Paulo
(Stammering.) Unfasten me. Give me my palette.
Medici
(To Men.) Release him. Release the lady too. But watch him closely, lest he hide a weapon.
Paulo
(Free.) This is my only weapon (takes brushes, etc.). With it I put chains upon my soul. So—and so.
[Dabs on paint. Lucia silent. Collapses to her knees and hides her face.
Medici
Improved already! So swiftly! You are, indeed, the greatest of them all. We shall beat Verio out of court, and Gagliano will die of envy on the spot. (To Men.) Begone with you! No, stay a moment—take the picture with you and lay it carefully in the gondola. It shall be finished under my own eye—before the ceilings are begun. (Men obey.) Carefully! One smear and your lives are forfeit. (Turns to Lucia and raises her.) You are not quick to thank me, Signora, yet I have fulfilled my promise to you. All that you begged of me is accomplished. Henceforth Salviati, your husband, shall work in comfort and lack nothing.