The Murders of Richard III Read Online Free Page B

have it both ways. Either the truth was known—and in that case the boys’ family couldn’t help knowing it—or the boys were still alive and the accusations were malicious lies spread by Henry’s agents. Agitprop is not a modern invention, you know.”
    â€œHmm.” Jacqueline acknowledged his logic by abandoning the argument. “The letter would support your second alternative. It isn’t absolute proof, but—Good Heavens, Thomas,it’s an important document! And your little society is sitting on it like a broody hen. Who found it? Where was it found? Has the provenance been checked? Have any reputable authorities seen it?”
    â€œAn authority is about to see it.”
    He had rarely seen Jacqueline taken aback. Now she gaped at him, unable to believe her ears.
    â€œMe? Is that how you got me invited? Thomas, I’m not—”
    â€œYou took a course in authenticating manuscripts, didn’t you?”
    â€œOh, for God’s sake—just the usual survey sort of thing. I’m no—”
    â€œAnd you studied handwriting analysis, didn’t you?”
    â€œI can read your fortune in the Tarot, too, if you like. That has nothing to do with—”
    â€œCould you spot an out-and-out fake?”
    Jacqueline studied him thoughtfully. Her indignation faded as she realized his concern was genuine.
    â€œA crude one—of course. Errors in vocabulary, spelling, and the like…. So could you. For anything more complex I’d need a laboratory. They can test the paper, the ink…. And I’m no expert on fifteenth-century orthography. What’s wrong,Thomas? Do you think one of your fellow enthusiasts forged this letter?”
    â€œI don’t know! I’m sure the letter did exist. Buck couldn’t have invented it out of whole cloth. But it’s too damned fortuitous to have it turn up now, after all these years. The scholarly world and the press think we’re a bunch of crackpots now. If we make a big public spectacle of this—as we are planning to do—and then some goateed expert strolls in and says, ‘You’ve been had, ladies and gents; this is Woolworth’s best stationery….’ You can see how idiotic we would look. And…maybe you won’t understand this. But we honestly are concerned with a little matter of justice, even if it’s five hundred years late. A fiasco like this…”
    â€œâ€¦could hurt Richard’s cause,” said Jacqueline, as he hesitated. She spoke tentatively, as if the words were too bizarre to be uttered; but as she studied the flushed face of the man across the table, her own face changed. “My God. You really feel…”
    â€œI guess it sounds silly,” Thomas said, with no sign of anger. “I can’t explain it. In part, it’s the fun of an unsolved puzzle; in part, the famous Anglo-Saxon weakness for the underdog. But it’s more than that. Do you remember what they wrote about Richard in the official records of thecity of York, after they heard the news of Bosworth? ‘King Richard, late mercifully reigning upon us, was…piteously slain and murdered, to the great heaviness of this City.’ The men of Yorkshire knew him well; he had lived among them for many years. It took guts to write that epitaph with Henry Tudor on the throne and Richard’s cause buried in a felon’s grave at Leicester…. If there is such a thing as charisma, maybe some people have an extra-large dose. Enough to carry through five hundred years.”
    Jacqueline’s eyebrows went up. “That’s a scary idea, Thomas. I refuse to pursue it…. Okay. If you feel that strongly, I’m your woman. In a limited sense,” she added. “What is going on this weekend? Do you reenact the Battle of Bosworth, or what?”
    â€œIt’s like a regular professional meeting,” Thomas explained. He didn’t thank