"You really think there will be trouble?" Frank asked.
"There will always be trouble, Frank. And there is seldom any easy way in which to predict where and when it will come to you. For now, I suspect there are those who will use your presence and activities for their own ends, and while they care little enough to order your death, I feel sure that they would issue no tears were it to happen. And, I, Ruy Sanchez de Casador y Ortiz, say that the way of honor is to prepare to flee, and cover your retreat with gunfire. Honor lies in doing one's duty, not throwing your life away."
Frank felt certain that Sanchez was hinting at something, but he couldn't tell what it was. "Understood, Ruy. I've had my taste of stand-up fighting and I guess I'm not the kind of guy that enjoys it. If it can be avoided, I'm out of there. I, uh, guess I'm a lover, not a fighter."
"Exactly my point, and as you—Ah!" Ruy straightened in order to deliver a sweeping bow. "Señora Stone, it is a pleasure and an honor to see you again. I regret, most sincerely, that I have caused your husband some shortness of breath, but it is certain to pass before you require him for anything."
Frank grinned ruefully and hauled himself to his feet. "Señor Sanchez let me try out with the saber. He recommends I practice my shooting."
"Oh, now, with much study, you would become a fine and competent swordsman, Señor Stone," Sanchez insisted. Then, to Sharon: "I felt it would be worthwhile to equip the young caballero with the rudiments of self-defense. If worse comes to worst, he should be able to hold off ordinary ruffians. With your permission, Doña Ambassadora, if he will again accompany his most beautiful wife on her next visit, I will endeavor to impart some more training?"
"By all means, Ruy. Giovanna and I went and had a coffee and a chat after we were done precisely to let you get on with that." Sharon turned to Frank. "Giovanna's in fine form, nothing to worry about. I've suggested she start taking it easy as she gets toward her third trimester, just light work from then on. She's a healthy girl and a hard worker, and she complained about it, but those are doctor's orders. No sense in unnecessary risks, I say. See she doesn't take 'em."
Frank sketched a salute. "Ma'am," he said, "exactly what I was saying. Between me and her family, we should be able to keep her from doing anything too strenuous."
After Frank had gotten the long cool drink he was gasping for, Sharon made another suggestion. "Would you like Ruy to come over and check out your place to advise on things like defenses and routes out in a hurry?"
"Well, sure," Frank said, frowning. "Señor Sanchez is welcome any time. But, uh, between you and Señor Sanchez that's the second warning of trouble I've had today. You think there's more to it than leaflets and rent-a-crowds?"
"Well, we are and we aren't," Sharon said, her face a perfect deadpan. "On the one hand, we can't see where everything we're seeing is leading except for trouble for the Vatican. On the other hand, there's trouble in the streets as well. And Ruy's seen at least one guy he knows is a real nasty customer, and apparently he's capable of anything"
Ruy barked a laugh. "Say rather, he will attempt anything, and the results are usually disastrous for many. Capable, outside of doggerel and philosophical musings, he is not. But in bungling whatever business he is about, he is sure to cause trouble. I have had one of my own operations ruined by Francisco Quevedo y Villega, and been one step ahead of an angry mob as a result."
"How will I know this guy if I see him?" Frank asked, visions of some sinister Spanish agent haunting his club flitting through his mind.
"Likely, you will not," Sanchez said. "It was purely good fortune that I spotted him when and where I did, and it beggars belief that he is not working for Cardinal Borja, if the evidence of the past few weeks' deeds is of any worth. It is precisely the manner of foolishness that he would attempt."
"So, Frank," Sharon said, "we're taking precautions just in case. And you have responsibilities, not just to the Committee."
"Dottora!" Giovanna said, her voice sharp, "Do not suggest that I will shirk any danger!"
Frank stifled a groan. Sharon had unwittingly pressed the Revolution Button in Giovanna's brain. "Giovanna," he said, "look at it this way. We don't have enough to face these guys in a straight fight. If we have to, we simply melt away, and come back when their attention moves on. We don't play the game by their rules, Giovanna, because if we do, we lose. We stay until it gets hot, and then we get our heads down until the trouble passes."