D'Amboise sprang to his feet. "By God!" he said, bringing his clenched fist into the palm of his hand, "the Borgia will rue this day; here, give me those glasses." He seized them, and drawing back the curtains flung them out of the window, where they fell into the court outside, breaking to splinters with a little tinkling crash. Then he emptied out the contents of the flagon, and hurled it into the grate where it lay, its fine work crushed and dented, the two emerald eyes of the dragon on the stopper blinking at us wickedly. This outburst made D'Amboise calmer, and it was with more composure that he struck a small gong, and reseated himself at the table. As he did so Burin entered the room. "We want a clear table," said the cardinal, "remove these things, and hand me that map." By the time Burin had done this, his eminence showed no further trace of excitement, except that his lips were very firmly set, and there was a slight frown on his forehead as he smoothed out the roll of the map. One corner kept obstinately turning up, and as Machiavelli quietly put his hand on it to keep it in position, he said, "See! The ring is as it was before." We looked at the opal, and sure enough the poison-tint was gone, and under the pale, semi-opaque blue of its surface, lights of red, of green, and of orange, flitted to and fro. "It is wonderful," I said, and D'Amboise smiled grimly to himself. The cardinal placed his finger on the map, where the port of Sinigaglia was marked. "Is it here he lands?" "Yes," replied Machiavelli, "and then straight to Rome." "You have sure information?" "Yes." "Then will your excellency instruct M. Donati? As arranged, I pledge an immediate movement on the part of Tremouille, at the first sign of success." "You have agreed, cavaliere, to undertake the task?" and the secretary turned to me. "I have, your excellency." Machiavelli then went on, speaking incisively, wasting no words. "In ten days or thereabouts from now, Monsignore Bozardo, the Papal envoy to the Grand Turk, will land at Sinigaglia and start for Rome. He brings with him a letter and a sum of money, forty thousand ducats. These are for his holiness. Bozardo and the letter may reach, if you like; the ducats must not." "Where are they to go?" "To the Duke de la Tremouille." "I follow." "Understand that you take this venture at your own risk." I saw what he meant, if I failed I was to be sacrificed, and my mind was made up. I would accept, with a condition. "I quite understand--there is one thing." "What?" "Ten days is a wide margin. I will stop Bozardo or die; but I propose effecting the release of the Lady Angiola as well." A glad look came into Machiavelli's eyes; but the cardinal flashed out-- "_Nom du diable!_ What grasshopper have you got in your head? Leave the demoiselle to us. You cannot do two things at once." "Then with respect to your eminence I decline the affair of the ducats." D'Amboise looked at me in sheer amazement.