Manfred nodded grimly. "And all of Christian Europe would rejoice at
your destruction. Not I, certainly, but the rest of them. What do you
propose to do about these Tartar emissaries to the pope?"

"For that I will need your help, Sire. I, too, will go to the pope's
court. I understand that he resides at Orvieto, a small town north of
Rome."

"Yes," Lorenzo put in, "and there he will stay. He has not set foot in
Rome since he galloped in to be crowned at Saint Peter's and galloped
out again. He is terrified of the Roman mob. As well he should be, since
most of their leaders are in our pay."

"Trade secrets, Celino," said Manfred, raising a cautioning finger. "So,
you will go to Orvieto. And then?"

"I will present myself at the pope's court as I have here, as David, a
merchant of Trebizond. I will take up residence with--friends--who can
help me reach the ears of men of influence. I will spread stories
throughout Orvieto--true stories--of the horrors the Tartars have
perpetrated everywhere they have gone, of their determination to conquer
the entire world."

Manfred shook his head. "What you plan to do is very dangerous. You've
proven to us that you are a skilled and resourceful man, but still, what
if you are discovered?" He shook his head. "Have you any idea of how
your people are _hated_ in Europe, David? If it were known that I helped
a Muslim spy to steal into the court of the pope, all the kingdoms of
Christendom would turn against me. The pope need but snap his fingers
and I and my little realm would be swept away. No, David. You ask me to
risk too much."

Daoud was momentarily surprised, then angry. He had expected that
Manfred would cooperate with him. If the young king vacillated, Daoud
might have journeyed from Egypt to Italy for nothing.

And then a ripple of fear crept up his spine. If he failed to persuade
Manfred, the Tartars might destroy the world he had come to love and
believe in.

_God, help me to stop them. I must not go back to El Kahira a failure._

He must choose his words with care. He was dealing here with a king, and
one did not argue with kings. Better to ask questions than offer
arguments.

"Does not the pope wish even now to take your throne from you, Sire?" he
said. "How can matters between you and him be any worse?"

Manfred nodded. "True, Pope Urban keeps offering my crown to this prince
and that, claiming that I had no right to inherit it from my father. And
that he had no