932. Chapter 932

After Death Wish

Episode 8.17

By

UCSBdad

Disclaimer: Neither I, nor Charles Bronson own Castle. Rating: K Time: See above.

Author's note: This is a sequel to chapter 902, in which Ricardo Castello, a writer during the Italian Renaissance, comes to Fair Padua and after many trials, marries to lovely Lady Katarina Becketti.

Lord Ricardo Castello sat on a pier and watched a galley slowly sail up the river to dock in fair Padua. His writer's imagination filled the ship with all manner of riches and fantastic objects from the world beyond fair Padua. He sighed. Gold, silver, jewels, silks, spices, ivory, peacocks, what might be in that mighty galley's hold? He wondered.

He turned to a dock worker who sat looking at the ship. "What does that ship carry?" He asked.

The man spat. "Codfish, and from the smell of it, they must have been becalmed for a while. It stinks."

A breeze wafted the odor of rotten codfish to Ricardo's nostrils. "I think I should go home."

Home was the palazzo of his beautiful bride, Lady Katarina Becketti, who with her stalwart cohort of men, kept the peace in fair Padua. After an unfortunate and fatal series of events, Ricardo had found himself the sole surviving legitimate member of the Davidsono family, of which he was a very distant relation. Hence he had become Lord Castello.

As he arrived home, Ricardo found Katarina conferring with the Duchess of Padua, one Victoria Portas. She saw Ricardo and waved him over.

"Lord Castello, I was just talking to your wife. The Doge of Venice has advised us that valuable treasures are being smuggled out of the Ottoman Empire and are being landed in Italy for further sale throughout Christendom. The Doge fears that the Turks will declare war if this pernicious trade is not stopped."

"Not that the Turks need any excuse to declare war on anyone." Katarina grumped.

Duchess Portas turned to Ricardo. "I have a special mission for you, Lord Ricardo."

He smiled. "I shall be overjoyed to go with my beautiful wife and assist her investigations in any way I can."

"Actually, what I want you to do is to keep an eye on the port and see if anything suspicious happens."

"I would think…."Ricardo began.

"Lord Castello!" The Duchess said coldly.

"Watch the port. You can trust me. I'll watch the port like a hawk. Like two hawks, even."

Duchess Portas nodded and took her leave.

"I don't think the Duchess likes me." Ricardo said.

Lady Katarina nodded. "She dislikes you because you were born a poor relation to the famous Davidsono family and became a Lord because of a fatal accident." Indeed, a drunken Lord Josh Davidson had been accidentally stabbed to death when Duke William de la Bracken had ordered the murder of Katarina to cover up his own involvement in Lady Johanna's murder. Katarina had dispatched de la Bracken and his thugs.

"But," she said, softly," I love you, Ricardo. Perhaps I can show you how I love you?"

Alas, they were interrupted by one Kevin Ryan, an Irishman who had taken service with Sir John Hawkwood, an English mercenary soldier now in the service of fair Padua. "Lady Katarina, there's been a murder! The captain of the galley, Santa Maria, has been found stabbed to death in a waterfront tavern."

"Get your companion, Don Javier." She turned to Ricardo. "You should go to the docks and look around. And do be careful, for I love you greatly." They kissed and Katarina and her followers were off.

Ricardo sighed and strode manfully to the docks. Luckily, they galley he had seen earlier was docked down wind of him. He sat on a bollard and hoped something would happen so he could assist his wife. For many long hours, nothing happened.

As Ricardo was about to give up and go home. "I wish something would happen to let me help my lovely wife.' He muttered. Then, a small object fell from the galley nearest him. There was a small splash. Ricardo walked over to see it something valuable might have fallen from the ship. To his surprise, a blonde woman rose from the waters and climbed up to the dock.

"Hello, there." She said. "Aren't you Ricardo Castello?"

Ricardo nodded. He couldn't remember seeing his woman before. How did she know my name?

"You should advise your wife that Captain, Guillaume de Soren, a French rogue, was smuggling priceless treasures from the treasury of the Turkish Sultan himself."

Ricardo reached into his pocket for a notebook and a pen and ink he always kept there. "Now, young lady, can you tell me…." he stopped. The woman was gone. Ricardo looked around, but saw no sign of the blonde. Trusting his memory, he went home and told Katarina what he had learned.

"Did you get the blonde's name?" Ricardo shook his head. "Where she lives?" He shook his head. "How she knows of this, for Captain de Soren was the victim of murder." Poor Ricardo had done none of these things.

That night, they were invited to a dinner given by Duchess Portas, which was something they usually enjoyed. However, Duchess Portas took Katarina away to discuss the murder of Captain de Soren, leaving poor Ricardo alone. He soon found himself talking to the infamous mercenary soldier, Sir John Hawkwood, to whom he told the story of his meeting with the blonde woman that day.

Hawkwood nodded. "Tis obvious who you saw, young man."

"Who?" Ricardo asked.

"Why a genie, of course. It is said that the Turks found the famous lamp of Aladdin and have kept the genie for themselves. You saw something fall from the ship, which was her lamp, no doubt, and then she appeared to you, helped you and then disappeared. A genie, all right."

The idea appealed to Ricardo, but then again, soldiers were notorious for telling tall tales. "Perhaps, Sir John, but she's gone now."

"Perhaps." Was all the man said.

Ricardo left to find another glass of wine, "I wish I knew who was behind this." He said under his breath,

"How are you, Lord Ricardo?"

It was the blonde from the docks. But now she was dressed in a magnificent ball gown and literally had jewels dripping from her dress. "I have news for you."

"Who are you?" Ricardo asked, suspiciously.

"A friend. Who would have reason to cause you, your wife, and all of fair Padua, trouble?"

Ricardo thought. "No one. Katarina and I have no enemies, although fair Padua may have rivals and, yes, even enemies."

The blonde shook her head. "You have one enemy. Don't you remember who was Lord Josh Davidsono's only son? He was illegitimate, hairy, and smelly and ignorant and nasty."

"Do you mean Tomasso the Hairy?"

"Of course. He wishes to gain his revenge upon you and all of fair Padua by bringing the wrath of the Turks down upon you. However, I know that he's hiding with his father's former paramours, Meredith and Gina, by name, in the abandoned palazzo of the Davidsono family. If you hurry, you can catch him with the stolen goods."

Ricardo turned around to look for Katarina and when he turned back to the blonde, she was gone. However, he quickly found Katarina and Duchess Victoria and explained what he had been told.

Duchess Victoria quickly gathered up some of Sir John's troops and headed to the old Davidsono's palazzo.

"I see a light in the palazzo." Said Sir John, drawing his sword. "We should see who's home." He motioned to a giant African known as El Tee who promptly kicked in the door. The soldiers rushed in, followed by Ricardo and Katarina. As they went through the door, a crossbow bolt zipped between the two of them.

"We've been spotted." Yelled Sir John as more crossbow bolts flew towards the band. "There are too many exits, he'll escape."

"I wish he'd get caught." Mumbled Ricardo.

Just then there was a blast as a barrel of black powder exploded. Tomasso the Hairy staggered out of the smoke from the blast and was soon captured along with his confederates. The treasures from the Turks was also recovered.

Days later, Ricardo again stood on the docks, this time watching a Turkish galley take Tomasso the Hairy to Istanbul where his fate would not be pleasant.

Turning, he saw the blonde standing beside him. "Who are you?" He demanded.

"A friend." She replied, saucily.

"Do you have a name?"

She smiled. "You can call me Jeannie." Then she turned and walked away.