‘You may stay here, if you wish,’ Leicester said. ‘I am sure there are rooms enough.’

‘That is most kind,’ Berden said, ‘but we would not wish to trouble you or your staff further. We may not stay in Amsterdam after this night. Dr Alvarez and I have some further errands to undertake for Sir Francis,’ he said, ‘before we return to England. Our ship will fetch us home in three weeks. If there should be any letters you wish to send with us, shall we call before we leave?’

‘Aye. There is sure to be something. I wish you good fortune in your “errands” for Sir Francis.’ He smiled somewhat wolfishly, so that I wondered how much he had guessed of our real purpose in coming here.

With more bows and courtesies we left the room, to find the same liveried servant waiting to show us out. Our horses were stamping impatiently in the cold outside. I was concerned that they had been left so long unprotected, for the wind was rising again and an aura of damp rose from the canal which ran along the street. I shivered. It had been warm in the Earl’s room, with that large fire blazing, and we had not been invited to shed our cloaks, so the cold damp air struck us now all the more forcibly.

We set off back towards the square with the public well, where Berden said there was a comfortable inn called the Prins Willem.

‘They do not forget their William of Orange,’ he said, ‘so wickedly assassinated.’

‘I think it was that assassination which has made Sir Francis all the more vigilant over the Queen’s safety,’ I said. ‘Phelippes told me that she took it very badly, saw her danger as all the greater.’

‘Well, if the Spanish can succeed in murdering one prince, it will convince them that they have a good chance of succeeding again.’

‘Nicholas,’ I said, ‘did you know either of those men? The ones with Leicester?’

‘Worthington – I have heard his name but know nothing more about him. As for van Leyden, yes. We have met in the past, when he was acting as an interpreter.’

‘He is to be trusted?’

‘As much as any of the Hollanders, I suppose. They are beginning to lose their trust in us.’

‘They have some cause.’

‘There are arguments on both sides, Kit. This war against Spain here in the Low Countries seems like to go on for ever and Sir Francis has told me that the Queen has become very impatient with all it has cost us in money and men’s lives. She thinks the Dutch leaders do not show sufficient gratitude for our aid. On the other hand, they are our loyal allies. If we abandon them and Spain overruns this country, it will be child’s play for Spain to attack England, and almost certainly conquer us. Spain’s troops – their battle-hardened troops – will no longer be tied down here. They can easily be carried across the Channel, where there is no hope that we can resist them.’

‘I understood from Phelippes that the Hollanders once welcomed Leicester and nominated him Governor General.’

Berden grinned. ‘Her Majesty did not care for that. It gave the Earl too much power. She forced him to resign the position. And now they have fallen out of love with him. We would have far greater success here with Sir John Norreys in command, but Leicester hates him.’

‘Because he is a gifted soldier?’

‘Aye, almost certainly. Amongst other reasons. And when it comes to appointing a commander for the army in England, next year, when the Spaniards attack, who do you think the Queen will choose?’

‘Not Norreys?’

‘Not Norreys.’

‘But Leicester’s history in command of armies is but one disaster after another!’

Berden smiled and shook his head. ‘Who are we, to question the judgement of monarchs?’

The Prins Willem had a room for us and stabling for our horses. I was glad to see Hector safely into a warm stall that did not toss under his feet like the ship and was protected against the rising winter wind by brick walls rather than thin canvas. When the horses were fed and watered, and buckled into their blankets, we made our way back to the inn.

‘Nicholas,’ I said, remembering, ‘you have not taught me how to vault on to a horse from the rear, as you promised.’

‘There has been no opportunity,’ he protested, ‘and here in the middle of the town is not the place. When we travel south and are out in the countryside, then there will be a chance.’

‘We are going down to the Spanish lines, then?’ I hoped my fear did not show in my voice.

‘That is what Sir Francis wants, so that is what we must do, if we can. Before that, however, we must part company for a while. I have business in Den Haag. I think you should stay here in Amsterdam and, as Sir Francis said, keep your eyes and ears open amongst the troops. Stay inconspicuous, but find out what you can. I’ll return here when I have finished in Den Haag.’

‘How long will that be?’ I asked, as we opened the door into the warmth and light of the inn.

‘At least a week. Perhaps ten days. That will leave us a week to head down towards Parma’s army, then three or four days to come back to Amsterdam or make for the coast if the canal is frozen.’

As we had already dined at the Earl’s residence, we told the inn keeper, who spoke good English, that we did not need food, but made our way to our room. It was comfortable and very clean, much cleaner than most of the English inns I had encountered in my rather limited experience. Berden dropped his pack on one of the beds.

‘I’m going down for a drink and to listen to the men drinking here. I noticed that most of them were English soldiers.’

I nodded. I too had noticed. ‘I shall go to bed. I am tired.’

He laughed. ‘Somewhat uncomfortable with the horses last night, was it?’

‘Not really.’ I did not tell him that I had been kept awake by fear of what the next stage of our mission entailed.

When he had gone, I seized my chance to use the pisspot in privacy, then shed my boots and lay down on my bed. The straw mattress was topped with one stuffed with goose feathers, and there was another goose feather mattress for a cover. For the first time in several days I was truly warm. Within minutes I was asleep.

The next morning as we broke our fast in the inn parlour with cold meats and cheeses, Berden told me he had paid for the room for the next week.

‘I have told the inn keeper that you will be remaining in Amsterdam, while I will be travelling about. It is unlikely that I will return in less than a week, but no need to tell him that.’

‘You said you know the town well,’ I said. ‘Do you know Reiger Straat?’

‘It’s not far from here. Go back to the Earl’s house, then follow the canal until it flows into another one. Reiger Straat runs off to the left, along that canal. Why do you ask?’

‘A friend of mine told me her cousin lives there. If I had the chance, she asked me to take him news of her family.’

He considered this for a moment, frowning. ‘You had best tell me the name of your friend and her cousin.’

This annoyed me somewhat, for I felt it was no concern of his, but I was in some sense under his direction, so I said, ‘It is Sara Lopez, the wife of Ruy Lopez, the Queen’s personal physician. Her cousin is Ettore Añez, a merchant dealing in precious stones, the nephew of Dunstan Añez, the Queen’s Purveyor of Spices.’ I laid a good deal of emphasis on these links to the Queen.

His face cleared. ‘Ah, that is quite permissible. Dr Lopez has been of service to Sir Francis, and so has Senhor Añez.’

I wasn’t sure which Senhor Añez he meant, but I let that pass. ‘So you will have no objection if I call on Senhor Añez?’ I said, with an edge of false humility in my tone.

He looked at me sharply. ‘These are dangerous times, Kit. You should realise that. And in a foreign country one must be particularly careful to watch every step. Take care that you do so while you are alone in the town. I know that you are new to this  . . . business. Caution and discretion are often the only shield for an intelligencer from arrest or even death, and don’t forget it.’