Niccolo Rising - Dorothy Dunnett [277]
“But,” said Gregorio, “was he surprised at anything else? At the bankruptcy? At the money he was collecting?”
And into Julius’ mind came the memory of that hot night in Milan, with the two grotesque heads wagging over the sheets of figures, and Nicholas sitting passively by, saying nothing; drained, he had thought by the fever. Julius said, “No.” Then he said, “I’m sure he didn’t mean to harm the demoiselle Esota.”
Unexpectedly, Gregorio said, “I don’t think he meant to harm M. Jaak physically, either. He was only parrying in that fight.”
Julius didn’t say anything. At the end of a weary journey, after killing two men, what did lack of energy prove? Was it possible? Was it possible that after all his exhortations this kind of retaliation, this long, quiet, vindictive trail of destruction, was the way Nicholas had picked to assert himself? After a long time, Julius said, “He protected Astorre. He could have left Astorre’s money in Geneva too.”
“Perhaps he needs Astorre,” said Tobie. “He didn’t protect Felix.”
“No!” said Julius violently. “I don’t believe that!”
“And he needed the demoiselle,” said Tobie, as if he hadn’t spoken. “To begin with, at least. Just as he needs us, to begin with.”
Gregorio said, “Wait. I think this is going too far. I don’t know Nicholas well, but I would swear that his regard for the demoiselle and for Felix were real. This past week, his feelings have been beyond disguising. Julius will bear me out.”
Julius said, “Of course that’s true. My God, Tobie. You saw him at San Fabiano. That wasn’t all fever, surely? I saw him when he heard about the extent of the disaster at Geneva. He could hardly speak all the way back to Bruges, and he still hasn’t got over it. How could he feel like that, if he were the sort of monster you’re talking about?”
“Remorse?” said Tobie. “He’s not twenty yet. It’s his first experiment. The next one will probably set off its explosions more neatly. The question is, do we want to wait until it happens? It might be one or all of us another time. Deliberately, or – if you want to give him the benefit of the doubt – accidentally. I put him down at first as an innocent cursed with an overwhelming intelligence, and liable to blunder in any direction. I thought you and I could control that. But suppose he’s not an innocent at all? Suppose he knows very well where he’s going, and proposes to get there in this fashion?”
A silence fell. Julius didn’t want to speak. He twisted his hands on the table, slowly, one inside the other, and still couldn’t imagine Nicholas doing all those things. And then could, quite easily.
Gregorio said, “There isn’t any absolute proof, is there?”
Tobie said, “Only by consulting the Dauphin or the Duke of Milan, who are unlikely to tell you.”
Julius said, “What are you going to do?” directly to the doctor.
Tobie’s hands were still, his lips pursed, his eyes on the opposite wall. He opened his mouth. Without warning, he sneezed.
“May God bless you,” said Julius.
To his surprise, the doctor went patchily red. Then he said brusquely, “I’m staying. If he’s already turned the wrong way, I’m fairly confident that I can outwit him. If he hasn’t, I might be able to stop him. I don’t think you or I would be in any danger at the moment. He needs us. What I am going to do, however, is warn Marian de Charetty.”
Julius said, “I would stay, too.” Then he said, “Perhaps the demoiselle knows.”
The light gaze came back to him. “And that’s why he’s … No. She wouldn’t have acted the way she did with Jaak de Fleury. Goro?”
“No,” said Gregorio. “I’m sure she doesn’t know how M. Jaak and Lionetto were tricked. She wouldn’t have allowed him to do it. She’s a very honest lady. I would stay. I will say this, too. He can’t be wholly innocent. But I don’t think he’s evil.”
Tobie said, “Or not yet. As a matter of interest, was it Jaak de Fleury who had the dyeshop burned down?”
Gregorio said, “Not that we know of. The man we caught there was the Scotsman. Simon.”
“So she has more than one possible enemy,” Tobie said. “I’ve had an idea. Why don