The Unicorn Hunt - Dorothy Dunnett [246]
When he spoke like that, it was as well to ignore it. ‘Why call tomorrow?’ said John. ‘We don’t need to work every day. Adorne isn’t going to arrive any moment.’
‘I don’t know,’ Nicholas said. ‘Remember Gertrude’s tales about Basle? She says men throw coins into the steam baths and order their mistress’s maids to up-end and fetch them. The maids love it, according to Gertrude. If they don’t mind, maybe nobody does.’
‘Maybe they don’t. Are ye deaf?’ le Grant said.
‘About tomorrow? Yes, I’ve planned meetings,’ Nicholas said. ‘And I know Adorne can’t come for a while. But I do want to arrange him a welcome. And I do want to be elsewhere when he receives it. You as well. Should we call on Tobie and see if there is any news?’
‘You want to be elsewhere when Gelis arrives?’ le Grant said.
‘I didn’t invite her,’ said Nicholas.
The Genoese fondaco had a chained leopard in the patio and a Consul, Signor Pietro de Persis, who would visibly have preferred to unchain it on discovering that his visitors were bankers from Venice. He did, in time, send someone upstairs to enquire if the Signorina Caterina and Messer Tobias would receive them: eventually they found themselves in a suite even larger than the rooms Venice provided. Nicholas said, ‘He doesn’t like us. We could feed candied fruit to his leopard.’
‘I have a better suggestion,’ said Tobie. ‘Feed it to the harbour drummers and trumpeters. No one’s had a proper night’s sleep for a month.’
‘Since the Turkish fleet went to war,’ Nicholas said. Unbuttoning and then dropping his gown, he was exploring the room. In its furnishing it was remarkably like the one the girl had occupied in the Venetian fondaco, largely because the same objects were strewn all about it. ‘Well, Dioscorides?’ he said. He sat down and picked up some drawings.
The girl, too, looked much the same, although marginally neater than when flying the kite. ‘Well, Teiresias?’ she said.
The silence was almost non-existent. ‘You have been learning. Who from?’ Nicholas said. He laid down the drawings and looked about him. John sat down, attracting a quick glance from Tobie.
‘I had a good teacher in Ghent,’ Katelijne said. ‘I wondered why you needed the Jew. I thought the map would have been sufficient. Anyway, what did you find?’
Nicholas did not answer. John le Grant, drawing breath, saw that Tobie was frowning. Tobie had heard of Teiresias of the rod, blessed with prophetic insight. Tobie said, ‘I thought the Jew couldn’t help.’
‘No,’ said Katelijne. She was looking at Nicholas.
Nicholas said, ‘How did you know?’
‘The van Borselen,’ said Katelijne. ‘The Duchess Eleanor writes to them.’
Tobie said, ‘What does she know?’
The girl’s eyes were on Nicholas. His gaze was on his hands. He had picked up some palm leaves and was plaiting them. He said, ‘She knows that pigs sometimes find truffles, but not when there are no truffles to find.’
John was silent. He had already guessed that. If Nicholas had consulted the Jew, it was because he had already tried and failed to find gold by his own methods. Tobie said, ‘I think you will have to tell me what you mean. John?’
‘He is a diviner,’ John said.
Tobie stood. Nicholas, without looking up, indolently continued with what he was doing. He said, ‘I have given myself a special bonus. The Duchess is pleased with her silver mines.’
‘She should be,’ the girl said. She added, ‘You know divining is supposed to be harmful?’
‘Not at all,’ Nicholas said. He spread his hands and lifted what he had done. It was the beginning of a basket, such as Katelijne had been trying to make. He said, ‘I thought the knack would come back. Harmful? Only to those who don’t know how to manage it. It recognised the candied-fruit poison.’ He looked up.
‘And who it came from?’ It was Tobie.
‘Not that.’
‘But it didn’t find gold?’
‘No.’
‘And the Jew couldn’t help?’
‘No,’ said Nicholas.
‘But you would have come to Alexandria anyway, to compete with my uncle. Where