"What do we do here?" Luigi asked testily. "The sun is too hot for strolling in the woods. I have no liking for all this greenery and fresh air."
"You have no liking for anything that you cannot brew in a pot or cauldron." Lorenzo's reply was absent as his gaze searched the trees and shrubbery on either side of the path. "I wonder how you ever came to beget a son. You like neither man, woman, nor beast."
"I concocted a fine mulled cider one night and imbibed so much the scullery maid appeared as appetizing to me as a glazed piglet with an apple in its mouth. She birthed Mario nine months later and left him in a basket in the kitchen when she ran away with a sailor. A father at my age!" Luigi mournfully shook his head. "I was so angry when I saw the babe that I burned the goose I was roasting."
"What a charming love story. It arouses not only pathos but also the palate. I'm sure you were a splendid father."
"I got used to it," Luigi said in a growl. "After a time I even... liked it."
Lorenzo darted him a glance. "How old was the boy when he was killed?"
"Seventeen." Luigi walked in silence for awhile. "I talked to Simonedo about you yesterday."
"Ah, the illustrious master of the kitchen. What does he think of my work?"
"He thinks your wits are addled. He says you sidle around the kitchen like a scared snake and never say a word."
"Well, you told me not to look at anyone. I thought it best not to speak either."
Luigi grunted.
"You do not agree?"
"Maybe. It's true your tongue has the sting of a scorpion. Simonedo says you work hard enough, and he thanked me for my recommendation. What think you of the guard who watches the food preparation?"
"An extremely sharp-eyed individual."
Luigi nodded. "Laraba has the eyes of a falcon. The Borgias have used poison often enough themselves not to be careful in choosing a good man, and with Laraba, we'll have to be magicians in order to slip poison into the food."
"I agree." Lorenzo had stopped, his gaze on a tall shrub abounding with clusters of delicate pale rose blossoms. "Is that not a pretty sight, Luigi? I wasn't sure I could find this beauty here on the outskirts of Rome. In my own birthplace of Naples you see these bushes frequently, indeed they grew in my garden. Ah, how lovely it was to see the first flowering in spring. Hand me the hatchet."
Luigi scowled as he handed the hatchet to Lorenzo. "I don't know why I had to carry the hatchet anyway."
"It was only sensible. You're built like a bull and have a comparable strength. Why should I be the beast of burden when you're far more suited to it?"
"And now you're taking the cuttings of silly bushes? I warn you, I'll not let you plant them in my little patch of a garden. That's only for my herbs."
"Luigi, I'm truly hurt you won't share your plot of earth with me." Lorenzo was quickly chopping several large branches from the bush. "Now what is better? A spot of blossoming beauty for the eyes or herbs and vegetables for the stomach?"
"The stomach. You'll not plant your stupid flowers in my garden."
Lorenzo sighed as he handed Luigi back the hatchet. "Oh, very well." He gathered the branches up in his arms. "I guess I'll have to find something else to do with them."
"I've sent the message to Damari," Giulia said as soon as Lion opened the door in answer to her knock. "Santini is to deliver my letter. Caprino used him once before, so Damari will recognize him and perhaps feel safer." She smiled. "Santini is one of the assets I acquired from Caprino's demise. He's a reliable man and trustworthy as long as an opponent's bribe is not too great."
"We cannot ask more than that, can we?" Lion asked. "A bribe or a threat can be equally effective to control a wavering loyalty."
Giulia's smile faded. "What is your meaning? Do you think to threaten me?"
"Only if it's needed."
Giulia's gaze went past his shoulder to Sanchia, who still occupied the big bed across the chamber. Her lips tightened. "I see you will no longer have need of the other chamber."
"No." Lion paused. "We go to the priest today. We plan to wed before the week ends."
"Wed?" Her eyes widened. "You'll wed her? But why should you--" She quickly schooled her angry expression. "I suppose you must do as you think best." She turned away. "I will tell you when I receive word from Damari."
"You're getting twigs and branches all over my floor," Luigi complained. "I won't pick them up, you know."
"My dear Luigi, I'm well aware you keep nothing clean in this hovel but your pots and trenchers." Lorenzo chopped another outcrop of lance-shaped leaves from the branch between his knees. "And I'm sure you'll suffer no profound distress from the mess I'm adding to this disaster of a room."
"I didn't ask you to move in here." Luigi added, "Mario kept the house clean. I tried to tell him it was unhealthy but he would laugh and say, 'Papa, your fine food will have a foul taste if seasoned with dust. Come, we will spend the evening sweeping and polishing.' "
"And you've obviously done neither since he died." Lorenzo tore off a delicate pink blossom from the branch and tossed it at Luigi, striking him on his cheek. "Admit that you like having me here. I give you someone on whom to vent your bilious spleen."
"I do not like you here. Why should I?" Luigi picked up the blossom and sniffed at it. "You're not good company as was my Mario. You only waste my hard-earned money by burning my candles to read your fine books and speak only to make mock of me."
"But I also eat your delicious cooking with an appreciation you don't encounter every day."
"That is true," Luigi said grudgingly. "You're no fool when it comes to the important things of life. Perhaps that's why I tolerate you."
"Perhaps." Lorenzo put the now denuded branch aside. "Hand me that other branch, will you?"
Luigi pushed the branch toward him across the table. "But I will go for no more walks with you in the woods. I could have spent the morning in far more important occupations."
"I realize it was a great sacrifice for you."
"And for what?" Luigi stood up and began to gather the discarded twigs and branches from the floor. "To give you something to whittle." He carried the bundle of branches to the hearth and dumped them on the stones.
"What are you doing?" Lorenzo asked mildly.
"I'm certainly not tidying up after you," Luigi said quickly. "You can clean up your own mess. I only thought to save myself from carrying in fresh wood for the evening fire."
"A very practical thought." Lorenzo lowered his gaze to the branch between his knees as he sliced off another twig. "But I really wouldn't do that if I were you."
"Why not?"
"Because, if you strike flint to those branches," Lorenzo cut off another blossoming twig, "within a very short time we will both be conspicuously dead."
"You're trembling." Lion's hand tightened on Sanchia's as they walked up the steps to the cathedral. "There's no reason to be frightened." He smiled. "After you've braved the plague, marriage to me cannot be so bad."
"It's not fear." Sanchia moistened her lips with her tongue. "I don't know why I feel so uneasy."
"Are you not content with this marriage?"
She nodded. "More. I am happy with this marriage. I love you. I will always love you, caro."
He leaned forward and brushed his lips to her temple. "As I will always love you." He stopped as they entered the dimness of the cathedral. "Wait here. I will talk to the priest." He genuflected and moved swiftly down the aisle.
She watched him walk down the marble aisle toward the priest, who had turned away from the altar and was gazing curiously at them. Lion was all that was strong, forceful, and beloved. She had never dreamed she would possess a love so powerful and passionate as this. Why then was she feeling this sudden anxiety at the thought of linking her life to Lion's?
Perhaps it was because she had read too many stories of noble courtly love and her own love was so very much of the earth and the living.
A ray of sunlight struck the stained-
glass windows, and as it passed through, it turned into a rainbow, effulgently bathing Lion and the robed priest. The scent of flowers, incense, and candles drifted to Sanchia, enfolding her in their heady fragrance.
Lion turned away from the priest and held out his hand to her.
She genuflected and started down the aisle, her gaze fixed on Lion's face.
Then he smiled at her and she was suddenly filled with a sense of wonder and a joy as radiant as the light streaming through the windows. The radiance swept through her, lifting her up, until she felt as if she was sparkling with the same jewel-like brilliance as the light surrounding Lion and the priest.
Dear God, it was so simple. Why hadn't she understood before what was so clear now?
Love, like life, was composed of plateaus and valleys, of serene silences as well as the clarion peal of trumpets. Pain and turmoil were necessary... How else would they learn to appreciate moments such as this?
Splendor.
Chapter Twenty.
Why have you chosen to meet me here?" Damari gazed at Giulia with suspicion. "Why not at your own casa?"
"This is a pleasant enough inn, a safe distance from Florence." Giulia turned away from the window overlooking the stable yard. "I see you've brought a sizeable detachment of your men. I assumed it would be so."
"I will not lose Andreas or the woman again."
"But you cannot lose what you do not have." Giulia paused. "Yet."
"I willhave them."
"If the price is high enough." She motioned to the men in the courtyard. "And you'll not take them away from me with those numbers. I have the money to muster thrice this force to guard what is mine."
"You? A whore?"
"Did you not recognize Santini? He's only a sample of what I've taken from Caprino. I shall soon be the most powerful woman in Florence. Caprino was a clever man and I learned much from observing him over the years."
"I do not deal with women."
"I know. You prefer to abuse them." She shrugged. "I've not forgiven you for Laurette. It will drive my price higher."
Damari hesitated. "You have them? Truly?"
"In the palm of my hand. They came to me to ask me to help them lure you into their net. They offered me five hundred ducats. I warned them it was not enough to satisfy me, but Lion was foolish enough to believe me when I finally agreed."
"And how much would satisfy you?"
"Fifteen hundred ducats."
"Ridiculous. You'll take far less."
She shook her head. "If you want Andreas and his whore, you will pay my price."
Damari seethed with fury. The greedy slut meant what she said. "Where are they?"
"Safe from you." She smiled. "But not from me."
Damari's hands closed into fists at his sides. "I will pay a thousand ducats, you filthy strumpet."
"I don't like being insulted. The price will now be sixteen hundred ducats."
"You daughter of filth, you cannot--" Damari, seeing her expression, tried to smother his rage. "I will pay your price."
"Excellent."
"But I do not have that large an amount with me. You'll have to wait for payment. When I return to Solinari I'll send you the tee."
She laughed in genuine amusement. "I am to trust you?" She shook her head. "By all means go back to Solinari, but without what you came for."
"I tell you, I do not have the ducats here."
"Then we will have to think of something else." She was silent a moment. "I will bring them to you at Solinari. We will exchange the merchandise for the ducats on the spot."
"How will you get them there? Andreas is no fool."
"But he trusts me." She added, "With reservations. It's difficult for a man to believe a woman who has given him pleasure would betray him."
"I want his woman too. For such a price I'll not be cheated of her."
"The woman also," Giulia agreed. "God knows I have no fondness for her."
"How will you do it?"
"As you so delicately pointed out, I am a whore and therefore familiar with many powders and potions to make the women in my house more compliant. A little bigger dosage and Lion and his little slave will sleep all the way to Solinari." She lifted a brow. "Unless you want me to kill them? It's all the same to me."
"No," Damari said. "I want them alive."
"I thought that would be your wish. Well, you'll soon have them both at Solinari to do with as you please."
Damari felt a sweet surge of pleasure that almost submerged his anger and frustration at the arrogance of the bitch. Well, perhaps the whore would have a surprise waiting for her when she rode through the gates of Solinari. She had a streak of iron within her that might be very exciting to break. "When?"
"Give me a day or two to ease their suspicions and then I'll slip the powders in their wine." She moved toward the door. "It can be no longer, as they're expecting me to receive a message from you any day."
"Then in a week's time?"
She nodded as she opened the door. "If all goes well, you can expect them to be delivered to you one day next week."
"Why not slip the branches into the pile meant for the fires in their bedchambers?" Luigi asked. "You said the smoke would kill."
"It's not a certain enough method," Lorenzo said. "It is August and a fire is not needed often. We might wait weeks for a fire to be lit and even then, if the chimney is clean and draws well or if they do not come too close, the fumes might only make them ill. No, it's best to use the branch as a spit to roast the meat for the table. The wood of the branch will poison the food as it cooks."
Luigi stooped and picked up one of the long branches, gazing at it in fascination. "What bush is it that bears death as well as pretty flowers?"
"The oleander." Lorenzo smiled at him. "A very useful plant. There's not one part of it that's not deadly. One leaf will kill a man. Even the nectar of those 'pretty' flowers will send a man to his grave."
"You're sure they'll get enough poison in the meat to do the task?"
"No, but it's our best chance." Lorenzo lifted his goblet to his lips and gazed at Luigi over the rim. "Now you remember what you're to do?"
"I'm not stupid. You've told me enough times," Luigi said sourly. "I slip the branches into the kitchen woodpile tomorrow morning."
"But today you make sure the chimney in the kitchen is drawing strongly." Lorenzo added grimly, "Even if you have to sweep it yourself. If you don't, I may find myself as dead as His Holiness since I'll be tending the spit."
"You know the scullery maid usually tends the spit."
"Tomorrow I will tend the spit. Create a new sauce with which to baste the meat and insist to Simonedo that you cannot trust the maid with the task. That will give you a reason to keep others away from the hearth. We don't want anyone breathing the smoke and becoming ill before the meat is done. Immediately after the meat goes on the spit you claim illness and leave the kitchen. I'll slip away as soon as the meat leaves the kitchen and join you here. Be ready to depart Rome at once."
"A new sauce is not created overnight," Luigi said, outraged and ignoring all the details except the one most important to him. "It takes time and many efforts before the right mixture is blended in the right proportions. Anyone who knows anything about fine cooking knows you cannot create a sauce--"
"Perhaps for common, ordinary cooks, but you tell me you're extraordinary."
"You know I'm extraordinary."
"Then prove it. A new sauce by tomorrow morning."
Luigi scowled. "You believe you are very clever. Well, I refuse to commit the sin of desecrating one of my dishes. We will murder the Borgias next week."
Lorenzo shook his head. "Everyone knows Cesare is importuning his father for fresh funds for a new campaign. He may not be in Rome next week."
"But I cannot concoct... " Luigi frowned fiercely. "Honey. Perhaps I can use honey with just a sprinkle of cinnamon... "
Lorenzo smiled with satisfaction as he leaned lazily back in his c
hair and stretched his legs out before him.
"Why is Giulia being so kind to me?" Sanchia asked as she turned in a circle before Lion. "Look at this gown. It must be one of the finest in her wardrobe, yet she not only gifted me with it but also sent a servant to alter it. Do you not think that's strange?"
"It's a very pretty gown. I like those blue ribbons on the bodice. Perhaps white does not become her as it does you."
"She looks beautiful in anything." Sanchia made a face. "And don't tell me you haven't noticed."
"I notice only the beauty of my own wife, as is proper in a virtuous married man." A glint of mischief appeared in his dark eyes. "Though I admit I prefer you without the gown. It could be that Giulia is not being kind to you, but cruel to me." He tilted his head and looked at her critically. "Yes, you're entirely too fully clothed. Send the gown back to her and we'll--"
A knock interrupted and they both turned as the door opened to Giulia's touch. She carried a silver tray which held three silver goblets and smiled as she moved gracefully toward them. "That gown looks enchanting on you, Sanchia. It never suited me." She set the tray on the polished table and picked up two of the goblets, handing one to Sanchia and one to Lion. "I found this Mandara wine you brought the last time you came to see me, Lion. You always liked it better than any wine Florence could boast." She picked up her own goblet. "Drink," she said softly, her smile lighting the luminous beauty of her face. "And then I'll tell you of the good news that's come to my ears regarding our friend Damari."
The whoreson chimney was not drawing well!
Dio, only minutes ago the flames had been drawing perfectly, and now it was casting thin billows of smoke into the kitchen!
Lorenzo turned his face away from the spit on which the honey-basted lamb was roasting and took a deep breath. Then, holding that breath, he turned back and leaned closer to the flames to peer up the chimney and try to see where the blockage occurred.
"How goes the lamb?"
Lorenzo turned to see the head cook, Simonedo, frowning impatiently at him.
Lorenzo hurriedly averted his gaze and muttered, "It's almost done, only a few more minutes, but the chimney... "
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