'He would never do such a thing,' she said flatly.

Elizabeth was silent. If the Princess thought that she did not know her son. It was just the idiotic senseless chivalrous idealistic manner in which George would act.

'He felt he owed marriage to the lady in view of their relations.h.i.+p, Your Highness. The lady is sick... and fears herself to be near death... she was in great mental torment because of this... relations.h.i.+p and the Prince believed that the only way to bring her peace of mind was to marry her.'

'He has told you this... ?'

'Yes, Your Highness.'

Oh, George, you fool... you madman! thought his mother. Not only do you do this dreadful thing but you confide in this woman... this unscrupulous creature who is a born schemer and intriguer, not above a little blackmail. George, you are mad... quite mad. What are we going to do?

'You had better tell me all you know.'

'Your Highness, I have nothing more to tell you. All His Highness has told me is that the marriage has taken place.'

'Has he told anyone else of this marriage?'

'I think very few people know, Your Highness. His brother Edward...'

'Edward!'

'Who acted as a witness, Your Highness.'

'Oh, my G.o.d!'

'Then, of course, there is Dr Wilmot. He did not mention any other.'

'Of course I cannot believe such a story.'

'But Your Highness will wish to find out whether there is any truth in it.'

'Such silly rumours should always be proved false.'

Elizabeth could almost feel sorry for the woman. She was really shaken; and the more she protested her disbelief the more plausible the story seemed to her.

'Your Highness at least believes in my good faith.'

'Your good faith?'

'That I would not be so false or so foolish as to tell you that His Highness himself confessed this to me if he had not done so?'

The Princess was silent.

'And may I ask Your Highness not to mention to His Highness that I have told you this?'

The insolence of this woman was past all bearing. But she must be careful. One must always be careful with blackmailers, and Elizabeth Chudleigh was an extremely subtle one; moreover, the information she had to hide was such which could make the kingdom rock.

'If His Highness knew that I had told you he would no longer confide in me. I would wish to be loyal to His Highness and I have pondered on this; I have come to the conclusion that I can best serve His Highness by making this known to Your Highness, for I know that you will bring the discretion to settling this affair which is necessary to His Highness and the nation.'

The Princess did not answer.

'Your Highness knows that I am entirely at your service,' went on Elizabeth. 'If in the action you will take you should need me to act for Your Highness in any way... if there is something which I may be able to discover...'

'Yes, yes,' said the Princess. 'Leave me now and send to me...'

'My Lord Bute?' asked Elizabeth with a hint of mischief in her eyes.

But the Princess Dowager was too shaken to notice it.

She threw herself into his arms. 'What are we to do? I cannot believe it... and yet I must. How could this have happened? Without telling us! He tells that... creature . . . and not us! Can you believe it?'

Lord Bute looked stunned. It certainly was disconcerting. The Prince, to whom he had believed himself to be so close, to have acted in this way and not told him!

But that was a small matter compared with the tremendous implication of all this.

'Oh, John, do you think my son is mad?'

'He is a fool,' replied Bute savagely.

'What are we going to do?'

'We must think about it... clearly... calmly.'

'Oh, my darling, what a comfort you are! I know you will understand how to deal with this matter. Should we send for him?'

'By no means. That woman is right. We will say nothing to him.'

'I could storm at him... whip him with my own hands.'

'He is too big for that, Augusta... and he is the Prince of Wales. I fear of late I have made him realize the importance of his position. Perhaps I have been wrong. I have tried to make him into a King... which he may well be at any moment... and as a result he thinks he can act as he wishes without consulting me... us. Who would have believed he could have done this thing? But first we must prove that he has.'

'He told her... Elizabeth Chudleigh... himself, John.'

'And to tell that woman! What next? One act of folly on top of another!'

'Could he have been joking, John?' asked the Princess, piteously hopeful.

'Have you ever known him to joke? He doesn't know what a joke is. But we are wasting time. We have got to think of how to act.'

'How can we act? Think of it, John! That woman... that merchant's daughter or whatever she is, is the Princess of Wales. She could tomorrow be Queen of England. Oh, what can we do?'

'We must stop it. That much I know.'

'How?'

'That's what we must discover.'

'Can you see a way?'

'Not at the moment. But it's there, of course. There's always a way.'

'John, you don't think we ought to advise Mr Pitt or Newcastle.'

'Never. No, no... no one must know of this. It has to be our secret... and, a curse on her, that woman Chudleigh.'

'So we say nothing... not even to George?'

'Most of all not to George.'

'I do not know how I shall contain-myself in his presence. I think I shall plead a slight indisposition so that I do not have to see him.'

'Perhaps that would be advisable. It is a terrible ordeal, my love. But will you leave this to me?'

'Oh, my dearest, most willingly.'

'I will have some plan of action, you may be sure.'

'I am convinced of it.'

'In the meantime, I must see this Dr Wilmot. I must get the truth from him, threaten him with dire consequences if this leaks out through him; and then I must find some means of severing this impossible connection.'

'My darling, do you think you can do it?'

'Have you ever known me fail you?'

'Never,' she cried fervently.

Lord Bute suggested that the Prince of Wales should accompany him to Kew where they would stay for a while.

'There we can find more solitude,' he explained, 'and I have much to say to Your Highness.'

George had always had a particular liking for Kew; the palace was unpretentious; he liked the river and he had taken a great dislike to Hampton since his grandfather had slapped his face there.

'I want you to get a real grasp of affairs,' Bute had told him. 'The country is moving forward at a great rate. In the last few years the change has been significant. You must see in every aspect this country of which you will one day be King.'

George was eager to learn. He was a little worried every now and then when he remembered his marriage. At first it had seemed so right and n.o.ble; but now that he was a little farther from the event he was beginning to realize what significant action he had taken. He would do the same again, he a.s.sured himself; but he did realize that when the news was out it was going to be a very great shock to the people he cared about such as his mother and Lord Bute.

Hannah might say that she was prepared to live in retirement, but a Queen could not do that however much she wished it; and could Hannah ever act as a Queen of England? And if she did not, if they forced him to take another Queen... then the children would be illegitimate. How could an illegitimate son be the next King of England?

What a web he was caught up in!

There were times when he considered confessing everything to Lord Bute, but he never reached the point. He could not find the courage and Lord Bute had, it seemed to him, actually turned the subject to something quite different when he had been on the point of broaching it.

So a little rest at Kew was very desirable. A little respite, the Prince called it. Perhaps in a few weeks time he would be able to see the position more clearly and then make the right decision.

One thing he continued to tell himself: 'I don't regret it. I would do the same again.'

They rode every morning at Kew. It was so pleasant along by the river and people came out of their cottages to curtsy as he rode by. Some called 'Long live the Prince of Wales!' And he was gratified because they seemed to like him.

'The King is growing very unpopular,' Bute told him. 'The people are eager for you to ascend the throne.'

'It seems wrong to talk of Grandfather's death so constantly.'

'People will talk so of Kings. They consider their Kings their property.'

George s.h.i.+vered a little, though the suns.h.i.+ne was warm.

'There is something...'

But Lord Bute was smiling at a little group on the roadside.

'Give them a pleasant smile. They expect it.'

So he smiled and inclined his head in acknowledgment of the cheers and he told himself that when he was King he would work for the good of the people; he would be Good King George that was what he wanted.

And before his reign he had made a secret marriage... he had children who were born before his marriage. Little John was the real heir to the throne. No, he was not... because then Hannah had been married to Axford and not to him. But had she been married to Axford? Was it a true marriage? And the sons born before marriage were illegitimate... unless marriage later to their mother legitimized them. It was indeed a tangled web and he was too ignorant to sort it out. Lord Bute would be able to. His dear friend was capable of understanding everything.

Lord Bute now began to talk about the successful campaigns. There was victory on all sides. Parades were common in the streets of London when the heroes returned from the scenes of their triumph.

'You should share in these triumphs. The King should give you a command in the army.'

A command in the army! An escape from the problems at home! It seemed a wonderful solution. He could shelve the problem of his marriage until he returned from the wars; and while he was away perhaps he could see the position more clearly.

'I can see that the idea appeals to Your Highness.'

'It is what I desire.'

Bute was a little surprised, knowing that the Prince disliked any form of bloodshed. Did he imagine that he could escape that by going to war? He had thought that the young man would have to be persuaded to it. It must mean that George was anxious about this terrible situation in which he had become involved. That was to the good. The more he realized the extent of his folly the more likely he would be to accept the solution.

Bute was aware that the Prince was on the point of confiding in him; he must steer him clear of that. It was Bute's intention to know nothing of the matter ostensibly until it was all over. Therefore he wanted no confidences from the Prince about a matter on which he had made sure he was already fully informed.

'You should perhaps write to the King and tell him that you would welcome a military appointment. After all, it is only natural that the heir to the throne should want to have a share in the country's triumphs.'

'I will do so without delay.'

'Would Your Highness care for my a.s.sistance in drafting the letter.'

'I should, of course, welcome it.'

They rode back to the palace and occupied themselves with writing the letter and when it was ready a messenger was despatched with it to Kensington Palace where the King was in residence.

The Prince and Bute then settled down to study maps and talk of war; and Bute was pleased to notice that in this new interest the Prince seemed to have lost a little of his apprehension, which Bute construed as meaning he was not so deeply obsessed by his marriage and the Quaker as he had been.