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.Then, with a hint from Lorenzo to guide my taste, I purchased a small, newly-wrought gold chain.Lorenzo then said that he had an important commission in mind; for the supposed heavy business discussion Verrocchio conducted us into the privacy of what must have been his own bedroom.The chamber was small, its walls heavily decorated with paper sketches.As the elder guest I was granted the single chair; Lorenzo file:///G|/rah/Fred%20Saberhagen/Saberhagen,.d%20-%20Dracula%2004%20-%20Thorn%20[v1].html (51 of 263) [2/5/2004 12:19:41 AM]Saberhagen, Fred - Dracula 04 - Thorn (v1.0) (html) perched on a chest, and Verrocchio sat on the rumpled bed, the only other article of substantial furniture available.Yes, signori, about that girl, of course.She had been gone for the last two days, and Verrocchio did not know where, any more than he knew from where she had come.Some weeks ago one of the apprentices had brought her in, saying that he wanted to use her as a model and that she was willing to pose for others also.So she had been, even posing naked without protest, which had convinced Verrocchio that she was a whore.A good model, though.He had given her food, a place to sleep with the female servants, and a little money once or twice.She had spoken Italian badly and with an odd accent—certainly not the Greek accent so common in Florence since the refugees from fallen Constantinople had swarmed in; but outside of that, and a certain odd beauty in her face, he had thought her no different from any of a hundred other vagrants and runaways who could be picked up in the streets and taverns.Yes, somewhat better looking than most of them, that was all.Here on the wall were a couple of sketches of her made by his apprentices, if we would like to see.I naturally looked with interest, but only one sketch showed the model's face at all clearly, and it had distorted her features into such an artificial expression of heaven-sent rapture that I thought it would be useless for identification.I made no comment.Verrocchio talked on, nervously.He had had vague plans of posing the girl himself—yes, there was something truly lovely about her, signori— but the next thing he knew, she was gone, no one knew where.I asked: "Which apprentice was it who brought her round? That stubbly fellow out there?""Yes.Would you gentlemen like to talk to him?"We went out into the large room again, where Lorenzo with his usual good humor approached the dark-cheeked youth.Would he settle a small bet? That young woman who was here until a few days ago, what language did she really speak, besides her bad Italian?file:///G|/rah/Fred%20Saberhagen/Saberhagen,.d%20-%20Dracula%2004%20-%20Thorn%20[v1].html (52 of 263) [2/5/2004 12:19:41 AM]Saberhagen, Fred - Dracula 04 - Thorn (v1.0) (html) The pseudo-prophet with the rheumy eyes got a chance to rest from posing.The apprentice put down his tools.He dropped things and was upset at being questioned.He stuttered that he really didn't know, he didn't think that he could tell us much.I demonstrated what Hungarian sounded like.Yes, said the nervous youth, that might have been it.But he wasn't really sure.He had never talked to the girl much and didn't know her name.True, he had picked her up in a tavern, and brought her here for some modeling, but you gentlemen know how that goes—excuse me, perhaps you don't —but a man doesn't always learn their names.No, he didn't know where she was now.She had seemed unhappy—she had gone off—It seemed to me that there was more to be learned from this man, but he was not mine to question as I willed.He was probably a valuable worker here.Perhaps later, I thought."Let us talk to the servants, then," said Lorenzo, still effortlessly maintaining the pose of a small bet to be settled."And to the other apprentices."The few servants were soon casually processed.I allowed them to get away with knowing nothing whatsoever, at least for the time being.As for apprentices, Verrocchio informed us that he presently had only three.The second, a somewhat younger and handsomer lad than the one we had already spoken to, was called in from the yard where he had been mixing pigments.This one, acting not too bright, only giggled slightly and glanced nervously at his master when I asked him how well he had known the woman; he did confirm, though, that my Hungarian sounded like the language the young woman had muttered to herself in when she was upset."What was she upset about?"The youth made an eloquent gesture with both arms, that seemed to take in all of life."I have only one more apprentice, gentlemen.He lives at home, but is due to arrive here at any time now.Will you honor me by waiting?"file:///G|/rah/Fred%20Saberhagen/Saberhagen,.d%20-%20Dracula%2004%20-%20Thorn%20[v1].html (53 of 263) [2/5/2004 12:19:41 AM]Saberhagen, Fred - Dracula 04 - Thorn (v1.0) (html)"It is we who are honored by your company, maestro," said Lorenzo, and sat down again for some more leisured conversation about Art.The staff went back to work [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]