Page 123 of The Pillars of the Earth

Aliena was angry. They were mocking her when all she wanted was to find an honest way to earn a penny. The master was thoroughly enjoying making a fool of her, she knew. He would probably keep it up as long as she let him. But he would never employ her or Richard. “Thank you for your courtesy,” she said with heavy sarcasm, and she turned and walked away.

Richard was upset. “It was heavy because it was so wet!” he said. “I wasn’t expecting that.”

Aliena realized she had to stay cheerful, to keep Richard’s morale up. “That’s not the only kind of work there is,” she said as she strode along the muddy street. “What else could we do?”

Aliena did not answer immediately. They reached the north wall of the city and turned left, heading west. The poorest houses were here, built up against the wall, often no more than lean-to shacks; and because they had no backyards the street was filthy. Eventually Aliena said: “Remember how girls used to come to the castle, sometimes, when there was no room for them at home anymore and they had no husband yet? Father would always take them in. They worked in the kitchens or the laundry or the stables, and Father used to give them a penny on saint’s days.”

“Do you think we could live at Winchester Castle?” Richard said dubiously.

“No. They won’t take people in while the king’s away—they must have more people than they need. But there are lots of rich folk in the city. Some of them must want servants.”

“It’s not man’s work.”

Aliena wanted to sayWhy don’t you come up with some ideas yourself, instead of just finding fault with everything I say?But she bit her tongue and said: “It only wants one of us to work long enough to get a penny, then we can see Father and ask him what we should do next.”

“All right.” Richard was not averse to the idea of only one of them working, especially if the one was likely to be Aliena.

They turned left again and entered the section of the city called the Jewry. Aliena stopped outside a big house. “They must have servants in there,” she said.

Richard was shocked. “You wouldn’t work for Jews, would you.”

“Why not? You don’t catch people’s heresy the way you catch their fleas, you know.”

Richard shrugged and followed her inside.

It was a stone house. Like most city homes, it had a narrow frontage but reached back a long way. They were in an entrance hall that was the full width of the house. There was a fire and some benches. The smell from the kitchen made Aliena’s mouth water, although it was different from regular cooking, with a hint of alien spices. A young girl came from the back of the house and greeted them. She had dark skin and brown eyes, and she spoke respectfully. “Do you want to see the goldsmith?”

So that was what he was. “Yes, please,” said Aliena. The girl disappeared again and Aliena looked around. A goldsmith would need a stone house, of course, to protect his gold. The door between this room and the back of the house was made of heavy oak planks banded with iron. The windows were narrow, too small for anyone to climb through, even a child. Aliena thought how nerve-racking it must be to have all your wealth in gold or silver, which could be stolen in an instant, leaving you destitute. Then she reflected that Father had been rich with a more normal kind of wealth—land and a title—and yet he had lost everything in a day.

The goldsmith came out. He was a small, dark man, and he peered at them, frowning, as if he were examining a small piece of jewelry and assessing its worth. After a moment he seemed to sum them up, and he said: “You have something you would like to sell?”

“You’ve judged us well, goldsmith,” Aliena said. “You’ve guessed we’re high-born people who now find themselves destitute. But we have nothing to sell.”

The man looked worried. “If you’re looking for a loan, I fear—”

“We don’t expect anyone to lend us money,” Aliena broke in. “Just as we have nothing to sell, so we have nothing to pawn.”

He looked relieved. “Then how can I help you?”

“Would you take me on as a servant?”

He was shocked. “A Christian? Certainly not!” He actually shrank back at the thought.

Aliena was disappointed. “Why not?” she said plaintively.

“It would never do.”

She felt rather offended. The idea that someone should findherreligion distasteful was demeaning. She remembered the clever phrase she had used to Richard. “You don’t catch people’s religions the way you catch their fleas,” she said.

“The people of the town would object.”

Aliena felt sure he was using public opinion as an excuse, but it was probably true all the same. “I suppose we’d better seek out a rich Christian, then,” she said.

“It’s worth a try,” the goldsmith said doubtfully. “Let me tell you something candidly. A wise man would not employ you as a servant. You’re used to giving orders, and you would find it very hard to be on the receiving end.” Aliena opened her mouth to protest, but he held up his hand to stop her. “Oh, I know you’re willing. But all your life others have served you, and even now you feel in your heart of hearts that things should be arranged to please you. Highborn people make poor servants. They are disobedient, resentful, thoughtless, touchy, and they think they’re working hard even though they do less than everyone else—so they cause trouble among the rest of the staff.” He shrugged. “This is my experience.”

Aliena forgot that she had been offended by his distaste for her religion. He was the first kindly person she had met since she left the castle. She said: “But whatcanwe do?”

“I can only tell you what a Jew would do. He would find something to sell. When I came to this city I began by buying jewelry from people who needed cash, then melting the silver and selling it to the coiners.”