'For I have that to tell you which
makes the matter grave enough. We were right, you see, in our guess
of Veranilda's origin; I could wish she had been any one else.
Patience, patience! You know that I left you here to go to Neapolis.
There I received letters from Rome, one of them from Bessas himself,
and, by strange hazard, the subject of it was the daughter of
Ebrimut.'
Basil made a gesture of repugnance. 'Nay, call her the daughter of
Theodenantha.'
'As you will. In any case the granddaughter of a king, and not
likely to be quite forgotten by the royal family of her own race.
Another king's grandchild, Matasuntha, lives, as you know, at
Byzantium, and enjoys no little esteem at the Emperor's court; it is
rumoured, indeed, that her husband Vitiges, having died somewhere in
battle, Matasuntha is to wed a nephew of Justinian. This lady, I am
told, desires to know the daughter of Ebri--nay, then, of
Theodenantha; of whom, it seems, a report has reached her. A command
of the Emperor has come to Bessas that the maiden Veranilda,
resident at Cumae, be sent to Constantinople with all convenient
speed.
Pages:
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132