Authors: Rory Clements
Tags: #Fiction, #Historical, #Mystery & Detective, #Thrillers, #Espionage
The Queen's Man (46 page)
Item
, lastly I John Shakespeare do protest that I will willingly accept of death in what manner soever it may befall me, conforming my will unto the will of God; accepting of the same in satisfaction for my sins, and giving thanks unto his divine majesty for the life he hath bestowed upon me. And if it please him to prolong or shorten the same, blessed be he also a thousand thousand times; into whose most holy hands I commend my soul and body, my life and death: and I beseech him above all things, that he never permit any change to be made to me John Shakespeare of this my aforesaid will and testament. Amen.
I John Shakespeare have made this present writing of protestation, confession and charter, in the presence of the blessed Virgin Mary, my angel guardian, and all the celestial court, as witnesses hereunto: the which my meaning is, that it be of full value now presently and for ever, with the force and virtue of testament, codicil and donation in case of death; confirming it anew, being in perfect health of soul and body, and signed with mine own hand, carrying also the same about me; and for the better declaration hereof, my will and intention is that it be finally buried with me after my death.
Pater noster. Ave Maria. Credo.
Jesu, son of David, have mercy on me.
Amen.
After a career in national newspapers,
RORY CLEMENTS
now lives in a seventeenth-century farmhouse in Norfolk and writes full-time. When not immersing himself in the Elizabethan world, he enjoys village life and a game of tennis with friends. He is married to the artist Naomi Clements-Wright. He is the author of the John Shakespeare series of Elizabethan mysteries, including
Martyr
, which was shortlisted for the CWA John Creasey Award;
Revenger
, which won the 2010 CWA Ellis Peters Historical Fiction Award;
Prince
, which was shortlisted for the 2011 Ellis Peters Historical Fiction Award;
Traitor
; and
Monarch
. A TV series based on the books is currently in development.
www.roryclements.com
Visit
www.AuthorTracker.com
for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins authors.
Martyr
Revenger
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
This book was originally published in Great Britain in 2014 by Hodder & Stoughton, an Hachette UK Company.
T
HE QUEEN’S MAN
. Copyright © 2014 by Rory Clements. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
EPub Edition MARCH 2014 ISBN: 9780062301956
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Australia
HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty. Ltd.
Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street
Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia
http://www.harpercollins.com.au
Canada
HarperCollins Canada
2 Bloor Street East – 20th Floor
Toronto, ON, M4W, 1A8, Canada
New Zealand
HarperCollins Publishers (New Zealand) Limited
P.O. Box 1
Auckland, New Zealand
http://www.harpercollins.co.nz
United Kingdom
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
77–85 Fulham Palace Road
London, W6 8JB, UK
http://www.harpercollins.co.uk
United States
HarperCollins Publishers Inc.
10 East 53rd Street
New York, NY 10022
