After all that has passed between them, all Anne desires from Mary is that she leave her be, but she is not to have even this most meagre satisfaction. The Queen has summoned her to her presence; they are in her closet, with the door shut, alone. Anne makes her compliment dutifully.
‘Oh don’t “Your Majesty” me, Anne! We are quite alone. Do sit down.’
Anne eases herself, stiffly, bulkily, into a chair.
‘Look at the pair of us, Anne – both grown so stout.’
‘I am with child.’
‘You are always with child. The Prince gives you no time to recover; it’s disastrous for your health – can he not leave you alone for a while after this one?’ ‘I am sensible of your concern, Sister, but I don’t care to be left alone. We prefer to share a bed.’ ‘So I’ve heard – as if you were paupers with no choice about it – very odd. But then, I find your household arrangements odd altogether.’
‘I don’t understand you, Sister. What do you mean?’
‘Mrs Pack, for example.’
‘What of her?’
‘She is dirty, and her manners are appalling. I do not think her a suitable person to attend upon the Duke.’
‘We owe Mrs Pack a great debt.’
‘Yes, but he has been weaned so long, surely you have redeemed it by now?’
‘She is a perfectly capable dry-nurse, and my boy loves her.’
‘I suppose he loves Jenkin Lewis too.’
‘Oh, I do believe he prefers Jenkin Lewis to any other soul on earth! What is wrong with Master Lewis?’
‘He is another very capable servant, I’m sure, but should he be such a close companion to the boy? The child is talking more and more now – and sounding more and more Welsh with it.’ ‘Lewis only ever speaks English with him.’ ‘Well it’s some strange variety.’ ‘But if you only saw them together, Mary. Such good friends. And
Master Lewis is no booby, you know – he is Lord Fitzharding’s protégé; he gives him the run of his library. You only see my boy when you summon him here – you cannot know how we care for him.’
‘No, I suppose I would know nothing of child-rearing.’
‘Mary, I did not mean to—’
‘But Lady Marlborough gives you all kinds of advice, I expect.’
‘Yes, she does.’
‘And not only about the boy.’
‘Sister, I do not know what you mean.’
‘Did she advise you that she needed an annuity?’
‘It is up to me what I do with my own income.’
‘That income was given to you so that you might run your household, not make presents to your favourites.’ ‘It is up to me what I do with my own income.’ ‘You should not have given her that money.’ ‘It is up to me—’
‘Oh stop it, Anne – stop saying the same thing over and over, it is enough to try a saint’s patience when you do that.’
So Anne says nothing at all. She will not look at Mary either.
‘Well, even if you will not speak, you can at least listen. I see the influence that woman has over you, and I am truly appalled by it – the King is too. We had hoped that in time your infatuation would wear itself out – heaven knows you forgot about Mrs Cornwallis quickly enough – if she were a more trustworthy person, we could smile on it, but we have good reason to doubt her loyalty to us – and her Lord’s even more.’
‘I don’t know what you mean.’
‘Oh don’t you? Do you know what is meant by “Caliban”? Or how about “the Dutch Abortion”? No, you need not bother protesting – your blushing gives you away.’
‘I do not wish to pick quarrels, Mary.’
‘Is that what you think this is, Anne? “Picking quarrels”? We are not in the nursery anymore. I am the Queen, and my husband is the King, and you are our heir, and there are those who will seek to make a property of you just as there were those that made a property of our poor cousin Monmouth!’
‘What has that to do with my Lady Marlborough and me?’
‘And now you pretend to be stupid – of course! You never change. Listen: this is what you will do: you will cancel that annuity—’
‘No.’
‘I beg your pardon?’
‘No. It is up to me what I do with my own income.’
‘If you do not cancel the annuity, we will take half of your income away.’ ‘You cannot. It is not in your power. Parliament granted it to me.’ ‘Then I ask you as your sister.’ ‘No.’ ‘Then you do not love me.’
‘Mary. Don’t cry, please – I’ll cry too.’ ‘Only because I have vexed you. You don’t care.’ ‘Mary—’ ‘You are dismissed.’ ‘Mary.’ ‘Leave my presence.’ All Anne can do is to make a deplorable curtsy, and obey.