The Mascherari: A Novel of Venice (9 page)

Letter from Antonio da Parma to Almoro Donato

Signor Donato,

The last two days have shed no light on the patrician murders.

I wish to once again speak with Rolandino in his cell. 

I have thought of Lorenzo’s deposition whereby he claims that the masks delivered to the Contarini family were signed by a certain “
Il Mascherari
”.  Attended by members of your
sbirri
, I scoured the entire San Polo and Santa Croce
calli
, in the hidden labyrinth of artisan streets and beyond. 

I have with me a list of all the
mascherari
known to the city of Venezia and I can assure you that none of them answer to the name “
Il Mascherari
”.   Further to this, I know of no such guild, since as you know, the
mascherari
of Venice do not, as yet, belong to a guild body. Might this “
Il Mascherari
” be a false signature?

I put to you my other suspicion. I suspect that none of the men who wore these masks knew of whence they had come and by whom they had been fashioned.  It is my suspicion, albeit from intuition alone, that the Signor Contarini never purchased those masks. According to his son, he fretted about the delivered coffers. He only consented to their usage in the spirit of Carnivale.

Further, I put to you, that of the five deaths I have so far attested to–that of the Signorina Giovanna Contarini who was strangled by her own father, that of Giacomo Contarini who Rolandino has admitted to stabbing to death in a fit of rage, that of Ubertino Canal who died of stomach rupture, that of Guido Canal who was found bloated in the canal, and that of Balsamo Morosini who, imbued with health and beauty one day, inexplicably suffered a deadly pox overnight until it consumed him in a manner never before seen by most respectable physicians–yes, of those five, not one, but two deaths possess a curious happenstance relating to a mask worn by the victim.

Primo: Rolandino attests that when he tried to stab Giacomo’s face, he could not remove his mask.

Segundo: a woman who attended the Morosini also attested that neither she nor others could remove his mask.

It is my belief that some ill-design was fated upon those victims. Might the masks they wore on the night have been laced with some nefarious substance? One that would cause live skin to adhere to leather but also, much like the
belladonna
, induce visions and a form of madness? I think of it, yet I know of no such ointment.

Better still, could this be the dark work of a powerful
jettature
? Someone who blended in the shadows during the evening and who might have cast a curse upon each of these men during the banquet?

All it would necessitate for malediction to take effect, is a compliment from an ill-intentioned person.  In the spirit of the night, an appreciative remark made about another’s appearance would arouse no suspicion. But who? Who in the marquis’ list of guests would possess such powers?

I now draw your attention to our prisoner, Rolandino. In my encounter with him, he spoke of being doomed.  I mistook him to be broken by The Question and committed the error of dismissing his fears.  But now I remember that he was terrified.

It is my intention to visit him this afternoon with your permission.

Antonio Da Parma

***

Letter from Almoro Donato to Antonio da Parma

Signor Da Parma,

You do well to inform me of your latest affairs. The Council of Ten must have ears of all your goings to and fro. 

Continue to direct these missives to my person as you proceed with this case. Or better still, mark your letters with the sign we both know and slip it as any citizen would, in the
bocca
you know, so that I may recognize from whence it has come and so that no palace courier may touch it.

But now, to the matter of those masks and to the cause and effect you so feverishly advance.

I see by the color and verve of your correspondence, Antonio, that you are not changed. Even when you were lauded by Padua University scholars and referred to us years ago, there was mention of your dubious tendencies.  That passionate Tuscan who despite excelling in law, philosophy and research, remained fixated upon his flights of fancies–I see he dwells among us today. Why have you not banished him?

You remain the same young man your professor once remarked had one foot in this world and the other lost in the nether. You choose to deliberate over fanciful ideas to evade your reality, Antonio, because this reality does not please you.

Remember that you have lost a wife and are therefore in danger of bitterness. But you must remain firm, Da Parma. Your future role as an
avogadore,
attached to the Council of Ten, hinges upon your demonstrating that you have acquired a finesse of mind which resists moral weaknesses.

Superstitions are not the domain of the Signoria. We already have at our service the finest astrologers in the country. Beyond this, Antonio, we do not converse with the devil.

Stand firm, therefore, and do not invite superstition into your mind. 

It chagrins me that you resorted to the precious time of the
sbirri
on the pretext of concocting an exhaustive list of artisans. You have not only abused of the secret police, but you committed the grave error of arousing the interest of the community.  We must remain elusive. 

It vexes me, as it does the entire Council of Ten, that due to your clumsiness, all Venezia will know and that the word will spread like wildfire, in the
calli
, over the
pontes
and beyond. We must never underestimate the chattering mouths of this city and the ensuing harm to La Serenissima.

Remember your place,
avogadore
. Let us contain this case.  Murders they are–and already, Venezia is in the throes of speculating over these murders, indulging in its propensity for gossip, that in which it seems to thrive. But let us leave this vice as it stands and let us not encourage it further.

We shall return to speak of that vice and the harm it has caused, at a later moment. For there is a pertinent matter I shall mention—it concerns the reputation of Giacomo Contarini.

For now, I press you, Antonio.  Do leave the question of these masks aside. Might you consider for a moment that Lorenzo’s deposition is inaccurate and that this,
“Il Mascherari
”, does not exist for the simple reason that it exists only in the imaginative mind of an impassioned patrician? 

I have suffered this Lorenzo Contarini numerous times and even the members of our Maggior Consiglio find him reckless and rebellious. If, in his blooming forties he were to ever ascend to the Quarantia, or heaven forbids, to the role of Senator, this impetuous young man may well profess to give all Jews the same rights as the
cittadini
. 

I see in him only a chilling arrogance–the arrogance that those young patricians nurture even though they’ve not achieved a single feat to be deserving of their inheritance.  They jeer at the rest of us, in their gold
calza
, boasting of the clubs they belong to, spendthrift of ducats they’ve not earned, unashamed of their voluptuary nature and the credit they relentlessly seek. 

How can, pray tell me, how can such recklessness allow itself to reach the powers of the Senate.  By citizen birth alone? 

Having spoken so, I ask you again. What is it today with
cittadini
youth, that in their conceit, they attest to know all and persist to the bitter ends despite evidence to their lack of wisdom and experience?

You have now to rest this matter of the masks. The Mascherari, or whoever this guild or artisan may name itself, is not cause for two natural deaths– the first, of a renowned glutton who gorged himself to disproportionate ends; the second, of an inveterate drunk.  Again, it cannot have engendered an illness which, more likely provisioned by divine punishment, descended upon the sinful Morosini and sent him to his death.

Do you forget how the body’s symptoms are known to mirror the soul? If, following his orgiastic night, the Morosini had any regret, would it not be befitting that guilt would have ravaged his body, leaving him prey to the destructiveness of the pox? You see, now, where this curse theory of yours finds itself at loss. 

Again, this
Mascherari
, cannot be the cause of Giacomo’s death, a father so intoxicated by madness that he was driven to kill his own daughter. My belief in Giacomo’s loss of reason is one I will shortly explain.

But first, let me speak of you, Antonio, and of your visit to the San Cassiano brothel.  You spoke with a woman–I assume, a
meretrice
–who affirmed that Morosini was not ill when he came to them.  I have, you understand, corroborated your deposition with two
sbirri
who it was my duty to assign for your protection upon your visit.

You never saw the
sbirri
. It was my wish that you never once suspected they were present.  The Council can never be too careful. You do realize that prostitutes employ dangerous
bravi
–ruffians of ill-repute, well-armed and sure of their weapons.  It would only take one such
bravo
to decimate our
avogadore
had we not ourselves assigned men to guard him. 

Now returning to this visit, I will ask you, Antonio, and I will ask you only once.  Are you able to confirm that everything that was said, you have indeed reported it to me
as it was said
?

Has your report been faithful?

Think back, and present to me anything that you may have previously omitted.  Remember to leave nothing out.

Now to the vice I spoke of and the rumors concerning Giacomo Contarini. A month ago, before you were called upon, there were several
denuncio secretos
made against his name. The denunciations were submitted from several
sestieri
and at all levels of society.

You may be unaware of our ways, Antonio, and perhaps you are softened by Florentine leniency. But here, in Venezia, the Ten considers sodomy to be the worst sin a man can ever commit. Procreation and the thriving of our families is endangered by it. More so, it corrupts the soul and incurs God’s wrath.  Still, upon receipt of these denunciations, the Council did not yet lend weight to these matters, that is, not until the recent developments of this case.

But I come now to these allegations. Giacomo has been denounced of not honoring his marriage, of mingling with the sodomite Morosini and of himself being guilty of sodomy. What do you make of this
avogadore
?

I myself was skeptical of this crime. But as goes the saying,
if one person in Venezia says it, everyone says it.
  Might there be an ounce of truth in these accusations?

I ask that you seek audience with the Signora Contarini. The convenience of her emotional state is not to be underestimated. She is still vulnerable and amenable to speak. She may be in a position to help shed light on her husband’s morality. I wish you to do this soon. Very soon.

As for the allegations against the Morosini, we have sent a
sbirri
detachment to the Jewish physician. He is to inspect the pustule-ridden body one last time before burial. He will report rupture around the parts amenable to sinning. The physician’s testimony, as to whether the Morosini did or did not engage in the unspeakable vice, will either refute or lend weight to the denunciations.

Once again, Antonio, I ask that all your depositions remain faithful to the matters you find and that you omit nothing.

Yours in God,

Almoro Donato

***

Letter from Antonio da Parma to Almoro Donato

Signor Donato,

The tone of your last letter seems to me reproachful.

While I understand in what fashion our ideas diverge, I am perplexed that in an earlier letter, you would press me to find those masks, yet now that I am set upon them, you wish me to forget them as though they no longer matter.

I therefore surmise that the evidence you sought to discredit Lorenzo’s deposition–be it that the masks never existed and that he is guilty of lying–is no longer of importance.  May I then further surmise that you have already rejected his deposition? Or perhaps that it no longer bears strongly upon this case. In light of the recent gossip surrounding the Contarini name and your vexation toward his son, Lorenzo, who seems to embody all the traits you loathe, I would lean toward the latter.

I am perplexed that you never revealed to me the accusations against Giacomo Contarini.  I understand that it is the privilege of the Council and that it is not befitting that I question the objectives of the Council.  But in light of the Council’s evident concerns, I can confirm, a notion that I previously did not judge pertinent to my report–that Margarita, the
meretrice
I saw in Ca’ Rampani, did indeed make mention of Morosini’s reputation for practicing sodomy.