Duke of Benevento, Prince
of Sessa, Lord of Teano, and more besides. There is the Cardinal of
Valencia, there is Giuffredo, Prince of Squillace, and there is my wife,
Lucrezia, of whom he has robbed me. There is, you see, an ample heel to
our Achilles. The question is, where shall we begin?"

"And also, how," Pico reminded him.

Fate was to answer both those questions, and that soon.

They went on June 1st--the Lord of Pesaro, with his host and his host's
daughter, Antonia--to spend the day at Pico's vineyard in Trastevere. At
the moment of setting out to return to Rome in the evening the Count was
detained by his steward, newly returned from a journey with matters to
communicate to him.

He bade his guest, with his daughter and their attendants, to ride on,
saying that he himself would follow and overtake them. But the steward
detained him longer than he had expected, so that, although the company
proceeded leisurely towards the city, Pico had not come up with them
when they reached the river. In the narrow street beyond the bridge the
little escort found itself suddenly confronted and thrust aside by a
magnificent cavalcade of ladies and gallants, hawk on wrist and followed
by a pack of hounds.

Giovanni had eyes for one only in that gay company--a tall, splendidly
handsome man in green, a Plumed bonnet on his auburn head, and a
roguish, jovial eye, which, in its turn, saw nobody in that moment but
Madonna Antonia, reclining in her litter, the leather curtains of which
she had drawn back that she might converse with Giovanni as they rode.

The Lord of Pesaro beheld the sudden kindling of his brother-in-law's
glance, for that handsome gallant was the Duke of Gandia, the Pope's
eldest son, the very apple of the Holy Father's eye. He saw the Duke's
almost unconscious check upon his reins; saw him turn in the saddle to
stare boldly at Madonna Antonia until, grown conscious of his regard,
she crimsoned under it. And when at last the litter had moved on, he
saw over his shoulder a mounted servant detach from the Duke's side to
follow them. This fellow dogged their heels all the way to the Parione
Quarter, obviously with intent to discover for his master where the
beautiful lady of the litter might be housed.

Giovanni said naught of this to Pico when he returned a little later.
He was quick to perceive the opportunity that offered, but far from sure
that Pico would suffer his daughter to be used as a decoy; far, inde