"One!" "Make way!" "...and this is my bastard brother Gloucester!" " King Stephen!" " Take that!" " Take that, you!" " I'm slain!" "Thieving swine!" "Simon Good fellow, thievery!" " Lop his hands off!" " Kill him!" "Kill the thief!" "Come on!" "Don't look, Richard." "You thieving dog!" "Justice!" "Get off!" "Get off!" "Good morning, Your Eminence." "I hear you've been injured." "Nothing serious, I pray." "A mere foot-soldier's wound in God's battle against Satan, dear Regan." " Percy." " Bishop." "William." "Still pining for Aliena?" "We're fortunate he turned that suit down." "Indeed." "Make way for the King!" "His Majesty, King Stephen!" "We are pleased to announce that with the events of this day, all opposition to our rightful rule is extinguished." "Maud and Gloucester's army has been put to flight, and there are now only loyal men in England." "I didn't know Maud and Gloucester were defeated." "Is this recent?" "The King tells the peasants what they need to hear, my dear, and the King needs soldiers, but is penniless." "This will cost us." "Bring out the traitor, Bartholomew of Shiring!" " Burn him!" " Treacherous bastard!" " Traitor!" " Die, you scab!" "Traitor!" "Burn in Hell, you traitor!" " You old bastard!" " Skin him alive!" " Flay him!" " Burn him!" "String him up!" "You'll get what you deserve!" "Mercy, Your Majesty!" "My father loves England!" "Spare his life, I beg you, for his children's sake." "For mercy's sake." "Is this your brother?" "Yes, it is." "How old are you, boy?" "Sixteen, Your Majesty." "I have no quarrel with the traitor's children." "If you wish, you may join my army to prove your loyalty." "Please, spare our father, sire." "Enough about your father." "Give me your answer, boy." "I swear, by Jesus Christ, and all his saints, that I will not rest until" "Richard is the Earl of Shiring and lord of the land that you once ruled." "As a knight, Your Majesty, give him the knighthood and the title that he deserves." "You're a bold woman." "Perhaps you should join my army instead." "Once you're outfitted with horse and armor, report to my captain of the guards." "We'll decide what to do with you then." "Many thanks, Your Majesty, and may God save England." "With your father's death, He will." "On your knees." "God save the King!" "I won't fight for Stephen." "He's our father's worst enemy." "And the only man who can give you back your title." "I won't ride into battle alongside William and his henchmen!" "I'll kill them first!" "It's easier to kill someone if you're standing beside them rather than against them." "Look at me, Richard." "Our enemies have made us strong." "We'll go to the priest and take back the money our father gave him, more than enough to buy you horse and armor and to purchase a knighthood." "Your tears are worthless now." "We have a promise to keep." "Heave-ho!" "Heave-ho!" "Lower it!" "Brother, no!" "Don't close your eyes." "You'll break your thumb!" "That's it." "That's right." " I need a measurement here!" " Go get me the straw, boy!" "Careful, Brother Matthew." "Seven deadly sins of carpentry too, you know." "St. Joseph's watching." "I'm his enforcer." "Measure it twice, cut it once is what I always say." "Look lively, Jack." "You can move faster than that." "We are far behind schedule, Prior." "This builder is too slow and far too ambitious." "I've seen his plans." "Those arches are untried." "This is not an experiment." "We should be building a smaller church exactly like the one we had." "Trust him, Remigius." "Trust God." "God's not happy either, Prior." "He should be using skilled labor, not monks stolen from prayer." "Work is prayer, Brother." "In the meantime, I am going to Winchester Market to sell the fleece from our flock." "This will bring in money which will allow us to hire workers." "Tom is going to Shiring quarry to make arrangements for harvesting the stone." "This will serve as our true beginning and our schedule shall be counted from then." "Anything else?" "Forgive me, Prior." "I was just expressing..." "You were expressing your own prideful ignorance." "For your penance, you will bring water to the workers with young Martha there." "While you're at it, call the community to a meeting in the chapter house before vespers." "I have an important announcement to make." "I want you back." "I miss you so." " Philip wouldn't be happy." " He would if we were married." "Why must the Church always dictate how we live?" "Well, you know Philip." "He worries about your soul." "So, he can just stop worrying." "And even if we did marry, it's no guarantee that I won't be burned." "I'm still an outlaw, Tom Builder." " Well, I can't just..." " Stop." "Enough." "Bless me, Father, for I have sinned." "I have sinned and confessed and done penance, and still God is punishing me." "You forgave me and still He is punishing me!" "In what way, My Lord?" "Rumors remain at court that the ship was deliberately sunk, that I am not king." "There will always be rumors, sire." "The Archbishop anointed you king." "God is on your side." "Then why hasn't He put Maud and her bastard brother down?" "They're approaching Lincoln now." "If they take that city, they'll effectively cut my kingdom in half." "Why does God continually turn His back upon my cause?" "I cannot answer for God, but perhaps it is not you who displeases Him." "There are others in your kingdom." "Others?" "Name them." "There is a prior in Kingsbridge." "You met him once." "Brother Milius, as purser, has begun a written account of our finances." "Ourdistant farms have been leased for cash rents." " Our sheep farming has improved." " All thanks to you, Prior Philip." "I don't say this, Brother Cuthbert, to garner praise, but to prepare you all for the next phase of our economic revival." "I wish to turn Kingsbridge into a market town." "This will bring in visitors and increase revenue for all." "There will be no visitors without St. Adolphus' skull to work miracles." "Wasn't it lost in the fire?" "Prior Philip rescued it from the fire, didn't you, Prior?" "Yes." "Yes, I did." "Why didn't you tell us earlier, Prior?" "And where is it?" "I've put it in a safe place until a statue can be carved to honor the saint." "That could be years, Prior." "Tom Builder has commissioned a sculptor, who's working on it now." "It's beautiful." " Not yet." " It is." "You're very good." "Alfred's wrong to treat you badly." "What?" "What is it?" "Jack, I did something I shouldn't have." "I did it as a kindness, but I also did it for me, too." "What, Marth?" "Alfred wants you gone." "You and your ma took Da away from us." "That's what he says." "Love's not a contest, Martha." "Then why is there always something to be won or lost?" "Let's try this one." "Confession's in the morning, unless you're willing to pay." "Were you the confessor to Bartholomew of Shiring after his arrest?" "What if I was?" "I'm Richard, son of Bartholomew, Earl of Shiring." "Former Earl." " So what do you want?" " My father's money, 50 bezants." "I don't know what you're talking about." "He left money with you for safekeeping." "That's a lie." " You're the liar." " Piss off." "They cut off the hands of thieves in this country." "I've seen it." "Then it'll be my word against the word of a dead traitor." "You lying, thieving, godless heathen!" "It's a sin to harm a priest!" "Not if he robs orphans." "Richard, cut off his nose." " No!" "No, no!" "No, please!" "Please!" " Cut it off." " Where is the money?" " I swear, I..." "Altar." "It's under the altar." "Hold this." "If he moves, push hard." "But there's only 10 here." "Where's the rest?" "It's gone." " Gone where?" " I spent it." "Shall I kill him, Allie?" "Hell is too good for him." "I may come back and kill you one day." " What can we buy with 10 bezants?" " A horse and armor?" "No, we can barely buy a stirrup with this." "This is all the money that we have in the world, Richard." " We can't spend it on food or lodging." " Well, what can we do with it then?" " Here, I'll load that for you." " Twenty bags of fleece, 25 pounds." "We can quintuple it." " You Otto Blackface?" " Yes." "I'm Tom Builder." "You're working for me." "That's my son, Alfred." "That's my stepson, Jack." "These are my four sons, my cousin, my brother-in-law and his two boys." "So you've worked here before?" "I know the quarry." "Yes, it's good stone." "Enough for two cathedrals." "So, how do you plan on getting it to Kingsbridge?" "By river most of the way, then by cart." "Shouldn't be too difficult." "Right." "How soon can you start?" "Soon as you have the money to pay us." "Shouldn't be too difficult either." "Come on, boys." "Let's get to work." "Who's in charge here?" "I am." "I'm Tom of Kingsbridge." "We'll be quarrying this stone to build our new cathedral." "This quarry is owned by the Earl." "When the King gave the quarry to the Earl, he gave the priory permission to use the stone." "And I am not to allow that." " By whose orders?" " By orders of the King." "Guards." "I know you." "How do I know you?" "I was building you a wedding house." "Building it badly, if I recall." "Walter." "The King has rescinded his permission for you to quarry stone." "Now turn around and go home, or you're all dead men." "What proof have you got the order's been rescinded?" "My soldiers are proof enough." "Your soldiers will die before you." "They'll take their chances." "If you attack us, you attack the throne and God." "Kill us, and you bum in Hell's everlasting fire!" "Excellent idea." "What would you say to a duel?" "One of your men armed with a mason's hammer against Walter." "Walter will fight without a weapon." "I think I'll take my chances with the King, thank you very much." "It'll be months before he hears your claim, and I have the Bishop's word he'll deny it." "God wants a Kingsbridge Cathedral." "Then why did God burn it?" "I'll fight." " I'll fight." "What are the rules?" " Jack, I forbid it." "We lose the quarry, we lose the cathedral." "What are the rules?" "The first one to cry out with pain loses." "And the winner?" "The quarry's his." "This is foolishness, Jack." "I don't trust these people." "I won't go back to who I was, Tom." "Stay back." "No!" "He needs to cry out, not you." "Don't murder him, Walter." "Break something instead." "This is outrageous." "First the Hamleighs cheat us of ownership of the quarry, and now they're trying to cheat us of the stone." "Send a deputation to the King and ask him to enforce the charter." "Who's to say the King won't side with Percy?" "Percy has soldiers, which the King needs now more than he needs a new cathedral." "What will we do then?" "Tom..." "Tom, is there anyway of continuing work without the stone?" "No." "Is it broken?" "Yes, I'm afraid so." "You mustn't use it, not for a month at least." "I have a statue to make, Ma." " That can wait." " No, it can't." "Then you'll be crippled for life." "Hold still." "Do you wish to come home, Jack?" "Say it." "Is this too much for you?" "I'm hungry, Ma, but the food's not here." "The night you were born, I had a dream." "In a room full of darkness, you opened a box..." "Filled with light." "It doesn't mean anything, Ma." "I never told you all of it." "The room you were in was a grave, filled with hundreds and hundreds of dead." "English soldiers, workers, kings." "We all must die, Ma." "But not so young." "You were so young." "Scarcely older than you are now." "I fear for you, Jack." "How much do you get?" "What?" "For a fleece, how much?" "A penny." " At the market in Winchester?" " Aye." "Come along, Allie." "We need to find food." "It's a day's walk to Winchester." "You lose two days in the field." "What choice do I have?" " You can sell the fleece to me." " We don't need wool!" "What's the snag?" "I can only give you two pence for four." "That's not worth it." "Three pence then." " I'd lose a penny." " And save a two-day journey." "I never heard of nothing like this before." "Is an extra two days worth a penny to you or not?" " What are we to do with four fleeces?" " Take them to Winchester and sell them." "Fora penny profit?" "That's nothing." "Not if we buy wool from fifty peasants, Richard." "It will set us on our path to horses and armor." " Tom." " Brother?" "I have a plan." "I don't know whether it'll work, but it's worth a try." "Have your men ready to leave at midnight tomorrow night." "Midnight?" "Our enemies are weakest in the dark." "How long till sunrise?" "Minutes." "Shut your mouth, priest." "Shut up!" " It's a sign from God." " Thank the Lord!" "Kneel, kneel." " Praise be to God." " It's a miracle." "This is God's work, and this is God's will." "I intend to hire all quarry workers at the standard rate, and I grant you all plenary indulgences for laboring on our cathedral." "What say you?" " Praise God!" " Praise God!" "This stone's for the foundation." " This wool's ready for market, Prior." " Good." "Leave it here." "Here." "Thank you." "Occasional defeats are to be expected in war." "They make our victories all the sweeter." "I'll burn, Mother." "What?" "In Hell." "He told me that." "Nonsense." "God is on our side." " Not according to that priest." " Well, you're to pay him no mind." "His motives are entirely selfish." "Now tell me, whom do you hate the most?" "Prior Philip." "And what would you do to him?" "Cut out his heart and roast it on a spit and eat it." "And so you shall." "And who do you love the most?" "You." "And what would you do to me?" "Smile, sweet William." " Yes, Walter?" " Bishop Waleran is here, milady." "Some months ago, you induced the Prior of Kingsbridge" " to double-cross me." " You never keep your promises." " I delivered you Shiring." " Past promises, remember?" "I have no idea, dear lady, what you're talking about, but that is beside the point." "The Prior, it seems, has outwitted us both." "Well, for all his saintly innocence, he's got the cunning of a political rat." "Rats can be easily dealt with once one finds their nest." "And his is..." "In Kingsbridge." "What of it?" "Perhaps the cathedral should be built somewhere else?" "What?" "Kingsbridge is a village in the middle of nowhere, Percy." "It isn't rich enough to maintain a cathedral, let alone build one." "It needs to develop a market and pilgrims." "We could build it in Shiring." "You have a market, an annual fleece fair and you're on the main road." "Well, if the cathedral was here, who's gonna pay for it?" "I hope you don't expect me to..." "If the cathedral moves, the priory's property goes with it." "The farms, the sheepfolds, all the income they produce." "Kingsbridge becomes fallow, and the rat, a castrated field mouse." "Excellent." "So, how do we do it?" "We can do nothing without the King's approval." " What do we tell him?" " We don't." "We show him what little progress is being made in Kingsbridge." "How?" "The feast of Adolphus is coming up, their patron." "The King is very fond of Adolphus." "I'll organize a pilgrimage." "Damp down your fires!" "Damp down your fires!" "The bastard." "Go away." "Leave me." "What I did, I did for GodÂ's glory." "You shall rule for ill or good, till saintly skulls weep tears of blood." "I'll rule for ever then." "How long until the war ends?" "Let peace survive and war depart, when arrows pierce my daughter's heart." "Name my greatest enemy." "Whose hair aflame?" "An artist boy's." "One king he crowns, one king destroys." "Roast chicken!" "Roast chicken!" "Meat, Allie." "We'll have meat tonight." "We'll have more than meat." "We'll have at least a pound of silver." "Look at the crowd, Richard." "There are fairs everywhere throughout the summer." "We can get another sack full, then another, and then by the summer's end..." "It's a full sack, but the quality's poor." "I'll give you a pound." "Agreed?" "Hands." " One sack?" " Yes." "Mixed quality." "Half a pound." "What?" "But you gave a full pound for a sack of poor quality." "Half a pound." "That's my offer." "But this is better wool." "You said it yourself." " Take it or leave it." " Give me what you gave those men." " No." " Why?" "Because nobody pays a girl what they pay a man." "Unless..." "Look, miss, I'm doing you a favor here." "Nobody will pay you what I'm willing to pay you." "Go and ask." "Next!" "How many sacks, boy?" " Boy, how many sacks?" " Eleven." "Unload them, Jack." "Eleven and a half pounds of silver and 12 pennies." "You didn't test it." "You didn't even check the bags." "He's a monk." "I'll take his word for it." "Wait." "There's only 10." "There's only 10 sacks." "There are 10 on the cart, yes." "That's the 11th." "No, no." "I've already agreed to pay her half a pound for this one." "But I'm buying it instead." "You told her to ask if any other merchants were interested, and I am, and I'll pay her a pound." "If that suits you?" "Last I saw you, you were still at Shiring Castle." "I told the Hamleighs to keep watch over you." "God forgive you for that." "What happened?" "Let's just say that they were less than kind." "I..." "I'm sorry." "Any misfortune that came your way, I..." "I..." "Here." "Come and visit us at the end of the month." "There's to be a fair at Kingsbridge in honor of St. Adolphus." "You can bring more fleece." "You'll do very well there." "Perhaps we will." " I'm sorry, I forgot..." " Philip." "This is Jack." "Works for me." "Milady." "Have we met before?" "Come along, Richard." "Thank you, Prior Philip, from the bottom of our hearts." " We need a protector." " You have two now." "God and me." "And me." "You have me." " Go away!" " Let me kiss them." "Beautiful!" "Pray with me, Jack, would you?" "You remind me a little of myself at your age." "Want to fuck, boy?" "I'm sorry." "Milady." "I'm sorry, I..." "Milady?" "Aren't you polite." "I'm sorry, I thought you were someone else." "Do these make you weak in the knees?" "Can I..." "Can I sketch you?" "Well, I've never heard it called that before, but..." "Come again soon." "Pity poor Kingsbridge." "King Stephen comes at the end of the month, and when he sees what piss-poor little work they've done, he'll move the cathedral to Shiring!" "Good for you, Percy." "In 10 days' time, as you know, we celebrate the feast of St. Adolphus." "We have received word that King Stephen will be visiting us." "Now, we need to show the King how devoted this parish is to the building of our new cathedral." "So instead of singing hymns and saying prayers, we will dig, carry and build." "God and his saints will bless you for your generosity." "Wasting my time." " I can't finish it." "Not in time." " We need it to draw the crowd." " But it won't be perfect, Tom." " You can perfect it later." "Look, I know that you all work long hours, and I know how much you have given already, and now God is asking you to give more." "Our cathedral, this cathedral, is more than just stone and wood and mud." "It takes the earth with all its heaviness and transforms it into possibility, reaching for the light, which is hope, which is God!" "It is..." "It is hope's fragile shell on Earth, and if we..." "If we can give God a beautiful home, then it will burst its shell and it will prosper, and you all will be the better for it and your children will be the better for it!" "Lf..." "Right." "I will give you bread and ale and absolution for all your sins in exchange for one day's labor." "One day's labor!" "What say you?" "Forgive me, St. Adolphus." "I begged for help in all the villages." "Don't they want their church?" "They know that without their help, there'll be no Kingsbridge Cathedral." "They'll come." " Bound to come." " Dozens, perhaps." "Not hundreds." "Word will have spread." "The King will look at this and laugh." "There's someone now." "Greetings, Frere Prior." "Welcome, my lady." "No longer a lady." "We've brought fleece." "May God grant us customers to buy it." "Jack, will you kindly stable my lady's donkey?" "When does the King arrive?" "Shortly, I fear." "How much further, damn it?" "My piles are murdering me." "We've been riding all morning." "You were with him in Winchester?" "But we've met before." "In Shiring, milady." "You're the artist." "Quite gifted, if I remember correctly." "What did you do to your hand?" "I injured it." "I wasn't supposed to use it, but I had a sculpture I had to finish for today, so..." "Aliena?" "I thought it was you!" " Martha, yes?" " That's right." "And you remember Alfred." " My lady." " Please, call me Aliena." "I prefer it." "You'll never guess all that's happened to us." "Da brought us here, and the church bumed, and Ellen..." "You remember Ellen." "She was almost killed as a witch!" "And now the King is coming to see Da's work." "And if he likes it, then Da can build the whole cathedral." "No one's come to help us yet, but we hope that..." "We pray the King is in a gracious mood," "Aliena." "Brother Johnny?" "Don't climb that high, not with the baby." " Johnny, listen to me." "Come down!" " No, no!" "You must come up!" "This is an order!" "I want you to come down now!" "Get him down, now!" "What's he doing?" "He'll harm the child!" " Come down!" " Philip, it won't hold." "Johnny, listen to me." "Johnny, listen to me very carefully." "Give me the baby." " Look!" " It's a miracle." "We're saved." "We're saved!" "Come and look!" " Praise God and Prior Philip!" " It's a miracle!" "We're saved!" " Alms for the blind?" " Not now, woman." "I'm working." "What are you doing here?" "The King!" "The King has come!" " The King." " It's the King." "Where were you?" "The King's here." "Kneel." "Bow down to His Majesty." "Who is in charge here?" "I am, Your Majesty." "Where are the plans?" "This way, Your Majesty." "Where's the door?" "Your Majesty, this is the doorway." "This is the nave." "Show me." "Very good." "I look forward to visiting again when the church is completed." " What did he say?" " Shut up, Percy." "But where is the statue of St. Adolphus?" "I forgot." "It was destroyed in the fire, wasn't it, Prior?" "It's here, Your Majesty." "You shall rule for ill or good, till saintly skulls weep tears of blood." "Your Majesty, I bring you news from the battlefield." "Maud and Gloucester have attacked your army at Lincoln, and an arrow has pierced her armor." "Let peace survive and war depart, when arrows pierce my daughter's heart." "Is she dead?" "No." "She survived." "Her army took it to be a sign from God and your forces were defeated." "Whose hair a flame?" "An artist boy's." "One king he crowns, one king destroys." "Stay where you are." "I'm feeling much better from this ague, my dear." "My physician says that I should be on my feet in a week." "I am so relieved, my darling." "Any word from William?" "Well, the King's army have engaged Maud at Lincoln." "Her half-brother, Gloucester, is away in France, so he can't help her." "She's held it for four years now, and it's time we took it back." "There's a new knight fighting for Stephen, William says, who no one's ever heard of." "Very mysterious fellow." "Learned to fight in France." "But evidently quite extraordinary." "Our sweet William, I fear, is jealous." "He can be so like a child sometimes." "What's this, my dear?" "The doctor said you needed to be bled." "He's too busy to do it himself, of course." "Bless you." "William is being held back, but not by some anonymous knight." "He's nearly 25 years old." "He needs to marry and give us grandchildren." "There are plenty of women who'd have him." "None of sufficient nobility, my love." "And if he can't marry a title, he shall have to inherit one." "Are you suggesting that I retire and give him mine?" "I know you'd never agree to that." "Not in my prime, I wouldn't!" "There, that's quite enough, my dear." "You drink too much, Percy." "Your tongue's too loose." " I fear you've cut too deep." " No, my sweet." "Not deep enough." "Climb up the ladder!" "We need more steel and daggers!" "Stephen's army has us surrounded." "We've been besieged for weeks." "How am I supposed to eat when everyone else is starving for my sake?" "You must keep up your strength, my queen." "Where is Gloucester?" "My brother has never abandoned us before." "He should be arriving soon." "Why isn't he coming?" "Gloucester may indeed be raising forces to rescue his sister, Your Majesty." "But we have surrounded Lincoln Castle, and shortly they will starve." "Excellent!" "The end is in sight." "You are to be congratulated, young man." "You hear that, Eustace?" "The crown will be yours, after all." "Yes, yes!" "My condolences on your father's death." "An ague can be so unpredictable." "He was a loyal subject." "As am I, Your Majesty, as I hope to be as the new earl." "Yes, quite." "We..." "We have some problems regarding the earldom." " Your Majesty?" " There is another claimant." "Is he here?" "Richard of Kingsbridge, champion of the battlefield." "You have indeed proved your loyalty against your father's treason." "I will weigh your claim most carefully." "I ask for nothing more, my king." "How did Richard get the money to become a knight?" "The armor alone costs a small fortune!" "It seems he has a wealthy sister." "I'm the earl." "I'm the rightful earl!" "Richard lost that claim when his father lost his head." "Getting soldiers is all the King cares about." "Raise an army to finish Maud, he'll give you whatever you want." "Easily said, but where do we get the means to do it?" "The market at Kingsbridge sucks the money out of Shiring." "Kingsbridge gets the rents and the tolls, it gets the taxes, the business..." " Close the market." " How?" "The King has licensed it." "Yes." "Unfortunately, he has." "What?" "If I close the market for you, will you close the quarry for me?" "Still trying to stop that cathedral so you can build your precious palace?" "How will you close the market?" "I haven't worked that out yet." "Have you got any brilliant ideas, William?" "Afire." "Start a fire." "It's worked for you before." " Hush, William." " Mother..." "I said quiet!" "William might be right." "Afire." "But a small one this time." "Check that windlass, Jack!" "Make sure it's well-greased." "That big wheel needs to go up." "I'm impressed, Prior Philip." "You've made astonishing progress since I left." "And it's not just the church, Richard." "Everyone has the money to buy things." "The town is three times the size of what it was, five times on market day." "They want to buy your sister's wool, that's why." "They come to see the only female wool merchant in this part of England." "Grown men quake at the sight of me." " Now, don't hit your thumb." "Right?" "Right?" " Right." "See?" "Still working on the transept, sir." "Want me to get it for you?" "We're enclosing the east end while we work on the rest." "This will protect the altar from weather and dust." " You look tired and happy, Tom." " I am." "And I am." "Are you free Thursday next?" "I wish to give a dinner in honor of Richard's safe return." "Thank you." "It would be my pleasure." "You're invited, too, Jack!" "Have you ever killed a giant?" "Yes, as a matter of fact, I have." " How big?" " As big as this house." " Was there a lot of blood?" " No." "No, because I frightened him." "He was afraid of mice, so I put them down his trousers." "It terrified him so much, he dropped down dead." "Can I see your dagger?" "He's a darling, isn't he?" "Better off here than with his real parents." "His da was a cutpurse, most likely, and his mother, a whore." "A tender trap, the world." "I left my sister to join the priory." "I raised her since infancy, and she took to the streets." "I'll never forgive myself for that." "This is your love line." "I see you have many female admirers." "What's funny, Martha?" "Don't you admire me?" "Definitely not." "I do." "I think your cathedral work is lovely, Alfred." "Thank you, Aliena." "Jack's turn." "Come on!" "Your hand has healed nicely." "St. Adolphus must have worked a miracle." "How odd." "Your love line's split, marked with little crosses." "You love two women, Jack, who treat you very badly." "Two?" "Mistress Work and Mother Church." "Prior Philip?" "Take it to him." "Your Eminence." "My little fire has done its work." "And I'm about to complete my end of the bargain." "How soon will you close the quarry?" "Unfortunately, we have a problem." "Nothing serious, I hope." "A matter of life and death." "Eternal life." "You see, the only way to close the quarry involves bloodshed." "Innocent lives shall be lost." "My son shall burn in Hell for your sins." "That's why you've been a reluctant enforcer, William?" "Mother's always been afraid of fire." "But the fires of Hell are eternal." "On your knees." "Are you sorry for all the lives taken by yours word in the past and in the future?" "Yes." "Ego te absolvo." "Do what you must." "Thank you." "My Lord Bishop." "What brings us this great honor?" "Save the sarcasm, Philip." "Order from the Sheriff." "You're forbidden to operate a market without a license from the King." " But we have a license." " May I see it?" "It's been stolen." " The Sheriff has no record of it." " Then he's a liar." "I think you are the liar, Philip." "As of next month, the market moves to Shiring." "Why should this concern you?" " All Satan's lies concern me." " I'm not Satan!" "You are an obstruction to God's rule on earth, which is the Church, which is Satan's adversary." "I am part of the Church!" "Then why do you defy me?" "Obey me." "I obey God before you!" "The Church has rules and hierarchy." " I obey my heart..." " Kneel before me now." "Proud Philip." "I'll appeal to the King." "The King is preoccupied at the moment." "He's about to win a war." "You're the witch's son, right?" "She's not a witch." "Words." "How did you recognize me?" "We've never met." "The hair." "It's my father's hair, not hers." "You knew him?" " I've heard his story, yes." " No, more than that." "You saw him." "Was that before or after he was falsely accused?" "Your affection for a father you never met is touching, but misplaced." "I thought you'd know better by now than to take your mother's word on his character, which I know only by hearsay." "But the details are very persuasive." "He stole a chalice, a vessel who holds the blood of Christ." "Blasphemy." "He impregnated a novice." "Blasphemy." "And he died without repenting." "Blasphemy." "Words." "Yes, I'm good with words." "We all have our talents." "Yours are just as obvious." "May I?" "Breathtaking little devils." "Yes." "You seem to know them well." "Who told you to carve this?" "Otto dead, and four others!" "Good-hearted, God-fearing people, who deserved the right to peace and justice from their Lord!" "Enough to make angels weep." "You must go to the King." "He can give you back the quarry and the market." "Richard travels to Lincoln on the morrow." "The King awaits him there." "Can you spare Jack for a week?" "He can best explain our construction needs." "No, that's fine." "Needs to be a little darker." "Good morning, Jack." "What brings you to town?" "I'm here to ask Richard if Prior Philip and I may accompany him to Lincoln." "Well, I'm sure he'll be very happy for the company, but he's not here at present." "He's trying to win a kiss from the blacksmith's daughter." "Would you like to wait for him?" "I expect him back soon." "Have you seen my weaving room?" "It's not much, but it's all I need." "My new palace." " Do you miss the old one?" " Oh, Lord, no!" "I miss my father and I miss the people I lived with, but I don't miss the obligations or the pretensions." "I certainly don't miss my innocence or my ignorance, whatever it is you call it." "I'm happy." "Well, you've earned it." "Are you?" "Happy?" "Am I happy?" "I think so." "I think..." "Especially when I'm at work." "When I work, I hear these voices." "Whose?" "The voices of angels?" "Are you some kind of saint?" "No, voices from the stone." "When I carve it, it tells me where to cut it." " The stone speaks to you?" " No, not the stone, but what it wants to be." "So the saint or the gargoyle or the tiniest corner of the cathedral..." "It doesn't even have to have a face." "It can be a line or a design or the curve of an arch." "It's not a..." "It's not a voice." "It's a..." "It is an image, but it's the sound of an image, so..." "I can't describe it." "I'm very sorry." "I just..." "I know that when my..." "When my chisel hits the rock, that the rock's in tune." "It's a song." "That's it." "It's a song of what will be." "How very fortunate you are." "There you are, Jack." "Da wants you." "They're mortaring the arches." "Yeah, go on!" "Get out of here!" "You're a brave fellow." "Come on!" "You did well, young Richard." "Put them over there." "Maud now controls only the inner walls." "The bitch won't escape me this time." "Richard of Kingsbridge." "Welcome back." "It's good to be back, My Lord King." " The siege is going well?" " Monstrously well." "Barely a month, and already the people are starving." "They toss their dead over the wall by the hour." "The stench is awful, but the smell of victory is sweet." "I see you've brought a monk with you as your squire." " This is the Prior of Kingsbridge, Lord." " Yes, Prior Philip." "Well, have you come to fight for me?" "I am here because God's work needs help, My Lord King." "If it were God's work, then He should do it Himself." "I'm busy." "As a boon to me, Your Majesty, would you hear him out?" "Take off your robe." " Your Majesty?" " You heard me." "Strip." "You're more prideful than you used to be." "I don't wish to see your pasty body." "I wish to wear your filthy clothes." "William of Shiring?" " Yes, My Lord?" " Find him a tunic." "I've wanted to take a look around the city walls, and if I'm dressed as a monk, they won't shoot at me." "While you, on the other hand, are an easy target." "Perhaps it is God's will that I should die to save the King." "I've never understood God's will." "Do you think He wills that?" "I don't know, My Lord." "I only ask God for one life." "Maud's." "She doesn't even need to be killed, simply handed over." "But instead they let their children go hungry and their grandparents waste away to bones." "It's their choice." "It's not mine." "And it's certainly not God's." "Look!" "Are you frightened, Philip?" " Shall we kill them?" " Call the Captain!" "Well, the archers are very good." "Yes, My Lord, I'm very frightened." "If I am killed, will you re-license Kingsbridge Market?" "Well, now we get to the point." "Well, don't you have a license?" " It's been lost." " Will you pay for a new one?" "Yes, unless you're willing to grant it freely for God's glory." "Well, you're a proud and frugal man." "And will you give me the right to take stone from the Hamleighs' quarry?" " And didn't I give you that right before?" " Yes, but you took it away." "Yes." "Yes, that's because I was warned about you." " By whom?" "By the Bishop?" " It doesn't matter now." "Prior!" "Whose hair of flame?" "An artist boy's." "One king he crowns, one king destroys." "That boy with the red hair." "I want him dead by morning." "My Lord!" "My Lord King!" "Gloucester's army is coming to free Maud." "They'll be here by mid-afternoon." "Good." "Prepare for battle." "Your Majesty!" "The market license and the quarry?" "Denied." " Prepare your swords!" " Grab your weapons, boys!" "Our only hope now is if Stephen is defeated." "Normally at this hour, I'm on my knees, singing God's praise." "Do you pray, Jack?" "My work I think of as a kind of prayer." "Some of God's greatest artists and writers and musicians were religious." "Pray with me." "Oh, dear." "My..." "My beads." "They must have fallen off when I had to take off my robe." "Go to the church, would you, Jack?" "See if someone's found them." "Yes, Prior." "Gloucester's retreating to the forest." "Stephen is giving chase." "Robert of Gloucester," "I claim you as my prisoner in the name of King Stephen!" "I can't see the King anymore!" "We have him!" "The King is captured!" "They've captured the King." "Gloucester has won!" "Sound the retreat!" "Retreat!" "Retreat!" "See them run!" " What is it?" "What's happening?" " Your brother's been taken." "Oh, God!" "As has the King." "Our soldiers ambushed him." "Stephen's army is sounding a retreat." "They're running away." "Your brother's men are coming to free us." "We've won!" "God save Queen Maud!" "Surrender!" "Stop!" "In the name of Christ Jesus, stop!" "We'll have to do a bit of a dance, but God is on our side." "Do you have your story straight, William?" "Pray God she believes it." "Why are you here?" "You sided against us." "Your king lies in our dungeon to be hanged tomorrow." "Why shouldn't you hang with him?" "My lady..." "We are not "Your Lady." We are "Your Majesty."" "Your Majesty, your half-brother, Robert of Gloucester, is a prisoner also, held by what remains of Stephen's army." "His captor, one Richard of Kingsbridge, a bloodthirsty fellow." "I regret to say we know him well." "If Stephen hangs, Gloucester will hang higher." "You can save him." "By trusting you?" "We are closer in sympathy to Your Majesty than Your Majesty might guess." "I was your brother's confessor, and Lady Regan served in waiting to his wife." "Yes." "I remember you." "I remember your face." "My brother, the Prince, and his wife died in a shipwreck, the one that started this war of succession." "No one survived." "Weren't you supposed to be on board with them?" "Your Majesty, I was sent ahead in another ship" " with my young son, who is with me today." " Your Majesty." " Who sent you ahead?" " Why, your brother, the Prince." "I was bringing good news to the King, your father." "My lady, the Princess, was at last with child." "Why didn't we learn of this?" "News of the shipwreck reached the courts before I did, Your Majesty." "I saw no reason to burden your father any further." "What else are you hiding from us?" "Why nothing, Your Majesty." "Then why did you side with Stephen against us?" "William." "I was raised at court, Your Majesty, and my parents were told that if they did not support Stephen," "I would be killed." "Your Majesty has a beloved only son as I do." "What would a mother not do in order to spare his life?" "Very well." "You may deal with this Richard of Kingsbridge and exchange our dear Gloucester's life for that of the traitor, Stephen's." "I assume they would accept no less." "Our secretary, Father Francis, will accompany you." "Your beloved only son, however, will remain here as collateral." "Any hint of treachery on your part, and I'll have your balls on a platter, all six of them." "I'm here to see the usurper, Stephen, at the command of the Queen." "Hey!" "Bring that through!" "Give me the key!" "No!" "Hurry up." "Round them up!" "You must understand, Your Majesty, we only side with Maud to help you." " Once you regain your throne..." " I'll see her dead." "In time, Majesty." "But first, she requires your allegiance and public acknowledgment of her as Queen." "That will never happen." "Rest assured, whatever is writ today can be scratched tomorrow." "May I tell her you accept?" "I'd rather hang." "Then you will." "Once her torturers have finished with you, you will beg for her forgiveness from the scaffold, your neck will snap, and you will foul yourself." "Nothing noble in a hanging." "Hey!" "Bring that through!" "Do what you must." "In taking my leave, I must perform an unfortunate familiarity." "Do you see that priest there?" "He is the one who betrayed Bartholomew of Shiring, the Queen's friend, to Stephen, the usurper." "If you can get him to admit to this, she will be very, very happy." "Come on." "All the fleece that's fallen out of sacks, put in the baskets." "Last year when we did this, we ended up with half a sack extra." " The profits are yours." " Thank you!" "Alfred." "What's wrong?" "We received news from Lincoln." "It's Richard." "Tell me it's not Richard." "No, no, Richard is well." "It is he who sent word." "The King's army is fallen and Maud now rules." " But..." " Prior Philip?" "Captured, not dead." "He's among those to be ransomed." "Oh, God!" " It is Jack who is dead." " No!" "It's easy, Philip." "You're an honest man." "It's easy for an honest man to tell the truth." "All you have to say is that you betrayed Bartholomew and ruined Maud's chances of an early victory." "Say it." "It's easy." "I..." "I..." "I beg God to give me strength." "Spare yourself, Philip." "You're not a martyr." "And you are not the Church!" "Yes!" "Yes!" "Yes!" "I betrayed Bartholomew to you, and you were the one who betrayed Maud." "He has confessed." "He is a traitor." " See that he's hanged." " Yes, Eminence." "In order to conserve expenditures, and God-willing, meet the ransom demands for our good prior," "I, as sub-prior, order all work on the Kingsbridge Cathedral to be stopped!" "He's not dead." "I would know it if he were dead." "He can't be dead." "I don't allow him to be dead." "I dreamed this would happen and I didn't stop it." " Why?" "It makes no bloody sense." " It doesn't have to make sense." " This is part of God's plan, and we have..." " God's plan?" "If God has a plan, it's not working out very well, is it?" "Hang the traitors!" "Bring out the rest of them!" "Make your peace with God, man."