of the room, beneath a chandelier, and the Doge indicates that I should sit. He nods curtly to a servant, who hastens over to the table and fills a plate, bringing it to us.
I reach out for a slice of melon, but as I lift it to my lips, nausea squirms in my stomach. Carefully, I place the fruit back on its plate.
“You must eat,” the Doge tells me, smiling kindly. He’s lost one son to death and now another has disappeared into the streets of Venice, yet he’s concerned about my welfare. There is more to this man than power alone.
As I try to eat again, the Doge clears his throat.
“It is important you know the truth,” he says, rubbing his brow. “I had nothing to do with Roberto’s disappearance.”
I’m sure he can’t read my own dark suspicions about the Segreta’s involvement. “But where could he be?”
There’s a noise from the doorway, and a servant is standing there.
“You have a visitor,” he announces, looking awkward. “Prince Halim requests an audience.”
“Then you must show him in,” the Doge says. I catch the merest tremble in his hand as he adjusts his doublet.
A moment later, Halim strides the room, his eyes sparking. Palace soldiers accompany him and station themselves around the room. The prince’s own men follow him, empty scabbards at their sides, as they’ve had to relinquish their weapons. Halim’s steps falter for a moment when he sees me, but he focuses on the Doge. “Justice has deserted Venice,” he says.
The Doge gestures to the table. “Help yourself to refreshments.”
Halim’s eyes narrow. “I was promised that my sister’s killer would meet his end today.” The prince doesn’t even look at me. “Roberto should have lost his head by now. Instead, I hear rumors of escape. It seems … convenient.”
The Doge shakes his head. “Come. Sit down. No one here had anything to do with Roberto’s disappearance. I’m as surprised as you are.”
Halim begins pacing the room, turning in slow circles. Faruk has sidled into the room also, watching the Doge with a smirk of disdain. “You expect us to believe that the most powerful man in Venice doesn’t know how his prisoner escaped?” he says. “His son?”
Halim reaches down towards his boot and pulls out a knife. The soldiers in the corners of the room lurch to attention, but Halim picks a peach from a tray and begins to cut it into slices, allowing the juice to drip over the Doge’s rugs.
“You should know,” he says, all his attention on the fruit, “that fifty of my finest ships are stationed along the coast.” He smiles coldly at the Doge, who listens, his face strained. Halim enunciates his next words carefully, as if placing chess pieces on a board. “If Roberto is not found and delivered to me within ten days, I will sail on Venice as an enemy.” His voice turns as cold as the grave. “I will tear this city apart.”
My gasp is the loudest sound in the room, and Halim’s attention shifts. He sends me an almost imperceptible shake of the head, as if to say, My vengeance is not meant for you. Then he drops the remains of the fruit back onto the platter and walks out of the room, his men following.
When I look back at the Doge, he sinks down onto the bench, dropping his head in his hands. His voice comes out muffled. “Call an emergency council.” The servants rush to do his bidding and the two of us are left alone, for a few moments at least.
“What can be done?” I ask.
The Doge looks up at me, a defeated old man. “I was going to ask you the same question.”
Over the following hour, as the Doge’s servants spread across the city, members of the Grand Council gather at the palace. I don’t know what I should do, or where I should be, so I remain where I am. As the old men, my father included, fill the room, I notice they huddle roughly into two groups.
“She shouldn’t be here,” says one man, pointing at me.
“Let her stay,” the Doge retorts. “There’s nothing she doesn’t already know, and she understands Roberto better than any of us.”
I’m not sure the Doge is right. Over the past days, I’ve started to wonder if I know Roberto at all. So many are convinced of his guilt. And then there is the letter Halim produced, the secret escape.… It’s like watching the actions of a stranger. But I’m