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satisfied.
    A minute later Gerardo went back into the lecture room and only then could they finally talk in peace.
    ‘As I said, there are two routes to follow,’ resumed the physician, leaning against a desk. ‘The first is to find out whom Angelo was meeting that evening and whom he had met since arriving in the city. The second is the trail of alchemy.’
    ‘I understand your interest in the secret of how to turn human blood into iron,’ replied Gerardo. He was exhausted and would happily have sat down, but he stayed on his feet out of respect. ‘However, I don’t see how it can help us to find the murderer.’
    ‘I studied alchemy a little bit as part of my medical training, and yet I have never heard of such a thing,’ explained Mondino. He had an unfocused look on his face, as if he were rapidly trying to go back over all the books he had read. ‘Very few people can know a secret such as this.’
    Gerardo was surprised by the physician’s mental clarity. They had not had a moment of peace since he had turned up at the man’s door, and yet Mondino had already had the time to elaborate a plan that lacked nothing, except the finer details. Acting on impulse, he decided to share with Mondino what he knew. He put a hand into the little leather bag that hung from his belt and pulled out a piece of crumpled paper. ‘This slid out of Angelo’s tunic when I dressed him. It may have no importance, but it’s the only clue I’ve got.’
    Mondino examined the paper. It seemed to have been hurriedly ripped off a larger piece and it contained just a few words, engraved into the paper with a stylus, or perhaps with the pressure of a fingernail.
    ‘Philomena, watering place, market,’ read Mondino out loud. ‘It’s a woman’s address. A prostitute?’
    ‘I think so, Master. It is possible that Angelo did not fully respect his vow of chastity.’
    Mondino’s lips assumed a sarcastic smile and Gerardo prepared himself to rebut a comment on pleasure-loving priests, but the physician said nothing and turned back to the piece of paper.
    ‘There are many places where they water and wash the animals and various markets in the city,’ he said. ‘But I would bet that it’s the one near the Campo del Mercato.’ ‘How can you be so sure?’
    ‘Your friend wasn’t from these parts. If he only wrote down these words, without being more specific, it seems likely that he was referring to the biggest livestock market there is.’
    He was probably right,but Gerardo was tired of praising him. ‘So I’ll begin my search there,’ he said simply. ‘For tonight—’
    ‘Tonight you can stay here,’ interrupted the physician, pushing himself away from the desk. ‘There is no bed, but you can spread the blankets in the chest on the table and sleep there.’
    ‘I will spend the night in prayer for Angelo’s soul,’ replied Gerardo. The mere idea of lying down on the marble slab where so many cadavers had been eviscerated gave him the shivers.
    ‘As you prefer. Tomorrow I’ve got a lesson after breakfast, but the steward comes around daybreak to prepare the lecture hall. Make sure that he doesn’t find you here.’
    ‘I’ll be gone before dawn, don’t worry,’ said Gerardo. ‘What will you do while I’m looking for the woman?’
    ‘I’ll go and talk to some alchemists that I know. In the afternoon, just before vespers, we’ll meet in the Church of San Vitale and Agricola, near my house. You’ll find me sitting in my family pew.’
    ‘I’ll be there, you can be sure of that.’
    ‘Good,’ said Mondino, opening the door.
    ‘Until tomorrow, magister,’ said Gerardo. ‘And thank you for everything.’
    The physician turned slowly, looking at him closely. ‘I have always been impulsive in my decisions,’ he said. ‘Helping you was not an exception. I hope you will make sure that I don’t regret it.’
    Then he went out into the dark street, without even a lantern to light his way, and turned his steps