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Chapter 92

"I'm sure you have not missed the smell of this city," Rosa chuckled as they walked past the fish market.

Ezio shook his head, smiling. "This reminds me, we should visit Leonardo while we are out," he suggested, remembering the time he and the artist had watched a merchant get harassed there by some of Emilio Barbarigo's men. "I have not heard from him in a long time."

"Leonardo is not here anymore," Rosa told him with a frown. "He has moved everything to Milano. I've heard he is doing quite well there."

"I suppose I should have expected as much. Leonardo can never seem to focus on one project for too long."

"Sì, it was only a matter of time," she laughed. "Still, we do miss having him around. Everything seems to have changed since you left."

"I'm sure he misses us as well. He will find an excuse to come back one day."

The Palazzo della Seta was well guarded, Ezio noticed aloud as they walked inside.

"Antonio has been recruiting more thieves every day," Rosa explained. "We've been growing quite a bit since you were last here, so we decided to increase our defenses as well."

"A smart decision," Ezio approved.

"It has the Doge a little concerned," Rosa laughed. "We've told him there is nothing to worry about, so long as he does not give us any trouble."

They found Antonio standing in the courtyard talking with a couple of couriers. He had aged much more noticeably, the wrinkles in his skin becoming more prominent and his hair taking on a spectrum of grey.

"Don't be fooled," Rosa whispered to Ezio. "He isn't as old as he looks."

Antonio turned to see them, and his eyes widened when they registered Ezio.

"This discussion will have to wait until later," he told the couriers, who nodded and withdrew into the Palazzo.

"This is certainly a surprise," he smiled as he walked over to them. "One of my thieves would have usually told me about your arrival well before you showed up at my door, or did you somehow manage to sneak past all of them?"

"Ugo noticed me right away," the Assassin confessed, "but I suppose he decided to let me visit you myself."

"Well, that makes me feel a little better. My thieves have not lost their talents for espionage; they are just keeping secrets from me."

They all laughed and Antonio hugged Ezio. "It is good to see you, my friend," the master thief said. "Mario has been keeping me updated on your mission. I am sorry to hear that progress has been slow lately."

"Why has it been slow?" Rosa asked. "You mentioned something about postponing your mission earlier."

"I was supposed to travel to Firenze..." Ezio explained.

"But we have not received word from the Assassins there for some time now," Antonio finished his thought. "This could be a sign that someone is using the Apple there, which means we could be close to recovering it, but there is no way to know until we have more information. We are not sending anyone in until we know it is relatively safe. We would not want to put Ezio or anyone else in unnecessary danger."

"That is comforting to hear, considering your request" Rosa laughed, and Antonio nodded.

"Have you told him?" he asked her, indicating Ezio.

"Sì, I asked for his opinion," she replied. "He promised to think about it."

"Well, goodness knows you have the time, at least until this mess in Firenze is resolved," Antonio shrugged. Suddenly, a thought occurred to him. They could see in his eyes that he was processing something.

"What is it, Antonio?" Rosa asked.

"Perhaps your visit was not by chance, Ezio. Maybe fortune saw fit to bring you to us for a reason."

"What are you talking about?" Ezio asked.

"Come see me here later tonight, both of you. I will explain there."