“Do you know the Jesuit who visited us last night?”
“I did not see him.”
“Perchance you may have heard of him. He appeared to hold a high place in the household of Gondomar, the Spanish Ambassador.”
Fra Pietro dropped his eyes and murmured:—
“I think he is Dom Geronimo, Grand Inquisitor of the Holy Office.”
Mowbray pushed away his plate.
“Dom Geronimo!” he cried. “Your priestly titles are unfamiliar. Is he, by any chance, one who was known in former years as Fra Geronimo, a Jesuit from Toledo?”
“The same, I should believe. He is now a dignitary of much consequence.”
“He is a foul murderer! He slew my father by a coward’s blow, during the great sea-fight off Dover. Oh, to think of it! Not yet two days since he stood in front of my sword.”
“I was minded to tap the bald spot on his skull with my staff and you restrained me,” growled Roger.