Chapter Text
"They've got him, Lorenzo!" One of the guards announces and soon enough, Francesco Pazzi is unceremoniously led to the room. His hands tied behind his back, his dishevelled hair mixed with blood, he is pushed onto his knees next to Salviati and Montesecco. He raises his eyes to Lorenzo, who is bending against a table with a bloodied dagger in his hands.
"We were friends, Francesco." Lorenzo says after a moment of deadly silence, interrupted only by Salviati's rapid breathing.
Francesco looks Lorenzo right in the eyes. His expression is unreadable, neither filled with sorrow, nor with pride.
"You are a Medici. I am a Pazzi. We could never be truly friends." He says with resigned but resolute tone.
Lorenzo understands; and he knows that he must finish the rivalry between their families once and for all. It might go against all his humanist ideas that he had tried to live by, but his brother's murder opened his eyes.
"Hang them." Lorenzo says only, deaf to Salviati's pleading.
Francesco looks up; he knows that this is the end. He knows that he has failed at everything.
With one last look at his defeated rival, Lorenzo starts walking out of the room.
"Lorenzo." Sandro stops him. "Don't do anything you might live to regret."
However, it is clear that Lorenzo has already made up his mind.
"Hang them." He repeats emotionlessly.
"Lorenzo. Lorenzo!" Bianca screams as she bursts into the room.
"Are you alright?" She breathes out as she embraces her brother, her eyes filled with tears.
"I will live." Lorenzo answers softy.
"I've seen Giuliano. They…they…they have…" Bianca begins but is unable to complete the sentence.
"I know. I know." Lorenzo tries to comfort her but his own voice breaks
"I've tried to stop the bleeding, do something. I've tried…with mother…we've tried…"
"Bianca. Look at me. It's too late for Giuliano." Lorenzo says while looking into his sister's eyes.
Bianca calms down a little.
"I am so glad that you escaped unharmed. I had to see you in person. I saw that mother and Clarise were taken home. I still can't believe that this happened. And at the mass!" Bianca says.
"Me neither. I should have known…" Lorenzo blames himself.
"No. You couldn't have expected this. No one could. And in the cathedral out of all places." Bianca says as she keeps her sight at her brother.
A sudden, loud scream from outside fills the room.
"Listen, Lorenzo. The city is in the state of chaos. People are looting the conspirators' houses. They are hunting them down. If….if it's too late for Giuliano…we must try to save Francesco. He must have been dragged into this involuntarily. We must find him before the crowd does and harms him."
Lorenzo gives Bianca a pointed look.
"He wouldn't have raised a weapon against you or Giuliano, wouldn't he?" Bianca says anxiously but with complete persuasion.
Lorenzo weights his words carefully. "He might have been too much of a coward to literally stab us, but he has stabbed us in the back. He and his uncle planned all of this and brought the other conspirators in."
"But Lorenzo, you are not listening to me. We must find him before the crowd does. They might kill him."
"They are not going to kill him, Bianca." Lorenzo says slowly.
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because they have already found him and brought him to me. They can't kill him because that's what I am about to do." And he looks aside.
Bianca, confused as she is, finally diverts her sight from her brother and she notices the three men kneeling on her left.
"Francesco." Bianca breathes out as she spots her lover kneeling on the ground with his gaze diverted to the ground. She notices that his eyes are full of tears but none of them found a way down his cheek yet.
She automatically makes a step towards him but then she stops herself.
"Francesco. What have you done?" Bianca whispers.
Francesco raises his head as if it was the most difficult thing in the whole world and slowly raises his eyes to Bianca as if the movement itself was causing him pain. He makes a move to say something, but no words leave his mouth, instead, a single tear escapes his eye and makes its way down his cheek. Francesco turns his face away in shame.
"Are you injured?" Bianca asks him softly and makes a few steps towards him.
The guards, unsure whether to carry out Lorenzo's orders at once, silently ask Lorenzo who gives them a signal to wait.
Bianca kneels in front of Francesco, her own face covered with dirt, tears, and Giuliano's blood.
With his head still down, Francesco whispers: "No. You should get out of here."
"No. You owe me answers. What has happened?" Bianca says.
She raises her hand to touch Francesco's bloodied cheek to make him look up at her.
"You know what happened." Francesco whispers, now unable to hide the pain from his voice. "Please, go now."
"No, I don't. I know what everyone says but it can't be true. You wouldn't…my brothers…Lorenzo!" Bianca suddenly remembers his words. "What have you said?" She stands up and addresses Lorenzo.
Lorenzo gives her a long look and then nods at the guards. At his command, they manhandle the three kneeling figures up and begin dragging them towards the open windows. Trying to make sense of the situation, Bianca quickly scans the room with her eyes and she notices a few men preparing nooses.
"Lorenzo?" She asks, her voice shaking, as the guilty are being hauled towards the windows.
"Hang them." Lorenzo repeats only.
Bianca stares at him in disbelief. "Lorenzo. There must be an explanation. You need to ask Francesco."
"There is an explanation. His uncle was to be declared the ruler of the republic. The Pazzis organised the assassination to seize power."
"And this is what Francesco has told you?" Bianca urges him as she throws a side look at the guilty men whose necks were tightened in the noose.
"He didn't have to tell me anything." Lorenzo says.
"Ask him." Bianca pleads. "Lorenzo, for the love of God, please, ask him now."
Lorenzo doesn't answer but walks towards Francesco who is now standing right next to the window with the noose around his neck. The chant hang them can be heard from the outside.
"Confess before my sister, Francesco." Lorenzo says firmly while keeping eye contact with Francesco.
"Get her out of here before it happens. Please." Francesco whispers so that only Lorenzo can hear him.
Lorenzo gives him a scrutinising look and then barely visibly nods in agreement.
Still looking at Lorenzo, Francesco says: "I have conspired with my uncle to have the Medici brothers killed during the mass. I might not have delivered the final blow, but it is as if I did."
The words hang in the air.
"Do it." Lorenzo gives the order and the men start pushing Francesco closer to the window. Bianca runs towards him. She stops right in front of Francesco and places her hands on his shoulders. She looks at him in disbelief.
Francesco raises his eyes to meet hers and at the moment, he is unable to stop the words from leaving his mouth. " I am sorry, Bianca."
The crowd cheers as Montesecco is pushed out of the window. Bianca watches the scene, paralysed. Salviati follows.
"Bianca." Lorenzo takes her by the elbow. "You need to go."
"No." Bianca plucks out from Lorenzo. "You can't make me."
"Guards." Lorenzo says and they grab Bianca.
"Lorenzo. I have just seen our brother die. You can't make me."
Lorenzo loses his temper.
"Do you want to watch your lover die as well?" He screams. "Go!"
"You can't kill him" Bianca says matter-of-factly.
"This man is responsible for Giuliano's death, Bianca." Lorenzo says in disbelief. "Do you care about him more than about your own brother?"
"You can't kill him." Bianca repeats. "He is a citizen of Florence. He needs to be judged by its laws. So that the truth will come out." She keeps looking at Lorenzo. "If Salviati and that man," Bianca points to the windows, "came into our city to commit murder, they must have been punished. But Francesco Pazzi is a citizen of Florence. He has to be judged and sentenced according to our laws. These are the laws that our grandfather helped to institute."
"The result of such a trial will lead to the same verdict as the one that is just about to be carried out." Lorenzo answers.
"All I ask is for the whole truth to come out so that Giuliano's murderers can be rightfully punished. Such truth cannot be reached in the middle of this chaos." Bianca says.
Lorenzo is silent for a long time.
"Take Francesco Pazzi into the prison. He will await his trial there." Lorenzo decides finally.
Bianca is careful not to look at Francesco as he is being manhandled out of the room. Instead, she embraces her brother once more.