AUTHOR'S NOTE: Happy New Year to all my readers!

Claudia had heard Leonardo da Vinci's name in her younger days. Her mother would often talk about her talented artist friend and Ezio had met him all those years ago in Firenze. Then after her father and brothers had been executed, Leonardo had been one of those people who had opened his doors to the Auditore family.

Ezio had told her about how Leonardo had helped him build weapons and translate documents written by Altair- as Assassin who had lived a long time ago and who had immortalized his teachings in documents that could only be deciphered by an intelligent mind.

So of course she had heard of Leonardo, though she had never met him…until now.

She knew he was close friends with Ezio and knew that he would start asking her questions about why she had betrayed her own family and the Order. And once again, she would have to remain quiet.

Leonardo mistook her silence for awkwardness and took her hands in his. "It's a pleasure meeting you, Claudia." Then he turned to Cesare. "Your father never told me you had married."

"That's because he doesn't know it yet. I would prefer to keep it that way." Cesare said the last as a warning.

Leonardo nodded and then turned back to her, squeezing her hand. "I've heard such lovely things about you from your brother."

Claudia bit the inside of her lip to stop herself from letting out a sob. If he had met Ezio lately, then he would have known how much her brother hated her at the moment.

"I'll leave you two to get better acquainted," Cesare said. "I'll also send up breakfast."

"Grazie," Leonardo said as Cesare left the room. Then when the door closed, he dropped Claudia's hands and frowned. "Claudia, you may not know me very well, but you can trust me."

"Of course."

"Then tell me why you are married to a Borgia?" Leonardo asked.

Claudia lowered her eyes. "Ezio told you."

"I met him yesterday as he was burning down the tower," Leonardo said in a low voice. "He seemed very upset and he has lost all control over his temper. He's been brutally killing the guards and he had every intention of barging into the Castello to look for the Apple, had I not stopped him and asked him to let me try."

Claudia shuddered and turned away from him. She tried to hold back her tears and numb the pain that had been building inside her for days. But Leonardo's account of her brother's actions only intensified her agony.

She was about to speak when the door opened and a servant walked in with a large tray laden with food and a pot of tea. He laid it on a small table and bowed and left.

Claudia walked over to pour the tea and considered what she should tell Leonardo. Should she tell him about her Uncle? Maybe he would tell Ezio and then…

She put a hand on her head. What if Cesare's threat was true and that he was keeping a careful watch on who was coming in and going out through the secret entrance? What if she inadvertently got her uncle killed?

"Has he hurt you?" Leonardo said, coming to her side. "Because neither me nor your brother can believe you would marry Cesare Borgia."

"He said that? "Claudia asked, her hope lighting up. Perhaps her brother did believe in her innocence after all.

Leonardo shook his head. "I don't know what he thinks. He's just very upset, Claudia. He needs to hear that you aren't the traitor."

"I'm not," Claudia said. "But someone else is and the problem is that anything I reveal to you can get back to the real traitor which would then reach Cesare. So, no, I cannot take that risk. And I cannot drag you into danger either."

"Do not worry about me," Leonardo assured her. "Whatever you reveal to me, I shall only tell Ezio. I promise you."

Claudia turned to Leonardo. "The truth is that Uncle…"

The door opened then and Claudia froze. A woman with blonde hair, walked in with a smile on her face. She was dressed in an elegant red gown with a high neck and lace on her cuffs and collar.

"Leonardo!" she smiled widely. "When I heard you were here, I had to come and see you as soon as possible."

Claudia turned to Leonardo who seemed shocked when he saw the young woman.

"Er…Lucrezia. It's a pleasure seeing you." Leonardo mumbled.

Lucrezia walked over to him and gave him a brief hug. "I am so glad you are here."

Then she turned to Claudia and her smile fell. "Who are you? Is she your friend Leonardo?"

Leonardo started to cough and moved back, but Claudia regained her composure and held her head high.

"I'm Claudia. Claudia Auditore," She said.

Lucrezia's smile fell and she stared at her wide-eyed. "Auditore? Are you related to Ezio?"

Claudia blinked at her. She had often heard their enemies refer to Ezio as an Assassin or by his full name. She had never heard him called only Ezio.

"I am his sister," She replied boldly.

Lucrezia stepped back in surprise and put a hand on her chest. "What are you doing here?"

Leonardo retreated further and Claudia could see him scratching his beard and muttering to himself.

Lucrezia was still waiting for an answer and Claudia wondered if she should just tell her the truth. If Cesare wanted to hide his marriage from his family, that was his problem. Perhaps speaking the truth might get him into trouble with his family and it would be the perfect payback.

"I live here," Claudia said, suppressing a smile.

Lucrezia narrowed her gaze. "What do you mean you live here?"

The door opened again and Cesare walked in. "Claudia, I forgot to tell you..." He stopped when he saw Lucrezia. "What are you doing here?"

Lucrezia looked at him in shock. "Why do you know Claudia?"

Cesare looked at Claudia and then back at his sister. "Lucrezia, you need to…"

"Why is she saying that she lives here?" Lucrezia asked, her voice rising in anger.

"Keep your voice down and I'll explain everything." Cesare said, throwing Claudia a look of annoyance.

Claudia poured a cup of tea and handed it to Leonardo who took it but didn't drink.

"Tell me, then," Lucrezia said.

Cesare put his hands on his hips and shook his head in frustration. "I am…married to her."

"What?" Lucrezia almost screamed.

"Just don't scream," Cesare said.

Lucrezia pulled out a chair and sat down. Claudia considered asking Lucrezia if she wanted tea to calm her nerves after the news she heard, then decided against it. This was Cesare's problem now. She was enjoying seeing him fumbling about around his sister. He deserved it after trying to turn Ezio against her.

"You love each other?" She asked.

"No," Claudia said while Cesare gave her an uneasy glance and said nothing.

"I don't understand." Lucrezia said and looked up at Claudia. "Are you both sleeping with each other?"

"No!" Claudia said out loud.

"Not yet," Cesare said.

Lucrezia looked at both of them in confusion and Claudia almost felt sorry for her. "Then why are you both married?"

"Cesare would love to explain this." Claudia said smugly and sat down on the table to sip from her cup.

Cesare looked at her irritated and then knelt beside his sister. "Lucrezia, I didn't mean to alarm you. We are married and the reason is…is that we do love each other."

"No, we don't." Claudia cut in.

"She's just angry with me at the moment," Cesare said, ignoring Claudia's sarcastic tone.

Lucrezia turned to look at Claudia. "Does Ezio know and approve of this?"

Claudia frowned. There it was again. She was talking about Ezio as if she knew him personally.

"He knows I am married. Cesare told him," Claudia said sharply.

"Does father know?" Lucrezia asked, turning to her brother.

"No. And he can never know,"Cesare said.

Claudia looked at him as he said that. She couldn't understand what Cesare was up to. Ever since he had married her, he had insinuated that he wanted to bed her and then break off the marriage. To this day, he hadn't tried to force himself on her and then when he had told Ezio that she was married to a Templar, she had assumed it was so that he could convert her as well.

But that didn't explain why Cesare was so intent on keeping her away from his father. Wouldn't his father be happy that he had made an Auditore convert into a Templar? What was Cesare's plan for her?

Lucrezia took her brother's hand. "If you are both in love with each other and you can't tell father, then that is because you know that Assassins and Templars can't be together. Yet, you are still here?"

"What do you mean?" Cesare asked getting up and sitting on a chair.

Lucrezia shrugged. "You both should run away. Start life anew somewhere else where you won't be hounded by your respective heritages."

"No," Cesare said and squeezed his sister's hand. "I cannot walk away from people depending on me. Father too has expectations from me to lead an army against our enemies."

"But what about her?" Lucrezia said, waving a hand at Claudia. "What will become of her? If anyone finds out, they'll kill her."

Claudia turned to Lucrezia. Was she actually concerned about her welfare?

"I won't let that happen," Cesare said and then looked at Claudia. "I won't let any harm come to her. She is safe as long as she is with me."

Claudia looked away from Cesare's watchful gaze and saw Leonardo standing in a corner, watching them all while drinking his tea. Then she looked down at her hands as she realized Cesare was still watching her.

"Are you choosing war over love?" Lucrezia asked. "This war is mindless, Cesare. Why not leave it?"

"I'm not choosing anything over anything." He said softly. "I have to honor our father's wishes, I owe it to him. And I will honor the promises I made to Claudia as well."

"You can't do them both," Lucrezia said. "The only option is to leave everything and…"

"I will not run." Cesare said, getting up. "I'm not a coward and I refuse to live in hiding forever. I am not embarrassed by the choices I have made and I won't show the world that I am by running away."

"Our families will always look down upon this union," Lucrezia told him and then turned around to face Claudia. "How will you be able to live like this?"

Claudia put a lock of hair behind her ear. "I…I'm not really am I? Cesare might claim that he refuses to hide, but the truth is that he is hiding me from everyone."

"Only from Father," Cesare said, coming around to her side. "I will tell him when it's the right time."

"Which will be never," Lucrezia said, getting up. "We both know what our father is like, Cesare. His thirst for power is greater than any emotion. And by the time you figure that out, it will be too late. You would have risked her life."

Claudia looked away, finding it the only way to conceal her surprise. She had heard so many terrible things about Lucrezia, but meeting her face to face, she could only see concern in her eyes. Had all those things she had heard just been baseless rumors?

Cesare put his hands on Lucrezia's arms. "I swear I won't let anything happen to her and I am sure one day, father will let go of his hatred for Assassins and accept her as well. Until that day comes, no one can know that she is here and that we are married."

Lucrezia looked unconvinced but smiled and put a hand over her brother's. "I misunderstood you Cesare. I didn't think you were capable of showing any emotion much less love."

"People can surprise you," Cesare said.

"Then I wish you both the best." Lucrezia let herself be kissed on the cheek by her brother. "I'll leave now. The tailor will be coming in with my wedding dress."

"Grazie, for keeping my secret," Cesare told her. "Come, let me walk out with you. I have to talk to the servants about decorations."

Claudia held onto the tablecloth until they both left. Her heart stuck in her throat as she thought about all the things Cesare had said. Right now, with his sister, he had been so kind and loving- the way he had been when she had first met him.

She groaned as feelings of love fluttered in her chest. This was madness of course. She was forgetting that he had blackmailed her into marrying him and turned Ezio against her.

Leonardo came to her and sat down beside her. "That was…interesting."

"Si." Claudia took another sip of her tea.

"You were going to tell me something before Lucrezia walked in."

Claudia leaned back and let out a breath. Clasping her hands, she shook her head. "It is too dangerous for you to know and for Ezio."

"Whatever it is, Ezio and I can help you," Leonardo said kindly. "You don't have to do this alone."

Claudia entwined her fingers and leaned forward. "I can't," She said. "What I say can put many lives at risk. And I won't be able to live with myself knowing that I was responsible for someone's death."

"If you are worried about the traitor in the Order…"

Claudia shook her head. "Whoever he is, he's very intelligent. He knows he would have to keep low since the blame has gone entirely on my head. He must be very close to us to be able to pull wool over our eyes like this."

"Then I shall tell Ezio that you are innocent and we must look for the real traitor," Leonardo said.

"He won't believe you. I have no proof of my innocence." Claudia said sadly. Then a thought came to her. "But now I do intend to prove it all costs. By becoming a spy for the assassins."

"What are you going to do?" Leonardo asked.

"I'm going to find out all their secrets and send it to the Assassins." She looked at him. "Through you."

"You cannot put yourself in danger like that."

"If that's the only way to prove to my brother that I am innocent, then I'll do whatever it takes." She said.

"You'll be going against your husband." He reminded her.

"After what he did to me…I can't forget all that," She said. "I have to make him pay for his wrongdoings."

"Claudia, I have to ask you…has he hurt you?" Leonardo asked.

"No."

"He claims to love you." Leonardo said.

Claudia blinked. "I don't care what he says. I don't trust what he says. All I know is that I want to bring him down to his knees."

"Then we need to find the Apple," Leonardo said.

"Ezio wants it and if I don't return with any news about it, he'll break into the Castello and look for it." He said.

"No, it's too dangerous for Ezio." Claudia said, remembering Cesare's warning. He had explicitly told her that if Ezio was seen by any of his spies, her uncle would be executed then and there.

"I'll try to look for it," Claudia said. "Come meet me again under the pretext of offering to paint someone or anything. I'll have some news for you."

"Claudia," Leonardo took her hand. "Be careful."

"I will." Claudia gave him a weak smile. "Just take care of my brother and make sure he doesn't do anything reckless."

"I promise," Leonardo said.