Fiona Paul: Belladonna

Siena reached out to touch the fuzz of blonde hair that was left on Feliciana’s scalp. “I still can’t believe you’re here,” she whispered.

“Believe it.” Feliciana wrapped her bony arms around Siena’s neck, and the two sisters embraced. Feliciana turned to Cass next, gripping both of her hands and leaning in to kiss her on the cheek. “You saved me,” she said. “Both of you.”

Cass tried not to flinch. Siena’s sister smelled almost as bad as the marketplace.

Feliciana pulled back and held the end of her sleeve up to her face. “Ugh, I smell like rotten squid.” She looked pleadingly at Cass. “For the good of everyone here, would it be possible to wash up?” She turned her eyes on Siena.

“Absolutely,” Cass said. “Siena will get you anything you need.” She cleared her throat meaningfully. “Just be discreet.”

Siena scampered off. Cass still hadn’t worked out exactly where she could hide Feliciana. The servants were notorious gossips, and all of Venice would know of her reappearance by the end of the week if any of them spotted her. Cass wished she could stash her former handmaid in the butler’s quarters; she was in no danger of being spotted there. Bortolo was so blind that if spindly Feliciana stood holding out her arms, he’d probably mistake the girl for a coatrack.

That gave Cass an idea. Just across from the butler’s office was Agnese’s storage area. If Cass could manage to sneak the key, Feliciana could hide out on the villa’s lower level with minimal danger of being discovered. It would be much safer than if Siena tried to hide her away in the servants’ quarters.

Siena returned with two clay jugs of warm water and a bundle of clothing tucked under her arm. She poured the water into the basin that sat in Cass’s tiny bathroom. Stripping out of her cloak and dress, Feliciana stepped into the bathroom in just her chemise. She had grown so thin over the past month that Cass could see her ribs through the thin garment. “Burn those clothes, will you?” Feliciana said.

Siena gathered her plain skirts and sat daintily on the bed next to Cass. Her eyes flicked back and forth from the doorway to the bathroom to the tiny prayer alcove just outside. Below the crucifix mounted on the wall, a small statue of Cass’s favorite saint sat on a marble pedestal. San Antonio. Cass often prayed to him about things that were lost. Now she thanked him for things that were found. Warmth bloomed inside of her as she heard Feliciana singing to herself as she washed up. She might be thin and bruised and bald, but Feliciana was still the same vivacious girl who had been Cass’s handmaid for the better part of four years. At least her ordeal had not dampened her spirits.

“I think we should hide her downstairs for the time being,” Cass said quietly, knowing this would disappoint Siena. “Agnese’s storage.”

“I was hoping she might stay with me.” Siena picked at her skirts.

“It’s too dangerous,” Cass said. “Someone will see her, and then the whole marketplace will be buzzing with the news that she’s been found.”

Siena nodded slowly. “You’re right.” She shot Cass a weak smile. “And I suppose your aunt’s storage room is better than the nunnery or the Ghetto. At least we can bring her food. And visit her whenever we want.”

Feliciana emerged from the bathroom wearing a plain white bonnet and Siena’s newest servant’s outfit, a royal-blue-and-gray ankle-length dress that hung loosely on her gaunt frame. She flounced down on the bed between Cass and Siena. “Are you discussing what to do with me?” she asked.

“We’ll keep you in my room until everyone falls asleep,” Cass said firmly. “Then we’ll sneak you downstairs. The servants don’t even dust some of those rooms, so at least we know you’ll have privacy.” Still, Cass didn’t know how long they could stash Feliciana down there before someone noticed Siena’s visits—or before Feliciana went crazy from boredom. But she wouldn’t worry about that now.

A stern rapping sounded at the door. Cass froze. Siena let out a yelp. Feliciana sprang up from her seat on the coverlet and crawled beneath the bed, disappearing just as the door to Cass’s bedchamber flew open.

Come in,” Cass said innocently. “Oh, look, you already have.”

Agnese’s handmaid, Narissa, stood in the doorway. Her arms were folded across her ample belly, and her eyes narrowed disapprovingly at the sight of both Cass and Siena sitting on the bed. Siena jumped up immediately so as not to provoke a scolding about where servants should and should not sit.

“Come along, Siena,” Narissa said, “or you’ll miss out on supper.” She raised an eyebrow at Cass, her gaze lingering on the sagging folds of Cass’s dress. “Will you be dining this evening, Signorina Cassandra? Or have you given up on eating altogether?”

Cass was about to tell Narissa that she wasn’t hungry, but then remembered she had Feliciana to feed. “Actually I’m famished,” Cass said. “Can you ask the cook to prepare a full tray for me tonight?”

Narissa nodded curtly before excusing herself and turning toward the door. Siena trailed behind the older handmaid, looking penitent.

Cass counted to thirty before dropping her head over the edge of her bed and peeking underneath it. Feliciana looked almost comfortable stretched out on her back in the thin black space. Slipper lay nuzzled against her side.

“Traitor,” Cass whispered at the cat. He gazed back at her with wide green eyes.

“I probably still smell like squid,” Feliciana said, crawling out from under the bed and dusting off the front of her dress. “It’ll take me another bath and then some to get rid of that odor.”

“I can’t believe you’re really here,” Cass said. She couldn’t wait to tell Feliciana about everything that had happened: the murdered courtesan, Falco, Madalena’s wedding, Luca’s arrest. But she didn’t want to start now, while she might be interrupted. “And just in time. Your sister almost went crazy with worry.”

“Poor thing,” Feliciana said. “She’s always been the nervous one. Remember back when she worked in the kitchen and broke one of your aunt’s teacups? I found her up in our room, crying her eyes out, positive she’d be sent away.”

“And the time that boy from the gardening crew flirted with her?” Cass said. “I thought she might faint right into the rosebushes.”

Feliciana laughed. She asked Cass about each of the longtime servants, happy that so many of them were still working for the estate and doing well. “I never should have left,” she said. “Everyone here is so kind.” She rolled her eyes. “Well, everyone except for Narissa, of course.” Someone else knocked at the door and Feliciana sighed. She started to duck back under the bed.

“Don’t worry, it’s just me.” Siena slipped into the room with a dinner tray laden with sliced chicken, herbed potatoes, cheeses, breads, and bowls of creamy soup. Cass and Narissa obviously had different ideas about what constituted a full tray. There was more than enough food for two famished people.

Siena set the tray in the middle of Cass’s bed. “It’s for the two of us. ” She winked at Feliciana before turning to Cass. “Your aunt said it would be fine if I dined in your chamber tonight since you’ve had a difficult day.”

“She didn’t happen to mention if there had been any further news, did she?” Cass asked hopefully. Siena had been so stunned to discover her sister at the marketplace that she hadn’t thought to ask around about Luca’s arrest before hurrying back to San Domenico. Cass didn’t blame her, but she was dying to know what Luca had been charged with, and it was too late to go to the Palazzo Ducale today. She’d go first thing in the morning. By then, perhaps the misunderstanding would have been cleared up and Luca freed.