now felt that he could do no more through intrigue. He had been in
contact with the Filippeschi, an Orvieto clan who were hereditary
enemies of the Monaldeschi family. And through Lorenzo he had been
quietly recruiting a company of bravos--armed adventurers. Offering the
help of his mercenaries, he persuaded the Filippeschi to attack the
Monaldeschi palace. With de Gobignon and the Tartars' other guards
diverted, he could enter the palace and kill the ambassadors.

While the Filippeschi prepared for the attack, Daoud discovered that
Andrea Sordello, one of his hired bravos, had been set to spy on him by
Simon de Gobignon. In Tilia's brothel, Daoud subjected Sordello to a
Hashishiyya initiation, using drugs and women to make the spy his slave.
He implanted in Sordello's mind a command that if he should see a silver
locket that Daoud keeps on his person, he would immediately kill Simon
de Gobignon. And henceforth Sordello was to give Simon only the
information Daoud wanted him to have.

After the initiation Daoud was troubled. He had been taught how to do
this, but had never done it before. Had he truly and completely
subjugated Sordello's soul?

On the night of the attack he was dismayed to discover the Monaldeschi
ready for a siege. But, garbed in black as a Hashishiyya fighter, Daoud
went ahead and slipped into the Monaldeschi palace.

The Tartars, with Simon de Gobignon, Friar Mathieu, and four guards,
were in the most secure room in the palace, the cellar pantry, where
costly spices from the East were kept behind a thick door with a strong
lock.

Trained by the Hashishiyya to use his senses other than sight to fight
in the dark, Daoud forced his way into the spice pantry and put out the
lantern. He struggled with Simon in pitch blackness and came close to
killing him. Swords thrust at him from all directions. He had the
Tartars' lives almost in his grasp, but de Gobignon was thwarting him.
He tried frantically to kill de Gobignon and was no more able to do it
than if the man were a djinn.

Then the old priest escaped from the cellar and came back with a lighted
candle. Gripped by the terrible fear that he would be caught and
exposed, Daoud raced up the cellar stairs. Despair almost killed him
when he felt the searing pain of a Tartar arrow in his leg.

He felt terror when he saw the white-bearded friar on the stairs
blocking his way, even though the old man held no weapon in his
outstretched arms.

He had