fuel the fires that warmed the public baths.

But, to Daoud's relief, Fra Tomasso only shut his eyes and shook his
head, his cheeks quivering gently like a bowl of frumenty. "God forgive
the Tartars."

"God will certainly not forgive _us_, Fra Tomasso, if we help the
Tartars to destroy Damascus and Cairo. Or Trebizond and Constantinople."

The Dominican opened his eyes wide. "Constantinople?"

"In the Far East they have taken greater cities and conquered much
larger empires."

Fra Tomasso crossed himself. "But it is God's will, even as Augustine
tells us, that cities be destroyed and empires rise and fall. The
Tartars may be the builders of a Christian empire that embraces the
whole world."

_God forbid it!_ Daoud was becoming exasperated with the fat Dominican's
"perhapses" and "maybes." _Perhaps the earth moves and the sun stands
still. Maybe the Tartars are God's means of making the whole world
Christian._

He warned himself not to let his anger show. This might seem to be a
pleasant conversation, but actually he was tiptoeing around the edge of
a pit of quicksand.

Still, if this clever, restless mind could be recruited to work against
the alliance, how persuasive it would be. Daoud had already noticed that
most of the leaders of Christendom listened when d'Aquino spoke. But
Daoud dared not argue against the belief that God decided the fate of
nations. He recalled a teaching of his Sufi master, Sheikh Saadi. He
framed it in his mind to offer to d'Aquino.

"Your Reverence, truly we must accept as the will of God that which has
happened. But to think we can guess what God wills for the future is
sinful pride. We can be guided only by the knowledge of right and wrong
He has implanted in us."

D'Aquino let his folded hands rest on the great sphere of his belly. His
blue eyes gazed off at a point somewhere behind Daoud, whose muscles
tightened as he waited for the friar to speak. He watched through the
open window as a flock of crows circled in the deep-blue sky. They chose
a direction and dwindled to a cloud of black dots over the green hills.

Daoud realized he had been holding his breath. He let it out just as the
last crow disappeared.

"That is well stated," said Fra Tomasso. "I can find no objection to
that."

Elated, Daoud pressed on. "And it follows that if we think the Tartar
destruction of civilization is wrong, we must fight against it." He
hoped he did not sound too eager. D'Aquino would sur