Frederick and Geraldine
Chapter 8- The Survivors

Situated inthe green Corfu and having thousands

Of olivetrees and flower-strewn countryside, Prinylas is

A nice,Adriatic-style village; its square and narrow paths,

Mansions andalleys are far away from the rifle bullets' whiz.

Its wealthyinhabitants had built it in a picturesque

Position atan altitude of two hundred and seventy

Meters abovethe cove of Agios Georgios, but picaresque

Adventureshappened there; even so, the people have steadily

Prosperedfrom one thousand and two hundred A.C. when

'Twas aByzantine seat; in the Agios Nikolaos church,

People hadthe same name; they were regarded as being near kin.

Fargo boughta Venetian house after a quick search.

'Twassituated on a panoramic hill; Geraldine

Was in frontof the house and looked at the landscape of olive

And citrusgroves; she told Carla, '' astonishing view! '' „Divine, ''

Carlareplied, ''Did you hear some sounds last night? '' ''It's hard to live

In a newplace, '' replied Geraldine, '' It was like someone

Was walkingin the house.'' 'Do you think they've found us? '' „I don't know.

Let's searchtogether. If someone was here, he was alone.''

Fargo said,'' I must be in Corfu Town in two hours. Let's go

To buy ahorse; we must move quickly; any lost minute

Means losinga life on the ship; I know them very well.''

''Don't forceyour horse to run too fast, '' he said, „I know its limit.''

Theyfollowed the winding road to the ringing church bell

And to acobbled street; down from the hill, some stone–built houses

Werearranged in a wide arc around the small valley.

Immediatelyafter that, they entered the square; the horses

Werebeautiful; the women cut through a new alley,

To go to thechurch; he started to negotiate a horse

''Look atthat mansion, '' said Carla, 'it's enclosed in carved stone walls.''

A short windinghillside track took them to the Lord's House.

Geraldinesaid, ''I'm Muslim, ' ' Bewildering are the God's calls, ''

Carlacontinued, 'I'm catholic', „like Frederick, '

SaidGeraldine, 'look, it is written-Agios Nikolaos, ''

Whileentering, she used a face cover for her mouth and cheeks.

„It’s thename of the Saint Nicholas; is this marble? ' To rouse

SomeChristian feelings in Geraldine, Carla made an effort.

'It'sconstructed in the 14th century- a Holy jewel.''

''Do youwant to buy this horse or not? '' said the merchant. „What sort

Is thishorse? '' '' An Arabian one- look at him, he’s not a fool.''

''I want tobe sure that this one fits my personality.

What is hisaverage speed? '' ''It can run eight miles per hour.''

'' I buyhim, '' he told Carla, ''let's go to our new reality.'

Fargo leftthe village; Geraldine said, '' he has power.''

(Fargo tookthe money, the precious stones, and the documents. He went to Corfu Town.Geraldine and Carla returned their new temporary home.)

They livedin a two-story house having eighty meters

Of stonewalls; the former owner used it to store his olive

Oil; it hadnot been inhabited for ten months; wood heaters

Guarded theentrance leading to the ground floor- a space to live.

In a corner,it was a rest of oil equipment.

The entryhad two transition points at the openings to

Thehallways. Carla said, „stone and wood- it's all so different, ''

''The stonecolors pick up the tones in the wood to make these two

Materials lookgood, '' said Erica; at the ground floor

They saw twohalls, a dining room, a living room having

A seatingwith red cushions, the stairs, and the terrace's door.

Maya calledthem from the upper floor having an entrance facing

West; fromthere, they could see the view of the street; this floor

Consisted often bedrooms, two wood stoves, two indoor stoves,

A kitchen,and storage rooms; Geraldine said, ''Before

Eating,let's drink tea, '' ''A neighbor told me that this house

Is a hauntedone and this is why the owner sold it, '

Said Erica,'These ghosts can affect anybody in

Prinylas, 'said Maya, ' you can't convince them the house to quit.

Peoplepractice exorcism here.' „Look at that place we have been! ''

(Carlaturned the index finger of her right hand towards the window overlooking thesea.)

„There arespiritual healers getting in touch with those spirits

To ask themwhy they are present, ' said Erica. „Usually,

When youcall them, they come to tell you some secrets.

Some sadlovers that passed away can't leave this world peacefully.''

„They can bedemons, too, ' said Maya. „We must talk with the priest, '

SaidGeraldine. „Let’s search in the storage room, ' she continued,

„We’ll replacesomething, and we'll face this truth together, at least.''

''I hear thesteps of someone walking away from this window, ''

SaidCarla.'' Maybe it's the rain tapping on the sill, ''

RepliedGeraldine. Surak opened the window and said,

'It doesn'train; in the soft wind, I hear only the birds' trill.''

''But I'vefound some books in a big box for safe keeping instead.''

(Maya andErica went to buy fresh fish from one of the many fisheries existent in thatvillage.)

Fargoentered the Spianada, the largest square

In theBalkans, which was created by the Venetians.

The sound ofthe sea waves was like a stir in the air.

The peaks ofthe Old Fortress looked like swords of the Titans.

He passedthe lighthouse tower and entered the underground

Tunnels thatlinked the Fortress with the main parts of the town.

Then, heentered the New Fortress, and when he looked around,

He saw thegates, the sea shore, and the land that sloped down.

(The porthas been an important naval base since the Roman period. Considerably, Corfuwas called the Gibraltar of the Adriatic. He bought a galley.)

The IonianIslands belonged to the Republic

Of Venice;they were slowly conquered, one by one, in time.

Corfuvoluntarily became a colony; its public

Gardens madethe Islands' governor reside on that sublime

Territory;its economy was based on exporting

Raisins,olive oil, and wine, whereas the Venetian lira

Was thecurrency of the islands; while incorporating

The cultureof Venice, these people used a plethora

Of Italianwords, because this language was official.

Venice hadgarrison soldiers, scattered in island forts

With musketsand bayonets made of the iron material.

Theimpromptu recruits and mercenaries were hired in the ports.

(Fargostarted to talk with the infantry captain and with the lowborn ship’s captain.)

'' It's hardto eradicate the piracy from the world.''

''Because ofmoney, the soldiers are recruited as needed.'

''Only withthe convoy protection, the sail with the ships is furled.

When it isno longer required, their claims are unheeded.''

''The Muslimpirates attack the Christian ships to enslave.''

''I've heardthere are Jewish pirates, too, '' ''Because of Inquisition, ''

''Thecorsairs are dangerous, '' '' Our ships hardly can face on this wave.''

TheChristian navies are weak; don't have enough ammunition.''

''The Muslimopponents are fast; you need a large convoy.

You will beconvoyed by us until you enter Italy-

Afterfighting the pirates.'' ''On our ship, there is an envoy.''

''To let yousail, they wanted some protection money.''

''Europepays its duty to protect its own action,

But acceptsthe growth of piracy in Indian waters.''

''The piracyis bad in theory, but usefully practiced-

A cheap wayto expand their economic and naval powers.''

''Thegovernments don't want to eradicate the piracy.''

''Theanti-pirate campaigns are only documented.''

''Thesepirates mean business behind the wall of privacy.

In bars andbrothels for crews, the money is strongly augmented.''

''Thiseradication needs a revision to the law.''

'' Only inthe Spanish colonies, they are executed, ''

''Spain hasa court of officers, '' '' This is a Britain law, new.''

''In returnfor the pardon, these pirates are persuaded.''

(The captaingave Fargo two galliots, each one having 80 oarsmen and 60 soldiers.)

(Geraldine,Carla and Erica found a letter, which they thought it was an important documentbelonging to someone living miles away. It was clear that a person entrustedthe written paper to a messenger after putting a wax seal on it. The seal wasplaced on this document in such a manner that it was impossible to read itwithout first breaking the seal, which was very dry and brittle.)

Carla said,'' Let's read and bring to life the stories behind

Thesemanuscripts, '' ''Let's replace who was the owner and who handled

These booksand papers.'' ''Some memories come back into my mind, ''

''I love toread; it’s so dark in here, let's light a candle, ''

Said Erica;they saw scribbled notes written on the margins

Of the booksand the changing ownership of some manuscripts.

''An Arabmedicinal work for Jewish use, that’s for certain.''

''Is it? '''' It's translated into Hebrew; I think it's fabulous, ''

(… RepliedCarla.)

Geraldineopened a book saying, '' This is a Persian

Medicinalwork translated into Turkish; it must be

Moreinteresting; they treat using a different version.''

''This copyof the book written by José Vicente.

(..SaidCarla,)

Has a lot ofgeographical and astronomical

Information;you can learn to measure the distance;

It containsthe main cities, oceans, '' ‘‘It’s phenomenal! ''

''Mapmakers,'' '' it's like a trip to another existence! ''

(..ExclaimedErica,)

''It showswhich stars are visible or not, the solar cycles

And it isillustrated with tables, diagrams, and maps.''

''Is this aHoly Book? I'm not good in perusing these titles.''

''Yes, it'swritten by Francisco Javier, a nice one, perhaps, ''

(Geraldinereplied to Erica, knowing that she was a Russian not knowing too much Latin.Geraldine continued…)

''It's abouta convent established in Mexico City

For anydaughter of a conquistador who lacked dowry.

''Look,Aonio Paleario! I think it’s such a pity

Tocontradict the Catholic dogma; this language is flowery, ''

(…SaidCarla.)

''It's acopy of a rare book. Does this contradiction mean

The troublewith the Inquisition in these Reformation times?

''He had themost influential protectors I've ever seen.''

But hisprotectors died; there are notes between the lines, ''

(Carlaanswered to Erica. Carla continued…)

‘’TheSpanish Inquisition is run by the civil

Authoritiesof Kings after centuries of Muslim

Domination;the execution became official

For theMuslim piracy to turn it down to very dim.’’

(Geraldineintervened in the conversation…)

‘’Spain hadasked the Papacy to set up the Inquisition,

But thePapacy refused. Then, Spain threatened Rome

With notcoming to give aid against the Muslim opposition.

Their armiessacked Rome and made southern Italy be their home.

The Pope setup the inquisition only for Christians.

Over time,the torture was not to be done more than once,

Was not tothreaten life; there were Spanish transgressions

By thelawyers who oversaw this system from hence.’’

(Then, Ericatold them…..)

''InEngland, the person convicted of public begging

Has a limbchopped off; a Catholic priest in England

Teachingschool is executed.'' ''There're penalties for bringing

A falsewitness against someone; England's laws also bind Ireland, ''

(….RepliedCarla. Erica continued….)

''There is asecret collaboration between London and

Tsar Peterof Russia.'' '' He is known as Peter the Great.''

''There arenotes on a book; while traveling to Europe, he shunned

The personsknowing him, '' ''He wanted to change his country's fate.''

(Carlaexpressed her point of view regarding what Erica said. Erica continued…)

''He studiednew developments in shipbuilding; he lived

In Deptford,at the home of John Evelyn, a writer.''

''Thisletter is from England and I’m a bit surprised

'Cause thisletter should be brought to a Russian.'' ''A fighter

Was thismessenger.'' ''Maybe this man is the ghost we feel.''

''Did KingWilliam help Peter? '' ‘’He increased trade with Russia.''

''Peterloved a peasant and, wanting his love to conceal,

He made herbe his domestic serf.'' I've heard she's from Prussia.''

''She's fromLithuania; her name is Catherine; he married

Hersecretly, '' ''But he's married, '' '' He divorced his first wife.''

'' He workedas a carpenter; his interests were varied.''

'' Friendwith Marquis of Carmarthen, he started a new life.''

(Geraldinetried to open the letter a little without breaking its seal. '' I think it iswritten 'Catherine' or 'Carmarthen.' '' ''Impossible, '' replied Carla, ''Itwould be much more important than any other one and it wouldn't be lost here.Give it to me.'')

(Ericasaid,)

'' KingWilliam gave Tsar Peter the ship Royal Transport

As a gift;the ship's designer was Marquis of Carmarthen.

As KingAugustus of Poland, King William showed him support.

'' Thismessenger traveled many miles to take his ship again.''

(Erica toldthem that she feels like she's about to faint. Carla ran down the stairs tobring vinegar and water and Geraldine hurried to open the window. Meanwhile,Erica took a document from the box and hid it under her dress.)

(Erica wentinto her room to rest. Geraldine and Carla started to read the journal they hadfound in the box.)

He leftEngland with a ship and sailed east until he reached

Portugal;then, he took a stagecoach and traveled to Venice.

He was indanger of highwaymen who couldn't be impeached.

His coachhad a high speed, ‘cause those men could become a menace.

He had madea gold deposit at a goldsmith, who gave him

Somereceipts to exchange them with money at the British bank.

Then, hetraveled through Europe choosing those pathways which were dim.

There, hemissed London and its air being restless and dank.

He achievedknowledge of the Europe major languages.

He wasseemingly traveling at his own expense,

Covered, byhis own account; in fact, he carried messages,

And any of hismessages had an important sense.

He traveledas merchant bringing drugs, rare books, and some

Exoticcommodities like pine nuts, pistachios, and coffee

From theRoyal Exchange instead of waiting for a false peace to come.

In London,his luxury shops looked like covered in toffee.

(In herroom, Erica started to read the document written in the Russian language. Itwas one of the most fragrant, pleasant smell papers she ever had in her hands.The person owning that document was a Russian one living in London.)

Thisdocument was also a letter from the Surveyor

Of the RoyalExchange, to an Indian official asking

Some help tobuy some new shops in India; the player

Could revealthe understanding of the retail shopping.

(Geraldinecontinued to read from his journal written in the Russian language.)

The mandescribed the luxury life of the British elite,

His grandhouse, which had been built in the rich west of London,

And hishorse-drawn carriage used for rides on the main street.

He wantedlead pipes for his house as any rich Londoner.

(Ericacontinued to read the document.)

That paperhad an annexed one about the gold needed

To help anoble lady forced to spend the rest of her life

As apenniless nun; her words about freedom were needed.

Imprisonedas a nun, she was, in fact, an abandoned wife.

The gold wasbrought with a ship that should anchor in that place.

Ivan was theliaison with that man and had to take that gold

To pay thelady's freedom; tears appeared upon Erica’s face.

Ivan causedthe deviation from the ship's course as he was told.

He didn'tknow that the carrack had been hunted by some pirates.

Ericarealized that the merchant had died, but she

Did not knowwhether the gold had been stolen or not, those bandits

Were stillaround having the linked letter; she fell down on her knees

To pray forher life; she understood that the ex-husband

Of that ladycould torture them to death for having plotted

Against him;she prayed while needing to be many thousand

Miles awayand while looking at the hill with olives dotted.

(Ericaburned the document.)

(Geraldinebecame meditative and told Carla,)

''Thesetreatises generate some ideas of magnificence

Andsplendor; the luxury is realized with the skilled

Workers andthe specialized knowledge, '' ‘‘the extravagance

Of thesebooks is declined by the wars, where the life is killed, ''

(RepliedCarla. She continued,)

'' Thesewars bring the decline of retailing, the stagnation

Of building,and the disappearance of a real

Art market,'' ''They use all the methods to fight for their nation

On thewaters to protect the land; their strife is a squeal, ''

(RepliedGeraldine. Maya entered the room to invite them to dinner. She said that shehad seen someone having two dogs and walking around. Suddenly, Geraldine said,‘’ I think I give birth to my child now. I have a sharp pain. I’m so afraid!’’)