ok
him amongst the dealers in coaches, new and second-hand, who had their
warehouses near the Massimo palace and in the neighbourhood of Saint
Mark's, and in other regions near by, from which the public conveyances
started and where private carriages could be bought or hired.

The Bravi, who were practical men, judged that a former highway robber
should be a good judge of such vehicles, and had commissioned Tommaso,
who had stopped and plundered hundreds of them on the Bologna road, to
find one that would suit their purpose. It was to be perfectly sound,
not large, comfortably cushioned and provided with solid shutters to
draw up outside the windows. There were to be good locks to the doors,
with keyholes inside and out, and a boot for luggage, also provided with
a safe fastening. It was no easy matter to find exactly what the Bravi
wanted, without paying a high price for a perfectly new carriage, and it
was a prime necessity that the one Tommaso was to buy for them should be
able to stand a rather unusual journey without once breaking down.

They also needed good horses of their own, for there were several
reasons why they could not hire a team from the post for the start, and
they meant to trust to luck for exchanging or selling theirs at the end
of the first stage. Tommaso was a capital judge of horseflesh, as they
had found out on the journey from Venice, and they confidently left the
whole matter in his hands while they occupied themselves with graver
affairs, or sought relaxation in the pleasures which the city afforded.

CHAPTER XIX

Ortensia had told her husband everything that had passed between her and
Don Alberto, and Stradella's first instinct was to seek him out, insult
him, and force him into a duel. Ortensia saw the big vein swelling
ominously in the middle of the white forehead, the tightening of the
lips, and the unconscious movement of the fingers that closed upon an
imaginary sword-hilt; she saw all this and was pleased, as every woman
is when the man she loves is roused and wants to fight for her. But
Ortensia did not mean that there should be any bloodshed, and she
soothed her husband and made him promise that he would only watch over
her more jealously than ever, and make it impossible for Don Alberto
ever to be left alone with her again. If he would promise that, she
said, she should feel quite safe.

He promised reluctantly, but said that he would not stay under Altieri's
roof anothe