The Powder of Death

by Julian Stockwin

  Jared could see where the conversation was leading; he’d never really given it much thought but now was not the time to—

  ‘Che cavolo,’ he swore. ‘That Beppe – where’s my caudle, the lazy rascal!’

  As if in answer there was a muffled crash from below. They looked at each other and laughed.

  ‘He’s taken in drink, dropped the whole lot and must start again.’

  Nina smiled. ‘I’ll get another for you.’

  In less than a minute a piercing scream from below shattered the stillness of the night. Heart thumping Jared hurtled down the narrow staircase. Nina was pressed back against the wall staring at the body of Beppe, lying in the remains of a caudle.

  There was no blood. Had he fallen in a drunken stupor?

  The eyes were open, fixed and staring. There was clearly no life in him.

  ‘Is he … is he …?’

  ‘Yes,’ Jared said, his mind in a furious whirl. It could only be poison – and in the caudle meant for him that Beppe had tasted to his cost.

  But there could be another interpretation: that it had been arranged to show that he himself had poisoned the loyal servant to hide his lustful access to Giannina.

  Nina wept, her hands to her mouth in horror.

  At this hour they were alone in the house and whoever had done this thing might well be lurking about, preparing to move on them.

  ‘Go to our room and lock the door,’ Jared said, trying not to look at the corpse.

  Nina ran upstairs with a sob.

  Jared had to face the fact that someone out in the night was trying to eliminate him. Who? He needed time to think – but first he must get help.

  What friends could he call on? Not Alonzo, he would never involve his friend in something like this. He needed someone with power, influence.

  Like … like Corso Ezzolino, who’d more or less pledged his assistance.

  He went to Nina, frightened and trembling in the bedplace. ‘I’m going to have to leave you alone for a little while. I go to seek help from Corso Ezzolino. Stay here and don’t move.’

  There was no other way. She nodded tearfully, and buckling on his poignard Jared went out into the night.

  It was cold and dark. Sudden scuttling movements were rats disturbed in their nightly scavenging – but this meant that there was no one else about.

  Jared ran as quietly as he could to the corner and looked up the street. There were one or two lights abroad but the rest was impenetrable night. At least what was dark for him would be the same for any following after him.

  He tried to recall where he’d been told the Ezzolino casa maestosa was located and remembered a tower that dominated the square. That was surely up this sharp incline and to the right. He broke into a lope and made the square and saw the outline of the tower with a torch ablaze and a sentry standing beneath.

  Now he was faced with the task of not only rousing the young noble out of whatever bed he was in but getting some kind of help whose nature he hadn’t even considered.

  The sentry looked bored and sleepy. ‘I have urgent tidings for il Conte,’ Jared said importantly. ‘He’s to be woken and told immediately.’

  The man frowned, then leant back on the high wooden door and tapped it. Voices sounded querulously inside and a face poked out.

  ‘Who are you?’

  ‘Messer Jared of the signoria!’

  It brought results but not what he was expecting. He was pinioned, rushed inside and thrust rudely into the gatehouse. The door was slammed in his face.

  ‘We’ll let il Conte know, inglese barbaro!’

  Ezzolino came quickly, pulling his nightgown around him, alert and dangerous.

  ‘Messer Jared! What is it – tell quickly!’

  The saints be praised – he’d taken it the right way. ‘Can we talk privily?’

  It didn’t take long to put across the essence of what had happened and Ezzolino’s features hardened. ‘There’s a plot to kill you, to stop your gunnes, and I’ve a notion who’s behind it. For now you’re in grave danger.’

  He shouted orders and armed men turned out to assemble in the inner courtyard. ‘Go with these back to your house, my friend, they’re under orders to guard you well. I’ll be with you presently.’

  In a short time his house was surrounded and sealed off. Nina was still hiding in the upper rooms but safe and Jared breathed a sigh of relief.

  Ezzolino arrived soon after with a torchlit procession of soldiers, in armour and with an extravagantly plumed helmet as though he was about to go to war.

  He strode in and seeing the body, crisply ordered it to be taken away.

  ‘Should we not—’

  ‘The signore is not to be troubled with this, it is a not uncommon event.’

  ‘But—’

  ‘If Malatesta hears of this attempt on your life you will lose this house. He will seize you and place you under lock and key with none to have access. Is this what you want?’

  Jared could only shake his head.

  ‘Then allow me to take charge of your safety. From this hour there will be posted in this lower floor ten soldiers. I will send a food and drink taster and your cook is replaced by one of mine.’

  ‘I thank you, but do you think all this will be necessary?’

  ‘For the creator of the means to take sweet revenge on the Perugians – nothing is too much.’

  ‘You said you knew who’d plotted this.’

  ‘I should rather say the many who would do this. Think on it. What you are doing threatens a number of people. One: that old warhorse Umberto di Campaldino. Does he want to see a noble knight brought down invisibly from a distance by a despicable peasant? No, better to put a stop to it before it takes root.

  ‘Another: your sly Giacomo Capuletti, leader of the popolo. He sees Malatesta with powers that cannot be contested. He no longer has to curry favour with the popolo for he need not fear them with his magic weapons. It will be absolute tyranny. Kill you and this will not happen.

  ‘And then these: Arezzo is seething with Perugian spies. They know or will soon find out what will shortly face them. What riches and rewards will fall in the hands of any who remove you, by whatever means!’

  Jared sank to a chair in despair. For all his success with the huo yao he was now a hunted man and but for Ezzolino would probably now be lying in a ditch somewhere. It was a situation of his own making and he was trapped within it.

  Alonzo said nothing but his face was troubled. They worked rapidly and within the week had a useable sample of the new gunne.

  The yoke rest acted as a pivot from which the gunne could be aimed simply by bringing around the tiller butt, with the added advantage that greater range was possible – with no pretence at accuracy at all, hits could be obtained at considerably more than the hundred paces required.

  Tired but content Jared gave the orders that began the making of the fifty gunnes.

  CHAPTER 73

  The next morning Jared and Nina were woken suddenly not by a cock crow or the usual city noises but by what felt like a subterranean rumble, a succession of bumping that could have been a giant awakening from slumber under the earth and about to burst forth.

  Petrified he lay rigid as he heard other sounds. Faint screams, shouts – the roar of a great crowd.

  Then Nina laughed with relief. ‘Of course – today is the festival of Ciambragina! We celebrate young lovers everywhere, enjoy ourselves. Let’s go, Jared and forget our trouble!’

  They dressed quickly. ‘To the square! There’ll be acrobats, parades, dancing – how wonderful!’

  She had been despondent of late, clearly under the spell of death that had nearly claimed him and it was touching to see the child-like glee in her face.

  ‘Hurry – this way!’

  Nina knew a short cut through an alley. As they ran panting breathlessly along past tight-packed flat-roofed houses, the sound of big drums and discordant music became louder and Nina’s excitement grew.

/>   ‘Nearly there!’ she said, as they arrived at a long narrow passage.

  Jared turned into it first and without warning the heavens fell on him. A crushing weight knocked him to the ground near senseless, leaving him sprawled and bewildered and instinctively trying to throw it off.

  It twitched in a spasm once and he realised then that the weight was a human body, and that it did not move.

  He rolled to one side and it slithered from him. He stood up shakily – and saw Nina standing rigid over him. In her hand was a bloodied stiletto.

  ‘He tried to kill you,’ she whispered.

  A long dagger was still clutched in the corpse’s hand. The man had dropped on him from a flat roof and but for her quick thinking he would now be lying dead in his place.

  Shaking with reaction he tried to smile. ‘Where did you get that knife, cara Nina?’

  ‘I know they will not stop, I carry it always. Go back – we must run!’

  He was safe in his house, even more so in the presidio, and he could have an escort any time he chose but the killers were closing in. With a crossbow shot, an assassin’s blade, a betrayal – who knew when it would be?

  CHAPTER 74

  Ezzolino was enraged when he heard of the attack. ‘Messer Jared,’ he

  breathed slowly. ‘This is the foolishness of a child! You jeopardise not just

  yourself but the future of Arezzo.’

  He paced up and down, then rapped, ‘From this time forward there will

  be three armed men by your side each time you leave this house. You stay

  with these only, you understand me?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Good.’ He stopped pacing and turned to face him. ‘I believe we must

  take further precautions.’

  ‘Oh?’

  ‘Yes. If you should be struck down then there will be no one to produce

  our gunnes.’

  ‘Alonzo the blacksmith knows how to make them.’

  ‘But none has the secret of your gunne-powder. For safety’s sake we

  should know of it.’

  Thinking quickly he answered, ‘I do regret that my contract with the

  Signore Malatesta does not allow me to disclose it to any one else.’

  ‘Then this is a very worrying matter. We must find a solution.’

  Jared said nothing.

  ‘I know! You shall tell it only to myself. The signore would understand

  why and it’s a prudent move. After all, what use is this to me unless you’re

  dead and we need it? For the sake of Arezzo I ask that this be done.’

  ‘I understand your concern, but I’ve already taken steps to preserve Arezzo’s interests, that at the same time does not violate my contract.’

  ‘May I know these?’

  ‘The secret and process of creating gunne-powder is written down, in full, in a document that lies now in concealment. In the event of my death it will be handed without delay to the signore. Does this not satisfy your unease?’

  It was a lie, but who could prove it?

  ‘A good plan,’ said Ezzolino with an effort. ‘But why do you not leave it with me for safekeeping? My casa maestosa is proof against an army!’

  ‘It is safe.’

  There could be no reply to that.

  CHAPTER 75

  ‘Come near then, you brave condottieri,’ Jared threw at Peppin and his crew of gunners mustered for their first lesson.

  It was to be just a simple introduction to principles but the hard men held back in suspicion and apprehension.

  ‘This is a gunne,’ Jared said after they’d been chivvied forward. ‘You see it has an iron tube like a peashooter. This staff is to hold it with, resting on this yoke. To use it in war all we do is put two things in the gunne tube. First the devil dust, what we call gunne-powder, which will sleep there for now. Then the “pea” – here’s one.’ He tossed a grape-sized lead to one of the gunners, who promptly dropped it in fear. This brought muted cackles.

  ‘To make it … er, throw the “pea” we must wake the gunne-powder in the tube. It will get very angry and force the “pea” to flee away from it as fast as it may. How do we do this? There’s a hole that leads from the outside to the sleeping powder. On this we sprinkle some extra and add fire, which will set off all the gunne-powder.’

  There was incredulity on some of the faces, expressions of sullen disbelief on others.

  ‘We’ll call this “firing the gunne” for now.’

  Out of the corner of his eye Jared saw a figure approaching. It was Ezzolino.

  Jared caught his eye briefly, then went on. ‘You’ll now learn about gunne-powder. Cesarino, one packet to every man.’

  The lad darted out with a screw of paper for each. Inside was just a pinch of the magic powder.

  ‘Smell – taste! It’s quite harmless. Only fire will rouse it.’

  There were puzzled looks and outright distrust. Ezzolino, standing close by, was following every word, his forehead furrowed in concentration.

  ‘Messer Peppin. Your packet if you please.’

  Jared emptied it into a dish, heaping the little pile together.

  ‘What will happen when I give fire to this?’ he asked mildly. ‘Shall we see?’

  He went to the brazier and lifting out a firing wire advanced on the little grey pile. The company scattered in consternation.

  His gentle lowering of the wire resulted in a cheerful flare and then ashes.

  ‘Our gunne-powder is amiable when free, but barbarous when confined, as in our gunne.

  ‘Now we will make our gunne speak!’

  A target was hung on the frame, a crudely sketched figure.

  ‘I will ready the first gunne, you will follow after.’

  In slow, deliberate moves Jared charged the gun, added the ball of lead and rested.

  He pointed to one of the gunners. ‘You – yes, you. Your packet?’

  It was handed over and with the gunne in line with the target he smothered the fire-passage with its contents.

  ‘Are you ready, brave warriors?’

  He brought the wire down and the gunne viciously cracked out with a gratifying amount of smoke.

  ‘A hit!’ cried the distant target-man, dancing about.

  ‘And that is all,’ Jared said, stepping back.

  ‘We do it again, this time by numbers. Number one: clean out …’

  After the second shot he had them chanting out the sequence for an imaginary firing.

  ‘A volunteer. Thank you, Captain Peppin!’

  Blank-faced, the mercenary gunner stepped forward.

  ‘One shot at the target, if you please.’ There would be no scoring for accuracy as there would be in an archery contest – simply hitting the big sheet would be enough.

  Slowly and carefully, Peppin prepared the gun, his packet shaken over the firing-passage the last thing before he aimed.

  It was only when Jared handed him the red-hot wire that he showed any emotion – a trembling of his hand as it lowered to the lethal grey dust.

  The gunne cracked out happily and the target was duly struck.

  Struggling to retain his severe expression he returned to the ranks.

  Next would be the five corporals.

  Under a dozen watchful eyes the procedure went smoothly, but on a battlefield a simple fumble, which could so easily happen, could end in grisly calamity.

  By the end of the day Jared was happy that the Gunners Band of the Black Company knew how their weapons worked – but there was much to learn yet before he could turn them over as a trained military asset.

  When he got back to the house he decided that the next day he’d test them individually, watching for carelessness, blunders. Then solid drill until they knew it backwards.

  Gunne-powder making was more of a worry. As usual it was the saltpetre, a large proportion of which he’d had to send back for further refining. He had enough for now but if there was a serious need …
/>
  Nina entered the room and put her arm around his shoulders. ‘Jared, il mio amore. You work so hard. It’s not fair!’

  ‘I can do it another way?’

  She sat on his lap and stroked his hair. ‘You don’t have to waste your life like this, you know.’

  ‘Nina. What are you saying, you silly cabbage.’

  ‘You’ll get angry at me,’ she pouted.

  ‘No I won’t!’

  ‘Promise?’

  ‘I promise. Now tell me how I don’t have do this any more.’

  ‘I worry of you. I ask my friend. She tells me something which is very good, you can stop – leave and go away and no more scared of you killed any more.’

  ‘Oh? What did she say, then?’

  Nina got to her feet and smoothed her gown. ‘I think you be interested. So – I ask her here to speak at you.’

  ‘What!’

  She opened the door. ‘Lucia, here is Messer Jared.’

  In stepped a remarkably beautiful woman in an exquisite silk gown. For a moment Jared tried to remember where he’d seen her and then recalled the banquet – she was the wife of Villani, and related to the signore.

  ‘La mia signora,’ he managed.

  ‘Il Pregiato Jared,’ she replied with a graceful bow. Her features were perfectly composed, almost emotionless.

  ‘You will speak with me?’

  ‘Yes. You will be killed in a very short while. I am sure of that.’ The voice was cool and controlled and carried a certainty that chilled him.

  ‘You are a stranger and stand no chance against those whose life is spent here. Do you realise this?’

  ‘What else can I do?’

  ‘You can do something that not only preserves your life but gives you the means to leave here for ever and live like a prince.’

  Jared was beginning to suspect where this was going.

  ‘I’m here to offer you the sum of two thousand gold ducats for your secrets.’

  This translated to something like the income of Hurnwych Manor for some years.

  ‘Hear her!’ Nina pleaded, clutching his arm. ‘We can go this night, mio caro!’