“’Tis not so simple, my precious wife,” Richard replied. He rolled awkwardly onto his right side and then to a seated pose next to hers. Their shadows in the candlelight flickered eerily on the curtain, and he flung it aside. She is right, we must trust each other, he suddenly decided. And so he confided in her the tragic tale of his nephews’ deaths at the hands of Buckingham.

Anne stared open-mouthed at her husband, and then she reached out and took his hand. “You have lived with this since July, Richard? How have you borne it, my love? ’Tis no wonder you are not sleeping and are afraid for your very soul.” Tears rolled down her cheeks as she imagined the plight of the two innocent boys. “’Tis monstrous, and Harry deserved to die.”

“You must swear to keep silent, Anne. Most believe they are sent far away to safety. Let them think that, and soon the lads will be forgotten—except by you and me, and a few close friends.” And he spoke their names.

“Poor Edward, poor Richard. Those boys had done nothing to deserve such a fate…other than being born royal,” Anne realized and shivered. Both knew they were thinking of Ned.

Richard then spent much of December dealing with the continued harassment of English shipping by the Breton fleet. With the capable Jack Howard as admiral of England commanding the English Navy, Brittany was quickly subdued, and Duke Francis eventually signed a new treaty with Richard, admitting his error in having supported Henry Tudor. Before Duke Francis could hand the young earl over to the English, however, Henry escaped and found refuge in France.

“Bon débarras!” Richard told the council. “Good riddance.”

With rebellion dead along with its self-proclaimed figurehead—Buckingham never ceased thinking to the end that it was all about him—the court settled down to celebrate Richard’s first Christmas as king. He was determined to make it a merry one, and he chose to hold it at Baynard’s instead of at the vast palace of Westminster. Duchess Cecily had been invited to join them, but she claimed that a dislike of traveling in winter prevented her presence. To tell the truth, Richard was relieved he did not have to answer any awkward questions his mother would have asked.

Even though the death of his nephews haunted him daily, it surprised and saddened him that they seemed to have been forgotten elsewhere. No one spoke of them anymore; it was as though they had never existed, he thought. And, God help me, I am not about to remind them.

Two days before Twelfth Night, Richard received another surprise—this time one that pleased him.

He had chosen an eminently suitable husband for Katherine, and knowing Kate was staying with the Howards at their Stepney town house, he wanted her to meet their daughter’s bridegroom. Although it had been sporadic, Richard and Kate had exchanged a few letters about their children over the years. Their bond had turned into one of deep friendship, and he wanted to honor her now. He sent Rob Percy down the river to fetch Kate and then paced in his privy audience chamber awaiting her arrival.