COCOONED IN HER NEW and shrouded lying-in chamber Margaret barely noticed the snow that came soon after Epiphany to cover the courts of Pembroke Castle under a white blanket. Those of us who ventured out found the exposed stairways treacherous with ice and the cisterns and pumps frozen solid but in the mansion fires burned constantly and somehow Jasper managed to obtain enough wood for fuel to be delivered to us daily. Only women were allowed in the mansion and fortunately a female cook had been found, a Pembroke woman of gentle birth who was only too willing to leave her family to their own devices for what seemed an exorbitant sum but it had to be owned that the dishes that emerged from her kitchen were delectable, despite the scarcities of winter. Although excluded from her company, Jasper gave orders that anything she wanted Lady Margaret must have. She had sophisticated tastes and relished sauces made with copious quantities of costly nutmeg, pepper and cinnamon. Jasper himself rode a mule – not wishing to risk the legs of his precious horses – over the frozen track to Tenby to fetch fresh supplies of spices, embroidery silks and herbal remedies. With her books and needlework, music from a female harper and gossip from anyone who would provide it, the expectant mother remained tranquil and calm.

‘He is kicking, Jane,’ she said to me from time to time. ‘He is a lusty boy. Just here.’ She would place her hand over a particular spot on her ever-expanding belly. Then one day, instead of a kick, she felt something else.

‘Oh, oh Jane! He is coming. Quick, I must lie down.’ Margaret suddenly heaved herself from her chair and threw off the woollen wrap that had been tucked around her.

I looked down, expecting to see tell tale signs that her waters had broken but could spy none. ‘Are you sure, my lady?’ I asked, offering her my arm. ‘Did you feel a pain?’

‘Not a pain as such but there was a definite twinge – just here.’ She put her hand to the small of her back. ‘Should I lie down? I do not want him to fall to the ground.’

At that moment I wondered if perhaps it had been wrong not to explain the process of birth in more detail but she had shown remarkably little curiosity and we had not wanted to disturb her with warnings of how much pain and effort would be required before her precious baby saw the light of day.

‘No, that is not necessary yet. It may be a false alarm. Perhaps you have a cramp. Would you like to walk a little?’ I suggested. ‘It can do no harm to stretch your legs. The baby will not come after just one twinge.’