Murder by Misrule

  ***

  They had almost regained the top of the stairs and a clear shot to fresh air and freedom when Lady Rich's waiting woman caught up with them. She spoke in rapid French, which Trumpet, astonishingly, seemed to understand. The boy listened with an ear cocked, face averted, as if concentrating on catching every syllable. The others could do nothing but stand and wait. Tom and Stephen had had French lessons in Lord Dorchester's household, but their skills were no match for a fluent speaker. Law French sounded like English tied in knots and hung upside down in a high wind. Real French was altogether different.

  When the woman left, Trumpet translated. "She said, let's see: 'My mistress says to tell your master she also can be indirect. Of course she knows the name of the limner she sat with for so many weeks. She is a Fleming, a widow, called Clara Goossens.'"

  She pronounced it the way the Frenchwoman had: Clahrah Gohzenz. It sounded foreign, smooth, like clean pebbles in the mouth. Trumpet chuckled. "She didn't seem to know we were here about the murder. She added, 'Her fees are very reasonable, but he should make haste because the limner will certainly raise them when my mistress's portrait becomes admired.'"