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Chapter 44

The next morning was a quiet one in Venezia. The collective exhaustion from the previous night kept most people in bed late. Few were even aware of the Doge's death at first.

When Rosa stepped outside, Ezio was sitting on a bench nearby with a game of chess prepared.

"Ciao, Ezio. You had a busy night, I hear."

"Sì, very busy. Have a seat." He patted the bench with his hand.

"I'm not going to play a game with you, if that's what you want," she told him. "It's a beautiful day. Walk with me."

"She knows you'll beat her," Franco grinned as he passed. Rosa tripped him. He got back up quickly and ran off, pleased with himself.

"Where would we go?" Ezio asked, bringing them back to the subject.

"Does it matter?"

"I suppose not. Lead the way."

They left the thieves' den and made their way into the streets, which were still almost empty from the night before.

"Something is bothering you, isn't it," the thief guessed after a while.

"What do you mean?"

"You've been acting a bit strange lately. Does it have to do with your mission last night?"

Ezio thought for a moment, trying to figure out how to say what he wanted to say. "No, not really," he finally gave up.

"Then what is it?"

He drew a breath. They were on a bridge over a small canal, so he found a place to sit on the edge of the bridge. She followed suit and took a spot next to him.

"Do you remember what I said that night in Monteriggioni? On the roof of the Villa?" he asked.

She smiled a bit. "Remind me, mio caro. I might have been thinking about something else at the time."

"I wasn't sure about…you. About my feelings for you, I mean. They all seemed too dangerous for people who do what we do."

"Ah, that's right," she recalled. "What about it? Has something changed?"

They both looked out over the canal as a man rowed underneath them in a gondola, singing to himself.

"It's getting difficult to ignore that concern," Ezio said.

She nodded slightly, staring into the water. Neither of them wanted to talk about the perils of their daily lives, but both silently knew why Ezio's concern was valid. It would always be valid.

He placed his hand on hers.

"But it's getting even more difficult to ignore my heart."

She finally looked at him, her stare blank. "Your heart?"

He nodded. "I was speaking with Teodora last night. She said I should tell you…something."

"Something?" she repeated, mocking him even through her confusion.

"Yes. That…that…I…love you. At least, I think I love you." He cursed himself for not saying it with the confidence Teodora would have had.

For what seemed like an eternity to Ezio, she seemed to process his words. She suddenly snorted, then burst into a fit of giggling. He frowned.

"I know you don't think I'm romantic, Ezio," she managed to say as the giggles died down a bit, "but even I can tell you that was awful. Is that how you court women in Firenze?"

"I'm being serious," he insisted

"I know," she started giggling again. "That's why it's so funny."

"You asked what was bothering me," he reminded her.

She collected herself again. "Mi dispiace," she apologized, kissing his cheek.

As the day wore on, they kept walking, but they were mostly silent. The whole city remained silent as the news spread of Marco Barbarigo's death. The fact that it had been an assassination was kept a secret from the public. Consequently, many speculated over the cause.

As he and Rosa walked along the Rialto, however, Ezio's mind was elsewhere. Apart from her lighthearted criticisms of his wording, she had given no indication as to what her thoughts were about what he said or about how she felt in return.

Before he could think of a way to ask her about it, she informed him that Antonio had assigned her the task of "retrieving" a piece of correspondence being carried between two Venetian nobles by a courier who was presently running past them. Evidently she had planned for their walk to end on the Rialto so she could spot the courier. In what seemed like a moment, she was across the bridge, on the roof, and after the courier.

Just as well, thought Ezio, as another thief ran up to him.

"Ezio! Ezio! Ser Antonio wishes to speak with you!"

"Grazie for the message."