The Wolf and the Snake (English version)

Chapter 16

Italy, Parma, 1254

The departure from Palestine didn't go well for me.

I felt safer there than near the French kingdom, where Charles of Anjou is a powerful and fearsome lord. It's probably by seeing Eriprando again that the threatening shadow of this prince slowly started to haunt my nights. Despite Reyn's reassuring presence, I can't stop imagining the Capetian lying on my naked body, given to his guilty desires.

How to know if it isn't the way it happened?

The worst thing is that it would be complicated to confide to Reyn my torments, so free-floating anxiety becomes little by little my daily companion. Moreover, our trip turned very hard, with strong heat and often torrential rains flooding the crossed valleys. Fortunately, the young Italian has provided some cloaks to protect us.

A halt is necessary, and we sleep one night in the fields. Eriprando is a bit distant, claiming that couples need their privacy.

And it's not wrong!

Pressed up against Reyn, I watch the Cortenova heir stubbornly gazing at the stars as if he hopes to count them and pass the time.

Because he's alone, and his lover is sailing away on the sea.

Maybe they met in Porto Pisano to say goodbye, but not farewell. Maybe their respective families' pride is nothing compared to their passion?

All tired, we left for Parma.

***

The city rises in a rich and well-tilled plain. It's divided in two by the river Parma, on which three bridges have been built. It was founded long before the Etruscans, and the Romans occupied it. This Guelph Republic is loyal to the pope. It was once under siege by Emperor Frederick and resisted valiantly.

We quickly cross straight streets, relatively wide if we compare them to Acre's. Our inn is located behind a large cathedral where many laborers work. According to Eriprando, the city is constantly covered with religious buildings to ensure peace and prosperity.

The emperor's followers here are Ghibellines camouflaged among the Guelph population.

"Here we are in the middle of an unfamiliar city," Reyn mutters as he jumps off his mount. "I don't like the idea that we might be involved in the brawls between Italians."

I gratefully grab his hand to put my foot down because I am exhausted. "I just want a good meal and a bed, even if our host is the devil himself."

"Well, we're the guests of the Supreme Pontiff, for this city belongs to him," Eriprando says with a laugh.

We happily sit down to supper, and the innkeeper lets us taste the delicious honey from his hives. Then Reyn and I slip away to one of the rooms, delighted to enjoy a comfortable bed.

I'm in great need of my husband's tenderness, hoping to overcome all the ghosts of the past, living or dead. "I' m your home, for eternity," I whisper, nestled in his arms.

"I don't know what I like better in my beautiful home, the curve of her hips or her satin skin," he jokes, covering me with kisses. We follow a similar path, mouth to mouth and body to body, exhausted but happy. Then, when he sneaks into me, I close my eyes, lulled by his comings and goings deep inside my flesh.

Suddenly, Reyn's face disappears to make place for Charles of Anjou's, and I let out a long howl.

"Ada!" Reyn's voice is an anchor that keeps me from drifting away, and his arms form a solid bulwark around me.

"I think I had a nightmare! But it's over."

"You seem worried since we left Palestine as if you were afraid of something," he sighs. "Perhaps we should have gone straight back to Champagne, to my father's fortress."

Outside, the wind from the sea blows on the city, a bit like in Acre. I would like it to carry tears and despair with it, forever.

Why do I feel that Charles of Anjou knows Reyn and I have landed in Italy?

What exactly happened that night, on the ship that was supposed to deliver me from hell, to bring me safely back to my husband?

Did Charles of Anjou rape me?

I snuggle with Reyn, listening to his heartbeat.

"I thank you for having accepted this detour! I really want to meet the Visconti."

"We'll only stay a week or two because you need to rest," he says, holding me tighter against him.

***

The Guelphs and Ghibellines were factions supporting the Pope and the Holy Roman Emperor (Emperor Frederick), respectively, in the Italian city-states of Central Italy and Northern Italy.