In Nora of Lancaster is dead, but her legacy lives on through Marie of Burgundy, the Tudor's ward, and Princess Katherine Tudor, the eldest daughter of Lizbeth of York and Henry Tudor.
THE SPANISH PRINCESS
BOOK THREE IN THE COUSIN'S WAR SERIES
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
At Westminster Palace, Catherine stood outside in the gardens. She looked ahead, watching Marie and Henry laugh as they played with their son, who was already two years old.
Henry had lifted little Henry up and spun him, causing the young child to loudly giggle. Even Marie smiled at the sight and it was genuine.
She might have hated Henry's guts, and the English king still invited her to his bed, but it brought a smile to her face to see her son actually have his real father present in his life.
Her husband had his suspicions about their other children and whether or not they were Henry's, but he never brought it up. He found there to be no reason to do so. He raised the children their whole lives. They were his, not Henry's.
While Edward Stafford remained at his residence at Westminster, Marie wanted to leave the castle. Though since she didn't want to be far from her husband nor did Henry want to be rid of her so easily, she found herself staying at a small home in London. It was close to where Lina and Oviedo lived with their own children.
She remained there with her four sons and her daughter. Not to mention, she was pregnant again. It was as though she never caught a break.
_____
Later that day, in his chambers, Edward was standing near the window, looking out at the courtyard when the door opened. He turned and smiled, watching as Marie walked in. She walked over to him and Edward wrapped an arm around her, pressing a kiss to her forehead.
"Where's little Henry?" Edward asked, knowing it wasn't often that Marie returned to the castle without her youngest son.
"With Henry," Marie replied softly as she glanced down at the ground while Henry nodded in understanding.
The couple turned and sighed, looking out the window to see Henry with his son. They were playing with wooden swords as Henry dropped to the ground, acting as though his son had defeated him.
He jumped back up and swung at little Henry, who laughed as his father lifted him off the ground.
Unable to take it anymore, Marie looked away. She grabbed her husband's hand, leading him away from his window as well.
"How are you?" Edward finally asked, placing a hand on Marie's belly.
"As well as I can be in my situation," Marie admitted in a soft tone. She stared up at Edward sadly, knowing the question he was dying to ask, but couldn't bring himself to.
Was the child she carried his?
She knew the answer was no, but she couldn't bring herself to say it. It brought her as much shame as it would bring her husband when he learned the truth.
