sultry eyes, who was, indeed, dressed as a nun.
'Ezio! There you are,' said Antonio. He was slightly drunk. 'Allow me to introduce. Sister Teodora. Teodora, meet the - how shall I put this? - most talented man in all Venice!'
'Sister,' said Ezio bowing. Then he looked at Antonio. 'Am I missing something here? I've never really seen you as the religious type.'
Antonio laughed, but Sister Teodora, when she spoke, was surprisingly serious. 'It all depends on how you view religion, Ezio. It's not men's souls alone that require solace.'
'Have a drink, Ezio!' said Antonio. 'We must talk, but first, relax! You're perfectly safe here. Have you met the girls yet? Anyone take your fancy? Don't worry, I won't tell Rosa. And you must tell me -'
Antonio was interrupted by a scream from one of the rooms that surrounded the salon. The door flew open to reveal a wild-eyed man wielding a knife. Behind him on the blood-soaked bed, a girl writhed in agony. 'Stop him,' she screamed. 'He's cut me and he's stolen my money!'
With a furious roar the maniac grabbed another girl before she could react and held her close, his knife at her throat. 'Let me out of here or I'll carve this one up too,' he bawled, pressing the tip of the knife so that a little bead of blood appeared on the girl's neck. 'I mean it!'
Antonio, instantly sober, stared from Teodora to Ezio. Teodora herself was looking at Ezio. 'Well, Ezio,' she said with a coolness that took him aback, 'now's the chance to impress me.'
The maniac was making his way across the salon to the door, where a small knot of girls was standing. As he reached it, he growled at them, 'Open it!' But they seemed rooted to the spot with fear. 'Open the sodding door or she gets it!' He dug the knife a little further into the girl's throat. Blood began to flood from her neck.
'Let her go!' commanded Ezio.
The man swung round to face him, an ugly expression on his face. 'And who are you? Some kind of benefattore del cazzo? Don't make me finish her off!'
Ezio looked from the man to the door. The girl in his arms had fainted, a dead weight. Ezio could see the man hesitate, but any moment now he would have to let her go. He readied himself. It would be hard, the other women were close; he'd have to pick the precise moment and then act fast, and he knew he had very little experience of his new weapon. 'Open the door,' he said firmly to one of the terrified prostitutes in the group.
As she turned to do so, the madman let the bleeding girl fall to the ground. As he prepared to rush out into the street, he took his attention off Ezio for a second, and in that second Ezio released his little pistol and fired.
There was a snapping report and a burst of flame followed by a puff of smoke seemed to shoot out from between the fingers of Ezio's right hand. The maniac, a surprised expression still on his face, fell to his knees, a neat little hole in the middle of his forehead and some of his brains spattered on the doorpost behind him. The girls screamed and moved hastily away from him as he slowly toppled forward. Teodora shouted orders, and attendants hurried to succour the two wounded girls, but they were too late for the one in the bedroom, as she had bled to death.
'You have our gratitude, Ezio,' said Teodora, once order had been restored.
'I was too late to save her.'
'You saved the others. He might have slaughtered more if you hadn't been here to stop him.'
'What sorcery did you use to bring him down?' asked an awe-struck Antonio.
'No sorcery. Just a secret. A grown-up cousin of the throwing-knife.'
'Well, I can see that it's going to come in handy. Our new Doge is scared stiff. He surrounds himself with guards and he never leaves the palazzo.' Antonio paused. 'I imagine that Marco Barbarigo is next on your list?'
'He is as big an enemy as his cousin Emilio was.'
'We will help you,' said Teodora, joining them. 'And our chance presents itself soon. The Doge is throwing a massive party for Carnevale and he will have to leave the palazzo for that. No expense has been spared, as he wants to buy the people's favour even if he cannot earn it. According to my spies, he has even ordered fireworks from China!'
'This is why I asked you here today,' Antonio explained to Ezio. 'Sister Teodora is one of us, and she has her finger on the very pulse of Venice.'
'How do I get invited to this party?' Ezio asked her.
'It isn't easy,' she replied. 'You need a golden mask to get you in.'
'Well, it can't be so hard to lay hands on one of those.'
'Not so fast - each mask is an invitation, and each is numbered.' But then Teodora smiled. 'Never mind, I have an idea. I think it's possible that we might win you a mask. Come, walk with me.' She led him away from the others to a quiet little courtyard at the rear of the building, where a fountain played in an ornamental pool.
'They are holding some special carnival games which are open to all tomorrow. There are four events, and the winner will be awarded a golden mask and will be an honorary guest at the party. You must win it, Ezio, for access to the party gives you access to Marco Barbarigo.' She looked at him. 'When you go, I advise you to take that little spitfire of yours with you, for you won't get close enough to knife him.'
'May I ask you a question?'
'You can try. I cannot guarantee an answer.'
'I am curious. You wear the habit of a nun, and yet clearly you are no such thing.'
'How do you know that? I assure you, my son, that I am married to the Lord.'
'But I don't understand. You are also a courtesan. Indeed, you run a bordello.'
Teodora smiled. 'I see no contradiction. How I choose to practise my faith, what I choose to do with my body - these are my choices and I am free to make them.' She paused in thought for a moment. 'Look,' she continued. 'Like so many young women, I was drawn to the Church, but gradually I became disillusioned with the so-called believers in this city. Men only hold God as an idea in their heads, and not in the depths of their hearts and their bodies. Do you see what I am getting at, Ezio? Men must know how to love in order to attain salvation. My girls and I provide that knowledge to our congregation. Of course, no imaginable sect of the Church would agree with me, so I was obliged to create my own. It may not be traditional, but it works, and men's hearts grow firmer in my care.'
'Among other things, I imagine.'
'You are cynical, Ezio.' She extended her hand to him. 'Come back tomorrow and we will see about these games. Take care of yourself in the meantime and don't forget your mask. I know you can take care of yourself, but our enemies are still out to get you.'
There were some small adjustments Ezio wanted on his new gun, so he returned to Leonardo's workshop on his way back to the Thieves' Guild headquarters.
'I am glad to see you again, Ezio.'
'You were right about Sister Teodora, Leonardo. Truly a Freethinker.'
'She would get into trouble with the Church if she weren't so well protected; but she has some powerful admirers.'
'I can imagine.' But Ezio noticed that Leonardo was slightly abstracted, and looking at him strangely. 'What is it, Leo?'
'Perhaps it would be better not to tell you, but if you found out by accident it would be worse. Look, Ezio, Cristina Calfucci is in Venice with her husband for Carnevale. Of course she's Cristina d'Arzenta now.'
'Where is she staying?'
'She and Manfredo are the guests of my patron. That is how I know.'
'I must see her!'
'Ezio - are you sure that's such a good idea?'
'I'll collect the gun in the morning. I'll need it by then, I'm afraid - I have some urgent business to attend to.'
'Ezio, I wouldn't go out unarmed.'
'I still have my Codex blades.'
Heart pumping, Ezio made his way to the Palazzo Pexaro, via the office of a public scribe whom he paid to write a short note, which read:
Cristina my darling
