by Gian Bordin
"Does that hurt?"
"Yes."
"Your arm is broken, and I guess one or two ribs. I will set the arm later. For the ribs, all I can do is to bind your chest. If there are no internal injuries, they’ll heel in a week or two. What’s your name?"
"Hakim."
"Are you a Moor?"
He looked surprised. "Yes, from Granada."
"My mother came from there too." She did not know why she said that. Maybe his olive skin and dark brown eyes reminded her of her mother’s picture. "Come, get up." She helped him. "Giovanni, Franco, help Ser Hakim into the boat. I will join you shortly too."
She made sure that Paolo and the ten men under his command were clear about their duties — that four oil lamps were to be kept lit the whole night, that guards always worked in pairs, one armed with a pike, the other with an axe, never alone under any circumstances, that prisoners were taken to relieve themselves once only during a shift, one at a time, accompanied by two guards, and if any prisoner soiled himself or behaved in a stroppy way that several buckets of salt water were poured over him. Then she checked that no other sailor had any injuries beyond superficial skin wounds. Before joining the boat with Hakim, she lifted the wine barrel and the keg of grappa. The latter was empty. The wine barrel had a bit left, but not enough to get her own men drunk.
The jubilant women, Angela among them, and archers had abandoned their fire and greeted them when they beached their boats. She thanked them for their help and then reminded them that the time for celebrations had not come yet, that they still had to get the prisoners to Piombino. Twenty minutes later they reached the castle where, with the help of Bettina, she set the first mate’s arm in splints and wrapped several layers of wide linen cloth around his chest. That done, she took him herself down to the stables. She wanted to see Niccolo’s face when he realized that the ship had been taken. But she arranged for Hakim to be only put into leg irons and allowed to sleep on a pile of straw, in contrast to the other prisoners who had to sleep on the ground or leaning against a wall.
30
Piombino, end of February 1351
Listen well, cara Selva. Arrogant men are their own worst enemies. At least that is what experience has taught me. They put too much confidence in their abilities, they overestimate their power, they underestimate their opponents, they fail to plan for reverses in fortune. How many times had this worked in my favor to the point where I had begun to exploit it? Massimo Sanguanero, too sure of his prey, could not imagine that a desperate seventeen-year-old girl could strike back. Gianfranco Baglione of the Giogo di Scarperia, too sure of the fear that his band of road bandits instilled in travelers, did not imagine that he might ride into a trap. To his cousin, Giuseppe Baglione, it was inconceivable that a woman would oppose him. Ser Piero, by all accounts a brave man who had shown his worth in many battles, could not take a woman as a serious threat either. Ser Molina and his men counted on brutality to stamp out any opposition and did not think of covering their backs. And Niccolo, deep down a coward, relied on superiority in numbers to prevail. I should be grateful to God that he created arrogant man like this.
Now that I had achieved my aims of destroying Casa Sanguanero and of being again in possession of my inheritance, temptation was great to become arrogant in turn. As I reflected on how easy it had been to capture the Santa Caterina and take Niccolo prisoner, without a single of my tenants getting hurt or killed, except for the knocks they suffered during weapon training, I reminded myself more than once not to fall into this trap.
Although I had thirty-one prisoners, I was not safe yet. I still had to get five of them to the Elba Governor in Porto Longone. That task I could easily assign to a group of tenants. But to take the twenty-five sailors and Niccolo Sanguanero to Piombino was a different question. I had no crew to sail the Santa Caterina. I could have sent a message to Count d’Appiano, requesting help. But where could he get a crew to take the ship with all the prisoners across the strait? I did not relish the thought of guarding and feeding twenty-six men for any length of time. My tenants, reluctant, although valiant warriors, needed to get back to work the land, sow crops, prune the vines, husband their flocks.
As I pondered these thoughts, an idea rose in my mind. Why not have the ship manned by the prisoners? If I offered them something of value, they might agree. The only thing I could offer them was their lives and freedom. I had already promised them life, only freedom was left.
* * *
The day after capturing the Santa Caterina, Chiara woke with a new sense of purpose. No more waiting in limbo. Everything was now under her control. There were a few things she needed to do right away. The first was to transfer the eight sailors and Niccolo to the ship. It was simpler to have them all guarded at the same place. The second was to take the first five prisoners to the Governor of Elba in Porto Longone. She had not done that before, because she could not spare any men, nor did she want it to be known that she had taken the castle before capturing Niccolo.
She asked Luca to arrange that transfer for the following day, while she supervised taking the sailors onto the ship herself. She had the first mate brought into a room in the castle, where it was easier to look after his injuries.
Niccolo again protested about being treated like the sailors and begged to be released, saying he would promise her anything she wanted. She ignored him. Once on the boat, within everybody’s hearing, she reminded the guards of how to perform their guard duties, and that Sanguanero was to be treated the same as the sailors. He insisted to be accommodated in his cabin. Again, she ignored him. She singled out the ship’s cook, and set him to prepare a soup for each evening meal. She made him aware of her orders, that if he tried to do anything but cook, the two guards supervising him in the kitchen were to kill him immediately. She told him that daily supplies of fresh fish or meat and vegetables, as well as bread and cheese and water would be brought to the ship.
Then she went below deck to inspect the cargo, taking Paolo along. The first thing that drew her attention was a whole armory of crossbows and arrows, swords, and other weapons.
"Paolo, take all these weapons with you ashore and have them brought to the castle."
"Shall I call three men to do it right now, Lady Chiara?"
"Yes, please do."
While he went back on deck, she was intrigued by a dozen small barrels fastened to the mid-mast, clearly to prevent them from getting wet. She put a nose close to one. There was no need to open them. Their smell left no doubt as to their content — spices. At the stern end were two stacks of cured leather, while in the bow lay bales of cloth, on top of which where smaller bales. A touch revealed that it was silk.
When she came out of the hold, one sailor called out: "Knife woman, il padrone keeps the valuable loot in his cabin."
"You traitor," sneered the man next to him, and Niccolo immediately shouted: "Only my personal things are in there, nothing of value."
"No amphoras, like the ones you stole from Castello Nisporto and displayed in the loggia in Siena?" she asked, a sarcastic twist to her voice.
He looked away. She noticed that he had the decency to blush.
"Giovanni, find the key to the cabin on Signor Sanguanero."
Niccolo put his manacled hands on top of a vest pocket and shouted: "You have no right to my things."
"Giovanni, slap him until he takes his hands off his pocket."
Giovanni, bent down, swinging his hand back for a slap, but Niccolo immediately pulled his head between his shoulders, shielding himself with his manacled hands. A set of several keys was indeed inside his vest pocket.
Holding the keys in her hand, Chiara was of two minds. Do you really want to go back in there? a voice questioned. But her hesitation only lasted a moment. The second key she tried opened the door. She briefly stopped in the opening, looking around. Yes, nothing had changed. The bunk in one corner, with crumpled blankets on top, the table with four chairs. Her gaze fell on the little window. It was clo
sed. In the corner, where she had cowered after hearing father and son talk about her fate, was a stack of rolls which she immediately recognized as rolled-up wall hangings. She unfolded the corner of one and almost cried out with joy. It was the one that had hung under the glass-stained window in the hall of the castle. A quick check on a few more, showed that there were several more that once had hung in the castle, but also some that came from elsewhere. There were also some firmer rolls. She unrolled one. It was a beautiful rectangular rug with intricate geometrical pattern on a vivid red background, like she had seen in Lady Lucia’s apartment.
A wooden chest, reinforced with metal decorations, stood next to the door. The smallest key opened it. It contained documents and a smaller box full of silver coins. She guessed the coins were to pay the wages of the sailors and decided to leave it there. They might need money even if they went to prison. The documents she could look at later on. Wrapped in a cloth was the pear-shaped piece of tourmaline that had been on the window sill in the castle hall where it caught the afternoon sun. She put it in her pocket. It would soon be back where it belonged. After locking the chest, she grabbed one of the wall hangings and went back on deck.
"Paolo, there are several more of these in there. Please, take them also to the castle."
Then she went to the sailor who had told her to check out the cabin. "Sailor, how much does il padrone pay you, besides food?"
He looked at her perplexed.
"What’s your pay?" she asked again.
"A silver coin per fortnight, and we all share in one half of the loot."
"And when have you last been paid?"
"Almost four weeks ago."
"So, you’ll all get your four-week pay before we get back to Piombino."
Clearly emboldened by what she just said, he protested: "And our share of the loot?"
"Sailor, you don’t want to imply that you’re a pirate, do you? You know, they hang pirates."
He frowned for a moment and then a crooked smile covered his face, revealing a row of broken teeth. "No, just joking, my Lady."
A flash of inspiration made her smile. The problem of how to get the ship to Piombino had been looming at the back of her mind ever since they had taken the ship. Getting Count d’Appiano to fetch them might take weeks and she had no intention of feeding her prisoners for that long. Besides, her tenants had to get back and work their land. Here was the solution, sitting or lying right in front of her. Why not use the sailors? They might be more than willing, if they could escape the charge of piracy, and that she could easily arrange by removing from the ship all things that looked like loot. Had she not conquered the ship? So its content also belonged to her. The tenants would welcome getting free pieces of the coarse woollen cloth for making garments, and the rugs would add more comfort and luxury to the castle, particularly the bedrooms.
"Good, then convince all your mates of the same. Signor Sanguanero has to be taken to Piombino to face a charge of attempted murder and a ship without sailors doesn’t go far or does it?"
His grin deepened.
* * *
The restoration of the castle was a task that she was eager to get started. Rather than do it only with the help of the tenants, she decided to engage an experienced builder. But where would she find such a man? Her first thought was to hire a renowned builder from one of the Tuscan cities. But she rejected that idea quickly. Simply finding one could take months — far too long for her. Luca suggested that she ask the Governor in Porto Longone. So, she ended up taking the five prisoners there herself, accompanied by Cola and three other tenants — tenants and prisoners all on horseback.
The Governor had to be told twice before he believed that she had taken possession of Castello Nisporto already, since he had only received the request from Count d’Appiano to make the verdict of the tribunal known to Signor Sanguanero. He promised to investigate all complaints against any of the five prisoners. To her inquiry about a builder, he referred her to Ser Carona, who had recently done an extension to the Governor’s palace in Porto Longone. "Skillful work," he added.
Ser Carona promised to drop by the following day to inspect the damage and recommend how to fix it. She planned to have the kitchen made fireproof by having all walls and the ceiling built of stone.
* * *
Back at the castle, her first action was to see Hakim. She wanted to win him over to take the ship to Piombino. She felt confident that by now the sailors had been won over, even if simply because they hoped that once out of their shackles, they would be able to retake the ship in the open sea.
"How is your chest, Ser Hakim?"
He seemed surprised to get her visit.
"Still sore, but much better, Lady Chiara."
She decided to take a direct approach and come right out with what she wanted. "Ser Hakim, I need your help. I want you to sail the Santa Caterina to Piombino with your crew and deliver Signor Sanguanero to the authorities in Piombino for attempting to murder me." He looked away, as if embarrassed and suddenly she knew where she had seen him before — the third man with Niccolo on that day, a day that would be with her for the rest of her life.
"You were with Signor Sanguanero when you found me on that hillock. Isn’t that right?"
He briefly looked at her and muttered: "Yes."
"Are you willing to testify that he ordered the slave Selvo to kill me?"
He hesitated.
"Testifying that does not implicate you in any way. You can claim that you also left, refusing like Selvo to follow the same order. Though to protect Selvo, I never reported that he joined me and that I gave him money for his escape from slavery."
"And what do I get in return?"
"You will be seen as an honest, law-abiding man, and that should help getting you off any charges of piracy. I have already given orders to remove all loot from the ship, except for the two stacks of leather, but you can claim that this is your return cargo from a trip to Corsica. Without a proof, you and your crew can’t be convicted as pirates. After Piombino, you take the Santa Caterina to Porto Pisano and report to the Pisan branch of Casa Sanguanero, the rightful owners of the ship. They’ll be grateful to you and likely to keep you on as the first mate, maybe even as the captain of the ship. I’m also certain that your crew will be more than happy to go along with this scheme. I checked that the ships coffer has enough silver coins to pay their wages and still leave you ample to get new food supplies in Piombino."
The expression in his face showed increasing astonishment.
"You seem surprised, Ser Hakim. My quarrel isn’t with you or your crew, and the loot from the boat will compensate me for what Signor Sanguanero and some of your rough sailors stole. What’s your answer?"
"If I have your word that you’ll support us in Piombino, then I’m keen to go along with your plan, Lady Chiara."
"Take the ship to Piombino and testify against Signor Sanguanero?" He nodded. "Good." She locked eyes with him. "Ser Hakim, don’t take me for a fool. There will be no way to retake the ship while we’re at sea. A sizeable group of my men, all armed with crossbows, will be on the ship. Any attempt will be put down without mercy and the culprits killed on the spot. I’ll remain at your side all the time. Do you understand that?"
He lowered his gaze. "Yes, Lady Chiara, there will be no attempt at mutiny."
"So we see eye to eye. I sense that I can trust you, but I’m not so sure about some of your crew, and I don’t want to have to kill men if I can avoid it. How many do you need to sail the ship in good weather?"
"In good weather … twelve."
"I will let you select twelve of your crew. The others will only be unshackled once the anchor has been lowered in Piombino. I plan to sail in two days, provided the weather is favorable. Do you think that you will be up to it by then?"
"Yes, Lady Chiara."
* * *
Two days later, Luca reported that the weather conditions seemed to be ideal for sailing across the strait, at least from w
hat he could judge on top of Volterraio. She asked him to assemble the twelve men selected as guards for the trip on the shore at Sant’Anna by mid morning. She felt confident about them. They were the best marksmen and had spent the day before practicing the crossbow on moving targets. She had instructed them in detail on their duties. She was sure that they had accepted her as the undisputed leader, following her orders without questions. Paolo, the fisherman, was their captain, but she would command directly. She would have liked to take Luca along, but it was more prudent to leave him in charge of Nisporto and the castle, particularly since she herself intended to be away for at least a month if not longer. She hoped that Alda and Pepe would agree to come and live with her on Elba. Maybe, buying that property in Chianciano had been rather precipitous.
To her surprise, the majority of the tenants were on the beach when she arrived with Hakim, to bid her farewell, and begged her to return soon. She had to fight tears, so touched was she by this gesture.
She could feel the apprehension coming from the sailors when they saw the twelve guards arrive, each armed with two primed crossbows and swords. The presence of Hakim without shackles puzzled them even more.
Two guards picked up Niccolo and took him into the captain’s cabin, where his foot irons were attached to a post. Her archers stationed themselves on the fore and after castle. She nodded to Giovanni, who now took the men of the previous shift down into the row boats in which she had come. Their last duty was to pull the Santa Caterina around so that its bow was facing the open sea.
Standing on the forecastle with Hakim, she spoke: "Sailors, the Santa Caterina is sailing for Piombino today to deliver Signor Sanguanero into the hands of justice. Ser Hakim will select twelve of you to operate the ship —"