iffo was no very difficult business. He
was paid so much by Messer Simone; it only remained for Monna Vittoria
to pay him more to secure at least a careful consideration of her
wishes. She pointed out to the _condottiere_ that all the advantage lay
for him in doing what she desired and leaving undone what was desired by
Messer Simone. Messer Griffo would serve Florence by preserving the
lives of so many of her best citizens; he would serve Florence by aiding
those citizens in that raid upon Arezzo, from which so much was hoped;
he would serve Florence by saving Messer Simone from the stain of such
unnecessary blood-guiltiness; above all, which to her, and indeed to the
Free Companion, seemed perhaps the most important point in the argument,
he would serve Monna Vittoria.

Messer Griffo had ever an eye for a fine woman, and he was mightily
taken with Monna Vittoria, and made his taking plain in his bluff,
simple, soldierly fashion with a fine display of jewels and gold, which
only served to move Monna Vittoria to laughter, for she had as much as
she cared to have of such trifles, and was not to be purchased so. But
she clinched her bargain with him by assuring him, when she paid into
the hands of a sure and trusted third party the overprice agreed upon,
which was to make Messer Griffo false to Messer Simone, that after the
return to Florence of the Company of Death uninjured by him or his, he
would be a very welcome visitor at her house, and might consider
himself for a season the master of everything it contained. Messer
Griffo was in his way an amorist and in his way an idealist, to the
extent of regarding one pretty woman as more important than another
pretty woman, so he took Monna Vittoria's money and fooled Messer
Simone, and spared the lives of the young Florentine gentlemen, and rode
with them and fought with them, as you shall presently hear.

It is no part of my intention to rehearse all that happened as the
result of our little raid. You can read all about it at great length
elsewhere. It was, as it proved, a very successful little raid. The
Aretines, marching out of their stronghold in good force to assault us,
whom they expected to find marching in all innocence to our doom, were
very neatly and featly taken in ambuscade by us. For, by the advice and
orders of Messer Griffo, who knew his business if ever a soldier of
fortune did, we that were of the Company of Death, we that the men of
Arezzo expected to se