Tudor Rose

xiv. a year and a half

"Of course, Your Majesty."

Once Katherine was gone, Henry dismissed everyone except me. He led me to his bed silently.

"I really love our daughter," he said.

"Me, too. I'm very proud of her," I agreed.

"We should make another one," he suggested, "A boy this time."

I smiled. "That is an excellent idea, Your Majesty."

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January 24, 1514

Henry, accompanied by a handful of guards, barged into my room loudly in the morning. My ladies in waiting had just finished preparing me for the day, and we'd begun learning new dances. Chloe chose not to participate, which seemed odd. She adored dancing. I suspected that she was pregnant. Everyone knew her husband ignored her, and preferred younger girls to her. But every man seemed to want or need a son, so they were bound to return to their wife at some point. I knew that better than anyone else.

"Anna, we need to leave. Now," boomed Henry.

The music and dancing stopped. I looked at him, utterly confused and panicked. "Why? Is something wrong? Have I done something wrong?"

"There is an outbreak of the sweating sickness and it has reached the palace. We are being relocated to protect us. You may bring two ladies. Your sisters will also come with us," Henry explained.

I spun around, facing my ladies. It felt like an impossible decision. How was I supposed to choose whose life I'd protect and whose I'd risk? Logically, it seemed best to pick Chloe and Isabell. Chloe was most likely carrying a child, and she needed to be concealed from the sickness. Isabell still couldn't be trusted. I couldn't risk her spilling any secrets.

But Mary and Sarah's hopeful gazes pleaded. I had to turn my eyes away from theirs.

"Isabell, Chloe, let's go," I said.

When we reached the carriages, there were less people than I thought. My parents and sisters had their own carriage. I traveled with Henry and Katherine. The few servants, ladies, and courtiers we brought traveled in four carriages.

Katherine slept for most of the ride, just like me. It only took a few hours of nonstop travel for us to reach our destination. A secluded palace that was a fraction of the size of Hampton Palace.

"This reminds me of how you looked when we first met," Henry said, laughing, "Your hair was disoriented and you looked half dead."

"Hey!" I scolded, "Even queens have imperfections. Some of us get 'carriage hair'!"

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January 28, 1514

Our days in seclusion were cold and boring. There was practically nothing to do. Isabell and I ended up caring for a pregnant Chloe. She seemed so fragile. Every day, her condition worsened. She ended up sleeping in my bed, but I didn't mind because it allowed me to spend each night with Henry.

I was worried for her, though. She was family, after all.

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January 29, 1514

When I returned to my chambers to get ready for another uninteresting and ordinary day, I found Isabell crying, staring at Chloe, who looked asleep. She turned around and faced me, her face panicked. No matter how much Isabell inconvenienced me, I didn't want her to go through something awful.

I rushed over to the bed, where Chloe was laying. She was completely motionless.

"The sweats, Anna! There was no baby!" Isabell frantically said. My eyes were fixated on my dead cousin, but I heard Isabell's words clearly. "She had the sweats! She died from it! Oh... she brought it here with her, too!"

"Then we aren't safe," I whispered, appalled. "I need to tell Henry. Isabell, tell the guards that I want us to relocate again. A smaller group this time, though. Only those who are absolutely necessary. Everyone else will return to court."

I ran to Katherine's chambers, and grabbed her before going to Henry. Our daughter seemed fine and normal, which relieved me greatly. Even though Katherine knew nothing about what had just happened, she obliged. The two of us rushed down the halls to see Henry.

When we reached his room, my heart stopped. He was laying in bed, his hand pressed to his forehead.

"Anna, the sweating sickness. It's reached us. It's reached me."

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published august 15, 2020