The Medieval Murderers - The Deadliest Sin

Now, he had to rely again on his wits to achieve his goals. And wits alone would now be needed solve the mystery that had so far caused three deaths. Most recently, Bernardo Bagnioli had been stabbed because he had been deeply involved in whatever plot revolved around the bringing of gold back to Venice. Zuliani had no doubts about that. Baglioni’s own fears, expressed so clearly, meant he must have known who he would fall foul of if he spoke up. Unfortunately for the trader, his co-conspirator had decided to stop his mouth anyway. Saluzzo had also been murdered. Zuliani had seen the corpse, and there was no way his death had been an accident. You didn’t get three puncture wounds on your chest falling from the rigging, only from a dagger seeking to stop your heart. Saluzzo had met a similar fate to Baglioni, either because he was in the plot as well, or because he had seen too much. Zuliani guessed at the former reason. A ship’s captain knew everything that happened on board his ship. He had to, in order to maintain control. Baglioni and whoever the others were would have had to recruit him to the cause too. And ultimately, that had led to his death. That left only Baseggio.

Zuliani believed the old man was innocent of any wrong-doing. The retired shipwright had no reason to be a part of the plot as his only involvement prior to the venture had been to put a small amount of money into it. No, he had been killed merely because he had been too nosy. Just like Zuliani had been. He began to wonder if he too would be silenced. It all depended on whether he had been seen in the storehouse. But even if he had been, he had one consolation after that night’s escapade: Kate was safe. No one would have identified her as the youth accompanying him on the break-in.

He sniffed at the three jugs that Cat had used to mix the salve for his wounds, finally identifying the wine. He took a swig, and pulled a face. Though it was not the vinegar in the concoction, it was close to it in the sharpness of its flavour. It must have been the cheapest wine she could find for the preparation.

Cat returned, and saw what he was doing. She took the wine jug from him. ‘That was awful wine, and only good to wash wounds with.’

Zuliani wiped his lips with the back of his hand. ‘I know that now. Do you have some good wine to take away the taste?’

She gave him a severe look, and told him that the representative of the Signori della Notte had gone. He had reluctantly bowed to the grand lady’s wishes.

‘But they won’t leave it there. You need to find this murderer before you are accused yourself.’

Zuliani shrugged as if he hadn’t a care in the world.

‘I think I need to do something to cheer myself up. I thought I would attend the Doge’s banquet tonight.’

Cat was startled by Zuliani’s pronouncement. The banquet was intended to parade the Council of Ten candidates one last time before the great and the good of Venice. Everyone whom Zuliani despised would be there, and she had assumed he would not wish to attend, even if he was still set on getting elected. And she had presumed that recently he had stepped back from the idea. That was why she had been pushing him into the fray at every opportunity. She had hated the idea of Zuliani becoming part of the establishment from the beginning. But she knew the only way to dissuade him was to persist in encouraging his involvement with the corruption that power brought. Now he seemed to want to rub shoulders with those in the highest positions in the republic and their supporters. Had her strategy failed?

‘Are you sure you want to?’

Zuliani nodded vigorously. ‘Oh, yes. And you will be on my arm, of course. Now go and get dressed in your finest.’

Caterina Dolfin glanced down at the discarded and ruined jaqueta .

‘Very well. But what will you wear?’

‘Something appropriate to my aspirations, I can assure you. Now go!’

Cat was not convinced by Zuliani’s choice of clothes. They arrived at the palace’s water gate in Rio della Canonica by means of the Dolfin family barchetta . In order to get out of the boat, Zuliani had to lift up the long robe he wore. It was a silk gown embroidered with dragons that he had brought back from Cathay. And though he insisted it was proper court dress in the presence of Kubilai Khan, Cat thought it would not impress the case vecchie . But as its sumptuous nature outdid her own gown, perhaps she was being overcritical. Having straightened his own gown, Zuliani helped her from the boat, which was swiftly rowed away, allowing more vessels to disgorge other richly caparisoned guests at the Doge’s gates. Climbing the grand stone stairs, they made their way towards the hall of the Great Council. The event was already in full swing.

Zuliani cast an enquiring gaze around the hall, and Cat realised that perhaps he wasn’t here to impress the old aristocracy after all. He seemed to be looking for someone in particular. She took his arm, and pulled him to one side, allowing others behind them to pass through into the chattering throng. She whispered in his ear, though it was hardly necessary as the sound of a thousand conversations was almost deafening.

‘Who are you looking for, Nick?’

‘Looking? Why should I be looking for anyone?’

A servant passed by with a tray of wine goblets, and Zuliani grabbed two, splashing some of their contents on the marble floor. He scuffed it with the sole of his boot, and passed one of the goblets to Cat. She pulled a face at his expression of innocence about her question.

‘I may have found you again only after many years, but you were always an open book to me in the past and nothing has changed since then. You think the answer to the murders is here in this room, don’t you?’

Zuliani smiled, and took a long swig of the wine. When he had finished, he waved the goblet in an arc before him.

‘Take a look around this room, and tell me what you see.’

‘I already know who I can see, and everyone is in the pages of the Libro d’Oro .’

She was referring to the book that listed the aristocracy of Venice, without which entry a person could not serve on the Great Council. Or vote for the Council of Ten. But she didn’t need to look around the hall to know that. Zuliani shook his head at her reply.

‘You’re wrong. There are others here who are not Venetian, but are the support and mainstay of those you identify. There is a cardinal or two here, for example. But that is not what I asked. I asked what you saw, not who you saw.’

Cat frowned, not quite understanding what it was Nick wanted of her. But he didn’t keep her in ignorance for long. He waved his goblet again, splashing more wine on the floor, much to the consternation of an elegantly dressed, elderly woman standing close by. She looked his exotic garb up and down with disdain, and moved away. Cat grinned maliciously.

‘You just lost the vote of the whole Tron family. That was Sofia, the matriarch of the Trons, and none of her offspring defies her.’

‘I care little about the vote, and you know it. You’ve spent the last few weeks deliberately pushing these people down my throat, in a bid to convince me of their awfulness. And your ploy has been successful. So I know you can see what I see.’

‘And what is that?’

‘Greed. Not the simple lust for good food and wine. I can understand that sort of greed, and can forgive it. No, they are all greedy for power. And wealth, which brings power with it.’

‘I cannot deny that, Nick. God knows, I have lived with it all my life. But if greed is the cause of those murders, and everyone here is driven by greed, how are you going to weed out the killer?’

Zuliani tapped the side of his nose in a conspiratorial gesture.