impossible for him to enforce his rules at such a distance.’

‘I dare say you’re right. I wish you well.’

‘Pray for us, please.’

‘I will. Tell me the name of your ship, so that I can ask God to watch over it.’

‘It’s called theMayflower.’

‘TheMayflower. I must try to remember that.’

Jack went to the writing table. ‘I’ll note it down for you. I want us to be in your prayers.’

‘Thank you.’ It was oddly touching that Jack cared so much about Ned’s prayers.

Jack wrote on a scrap of paper and put down the pen. ‘I must leave you, now – I’ve got so much to do.’

‘Of course. I’m feeling tired, anyway. I may take a little nap.’