15 January 1124

　　Godfrey had grown weary of his assistant`s morning briefs. The man brought nothing but bad news.

　　"John has disappeared again," Peter shared. "This is the third time since you separated him from the Monk. I think you may need to concede their&friendship. I already have guards looking for him in all the normal places."

　　Peter nervously scanned his notes, searching for a safe topic.

　　"The blacksmith wished to inform you that his latest attempt at plate armour was unsuccessful. He said your changes made the plates too thin and they split during shaping."

　　Godfrey thumped the table with his fist.

　　Peter paled. "He wanted to remind you that he is still awaiting payment for the previous experiments."

　　Godfrey smouldered and Peter continued cautiously.

　　"Regarding money, the Jews have been asking how you wish to settle the debts for the cathedral."

　　"Settle the debts!? That was Bishop John`s doing. He signed me up for their un-Christian money trap before he went and died. As if his cathedral debacle weren`t bad enough. I hope he`s writhing in hellfire!"

　　Peter blanched at the Bishop`s casual mention of eternal damnation. "Well, they would like to know if you`ll be continuing the arrangement or settling the debt. Without alternative means to pay them, I believe we have no option but to continue with the arrangement."

　　"I guess we don`t," Godfrey huffed sarcastically. "We`ll have to visit them and discuss."

　　"If you plan to leave the palace today, might I recommend a visit to the cathedral? There are more concerns with the design and a visit could boost the workers` morale. Masons have continued to leave as the pay issues drag on."

　　"Dammit man, have you no good news!?"

　　"Well," the Assistant said, rifling through his notes once more. "Your messenger returned from Stowey. There was no sign of the Book but he managed to locate the Foreigner`s bag."

　　"That`s something at least. Very well, it seems I am overdue for another tour of the town. Send word when my carriage is ready."

　　Peter was visibly relieved that they were finished. He handed Godfrey a sealed envelope before scuttering from the room.

　　"This arrived for you today."

　　Godfrey waited until he was gone and opened the letter at his desk. The wax seal was unadorned but he knew it was news from the rebellion in Normandy.

　　The Bishop read the letter twice before scrunching it into a tight ball and hurling it into the fireplace. More bad news. King Henry had arrived in Normandy and joined forces with his infernal bastard son, the Earl of Bristol. The rebels were in disarray but winter provided a chance to regroup. The cardinals wouldn`t be pleased.

　　Godfrey poured himself a goblet of wine and drained it instantly. He was juggling too much and there were problems on all fronts. The tactical intricacies of running his bishopric were an annoying distraction from the cardinals` more strategic tasks. There was little he could do from afar to support the rebellion and, closer to home, the ongoing battle between priests and monks showed no signs of letting up. He poured another drink.

　　It was difficult to know what to focus on. Yet despite everything, Godfrey`s biggest concern was John. The Bishop was convinced that the answer to all of his problems lay within the Heretic`s Book and John remained the unfortunately uncooperative key. The Novice knew too much about the Book and its contents to be dismissed, yet also understood more than Godfrey and couldn`t be&disposed of.

　　After months of deciphering the Book`s contents, the well had run dry. John had translated all that he could and every avenue of investigation had reached a dead end. Their work ground to a halt and it became clear that they desperately needed whatever was in the first half of the Book to make sense of their half. Godfrey cursed himself yet again for tossing away the wrong half and blamed the Heretic for sparking his rage.

　　Peter was right. Dismissing Adelard had also slowed their work. The Monk had proven to be an insufferable know-it-all, frequently correcting the Bishop and claiming greater knowledge of the world. The Monk did possess a unique intuition for deciphering the meaning of John`s translations but Godfrey had thought it prudent to cut ties before he too learned too much.

　　John`s renewed efforts to escape were an unfortunate consequence of the dismissal. The Monk and the Novice had developed a strong friendship during their secluded hours working in the library. The puzzle of the Book provided a shared interest and Adelard had kindled the comradery Godfrey had hoped to generate with John himself. But without translation work or friendship, John`s efforts to escape became more frequent than ever.

　　Godfrey had personally requested that John`s responsibilities be increased at the seminary and that the strictest masters keep a particularly close eye on him. It obviously wasn`t enough and Godfrey needed to revisit the seminary to discuss further reducing John`s freedoms. Yet another task.

　　Annoyed, Godfrey lay down his goblet and left his quarters to find the Assistant. He eventually found Peter in deep discussion with the palace staff but he wound up as Godfrey approached. The help dispersed with purpose. Despite often being the bearer of bad news, Godfrey admired Peter`s fastidiousness and ability to make things run smoothly. He too was indispensable.

　　"Your Eminence!" Peter called. "I have the messenger here to see you. Shall we retire to the library?"

　　Godfrey nodded and followed Peter and the scruffy messenger to the palace`s most secluded room. With John gone, the room was empty.

　　"So?" Godfrey asked. "Did you have any luck?"

　　The messenger looked nervous and eyed the door eagerly.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it`s taken without the author`s consent. Report it.

　　"Yes and no, Father. I spoke to the Priest again. A most friendly fellow."

　　"I don`t care what he was like! Did he have my damned Book?"

　　The messenger flinched. "No Bishop. He said that books were rare in the town`s castle, let alone in the streets. But he did have this."

　　The messenger revealed a familiar leather satchel, dusting it off before passing it to Godfrey.

　　"The Priest said he found it discarded in an alleyway during one of his walks through the town."

　　"That`s convenient," Godfrey mused. "Did you press him on this?"

　　"No Father."

　　"Unfortunate." Godfrey gave a menacing look. "Did you ask the townsfolk if they had seen the red-headed foreigner?"

　　"No Father."

　　"Disappointing again!" Godfrey cried, brandishing the satchel. "This is definitely hers."

　　He opened the bag and rifled through, more delicately than the first time he`d held it. Nothing struck him as particularly useful but he thought the contents might provide a momentary distraction for John when he returned. Godfrey wiped his finger across a white crust and sniffed. It smelt caustic and burned Godfrey`s nose.

　　"Well, better than returning empty-handed," he said, giving the messenger another intense stare. "Listen here. I want you to return to Stowey immediately and do your job. Properly this time. Don`t return until you have asked every living soul whether they`ve seen the girl or heard word of my missing book. The Priest was right, something so precious would not be left abandoned in the street. Someone must have taken it."

　　The messenger bowed deeply and rushed to leave the room. Godfrey shouted a final command.

　　"Press the Priest for more information. It`s too convenient that he found the satchel and nothing else. Search his chapel if you must"

　　The messenger disappeared and Godfrey looked over to Peter. "Is my carriage ready yet?"

　　The Assistant led his Bishop to the carriage waiting by the palace entrance.

　　Their first stop was to the blacksmith on to the outskirts of the town. He was not the finest craftsman but Peter assured Godfrey that he could be trusted to be discrete.

　　Godfrey longed to create the armour depicted in the Book, seeing it as the most direct way to assist the cardinals` rebellion in Normandy. Despite initial confidence that he would find a solution for the heavy plates, the Book lacked detail and none of the Bishop`s efforts to recreate war instruments had worked.

　　Just as Godfrey had dedicated his limited time to deciphering the Book, so too had he devoted his limited financial resources to the project. He siphoned coin earmarked for cathedral construction to fund the blacksmith`s endless attempts. Peter disapproved but was smart enough to hold his tongue.

　　"Still no luck, Bishop," the rough smith told Godfrey when he emerged from the carriage. "I don`t know who`s giving you these measurements but they`re all wrong."

　　Peter gave the blacksmith a silent warning but he continued anyway.

　　"I don`t mind tinkering with these experiments, so long as the coin keeps coming. I`ve got a family to look after you know."

　　"What would you suggest changing?" Godfrey asked, ignoring the man`s insolence.

　　"Stop trying to do it all. Forget the helmet and fancy joints. Keep it simple. Perfect the breastplate and we`ll go from there."

　　"So be it," Godfrey said, already returning to the carriage as Peter counted out coins.

　　Next, they stopped at the Jews` house to visit Godfrey`s lenders. There was no established community of Jews in Bath but a single family from the wealthy community in Bristol had built a home in the shadow of the cathedral they had financed.

　　The Bishop would`ve preferred that they had in Bristol but reminded himself that Christ had been a Jew and that Godfrey`s various projects wouldn`t be possible without the income generated by taxing the thrifty newcomers. He begrudgingly respected the way that their culture instilled an understanding of numbers and letters in their young, even though it undermined the monopoly otherwise held by the clergy. It was little wonder that they could rise above the uneducated masses.

　　But they were different. Nobody ever liked different.

　　Godfrey was greeted at the door of a simple townhouse by a young assistant and shown into a room where an elderly man sat behind a large desk. Peter`s face matched the shock Godfrey felt at seeing a room so lavish within such a simple building. There were even three books chained to a shelf, the expensive beginnings of a personal library.

　　"Welcome Your Eminence," the elderly man said. "Is this not the first time you have humbled my home with your presence?"

　　Godfrey nodded.

　　"I am Isaac. I trust you`ve come to discuss the terms for continuing the loan that was agreed by your predecessor. Ah, Bishop John. A truly inspiring man. Unorthodox but so dedicated to the health of his flock, from the lowliest peasant up to His Majesty himself."

　　"His death was a great loss," Godfrey replied stiffly.

　　"Quite," the Jew replied, eying the new bishop with suspicion. "So, you wish to continue our arrangement?"

　　"That`s presumptuous," Godfrey said.

　　"Merely observant. I see no chests of gold and the cathedral remained incomplete when I last checked. What other reason could there be for your call?"

　　"Some astute observations. You are correct. We`re here to express our willingness to continue the arrangement..." Godfrey thought on the fly. "&but I must also inform you of a new tax."

　　The old Jew looked displeased with Godfrey`s sudden revelation but held his tongue like an expert diplomat.

　　"That is news to me Your Eminence. Please accept my apologies for our tardiness, I will see that you have full payment before you leave."

　　The elder waved over his shoulder, and his young assistant left the room.

　　"Will you also require the additional funds for the cathedral?" Isaac asked with a knowing grin.

　　Godfrey was once again baffled by the wealth contained within the simple building. He and Peter departed with a chest containing enough gold to fund three months of cathedral works, plus the tax Godfrey had invented only moments before.

　　His carriage had just departed towards their next stop when it was caught by one of the palace runners. Matching their pace, the runner shared a winded exchange with Peter through the carriage shutter. Peter barked some brief instructions and the runner changed course back towards Godfrey`s palace.

　　"They found John," Peter said irritably.

　　"Well that`s positive," Godfrey replied.

　　"It would be, if he`d just stop trying to escape. Back when I was at the seminary they had ways of breaking even the most insubordinate neophyte`s will."

　　"You`re right, a change of tack is required. We`ll deal with him after the cathedral workers."

　　"Indeed. I`ve ordered he be confined to his room until we return."

　　"Very good," Godfrey approved.

　　The carriage pulled up at the cathedral. The master craftsmen insisted on repeating the same tired tour of the building`s shell. The design complaints related to trivial details, though they seemed offended when Godfrey dismissed them as such. This was quickly forgotten when Peter presented the Jews` gold and Godfrey ordered them to pay the workers what they were owed, plus a month in advance. The Bishop personally delivered this news to the workers in a rousing speech and the worksite buzzed with renewed energy when he returned to his palace.

　　"Peter, I`ve been thinking about my Book," Godfrey said as the carriage trundled home.

　　The Assistant looked unsurprised. "How so?"

　　"It seems we are surrounded by incompetence wherever we turn. I wonder if the Heretic was perhaps not dealt with as permanently as instructed."

　　"Would you like me to put a call out for any information about a redhaired foreigner? And a missing book? I`ll ask the parishes but we might have more luck if you offer a sizeable reward."

　　"Yes, that would be good. If I can`t have the full Book then perhaps we can find a way to extract the information directly. If she is still alive."

　　The carriage finally pulled up at the palace. Godfrey was exhausted and craved more wine. But one last task remained.

　　Peter peeled away when they arrived and Godfrey went straight to John`s room. A guard stepped aside to grant the Bishop passage. Noting the man`s heavy chainmail mittens, Godfrey summoned him into the room too.

　　After a brief silence, the cold stone corridor echoed with John`s helpless whelps but no one was around to hear them. Godfrey emerged with a grin. He saw little risk of ongoing disobedience.

　　(C) Jay Pelchen 2023. All rights reserved.