The Cardinal, without any preface, said to him in the lingua Franca, which was commonly understood among the Moors—
"Did you send for Barbarossa?" The boy's eyes flashed fire.
"If I have any reason to think you did so, you shall be flayed alive; and I shall be sure to find out."
The boy looked unmoved.
"Your only chance of escaping punishment is your being henceforth inviolably faithful to your mistress. There, go; and be a good boy."
The boy made a salaam and retired.
"There can be no harm," said the Cardinal to Giulia, "in giving him a little reminder."
Next day the boy was found drowned. Whether he had tried to escape by swimming, or had intentionally ended his life, nobody knew. He could no longer be a traitor at any rate. But this is anticipating.