The Rose Rent - Plot Summary

Plot Summary

In late spring of 1142 the Benedictine friars of Shrewsbury Abbey are thinking of the June 22 feast day honoring the translation of Saint Winifred from Wales to the altar in the Abbey.

The political disruptions of the Anarchy are not touching Shrewsbury. During the King's illness early in the year, Empress Maud moved into Oxford, while her staunchest supporter, Robert of Gloucester went over to Normandy for meetings with her family. King Stephen began to be active again, having taken Wareham, giving heart to his supporters. Sheriff Hugh Beringar heads to his manor in the north, to see to his sheep.

The Abbey has a second duty for the last three years on that day, to complete their agreement with the widow Judith Perle. Her husband died and she miscarried twenty days later, over three years before. She gave their home and lands in the Foregate to the Abbey, half her patrimony, in a charter, in exchange for a single white rose from the garden, delivered to her in person. Brother Eluric, who tends the altar funded by the rent the Abbey realizes from the house, has delivered the rose each year. Eight days before he must deliver it the fourth time, he asks Abbot Radulfus to be released from this duty, as he is tormented by his desire for the widow Perle. Abbot Radulfus releases him. In discussion with Cadfael and Anselm, the Abbot decides to have the rose rent delivered by Niall the bronzesmith, who rents the property from the abbey.

Judith visits the bronzesmith to ask him to make a new buckle for a girdle; he is touched by her beauty and loneliness. Judith Perle has several suitors but is not interested in marrying again, still grieving the happy years with her husband. She discusses with Sister Magdalen the option of taking the veil and living with the sisters at Godric's Ford. Sister Magdalen convinces her to wait but says that her door is always open if she is in need of a place to rest and think.

Niall, a widower, keeps his young daughter with his sister in Pulley, just three miles away. He returns from an overnight visit and finds that the white rose bush has been hacked at its bole. At its base lies Brother Eluric, dead with a knife by his side. While investigating the murder scene with the Abbot and Brother Anselm, Brother Cadfael finds a distinctive footprint and makes a wax impression. Cadfael tells Judith about Brother Eluric's desire for her. Before going to bed that night, Judith tells her servant Branwen that in the morning she will go to the abbey to draw up a new charter to make the gift of the property unconditional. The next day, Judith fails to arrive at the abbey. Sheriff Hugh Beringar, called back to town, Cadfael, and Abbot Radulfus believe that Judith was kidnapped, either to be forced into marriage or to void the charter by her absence on rent day. The search begins. Cadfael finds the once firmly-attached bronze tag from the end of Judith's girdle, suggesting a struggle. It is found under the bridge where a boat had been hauled up for convenient use, possibly stolen by the kidnapper. Cadfael's search of the river with Madog finds a stolen boat discarded downstream on the River Severn.

Bertred, one of Judith's foremen, remembers that on the night that Judith announced that she would go to the abbey to remake the charter, one of Vivian Hynde's men visiting at the Perle household left abruptly after Branwen shared that news. Bertred believes he knows where she is being held, having followed Hynde or his man out of the town after the search ended for the day. In the middle of the night, he makes his way to Hynde's disused counting-house, now an outbuilding to store the wool clips. It had been searched that day, but the disused room was not known to the Deputy Sheriff, nor mentioned by the owner. Bertred can hear Judith Perle inside with her gaoler, Vivian Hynde. In a surprising turn of events, Judith is in control of the situation. Vivian is pleading with Judith to marry him, but she scornfully rejects him. Bertred has been holding onto the sill; it gives way and makes a sound, which alerts those within and the watchdog. Bertred runs toward the river to escape. The watchman and his dog pursue. The watchman gives him a glancing blow to the head but Bertred dives into the water, hits rocks on the shelving bank and is knocked senseless. He is not followed by the watchman who believes this interloper is swimming across the river.

Back in the counting-house, Judith convinces Vivian to take her to Sister Magdalen, where she will say she has been in retreat during the past days. She promises not to reveal the truth about Vivian. She wants this episode behind her, her good reputation intact. He agrees; soon they slip out to stay in his mother's house until they can start out for Godric's Ford. Someone comes upon Bertred in the shallows, checks to see he is alive, and then kicks him out into the current of the river. Cadfael, working near the river the next morning, finds the dead body of Bertred. After examining Bertred's body, Cadfael sees that Bertred's boots are a match for the wax impression of the boot found near the rose bush when Brother Eluric was killed. They have apparently found the murderer of Brother Eluric. Hugh and Cadfael talk to the watchman and discover that Bertred had been at Vivian Hynde's storehouse the night before, where they find the broken window sill. They ask to search within but find no trace of the pair's presence the night before.

Niall goes to Pulley again to visit his daughter. He wants to bring her home to live with him, but will wait until life in Shrewsbury calms down. On his return in the moonless night, he hears sounds and takes cover, believing he hears bandits. He sees a man on a horse with a woman riding pillion and recognizes her as Judith Perle. He follows them for an hour until he hears Judith tell the man to let her go the rest of the way alone. After the man leaves, Niall approaches closer when he hears her scream as someone is attacking her with a knife. He struggles with her attacker and knocks the knife away, getting a gash on his left arm. The attacker flees. Niall and Judith continue to the Benedictine nuns at Godric's Ford. Judith tells Sister Magdalen their story and she agrees to go along with Judith's deception about being with the Sisters for three days, well understanding the importance of reputation. Sister Magdalen accompanies them back to the Abbey then on to town, staying close to Judith until all is well with her.

After her reunion at her home in town, Judith tells her tale of being attacked to Hugh. She tells him the truth about her abduction, adding that after being released by Vivian she wants the matter to end and will not bear witness against him. Vivian was with her when they heard Bertred fall and be chased by the night watchman, so he could not have killed Bertred. Hugh acquiesces, telling her that Vivian Hynde is already taken; Hugh will release him eventually. Cadfael asks Sister Magdalen to obtain two well worn left shoes for him from Judith's household. She sends them via a trusted messenger, Edwy Bellecote the son of the carpenter. He brings them to the waiting Cadfael, who examines the shoe that belonged to Bertred. It does not match the mold of the print from Brother Eluric's murder. The other shoe does match.

Thinking there might be more trouble with the rose bush, Cadfael walks out to find the bush ablaze; the fire pulls many local men out to assure it does not spread. The bush was covered with oil then had a burning torch dropped on it, from over the wall. The bush is destroyed.

Early the next morning, the day of St Winifred's translation, Hugh visits Judith Perle's home to ask her cousin Miles when he gave his boots to Bertred. Miles' mother reveals that he did it on the day Brother Eluric was found dead. Miles had killed Brother Eluric and then given his boots to Bertred. Miles confesses all, trying to mitigate his guilt, and he is taken away by Hugh's men to await his trial.

Judith is hurt by this betrayal. Cadfael and Hugh explain what they know. Miles, hoping that Judith would enter the convent and leave her shop and property to him, had the idea to destroy the rose bush, causing the house to revert to her estate. But Eluric discovered and stopped him in the first attack on the rose tree, so Miles stabbed him, leaving that boot print. Later, he followed Bertred to the Hynde property and killed him. The next night he followed Judith en route to Godric's Ford, where he tried to kill her, stopped by the unexpected Niall. Miles is the only person with a motive to kill Judith, as he would inherit her business and property.

Cadfael and Judith reflect sadly that Miles never intended to do so much evil, but his first step, motivated by ambition and greed, led him down a path he did not escape.

Her house emptied, first by Hugh, Cadfael and Sister Magdalen leaving, then the funeral for Bertred. She has two childless widows to support now. She told her aunt what she must know about her lost son. Judith has the full responsibility of the clothier business in her hands again, and will remake the charter with the Abbey, making a full gift of that house.

In mid afternoon of Saint Winifred's day, Niall and his young daughter Rosalba arrive at Judith's house with a white rose. He had picked the bloom yesterday, before the fire. He delivers the rose rent to her, thus securing the charter. He begins to leave, but Judith asks him to stay, rediscovering her reasons to live.