Florencia gave a little cry.
“Suppose he – injures you or – kills you?”
“I will take great care of myself for your sake.”
He kissed her again, a loving tender kiss that made them both feel as if they were floating in the air miles away from the earth.
Then, as they came back to reality, Lord Mere rose from the bed with a sigh.
“Goodnight, my precious, my beautiful wife-to-be!” he said.
The deepness of his voice and the love in his eyes made her lift her lips to his, but he only took her hands, one after the other, kissed them gently and turned them over to kiss the palms passionately and insistently.
Then, as if he forced himself to do so, he walked across the room to the window.
Only as he moved between the curtains did he look back to see her watching him, her eyes wide and apprehensive, her hands clasped as if she was already praying for him.
He smiled at her and then the curtains closed behind him and he swung himself over the balcony and started slowly and painstakingly to descend to the ground.
*
Hicks was waiting where Lord Mere had left him and they rode away, at first quietly through the woods in case anybody should hear them go.
Then, when they reached the open land and the moonlight was bright enough for them to see their way without worrying, they galloped as hard as they could back towards the villa.
Only when they had put the horses back in the stables and Hicks was helping Lord Mere to undress did they speak for the first time.
“Tomorrow you have to visit Prince di Gorizia’s Palazzo,” Lord Mere said. “I want you, Hicks, to be as clever as you have been today and most important of all to find out in which room Prince Vincente sleeps and the easiest way to approach it.”
“You don’t want to push your luck, my Lord,” Hicks said.
“It is something I have to do,” Lord Mere replied, “and you know I must rely on you, Hicks, to find out everything you can.”
It would be impossible for him to call on the Gorizias, unless –
He paused for a moment.
He thought suddenly that while it would be a mistake for Sir Julius to take him there, who had made it quite obvious what he thought of the Gorizias, it would be a very different if he was taken by the Contessa.
By the time Hicks had left him he was in bed, but he was not sleeping.
His brain was working with a swift intensity that in the past had made him so successful in many different missions he had undertaken in Europe.
He had learned never to underestimate the possible value of a contact made with anyone, however insignificant or unimportant they might seem to be in his general scheme.
Somebody in the past, and he could not remember now who it was, had said,
“Even the smallest pebble can make a large ripple,” and it was something he had always remembered.
He felt now that while he had imagined that the Contessa was unimportant to him since he had met Florencia, she quite definitely could have her uses.
When finally he closed his eyes and prepared himself for sleep, a plan was already laid out in his mind in which every move was calculated.
At the same time, although his confederates in past episodes might not believe it, he was taking as few chances as possible not for his own sake but for Florencia’s.
*
When Lord Mere came down to breakfast he was served on the veranda outside the dining room, but there was no sign of his host.
Even when he had slept for only three or four hours, he felt fresh and alert and not in the least tired.
He had trained himself over the years to get by with as much or as little sleep as was necessary without feeling the loss of it when he was obliged to work late hours during the night.
He was not surprised when, as soon as he had seated himself at the breakfast table, a footman came to say,
“I regret to inform you, my Lord, that Sir Julius has had a restless night and has therefore decided to stay in bed until luncheontime.”
“I quite understand,” Lord Mere answered. “Tell Sir Julius that I think he is wise and, as I have a call to make in the City, I know that he will understand if I borrow his carriage.”
*
Later in the morning Lord Mere drove to the house of the Contessa Mazara stopping only on the way to purchase a large basket of orchids, which he thought were an appropriate flower for the lady in question.
In the shop there were also some very lovely lilies that reminded him of Florencia.
He longed to send them to her, but knew it would be a mistake.
He thought, however, that the day would come when he would surround her with the white flowers that matched her purity and which were somehow always associated in his mind with Raphael’s pictures of the Madonna.
It took a short time for the basket of orchids to be carried out of the shop and put into the carriage.
Then he drove on, deliberately putting Florencia out of his mind in order to concentrate on the Contessa.
As he had anticipated, she was delighted to see him and with little delay she swept into the side room where he had been shown.
She was wearing a most alluring garment that he was well aware was unconventional so early in the day.
“I have been so looking forward to seeing you again, my Lord,” the Contessa said as he kissed her hand.
“I would have called on you yesterday had it been possible,” Lord Mere replied, “but Sir Julius took me to visit the Sogino Palazzo.”
The Contessa smiled.
“I thought he would do that and I am sure that you enjoyed the pictures.”
“They are magnificent!”
“After that I know I shall be embarrassed to show you my own small collection,” the Contessa said somewhat demurely.
“You know I am looking forward to seeing it,” Lord Mere answered gallantly.
He paused and then went on,
“I am also rather curious to see the collection belonging to the Gorizias.”
“They are nothing like as good as the Soginos!” the Contessa said.
“I have heard that,” Lord Mere replied, “but the Earl of Roseberry, who, as you may know, is our Foreign Secretary, was telling me that they have two outstanding pictures that I should certainly try to see while I am in Florence.”
This was a bold conjecture, but the Contessa quickly supplied the answer.
“You mean the Leonardo da Vinci and the Ingres. Yes, I suppose we must concede that they are outstanding!”
“I would love to see them with you,” Lord Mere said.
He spoke in a way that was so flattering that the Contessa fell all too easily into the snare he had set for her and responded,
“We will go together after luncheon.”
“I can imagine nothing more delightful,” Lord Mere replied.
He prevented the Contessa from taking him immediately to her own picture gallery, which he was quite certain would end in her private apartments, by saying that he had an appointment at the British Embassy.
Lord Mere promised that he would return to her as quickly as possible and left her making arrangements for the afternoon and sending a groom to inform the Prince that they would be calling on him at about two o’clock.
Lord Mere, because he knew that it was a mistake for him to tell unnecessary lies, went immediately to the British Embassy to pay his respects to the Ambassador without wasting very much time about it.
On his way back to the villa, he stopped the carriage at the Ponte Vecchio, renowned for its jewellers’ shops, the most famous of whom was Giovanni.
Lord Mere remembered the old man from a previous visit and, having shaken him by the hand, sat down in his small private office.
“Can I do anything for you, my Lord?” the jeweller asked.
Lord Mere explained that he was looking for a present for his sister and inspected some exquisite pieces of coral set with diamonds.
/>
Finally, after some deliberation, he chose a pair of earrings and a ring to match.
He also ordered a necklace to be made together with them and knew that they would make a special present for Florencia when he was able to give her some of the many things he planned for her.
Only when Giovanni was making out the account and one of his assistants was packing up the earrings and the ring did Lord Mere say casually,
“I hear you that are making some repairs to the famous necklace belonging to the Soginos. I have often thought that it was the most fabulous piece of jewellery in the whole of Europe.”
“You are right, my Lord,” Giovanni said. “In fact it is a joy for me just to look at it, let alone work on it!”
He gave a little sigh.
Then he added,
“I expect Prince Antonio told you that he brought it to me last night. He did not know how glad I was to see it!”
“Why, particularly?” Lord Mere asked.
“Because, my Lord, there have been rumours going about Florence that the necklace had left the City. As you know, Florence is very jealous of her treasures and collectors have already been making enquiries following some malicious rumours that the Prince di Sogino was selling pictures from his Palazzo. Of course I did not believe it, but you know how these things get talked about and exaggerated.”
“Of course,” Lord Mere said. “People will make a scandal about nothing.”
“Well, I can say to anybody who asks me that the necklace is here and as beautiful as ever it was!”
“I hope you will tell everybody the truth,” Lord Mere said. “I have great respect for the Prince di Sogino and I would not like to think that he was being defamed.”
“You are right, my Lord,” Giovanni said. “He is a noble man, but like all great nobles, he has his enemies.”
There was no doubt who he was speaking about and Lord Mere said with a feigned air of surprise,
“Surely those old-fashioned ridiculous vendettas of the last century are not continued today?”
“I am afraid they are,” Giovanni said, “and there is a rumour, although I cannot believe it is true, that Princess Florencia di Sogino is to marry Prince Vincente di Gorizia.”
Lord Mere looked surprised.
“I can hardly believe that is true! From all I hear, he is not a particularly desirable young man.”
“He is wicked, my Lord! Really wicked! If you knew of the way he is behaving almost every night in the low part of the City, you would be appalled!”
The old jeweller spoke with a note of disgust in his voice that told Lord Mere that what Sir Julius had said to him of Prince Vincente’s excesses was undoubtedly true.
“Is there nothing that can be done to prevent him from behaving in such a manner?” he asked. “Surely his victims and their parents must hate him!”
“They would kill him, my Lord, if they had the chance,” Giovanni said.
His voice dropped as he added,
“I believe one man who was incensed by the Prince’s behaviour towards his daughter attacked him, but the Prince’s bodyguard, he always has one with him at night, killed him first!”
“A pity!” Lord Mere remarked laconically.
He rose to his feet as he spoke having found out what he wanted to know.
His package was ready for him and he said ‘goodbye’ to Giovanni.
After walking back to his carriage, he drove back to the villa knowing that after luncheon the Contessa would be eagerly awaiting him with an invitation in her dark eyes that would be even more insistent than it had been on the night he had met her.
Chapter Five
Driving in the Contessa’s open carriage towards the Gorizia Palazzo, Lord Mere had to admit that she was an extremely attractive woman.
He knew that if he had not fallen in love precipitately and seriously with Florencia, he would certainly have amused himself with her while he was in Florence.
Sophisticated, worldly-wise and with a sharp wit usually at somebody else’s expense, the Contessa was exceedingly good company and at the same time made it very clear how attractive she found him.
They talked of many things as they drove through the sunlit City, but he was well aware that there was an innuendo behind most of her words and an expression in her eyes that told him far more than what she said with her lips.
When he saw the Gorizia Palazzo, it was coarser in structure and without the elegance that seemed very much part of the Sogino family.
There was too, he realised, a high wall encircling the garden, which he did not look forward to scaling at night.
However Lord Mere never accepted defeat and his brain was working like a well-oiled machine, noticing and memorising every detail of the structure of the Palazzo as they were shown from the main hall up a staircase to the Reception room on the first floor.
The Prince di Gorizia was waiting for them and, as he greeted them, Lord Mere thought again how ugly he looked and that he had none of the aristocratic distinction of his enemy.
The Prince, however, was very effusive.
“It is an inestimable pleasure to see you. Contessa,” he said as he kissed her hand, “and I am, of course, flattered that the reputable Lord Mere should wish to visit my Palazzo!”
“He has heard from the Earl of Roseberry about your Leonardo da Vinci,” the Contessa said, “and, as he is an insatiable collector of pictures himself, he could not bear to leave Florence without seeing it.”
“Of course not!” the Prince agreed. “But first I want you to taste some wine from my own vineyards, which I flatter myself is superior to any I have produced before!”
It was certainly, Lord Mere thought, a pleasantly light and appetising wine and he noticed that the Prince took several glasses.
“When I received your note,” he was saying to the Contessa, “I was just about to write to you to ask you to dine with me tonight because unexpectedly several of my cousins have arrived here from Rome and, as they are young, I want to give a party for them and emulate the delightful evening I spent with you the night before last.”
The Contessa's face fell.
“Oh, Your Highness, it is too disappointing!” she exclaimed, “but I have a party of my own, not a large one, but as it includes several very old friends, I could not throw them over at the last moment.”
“A disappointment indeed!” the Prince said. “But I hope, Lord Mere, that you will accept the invitation to dine with me and, of course, I should be delighted to see Sir Julius.”
“I am afraid that Sir Julius is indisposed,” Lord Mere replied, “but I would be only too pleased to accept your invitation rather than dine alone at the villa.”
He spoke quickly, knowing perceptively that the Contessa was about to invite him to dine with her and he had the idea that it was what she had been planning all along.
But, as he was very anxious to see as much of the inside of the Gorizia Palazzo as he could, the invitation could not have been more opportune.
“Then that is settled,” the Prince said. “If you could be here at about eight o’clock, I feel that you will enjoy meeting my cousins, all of whom are extremely attractive.”
Lord Mere saw the expression in the Contessa’s eyes and, afraid that she might in some way upset the arrangement, he said,
“You are very kind, but, as Sir Julius is unfortunately indisposed, you will understand that I will not wish to stay late.”
He knew as he spoke that the Contessa drew in her breath, assuming that he really intended to join her later after the dinner.
The Prince put down his glass.
“And now,” he said, “you must come and admire my Leonardo da Vinci, but I hope that some of my other paintings will please you too, which, despite the competition I have to endure from the Soginos, are considered very fine.”
Lord Mere had to concede that this was true when he saw a very fine Vasari and, although he had not expected it, a Raphael entitled, Lady with a Veil.
It did not resemble Florencia.
At the same time, because it was by his favourite artist, he stood in front of it for a long time before the Prince persuaded him to move on and look at the Leonardo da Vinci, which was indeed everything he had hoped.
There were other fine pictures and in any other City except Florence Lord Mere knew that they would have been acclaimed and extolled by every visitor who was privileged to view them.
He could understand in a way how it gave the Prince a great deal of pleasure to know that his son’s blackmail of the Soginos had forced them to sell part of their collection which had existed longer than his and was larger and finer.
Having looked at the pictures, Lord Mere now gazed out through the windows of the gallery, building up in his mind a plan of the whole building.
There was a good excuse for doing so, for the view outside was a fine one, although not, he thought, quite as magnificent as that from the Sogino Palazzo.
The building was, however, considerably larger and, as they turned to walk back to the Reception room, he said,
“I cannot help feeling, Your Highness, that you will feel very lonely here when your son leaves you after he is married.”
“Leaves me?” the Prince echoed. “He will certainly not do that! Vincente has the whole of the West wing to himself and I can assure you that there is plenty of room there for a wife and a dozen children!”
The way he spoke gave Lord Mere a feeling of revulsion at the idea of anything so exquisite and innocent as Florencia bearing the children of a lecher like Vincente.
But he had found out what he wished to know and, as if she was aware that it interested him, the Contessa said,
“You must show Lord Mere the beautiful garden below the West wing, Your Highness. It is something I am deeply envious of, especially the fountain, which is quite one of the most beautiful I have ever seen!”
“Of course he can see it,” the Prince agreed.
He was obviously enjoying showing off his possessions and boasting about them.
It was almost as if he challenged his distinguished guest to find fault with or not to admire the Gorizias.
They went down the stairs to what Lord Mere now knew was the foot of the West Tower, where there was a garden that he immediately agreed was one of the most beautiful he had ever seen.
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