"But this is a very important matter," argued the gondolier, who wished to have the pleasure of telling the tale.
"I cannot help it," answered Pasquale. "Those are his orders, and I must obey them. You know what his temper is, when he is not pleased."
Just then a skiff came up the canal at a great rate, so that the quick strokes of the oar attracted the men's attention. They saw that the boat was one of those that could be hired everywhere in Venice. The oarsman backed water with a strong stroke and brought to at the steps before the glass-house.
"Are you not Messer Angelo Beroviero's gondolier?" he inquired civilly.
"Yes," answered the man addressed, "I am the head gondolier, at your service."
"Thank you," replied the boatman. "I am to tell you that Messer Angelo has just arrived in Venice by sea, from Rimini, on board the Santa Lucia, a Neapolitan galliot now at anchor in the Giudecca. He desires you to bring his gondola at once to fetch him, and I am to bring over his baggage in my skiff."
The gondolier uttered an exclamation of surprise, and then turned to Pasquale.
"I go," he said. "Will you tell the Signor Giovanni that his father is coming home?"
Pasquale grinned again. He was rarely in such a pleasant humour.
"Certainly not," he answered. "The Signor Giovanni is very busy, and has given strict orders that he is not to be disturbed on any account."