The Scarlet Contessa

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Jeanne Kalogridis. The Scarlet Contessa

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Scarlet Contessa

A NOVEL OF THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE

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“Aim it at Numai’s palace,” Caterina orders, knowing full well the likelihood of accurately striking such a distant target at dusk is poor. Even so, she watches avidly as one of the artillerymen uses a weighted plummet line to find the true perpendicular, then measures the angle with a quadrant and adjusts the muzzle accordingly. And when at last the metal cover is lifted at the cannon’s base, and the botefeux holding the lighted match is applied to the touchhole, she claps her hands with dark glee.

“For you, Luffo Numai!” she cries, a split second before the officer in charge waves us back, then orders:

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