They would welcome her with open arms.
Nerves fluttered in her belly like wild butterflies. There was a chance that Lorenzo de’ Medici would laugh in Ravenna’s face. But thanks to Fortuna, she understood the importance of the Luni famiglia to him. Above all things, he prioritized the health of the republic, and Florence had no greater defender than Saturnino. If Ravenna had been a gambler, she would place a bet that the politician would do virtually anything to keep his greatest ally happy.
Perhaps even loosen his clutches on Volterra.
“All right,” Ravenna said. “When and where can I expect to meet with him?”
“Where?” Signor Luni said icily. “It seems you haven’t understood after all. You are not allowed to leave the premises. Ever.”
Her heart thundered in her ears, racing to a panicky beat.
Now what?
Ravenna tried another angle. “Then how will I cross paths with Signor Medici? Surely he is much too busy to comehere.Wouldn’t it be better if I went to his place of work?”
“Florence is on the brink of war with Rome,” Signor Luni said. “Weare on the brink of war with the pope. Even in Volterra, I’m sure you’ve been made aware of the tensions existing between those aligned withHis Holiness”—Signor Luni didn’t as much say the words as spit them out of his mouth—“and those in opposition to his tyrannical methods. While Florence accepts magic, many of the pope’s allies across the peninsula do not. We have enemies everywhere with access to the city. Which means they have access to us. And now you are one of us, Ravenna, which makes you at best a liability, or at worst, leverage in the wrong hands.”
Signor Luni’s sharp gaze bore down on her, and it contained all of his immortal strength, the long years of his life spent in dominating others, and every cunning experience he’d gained in the years since. “I will repeat myself one more time: you are not allowed to leave the palazzo.”
Anger swirled across her vision, and she was thankful for it. It gifted her a voice that did not quake. “What about mass? I can’t miss it.”
Signora Luni shot a quick look in her husband’s direction. Ravenna’s stomach tightened—that look didn’t give her any hope. She had clearly been imploring her husband to think of some reason to keep her in the palazzo.
Ravenna couldn’t afford to miss church.
Her life already hung in the balance. The Church had little sympathy or tolerance for those who possessed even a modicum of magic.Showing her face on Sundays was the bare minimum she could do to protect herself from the Church’s wrath, and the intolerable gossips lurking on every street corner.
Or sitting in the same pews as her.
Florence might welcome those with magic but that didn’t mean she wassafe.Word traveled quickly throughout the peninsula, and if she wanted a life in Volterra, then she had to keep up her practice of attending. Her soul depended on it, her reputation.
“We have a chapel you may use—” Signor Luni said.
The word burst out of her. “No.This is important to me.” She placed her hands on either side of her plate and locked eyes with the patriarch of the family. “Ihaveto attend.”
“There is no harm in her joining us,” Saturnino said. “I’ll keep an eye on her.”
Ravenna shifted in her seat, her eyes flickering to Saturnino. An undercurrent of tension rippled between them. Signor Luni paused, his eyes landing on his wife. She gave an imperceptible nod, and Signor Luni cleared his throat, then said, “You may go with us, then. If it’s so important to you. Provided it doesn’t distract you from your work.”
“Grazie,” Ravenna said quietly.
“Now thatthat’ssettled,” Signor Luni said dryly. “We are hosting a banquet in your honor, a week from now. Florence’s best families will be in attendance, and I will personally secure a private audience with Signor Medici—”
But Ravenna didn’t want to wait. She didn’t want to be in the palazzo even for one second longer than necessary. “I told you. I will not work for you unless you’ll take me to meet with Signor Medici. Do you really want to delay my starting?”
“What do you think you’ll achieve?” Fortuna asked, incredulous. “He won’t hear your case and demand that we let you go. If that’s what you’re hoping for, it won’t come to that. You areours, and not only does he know this, he supports it.”
A preternatural sense of survival descended over Ravenna. Shewould not yield. “Hear me: I will not work until you agree.” Ravenna pushed her plate away and leaned back against the plump cushion at her back, folding her arms across her chest. “And you cannot force me.”
“I will take her to see him,” Saturnino said from across the table.
“We’ll both take her,” Signor Luni said.
Ravenna stilled.
He smiled slowly at her, a smile that reminded her of a painting she had once seen of a tiger. Gleaming teeth, obsidian gaze. Patiently waiting for the moment to pounce. His own family gazed at him with uncertain eyes and matching levels of apprehension. Their manner and conversation danced around him and his moods, and what hemightdo or say. They were just as afraid of his unpredictable methods as she was.
“Fine,” Signor Luni said. “And since you are so willing, Saturnino, Ravenna is nowyourresponsibility. And if I were you, I wouldn’t let her out of your sight.”
