"
"You do not know the Duke, Excellency," answered the fool. "Beneath that
frozen exterior burns a furnace, and there is no madness he would not
commit."
But Francesco only laughed as, linking arms with Fanfulla, he passed down
the gallery on his way to the apartments to which the servant was
conducting them.
CHAPTER XIII
GIAN MARIA MAKES A VOW
In a measure the events that followed would almost tend to show that the
fool was right. For even if the notion of besieging Valentina and
reducing her by force of arms was not Guidobaldo's own in the first
place, yet he lent a very willing ear to the counsel that they should
thus proceed, when angrily urged two days thereafter by the Duke of
Babbiano.
Upon hearing the news Gian Maria had abandoned himself to such a licence
of rage as made those about him tremble from the highest to the meanest.
The disappointment of his passion was in itself justification enough for
this; but, in addition, Gian Maria beheld in the flight of Valentina the
frustration of those bold schemes of which had talked so loudly to his
councillors and his mother. It was his confidence in those same schemes
that had induced him to send that defiant answer to Caesar Borgia. As a
consequence of this there was haste--most desperate haste--that he should
wed, since wedding was to lend him the power to carry out his brave
promises of protecting his crown from the Duke of Valentinois, not to
speak of the utter routing of the Borgia which he had wildly undertaken
to accomplish.
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