Heart of Glass - By Sasha Gould Page 0,68

glad I have the privilege of attending this meeting. If nothing else, I will be able to report back to the Segreta when the time is right.

The Doge quickly outlines Halim’s threats. When he’s finished, a Councilor speaks.

“We must find your son, at once. Guards must scour the city.”

“And if we cannot find him?” says the Doge.

“We must ready ourselves for war, then.”

“No,” the Doge says. “On principle, I will not go to war over a prince’s fury at not getting his own way. Venice is better than that!”

“Damn your principles!” the man argues. “We don’t have time for them. Things are already out of control. I insist we take practical action, not sit around hoping that Roberto turns up.”

The Doge sends him a smile that could cut through glass. “It is not for you or anyone else to insist on anything. I am still your leader.”

The Councilor flushes. He darts a glance at the other men, and they in turn adjust their bodies until they all face one man standing just inside the door. I hadn’t even spotted him before—the Admiral, the Bear.

“Massimo,” the Doge says. “How much have you heard? We were just discussing—”

“I know what you were discussing,” he says. He almost seems to fill the room as he steps inside. His broad shoulders and calloused hands speak of many wars fought and won. This is a man who doesn’t like to lose. “We must prepare ourselves for the fight ahead.”

“There will be no fight,” says the Doge.

“At a time like this,” Massimo says, “we need strong men to lead us. Men with vision.” He leaves the rest unspoken, but his meaning is clear.

The Doge shakes his head and looks around the room, from one man to the next. Like a row of dominoes falling, each in turn drops his eyes to the floor.

“Soldiers!” the Doge says. “Escort Massimo from the palace!”

Silence poisons the air. Not a single man moves to follow the Doge’s commands. The guards look only to the Admiral.

“See?” says Massimo. “The cards have already been played.”

“I see treachery,” says the Doge.

“It’s nothing like that,” says Massimo. “Every man in this room is loyal to Venice. The Council and I have reached an agreement. All we need now is for you to see our point of view. I will take control peacefully, until the threat to Venice’s safety has passed. You’re ill and you’re sick with grief at all that’s happened. Allow us to help you.” He holds out a hand, inviting the Doge to shake it. “It will save face all round.”

“And if I refuse?” the Doge asks, ignoring the extended hand.

Massimo spreads his palms like a reasonable man. “Then you’re the biggest threat Venice has.”

The Doge glances from man to man, in one last desperate appeal for support. No one says a word. I’m glad the Duchess Besina is not present to witness her husband’s humiliation.

“So be it,” the Doge says, his voice trembling. “But only for the good of Venice.” He backs away from the men who were once his closest advisers. “Laura, accompany me.”

Roberto’s father leaning heavily on my arm, we cross the room.

“Goodbye, old man,” one of the Councilors whispers to his back. A few of the others join in with low laughter.

I can’t keep quiet any longer. “Who would have thought it?” I say as we pause in the doorway. “Snakes in the heart of Venice.”

33

The crowds have dispersed from the square, and several hundred soldiers are stationed around the edges. It feels as though the city has been invaded by some foreign enemy. I peer into the faces of everyone I pass, half expecting one of them to be Roberto. But of course he can’t risk showing himself. He’s in hiding, and I know who can tell me where.

I head across the Rialto Bridge to the house of Allegreza. The last time I was here, my leader refused to even look at me, but she must still retain some affection. After all, who if not the Segreta could have masterminded Roberto’s break out of jail?

I bring the sea serpent door knocker down hard and wait for the grumpy servant woman to let me in. She doesn’t look surprised to see me and swings the door open wide, stepping back into the hallway.

“You do like turning up without an appointment, don’t you?”

Allegreza sits framed in one of the open windows. Her gray head bends over a tiny book that rests in her open palms, an illuminated letter glittering