"Now the Tartars have fallen upon the lands of Islam," Daoud said. "They
have conquered Persia. They have a hundred thousand mounted warriors in
the field, and allies and auxiliaries. They have leveled our holy city
of Baghdad, destroyed it utterly, and killed every man, woman, and child
who lived there, even the Commander of the Faithful, our caliph himself.
These are no fanciful tales, Sire. I have fought against the Tartars. I
have seen with my own eyes the ashes of Baghdad and the heaps of its
dead."
The scene of desolation arose in his mind as it had so many times
before, the gray plain where a city had been, the unbelievable sight of
a landscape strewn with rotting, headless corpses as far as the eye
could see. To put it out of his mind, he hurried on with what he had to
say.
"Now their armies advance through Syria, threatening the realm of my
lord, the Sultan of Cairo. We have had word that Hulagu Khan, commander
of the Tartar armies in Persia, has sent two high-ranking emissaries to
the pope. They are sailing across the Middle Sea now, from the island of
Cyprus to Venice. Hulagu Khan wants to form an alliance with the
Christian rulers of Europe to attack us from both directions at once,
east and west. Our whole people, our whole Muslim faith, could be
utterly wiped out."
Manfred nodded grimly. "And all of Christian Europe would rejoice at
your destruction. Not I, certainly, but the rest of them. What do you
propose to do about these Tartar emissaries to the pope?"
"For that I will need your help, Sire. I, too, will go to the pope's
court. I understand that he resides at Orvieto, a small town north of
Rome."
"Yes," Lorenzo put in, "and there he will stay. He has not set foot in
Rome since he galloped in to be crowned at Saint Peter's and galloped
out again. He is terrified of the Roman mob. As well he should be, since
most of their leaders are in our pay."
"Trade secrets, Celino," said Manfred, raising a cautioning finger. "So,
you will go to Orvieto. And then?"
"I will present myself at the pope's court as I have here, as David, a
merchant of Trebizond. I will take up residence with--friends--who can
help me reach the ears of men of influence. I will spread stories
throughout Orvieto--true stories--of the horrors the Tartars have
perpetrated everywhere they have gone, of their determination to conquer
the entire world."
Manfred shook his head. "What you plan to do is very dangerous. You've
proven to us that you are a skilled and resourceful man, but still, what
if you are discovered?" He shook his head. "Have you any idea of how
your people are _hated_ in Europe, David? If it were known that I helped
a Muslim spy to steal into the court of the pope, all the kingdoms of
Christendom would turn against me. The pope need but snap his fingers
and I and my little realm would be swept away. No, David. You ask me to
risk too much."
Daoud was momentarily surprised, then angry. He had expected that
Manfred would cooperate with him. If the young king vacillated, Daoud
might have journeyed from Egypt to Italy for nothing.
And then a ripple of fear crept up his spine. If he failed to persuade
Manfred, the Tartars might destroy the world he had come to love and
believe in.
_God, help me to stop them. I must not go back to El Kahira a failure._
He must choose his words with care. He was dealing here with a king, and
one did not argue with kings. Better to ask questions than offer
arguments.
"Does not the pope wish even now to take your throne from you, Sire?" he
said. "How can matters between you and him be any worse?"
Manfred nodded. "True, Pope Urban keeps offering my crown to this prince
and that, claiming that I had no right to inherit it from my father. And
that he had no right to have it in the first place." Manfred bit his
lip, and the light pink of his cheeks reddened. "But only the French are
powerful enough to take it from me. And King Louis of France is kindly
disposed to me and will not permit any of his great barons to make war
on me. I rely on Louis's continued goodwill."
"But the man who wants to join with the Tartars to annihilate Islam is
that same King Louis of France," Daoud said. "France, as you said, is
the only kingdom with the power to help the pope dethrone you. Should
the pope decide against allying with the Tartars, King Louis will
continue to prohibit his subjects from joining the pope's war against
you. Help me, and you come between King Louis and the pope."
"Intrigue requires gold," said Manfred. "Does your master expect me to
pay for your activities?"
"What I have brought with me will pay for all," Daoud replied. He
unbuckled his belt and undid the laces that held his hose tight around
his waist. Celino moved closer, tense, ready in case Daoud should reach
for a weapon. Daoud slipped his fingers into the breeches he wore under
his hose and found the bag tied to the drawstring.
"What is the man doing?" said Manfred with a wondering smile. Celino
shook his head.
Daoud pulled out a bag of heavy red silk, full and round with what it
held. He felt a childlike delight in mystifying the two men.
"Pay me from your royal treasury what this is worth," said Daoud, "and I
shall have gold enough for all I need to do." He pulled apart the mouth
of the silk bag and drew out of it a globe of green fire. He held it out
to Manfred. Celino gasped.
Daoud was gratified at their wonderment.
"Are you not afraid I will steal this from you and dump you in an
unmarked grave?" said Manfred with a bright grin.
"The Hohenstaufen family have been friends of the sultans of Egypt since
your father's day," said Daoud. "We have learned to trust you."
"Just listen to that, Lorenzo," said Manfred. "The Saracens think better
of me than the pope does."
Besides, Daoud thought, Manfred knew that Baibars's arm was long.
Manfred, Daoud was sure, knew that Baibars would not permit anyone, even
a distant head of state, to betray him so flagrantly.
His eyes wide, Manfred extended his palm, and Daoud unhesitatingly
placed the emerald in it. Manfred raised it close to his face, peering
through the dark depths into its glowing heart. The jewel, irregular in
shape but nearly spherical, reflected little spots of pale green light
on his cheeks. He shook his head.
"Green, the color I love best in all the world. The color of hope." He
encircled it with thumb and forefinger. "Look, Lorenzo, I cannot get my
fingers around it. I am amazed that your master is willing to part with
such a wonder. How did he come by it?"
"It has been through many hands, Sire," said Daoud. "It once belonged to
Emir Fakr ad-Din, who commanded the army of Egypt when King Louis
invaded our land."
"To think Baibars let you take this emerald from him, and you came all
this way from Alexandria with it and delivered it to me. And Baibars
trusted you."
"As he trusts you, Sire," Daoud put in quickly.
"_You_ are like a falcon, are you not?" said Manfred, smiling into
Daoud's eyes. "Released to fly far afield for your sultan."
Manfred strode to Daoud suddenly and clapped him on the shoulder. "Let
it be done as your master wishes, then. The trader from Trebizond will
go to Orvieto with my help."
A surge of joy sprang up within Daoud and almost burst past his lips. He
bowed, his heart pounding.
_God be thanked!_
Manfred said, "We must see about turning this jewel of yours into gold
coins. Or smaller jewels. They would be easier to carry than gold."
Manfred looked lovingly at the emerald again, then carefully dropped it
into his belt pouch and smiled at Daoud.
"You should not go alone into the Papal States, David. You may have
studied Europe from afar, but you do not know Italy firsthand. Lorenzo
here shall go with you. I trust Lorenzo to travel far and secretly in my
service, even as your master trusts you."
Celino sighed. Daoud and Celino eyed each other.
Daoud began searching for ways to dissuade Manfred. A short while
earlier he and Celino had been trying to kill each other. And Celino
would be putting Manfred's interests first, not those of Islam.
Obviously aware of his hesitation, Manfred took his arm. "Listen to me,
Mameluke. You will be wise to accept every bit of help that is offered
to you. I have powerful allies in northern Italy, in Florence, Pisa,
Siena, and other cities. But you do not know them and they do not know
you. Lorenzo speaks for me. He knows who the key Ghibellini are in the
north, and they know him. Do not object to taking him with you."
Manfred would not let him go, Daoud realized, unless Celino went with
him. And the argument that Celino could put him in touch with the
Ghibellini of the north was a strong one.
_Lorenzo is perhaps twenty years older than I, but he is quick-witted
and quick on his feet. And, yes, I would rather not go alone. I could
easily make a mistake from ignorance. I am better off with a man like
this to guide me._
A tentative smile played under Celino's grizzled mustache. "My royal
master is determined in this. What do you say?"
Daoud bowed. "I accept. With gratitude. We shall travel this road
together."
"Whatever happens to the two of you," Manfred said, "no one must ever
know that I am involved."
"I guarantee that, Sire," said Celino.
Manfred rubbed the palms of his hands together. "There is one other
person I propose to send with you. She can be a great help to you."