They claim that man’s sins have brought the pestilence upon us, he said. Gesù Cristo died for those sins. And only by them paying the ultimate penance, scourging themselves as they do now, will God vanquish this plague.

You cannot believe this to be so.

I do not know what to believe anymore, Rafael. This pestilence has claimed my wife and two of my children. The priests and you doctors have been powerless to stop it. Perhaps these flagellants are right in thinking that only such extreme measures might spare the rest of us from the same plight.

I was too distraught to argue. There was something so ungodly in the barbaric ritual that I could not watch a moment longer. Besides, I was tiring rapidly, as I had not stood on my feet so long in over two weeks.

I returned home with a heavy heart. Even in the darkness of my room, I could not escape the visions of the flagellants in my head. I have seen many abominations and cruelties since the dawn of the plague. However, nothing rocked my faith in humankind as much as the sight of those eccentrics mutilating themselves while the townspeople cheered. It suggested to me that there would be no limits to the savagery or depravity to which our once-noble society might sink.

All night long I dwelled on this revelation. By the next morning, when Gabriella arrived bearing a basket of heavenly smelling delicacies, I had no appetite for them. I sat her down at my table. I did not mince my words as I recounted my audience with the Archbishop.

Gabriella displayed neither shock nor alarm.

Surely you must see how dangerous it would be if the Archbishop himself were to level the accusation that Jews were poisoning wells? I asked.

Your people have been doing this forever, she said.

What do you mean?

You ban us Jews from joining guilds or owning lands or working in most trades. You only borrow from us, because according to your Bible, it is a sin for Christians to charge interest on a loan to another of the same faith. You have no one else to call upon when you are in need of money. However, no sooner has the loan been granted than you resent the loaner even more for practicing the only trade available to him.

This all may be so, but the risk to you Jews is even greater now.

It is true, she said. The Archbishop would not be the first man to try to erase his debt by eliminating his creditors.

I was so consumed in my thoughts that without a preconceived notion I reached out and took her hand in mine. Her fingers went stiff and her eyes lowered to the floor, but she made no effort to withdraw her hand.

I must confess there was unexpected exhilaration in the contact. But it came with guilt. Camilla has been in the ground for less than a season, and here I was hand in hand with a widowed Jewess. However, I also knew that Gabriella’s presence in my home would not and could not last much longer.