their subtly barbed friendliness.

"Through this very friendliness, I conceived my plan of sweet
revenge upon the monsters who had ruined my life. With so
great a hatred boiling in my soul that my mind reeled, my
senses throbbed, my heart rose in my throat like a spurt of
flame, I cursed three things of exquisite beauty with all the
fervor of my newly learned lessons in devilish lore.

"These three beautiful objects I presented to three ladies of
the house of Medici--presented them with honeyed words of
mock humility. A necklace of jeweled links--I pledged myself
to the Devil and willed that the golden necklace would
tighten on the soft throat of a lady of the Medici while she
slept, and strangle her into black death. A bracelet of
filigree and sapphires--to pierce by its hidden silver needle
the blue vein in a white Medici wrist, so that her life's
blood would spurt and she would know the terror that the
house of the Medici gave to others.

"Last, and most ingenious, a pair of creamy boots, pliable,
embroidered in silver and silks, encrusted with amethysts--my
betrothal jewels. In my hatred I cursed the boots, willing
that the wearer, as long as a shred of the boots remained,
should kill as I had killed, poison as I had poisoned, leave
all thoughts of home and husband and live in wantonness and
evil. So I cursed the beautiful boots, forgetting, in my
hate, that perhaps another than a Medici might, in the years
to come, wear them and become the Devil's pawn, even as I am
now.

"In my life, the Medici will have the boots, of that I feel
sure; but after that--I can only hope that this bloody
history of the boots may be found when I am no more, and may
it be a warning.

"I have lived to see my gifts received and worn, and I have
laughed in my soul to see my curses bring death and terror
and evil to three Medici women. I know not what will become
of the golden necklace, the bracelet, or the boots. The boots
may be lost or stolen, or they may lie in a Medici palace for
age on age, but the curse will cling to them till they are
destroyed. So I pray that no woman, save a Medici, will ever
wear them.

"As I live and breathe and do the bidding of the lords of
Florence, the accursed Medici--I have told the truth. When I
am dead, perhaps they will find t