London Underground

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The French Ambassador to the English court, Du Bellai, contemplated his young aide. The lad was barely seventeen, but he would grow older before this day was out… if any of them lived so long.

“Tell me again,” Du Bellai demanded. “And stop babbling. Speak clearly.”

The boy took a deep breath, then looked around with frightened eyes, as if that simple act might condemn him.

“One of the filles de chambre of Mlle Boleyn was taken ill. She was laid low very quickly. Mlle Boleyn called for her physician, who examined the girl and then spoke quickly to my lady. They both immediately left the chamber. I overheard the physician say he feared it was the Sweat.”

Du Bellai felt a cold hand squeeze his heart. It had been a dozen years since the last outbreak of the dreaded disease. Some called it the “Affliction of the Henrys,” for it first appeared at the start of the reign of Henry VII in 1485. It had caused great mortality and become known by its special symptom as the “sweating sickness.” Distinct from the plague, it was noted for its even more rapid and fatal course.

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