Chasing The Secrets Behind The Ugly Truth
#TheNovel - The Mad Schemers - S1E6
Subscribe - New episodes every Thursday at 6AM EST
Episode 1 - Conspiracy, Death, and Executions
Episode 2 - The Miracle That Inaugurated Horrific Times
Episode 3 - You Will All Be Executed Brutally
Episode 4 - An Honorable Man Executed with the Disgrace of the Wretched
May 1478, a week later - "Lorenzo wants him alive," the captain whispered to one of his soldiers as a dozen stood in line near the entrance of a Benedictine monastery. Far back the line, two soldiers dressed in a long, loose-fitting tunic with wide sleeves and hoodies approached the entrance and landed four heavy knocks on that tick wooden door. You could hear rushed footsteps from behind, and when the door opened with a noisy squeak, the figure of a monk holding a large keychain and a candlestick appeared.
"How can I help you, brothers?" the monk asked, dead silence. "Brothers, how can I help you?" he repeated. The monk-soldiers stood there motionless and didn't say a word as planned. As the monk stepped forward to understand what was happening, the soldier leaning on the wall near the door jumped out, grabbed him from behind, and wrapped his hand around his mouth. "Shhh, you are safe." he whispered into his ears, "I'll let my hand go, but you gotta be quiet." The monk nodded, and with a pounding heart, he gently freed his mouth and said, "What do you want from us? We can feed you all, but we have nothing precious here," he murmured with his trembling voice. "Forget about that. If we wanted it, we would have taken it all without your permission," the captain exclaimed confidently, for his squad was a militia of mercenaries paid to execute orders and free to take whatever they wanted. "Now listen carefully. We know that Montesecco is hiding here. We need him. Alive," he said softly. "Now, you will go back inside with two of my men. They are armed," he warned, "and you will escort them to his room or wherever he is." The monk received the warning and behaved accordingly. As the monk turned, the captain grabbed his arm with a tight fist and said: "Is he here with any of his men?" The monk shook his head in disapproval. "You better be right," the captain said softly in his ear and let his arm go.
The monastery's entrance was like a dark tunnel. The guards covered their noses as they walked by the tallow candles on the gray walls, which emanated a foul odor of rancid animal fats. "Where is everyone?" one asked, for they could only see closed doors in that divine calm. The monk pointed his finger up to grab their attention. The sounds of a soaring, lyrical melody cleared as they walked towards the chapel—a group of monks, standing in front of each other forming three lines, were rehearsing holy songs for the Sunday mass.
When he saw the three monks moving closer to him from behind the large pillars holding the chapel, the choir's director raised his palm and requested the organist to stop the accompanying music. As that scene got the choir's attention, one of the singing monks stepped back with slow alternating steps, trying to disappear in the darkness of the backstage. At that exact moment, one of the monk-soldiers realized that his rondel dagger was visibly pointing out of the tunic, and so he sprinted with an explosive push that his hoodie slipped off his head. The monks started to panic, scream, and move in all directions, but with pushes and shoves, the guard could jump on that escaping man who had tripped on the marble stairs of the altar.
"I could kill you right now, in this shitty, sacred place," the guard exclaimed with a sharp and intense face while gripping his brown and tick tunic with tight fists. He had never seen his face, so that was just a guess. "But you are a lucky bastard! Lorenzo, our lord, YOUR lord, wants you alive," he continued, reminding him of the reason he could still breathe. Montesecco tried to speak, but his trembling mouth could only mutter confusing words. Before he could even realize what had just happened, the guard hit him with a heavy fist, and his body collapsed senseless.
The monks scattered and retreated from that violent scene to refuge under the arches of the dark aisle. The other soldier was there, his shoulders facing the unconscious man on the ground while pointing his dagger at monks when all the guards rushed into the chapel; they had burst in at the sound of screams that interrupted the holy melody. Two large men walked to Montesecco, lying unconscious near the altar, grabbed him by his arms, and hauled his heavy body to the carriage waiting outside.
The tall, black war-horses sprinted with mighty strides, carrying the unconscious Montesecco, the captain, and three armed soldiers. The captain remained silent, but you could tell he was boiling inside. "This coward is our only hope to understand how the Pazzi planned this treasonous and horrific act," he said. The soldiers nodded, and no one said a word for the whole trip, but their minds were trying to picture Lorenzo's face and reaction.
The horses kept the same rushed and angry pace for miles. As they entered the city, their gallop sent vibrations all over Florence. A group of peasants saw that wobbly carriage carrying what looked like a corpse, closely guarded by armed men, and started to take bets about who got lucky this time. The coachman struggled to bring the savage gallop to a halt, but the horses slowed down as they approached Palazzo Medici—a form of respect, you'd say, that the Pazzi lacked. The captain jumped off the cart and rushed up the stairs to Lorenzo's office while Montesecco was carried straight to the dark, smelly basement and thrown in a narrow dungeon.
With gentle knocks on the door, the captain entered the office and delivered the news: "Sir, we have him; he is waiting for you in the basement." Lorenzo looked at his guests, stood up with both hands on the desk, and invited them to join him: "Please follow me; we'll find out the whole story soon." The Chancellor Bartolomeo and the Archbishop Gentile followed along.
Subscribe - New episodes every Thursday at 6AM EST
Episode 1 - Conspiracy, Death, and Executions
Episode 2 - The Miracle That Inaugurated Horrific Times
Episode 3 - You Will All Be Executed Brutally
Episode 4 - An Honorable Man Executed with the Disgrace of the Wretched