The Plague Doctor's Daughter

7. Nicco

It was true that the news was unfavorable for most of his fellow citizens, but Nicco Grimani was not like most people. He relished uncertainty, chaos, and confusion. They provided a perfect cover for the types of ventures that he undertook, which would ultimately make him and his family even richer. Because while the plague and all its accompanying restrictions like curfews and quarantine negatively affected most merchants, the illicit dealings managed by the doge's oldest son flourished. If he had it his way, Nicco would keep all of the stringent laws even after the disease had been eradicated.

"This plague is killing our way of life quicker than it's killing our people!" exclaimed Councilor Bembo from the far left of the dais, emphatically pounding his fist on his ample thigh. His candid sentiment was shared by others as a rumble of agreement quickly spread through the chamber.

"The Jews brought this upon us!" shouted someone from the audience.

"We must end the quarantines if we want to reclaim our economy!" yelled another from among the increased commotion.

Nicco glanced at his father as he actively fought to keep his earlier satisfaction from turning into an anxious scowl. Thankfully, seeing the doge's measured demeanor as he calmly raised his hand to hush the assembly helped Nicco maintain his own emotions.

"My most esteemed gentlemen! I am sympathetic to your unease regarding our current situation, but I beg of you to remember your place as righteous representatives of your respective families in this grand chamber," the elder Grimani said, phrasing a consequential political warning as a innocuous reminder about civic duty. The commanding appeal worked, and the indiscreet interjections ceased.

"Now, let us also recall," the doge continued. "That since last July, we have had over forty-thousand deaths, and while those numbers seem to be decreasing every week, we have not fully conquered this invisible enemy."

As if to underscore the accuracy of that statement, a deep cough sounded from the back of the room. The shuffle of bodies in the pews echoed across the cavernous space before hundreds of pairs of eyes shifted to the source of manifestation. Within moments, two palace guards armed with pikes quickly escorted a still-hacking councilman out of the chamber.

"Five hundred of our fellow citizens perished each day at the height of this scourge," Grimaldi said as soon as attention moved away from the closing chamber doors. "It would be foolhardy for us to think that we could have contained such decimation without the strict development and enforcement of laws regulating its spread."

At this, the majority of the attendees nodded.

"As for laying blame on any individual or group, you shall not be seduced by the Devil's lies," Doge Grimani said as he slowly scanned the room. "Because if it were the rejection of Christianity at the root of this pestilence, then how would we explain our Jewish brothers and sisters also contracting the deadly infliction? Why, word is that the plague has struck even in places where they do not live."

"Then what about cats?" asked a brave, but obviously witless soul, hiding behind the anonymity such a large audience offered. "Are they not responsible for the spread of this illness?"

While some couldn't help to snicker, the muscles in Doge Grimani's jaw tightened. Not surprising to Nicco, his father didn't deem the question worthy of a more elaborate response. Although the resulting pause allowed for another unsolicited interruption, this time the speaker made himself known.

"Your Serenity, if I may," said one of the older councilors, his hand shaking as he leaned on a cane to stand from a nearby pew.

The doge nodded for him to proceed.

"As always, the wisdom of your assertions are unquestionable, and I would like to offer my most sincere apologies on behalf of my fellow members in this honorable chamber," began the man, adding a feeble bow to the extent his arched back allowed. Lifting his head, he stared directly at Doge Grimani. "You have undoubtedly convinced us all of the merits behind the continued restrictions in travel and commerce for our precious Republic, but for the sake of the record, I wanted to confirm whether there will be any continued exceptions for certain individuals to the current quarantine laws?"

The councilor didn't have to look directly at him for Nicco to know whom he meant. But the councilor did. As soon as the thinly veiled accusation left his dry lips, the man turned his rickety neck in Nicco's direction. The old bastard dared to call out the doge's son for alleged violations against laws enacted in this very chamber, and worse yet, he did nothing to hide it. The glance was so obvious, so calculated, and so deliberate, that it couldn't have escaped his father's attention, nor that of anyone else who had direct view of the primary parties involved.

"Councilor Zorzi—Francesco, my friend—you know as well as anyone else in this room that within the Veneto's boundaries, the same policies and procedures apply to prince and pauper alike," Doge Grimani said with exaggerated graciousness, as his ring-laden fingers tapped the arm of the gilded throne. At his feet, one of the dogs raised its chestnut-colored head at the disruption, but upon seeing no need for alarm, quickly lowered it to continue its nap. "However, if you have evidence to the contrary, I urge you to bravely present us with these detailed assertions so that we may dispose swift justice to any lawbreakers."

The immediate gasp from most of the chamber was undeniable in its verdict: while the old man had crossed an unspoken line, the doge, in all of his insight and power, was giving him an elegant retreat. Although Nicco didn't particularly look forward to being publicly accused of violating protocols, breaking embargoes, and dealing in contraband goods, he almost wished Zorzi had the balls to follow through.

But the councilman shook his head. "I do not, Your Serenity," he said, sounding more feeble than with his earlier statements, even as the look in his watery eyes reflected aggravation rather than content when he sat down again.

Nicco's shoulders relaxed and he exhaled deeply. This session had already been too long for his liking, and with the focus now off him, his thoughts could once again safely wander.

He had been asked to attend both a private concert tonight at the Palazzo Barbarigo and an invitation-only game of trappola at the residence of a Moorish merchant. Although he was an ardent admirer of Monteverdi's quartette pieces, Nicco was an even greater strategist. His subtle, yet firm command of a card table had led to many business deals that otherwise would not have materialized. Therefore, his decision for how to spend the evening was uncomplicated. Or it briefly had been, until his father spoke again.

"Well then, even in that case I must still thank you, Councilor Zorzi, for your dedication to upholding a number of important virtues in equal measure," the doge said before looking directly at Nicco for the first time since his arrival into the chamber. "Like Aristotle, I too strongly believe in the value of truthfulness, as well as temperance."

Although he couldn't fathom why his father would continue to draw attention to the clear subtext of his identity within the previous exchange, Nicco also couldn't contain a snicker at the doge's pick of those particular moral standards to highlight. Because surely the reference to truthfulness actually meant Zorzi's complete lack of it, which was underscored by pairing it with self-restraint, as he'd done at the last moment to save his own hide.

"And now you must excuse me for indulging in the virtue of pride for a moment," Grimani continued while gesturing toward Nicco with a wave of his hand. "Because I have two great sources of pride in my life in the persons of my sons, and I am fortunate to be sharing word of good fortune regarding both today."

Nicco's body once again tensed and his face flushed. He had known of his father's intention to make a revelation regarding his younger brother to the Council today, but he had no such news of his own to share with the assembled nobility. As the attendees grew quiet in anticipation, Nicco waited with even stronger apprehension at what was to come.