[A/N]: Thanks for reading! Feedback is always welcome!

Chapter 97

"Ezio, you're back again!" Claudia greeted her brother as he entered Mario's office (or perhaps it was really hers, considering how much work she was doing for him). Rosa followed behind him, and Claudia greeted her with even more excitement.

"I'm so glad you're both here! I want to introduce you to my friend, Messer Machiavelli!" She indicated the other figure standing patiently to her side.

"We are already quite acquainted," Ezio informed her, trying to resist laughing (Machiavelli allowed himself a slight grin).

"Oh," Claudia said, visibly disappointed. "What about you, Rosa? Have you met Niccolò?"

"Only once, and not under the most pleasant circumstances," the thief replied. "It was a brief and informal introduction."

"Sì, but I remember it quite well," Machiavelli confirmed. "In my line of work, it is important to remember faces, especially one that belongs to a person who makes an impression as strongly as you did."

Rosa raised an eyebrow, as if unsure what he was trying to imply. Fortunately, he understood her confusion.

"It is a compliment, I assure you," he chuckled. "A strong will is a virtue, and one that our enemies would take from us, if given the chance."

The answer was good enough for Rosa, who (only Ezio noticed) loosened the fists she was slowly forming.

"Claudia, why don't you go and check on Mother? Rosa and I need to discuss a few things with Machiavelli," said Ezio.

Claudia groaned. "Fine, but don't think I'm going to stay out of your way for very long. This is MY office, in case you haven't noticed."

"Of course," Ezio bowed to her sarcastically. She rolled her eyes and left.

"She is quite competent," Machiavelli observed. "The Brotherhood may have a place for someone with her accounting skills."

"Rosa and I were attacked on the way here," Ezio told him, eager to change the subject. "One said they had been sent by a man representing the Pope."

Machiavelli frowned and began to pace the room. "If they managed to find you, then you may still be in danger. I don't know how it could have happened, though. Who could have known you were in Venezia?"

Ezio shrugged.

"Still, perhaps there is some good news here. If Borgia is still sending men after you, perhaps he does not yet know you have lost the Apple, or where it has gone now."

"Or perhaps he does, and simply wishes to be rid of me," Ezio suggested.

"That is also a possibility," his colleague agreed. "Time will tell us for certain, but I would rather not sit around and wait."

"Hold on a moment," Rosa interrupted them, turning to Ezio. "What about the letter I sent you?"

"The what?" Machiavelli asked.

"While he was in Forlì, I sent Ezio a letter asking him to come and visit me soon," Rosa explained.

"A dangerous choice," Machiavelli frowned, "but it would only have caused a problem if the letter was intercepted. Unless..."

"Who was the courier who delivered the letter?" Ezio asked her, continuing Machiavelli's thought.

"It was Lucio, a newer recruit. He was also one of the couriers speaking with Antonio when we found him in the Palazzo della Seta. Do you think..."

"It is the most likely explanation," Ezio told her.

"Then we need to warn Antonio! He could be in danger!"

"We can't write to him until we know which couriers we can trust, and returning to Venezia may leave us open to another attack," Machiavelli said.

"Then what should we do?" Rosa asked.

Machiavelli thought to himself for a moment. "Antonio is probably not in any immediate danger. Spies rarely like to draw much attention to themselves. Tell me, does this Lucio deliver letters to any place nearby?"

"Let's see," Rosa scratched her head. "I think Antonio has him deliver documents to San Gimignano every few weeks. Yes! In fact, he should be there in a couple days!"

"Bene," said Ezio. "We will pay him a little visit."