how zenotia left off the sorceries that had bewitched antonio, so that he might recover; but advised king polycarp not to let arnoldo and his companions go.
it appears to me that unless patience had been supported by the pleasure which arnoldo and polycarp had in only looking at auristella, and sinforosa in gazing upon periander, they must have lost it in listening to so tedious a story, touching which maurice and ladislaus were of opinion, that it was much too long and very little to the purpose, for instead of a narration of his own misfortunes, he had been detailing the pleasures of other people. nevertheless, they liked to listen to him, and were willing to hear his tale to an end, so agreeable was his manner and style in relating anything.
meanwhile antonio had sought out zenotia, whom he found in the royal apartments. the moment he saw her he approached with an unsheathed dagger in his hand, and seizing her by the right arm, and lifting his dagger on high, he cried, "sorceress! instantly restore my son to me alive and well, or thy last hour is at hand. perfidious creature! in what collection of eyeless needles, or headless pins, dost thou hold his life enwrapped; or hast thou hidden it in some nook or secret corner thou only knowest where?" zenotia was terrified, seeing her life threatened by a furious spaniard, with a dagger drawn in his hand, and trembling, she promised to restore life and health to his son. she would have readily promised to give it to the whole world, had he required it of her, so completely had he filled her whole soul with terror; so she said, "loose me, o spaniard, and put thy weapon into its sheath; it was owing to thy son's over-readiness to use his, that has brought him into his present state. thou knowest that women are naturally revengeful, and most when we are aroused to vengeance by scorn and disdain. marvel not, then, if thy son's harshness should have hardened my heart; advise him henceforth to treat with more humanity those who humble themselves before him, and not to repulse those scornfully who only implore his pity. go in peace, for to-morrow thou shalt see thy son restored to health."
"and if it should not be so," answered antonio, "depend upon it, i shall not want means to seek thee out, nor shall i fail to take thy life." so saying, he left her, and she was so overpowered with fear, that forgetting her affronts, she drew from behind the door, the incantations which she had prepared, little by little to consume away the life of the hard-hearted boy, whose grace and beauty had so entirely captivated her affections.
no sooner had zenotia thrown away her infernal preparations, than antonio recovered his lost health, the colour returned to his cheek, his eyes regained their lustre, and his limbs their strength, to the joy of all his friends. when his father was alone with him he said, "i wish to bestow upon thee some advice my son, which is—never offend god in any way. during the fifteen or sixteen years of thy life i have taught thee the law which my parents taught to me, and that is the catholic faith, the true one by which alone we can be saved, and which has saved all who have ever embraced it, and will save all who desire to enter the kingdom of heaven. this law teaches us that we are not to chastise all who offend us, but to advise them to amend their faults; punishment belongs to the judge, but we may all give reproof and counsel. whenever thou art tempted to do anything that is contrary to the service of god, thou need'st not bend thy bow, nor launch thy arrows, nor use injurious words, but reject the evil counsel and retire from the opportunity. thou wilt then come off conqueror, and wilt be safe from again incurring such peril as i have now seen thee in. thou wert bewitched by zenotia, and with such potent enchantments, that in less than ten days thou wouldst, little by little, have lost thy life, if god and my good speed had not prevented it. now, come along with me, and rejoice our friends with the sight of thy recovered health, and we will hear the adventures of periander, which he is to finish to-night."
antonio promised to attend to his father's counsels with god's help, in spite of all the snares that might beset his path through life.
meanwhile, zenotia, affronted and grieved by the scorn of the son and the anger of the father, sought how she could avenge her injuries through the means of others, without depriving herself of the presence of her unloving barbarian; and thus meditating, she went to king polycarp, and said, "you know, sire, that ever since i entered into your house and service, i have tried to serve you with the greatest zeal and attention: you know also, that trusting to my fidelity and truth, you have made me the depositary of all your secrets; and you know well how prudent i am in all peculiar cases, especially if a love affair be in question, and it is on this account i wish to tell you that, in allowing arnoldo and all his party to go away, you are acting imprudently and unwisely. tell me, if when present, you cannot gain auristella's consent, how are you to gain it when she is absent?
"and how is it likely she will keep her word, and return to marry an old man, as you in fact are, (for we cannot conceal such truths from ourself,) when she has periander with her, who may or may not be, her brother; and arnoldo, a princely youth, who desires nothing more ardently than to make her his wife? do not, sire, let slip the opportunity that you now possess: you can take the present one, which offers itself for detaining them, saying that it is necessary to punish the monstrous barbarity of one of the company, who has slain the man they call clodio, even in your own palace."
polycarp listened with attention to the advice of the malicious zenotia; every word she uttered went straight through his heart, as if each had been a sharp nail, and he would fain have gone directly to carry her advice into effect. in fancy he beheld auristella in the arms of periander, not as her brother, but as a lover. in fancy he beheld her seated on the throne of denmark, and arnoldo making a joke of him and his amorous intentions; in fine, jealousy took possession of his whole soul in such a manner that he could scarce refrain from giving it utterance, and vowing vengeance upon those who had never offended him. but zenotia, when she saw that her words had taken effect, and how ready he was to do all she wished him to do, advised him to remain quiet for the present, for that periander was to finish his story that night, and it would give them time to consider what would be most convenient to be done. polycarp agreed, and she, still hopelessly enamoured of the young antonio, gave loose to her imagination how best to accomplish the king's wishes and her own.
the night came on, and polycarp, with his daughters, joined the company as they had done before; periander took up his history where he had left off after the wedding festivities.
