Brother Eduardo's Mortal Sin: The Santore Story I

By Rudy Leeman

From a woman plunging out a window to the pursuit of a woman destined to hang at the hands of the court system, we’re drawn into the patriarchal culture of 19th century Italy as it struggles to become one nation. It’s Eduardo Santore’s story.

The rights of women lie in the hands of father, husba

• Language: English
• Publisher: Book Vine Press
• Release date: Nov 9, 2019
• ISBN: 9781951886936

Rudy Leeman

Rudy Leeman, retired public education teacher and Lutheran clergyman, began writing historical novels. His earlier Tate Publishing release, For Everything a Season, covers eight generations of a family of strong men and stronger women suffering torture, imprisonment, and death. His Santore Story trilogy is a spin-off of one his characters in Season, set in explosive nineteenth-century Italy. He completed it after moving with his wife, Carol, from California to their new home in Georgetown, Texas.

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Copyright © 2019 by Rudy Leeman.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Printed in the United States of America.

Book Vine Press

2516 Highland Dr.

Palatine, IL 60067

Thanks

As in the past, my severest critic and initial editor of my work is my dear wife, Carol. She took my wildest ideas and had me put them into print suitable for human consumption.

The books were passed on to Jo Rodefer, Bonnie Johnson and Jim Lee for further examination and refinement. I deeply appreciate their evaluations.

My publisher, Tate, provided additional reminders of what makes a novel fit for print. Among those at Tate Publishing, I acknowledge with appreciation those who made the whole project work so well. Among the many, I recognize the labors of Cleofe Marie Faelnar-Sanchez, my editor; Rachael Sweden, heart of Publishing/Marketing and Zigmund Carmona, my project manager.

Contents

Preface

Introduction

Chapter 1: I Shall Want for Nothing

Chapter 2: He Leads Me to Green Pastures

Chapter 3: He Restores Me

Chapter 4: Righteous Paths

Chapter 5: Into the Shadowed Valley

Chapter 6: I Fear No Evil

Chapter 7: His Rod and Staff Comfort Me

Chapter 8: The Table Before Me Is Set

Chapter 9: In the Midst of Enemies

Chapter 10: My Cup Overflows

Chapter 11: Goodness and Mercy Follow

Maps

Preface

Though this story stands by itself, it was originally designed as a sidebar chapter in my historical novel, For Everything a Season . I wished to capture the depth of character possessed by Alicia Andreini, handmaid to Helene Arps; it added to rounding out the life of one very important woman—among so many—in my family line.

The sidebar chapter became this novel, Brother Eduardo’s Mortal Sin, and led to its sequels. Alicia’s character is a fictional representation of a loyal servant, the kind of person who supported the life and challenges endured by my great-grandmother, Helene Arps. Alicia was strong, patient, and loyal. She showed vision, integrity, and creativity, traits of character too often hidden in the lives of those who serve others. She also reflects the attitude of society toward servants—and women in general—in the nineteenth century.

Beneath the surface of a woman lies the strength to endure the vagaries of life and the unfairness with which so many live.

A note about chapter headings: Psalm 23 describes life experienced by one who trusts God in all matters. To view this perspective, I’ve expressed it by describing how those who remain faithful to him experience life and make it a richer path.

Adaption is the essence of this story. It defines my view of the Psalm’s message:

My Creator, who leads me, is Shepherd of my life. Thus, it is I will always be fulfilled; He will always provide the plenty for my needs. My soul will always remain buoyant because I follow the path of truth and justice alone—as His servant.

If I must suffer the ills of this world, my confidence remains with Him because He never leaves me. He continues to guide and sustain my life. The course of my life is set; the choices within remain mine.

My life holds His love and His forgiveness. I shall never choose another path but will live as His servant for all my days on earth. Thus I shall remain faithful to my Creator—forever.

Introduction

Mysteries set in the context of current history stand without the necessity of informing the reader of what is going on in the world around the story. Our mindset easily acquires the conditions surrounding a plot.

Such is not the case for Brother Eduardo’s Mortal Sin as well as the sequels. The series is set in the mid- to latter nineteenth century in a divided Italian peninsula, of people struggling with nations around them to secure their independence, their unity, and their unique identity, Italiano... and their country Italia.

It’s a complex scenario. I only sketch the barest outline of the fascinating development of the final identity we know today as Italy on a world map. Remember, only what you feel is necessary to accept the events of the plot. The movement of people around evolving Europe, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire as well as the forces weighing in on the characters provides the perspective of what people faced in their Italia and in a world at war with itself.

The series will involve us in the Crimean War, the first of the modern wars, and some of the remarkable familiar characters inhabiting it. The following is a list of dates, names, and events centered in Italia covering the years 1800 to 1885, the background of the Brother Eduardo story.

1800—Napoleon III declares himself Emperor of Italy, effectively extending the Empire of France over the peninsula southeast of the country.

1815—Congress of Vienna divides Italy between European nations. These nations are teams of the west—England, France, Belgium—and the eastern teams of Austria/Hungary in the east. Austria was the enemy of the western nations inasmuch as it represented the Holy Roman Empire of the Church. Austria invaded the northeast portion of the Italian peninsula (Venetia) and the key port city of Venice.

Venice is a famous town for centuries and port to the Adriatic Sea—the eastern waters of Italy and one connection to the Ottoman Empire.

South of Venetia on the peninsula ran papal states that crossed the peninsula from end to end and effectively divided Italy in three parts.

Key nations that evolved from this Treaty of 1815 included (beside papal states) the Kingdom of Sardinia in the northwest, the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, the Duchy of Modena, and the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia in the center and eastern portion north of the Vatican states. These states comprised the northern portion of the Italian peninsula. The central portion was ruled by the Papacy within its states.

The southern portion of Italy was called the two Sicilies. It included the southern peninsula and the Island of Sicily.

1820—A military revolt in the Peninsular Sicily attempted to create constitutional territory for lower Italy. It failed, but was a harbinger for later attempts that aided the unification of the peninsula as one nation.

1830–1850—Various revolutions throughout the peninsula attempt to redefine the various states with constitutions. Numerous cultures existed, but the people all called themselves Italian; they wanted one territory with one leader.

1840–1853—Florence was the capital of the Italy, recognized by the various states (first Santore story).

1853–1857—Crimean War (second Santore story).

1857–1875—Giuseppe Garibaldi was general of the forces that liberated some Vatican states from the control of the Papacy. The capital was transferred to Rome in July 1871, after the successful last battle under General Cardorna for Rome and the unification of all territories in 1870 under King Vittorio Emanuel II.

The Constitution of the Roman Republic guaranteed religious freedom, the independence of the Catholic Church (its monarch the pope), and assigned within Rome an area for the Vatican, a separate kingdom.

The century of conflicts included backstabbing, secretly switched alliances, confusion as to which nation owned different states in the north, and the attempts of Two Sicilies to form a constitutional nation. However, all the people held one thing in common:

The Vatican City State in Rome

It wasn’t until 1929 that the actual creation of the Vatican as a city-state was completed. The wall surrounding Vatican City serves as an international boundary. During WWI, the German kaiser held a secret pact with Rome; when Germany won the war, it would restore all the papal states to its control. Germany lost, and the pact failed.

During WWII, Adolf Hitler, an Austrian, promised the same deal; a critique holds that Pius XII was mostly silent about the existence of the Holocaust because of this promise. The Italians fought on Hitler’s side as one of the Axis (Japan was the other partner). Had Hitler won, the pope would have reconstituted the papal states, dividing Italy again.

The person responsible for the Vatican’s creation (1929) was Benito Mussolini. Nations of the world have gradually come to recognize the Vatican as a nation and send ambassadors there. The United States recognized the Vatican as a nation in 1984.

The Evolution of Rail Travel

The building of railroads across America was an activity tied in with the expansion of our states to become the nation from sea to shining sea. The technology was already in place for three decades on the continent. England enjoyed an early explosion of rail building. Germany led the race for rails.

By 1850, Milan was already a hub for Sardinia, France, Switzerland, Germany, and lines growing east. Wars could be waged long distance. The central issue of transportation of armies defines the level of success any military venture can hope to achieve.

We don’t think about it much in our high-tech world where transportation via air and the Internet plus wireless international communication (a vital form of transportation) are assumed.

The explosion of the modern world began in Europe in the early nineteenth century with the race for rails. It played a part in the ability of characters in the story to move greater distances than would otherwise have been possible in my plotline. The combination of wagon, horse, ship (sail and steam), as well as rail are intermingled in the plot. The nineteenth century explosion of the telegraph followed throughout the middle years and beyond.

Nothing can be taken for granted; time becomes strategic in the flight of persons as well as the ability to track people. Identification papers have always been a critical element of travel in Europe and the East. One cannot move far without crossing a national border.

The Evolution of Culture

Cultures hold unique natures. Then they intermix; patterns of behavior change. Adapted versions of culture are recognized as how people in various states and countries express their lives in new ways. Rural semi-isolated groups intermix with populations amassed within large cities, a phenomenon of the nineteenth century in Europe and America. Called the Industrial Revolution, it created massive changes in life patterns. Hanging on to cultural patterns becomes critical for those who try maintaining balance in an unbalanced environment.

All these elements create the background in which people act, interact, and react to the world in which they live. Our very laws that once seemed simple to understand and live by become more complex as our society becomes larger. Invention and innovation redefine cultures through technologies that change how we live.

It’s true: the one constant on this planet is change. Those who can’t adapt—disappear. Like the reed and the mighty oak in a hurricane, the reed bends while the oak breaks. Through it all, good and evil within mankind continue their march through time. That is a constant as well, not subject to change.

Eduardo’s Mortal Sin is one such story of good and evil in conflict, in a world turning in new directions.

The Matter of Meters

Europe used the metric system, originated by the French; the expressions of distance, height, etc., in the tale are in that form. General equivalents are listed below, compared to the English system we use.

1

I Shall Want for Nothing

Florence, Italy

Spring of 1839

Precisely at 10:48 p.m.

The long, loud scream almost overpowered the sound of the large window bursting thirteen meters above the ground. The window, filled with crystal panes, plunged, along with the lady, to the low rock wall rising one meter above the ground.

Numerous crystal shards arrived first, striking the broad surface of the wall and spraying in all directions. Then the lady hit, crosswise to the wall. Crystals drove into the body. One large piece, having arrived on end just ahead of the body, drove up through the back and bared its bloody tip out of the chest. Myriad other shards struck the body, already perished, and gashed the flesh in a dozen places.

The center of the body’s back was impaled on the wall while legs and head both snapped down on either side of the cold stone surface.

Earlier the same day, precisely at 1:48 p.m.

Did you invite my friend Martino to the party? Eduardo looked up hopefully into his mother’s face. I so want him to be here. Tonight was a time to party, to celebrate Eduardo’s seventh birthday.

I’m sorry, said his mother, Anna. Not this year. It’s a matter of convenience for your father. Remember the rule he has for each of you: one gift only, and a small one at that. He doesn’t believe children should have others partying here or anything costly or an expense that goes outside cake and punch. He tells me we must have enough funds to last us for many years. Don’t let it be known there’s more than one gift for you today.

Eduardo looked a bit surprised. You mean there’s two gifts for me tonight?

"Actually, Eduardo, there’s three. Your friend Martino has a gift for you. He didn’t think Father would invite him to your party, but he wanted you to have a gift he bought for you. It’s wonderful, and I know you will enjoy it so much.

"So, yes, that makes three gifts. Keep it to yourself. It doesn’t do to get your father upset over things. Martino’s gift will be under your bed when you go to your room tonight. Until then, do not go upstairs to your room, capisce?"

I understand, Mamma. Eduardo nodded solemnly. We’ll all have a grand party as a family. That’s what counts. But that counts only as gift two. What is gift three?

"You know Marissa will bake you a chocolate cake, the one you like so much. Your father doesn’t want the servants to do more than they are paid to do. But Marissa will cook you your favorite dinner and a special cake. Then she whispered, It’s her birthday gift to you. That makes three gifts instead of just the one that your father says you ought to have."

The youngest son of the noted shipping magnate Salvatore Santore arrived as a curly-headed boy they called Eduardo just seven years earlier. He was born into a family highly respected among peers and of superb means. His older brother Pasquale and two older sisters, Coretta and Maria, rejoiced that God had granted such balance to the family.

As a child, Eduardo Santore was unusual in many ways. His birth was breech; his infancy seemed to be spent largely in silence. He was more fascinated observing the world about him than prattling, as did his sisters and brother. As he toddled then walked, one sensed he was always headed deliberately and directly toward something he saw or wanted to explore. To label Eduardo, one might say he was an intensely focused child.

His mother, Anna, was powerless to stop their father’s abuse of children and wife ever since their first daughter was born. Anna did what a mother of those times and traditions could do to shield them; she placed herself in harm’s way—always. Society and the law were not on her side or that of women as a whole.

Mama, Eduardo asked her one day in his fifth year, why is father always so mad at us? His father often flew into rages without the least provocation. Careful attention to behavior was the children’s practice, and only modest enthusiasm was allowed.

Sweet child, she said while rubbing his curly hair, your father works very hard to bring us the life we have. He is very tired when he comes home and needs peace and quiet to restore his good nature. He loves you very much. Be kind to him.

Eduardo, lying on the floor near his mother’s desk, turned back to the big book with lots of drawings. He turned the page and read two of the small words he recognized under the large picture of a four-masted sailing ship. His mother leaned over and read the other words to him. He repeated them until he was able to read the entire title. Eduardo nodded and sat down with a new book his mama brought him to read. He liked the drawings; though most words were new and often long, he could read a few. He learned many new words with each book. Pictures were the best part of a book.

Eduardo’s father, Salvatore, was a shipping magnate.

He believed the rule of man over woman was absolute and not to be questioned—ever. He questioned everything but was never to be questioned about anything. If he could not explain, he lied. Everything he did and said was absolute. He presented himself as such to his family.

He also drank a great deal, during the day as well as during meals. He attributed his additional need for sips of absinthe during the day to manage the stress of running his shipping business that made him an incredibly wealthy man. He kept the treasure to himself, doling out meager funds to Anna for care of children and household. He hoarded everything that touched his life—except his family.

Mamma, Eduardo asked her one day, why does Father smell funny?

What do you mean, Eduardo?

His breath, it...it doesn’t smell nice, like yours. Why is that?

He takes medicines to help him not be too tired. He says it helps him think so he can do a good job.

Tonight, hopefully, on this, his seventh birthday, there would be joy in the house as the youngest child turned of an age for full schooling. He would no longer be regarded as an infant son.

Soon enough, the family was seated at the dining table for dinner. The air was filled with expectation and the mood festive though carefully subdued.

I see, said Salvatore as he sat at the head of the table, directing his remarks to the servant entering with a tureen of soup, you have managed to bring dinner to the table on time. How many times this year has that been the case? This was the extent of the graciousness of any comment he might aim at the help. He looked for no answer to the question, merely recognition of what were the expected standards in the household.

Though it was a festive occasion with modest decorations and flowers on the massive dining table, any conversation was to be a reflection of what he might direct toward various members of the family around the table.

I noticed, Anna, you have trouble remembering that in this family, but one gift is the rule for such folderol as this must be for any of our children. Now they all will expect more, a violation of my rule. He raised his wineglass and emptied it. Setting it down, it was immediately filled by the servant who lifted the bottle from the sideboard and saw to keeping his glass filled at all times.

Dear husband, she responded softly, there is here but one gift for Eduardo. The decorations are what we always provide our children for their birthday festivities. That certainly does not constitute a gift. I know you are happy to recognize that Eduardo has now reached the age where he will be enjoying full schooling. We are now officially devoid of infants. She maintained a smile, picked up a small ladle from the gravy dish, and added a small portion to her plate. After dinner, most of which was consumed in silence, Salvatore nodded at Eduardo and said curtly, Now, open your gift, and let us be done with it. Birthdays are meaningless drivel for fools. Glaring at Anna, he added, I just can’t understand wasting money on those silly decorations you have on the table this evening.

Eduardo opened the package, which contained paper, writing tools, a bottle of ink, and a notebook, all elements suited to being carried to school for his first full term. His sisters and brother all commented briefly and not too noisily about how much Eduardo will find the items of the gift handy when he started school soon.

Then it was time for la torta di cioccolatini, the special chocolate cake Eduardo liked so much. Plates were set next to the cake while the cook carefully cut the slices for each of the children and added a dollop of whipped cream as a topping.

I don’t care for any right now, said Salvatore, rising from the table. Just bring a slice to my office after I finish speaking with my wife. Anna, I’ll need to see you in my office after the children leave the table—in no more than five minutes.

He moved rapidly from the room to his office. The children took the cue that they should eat rapidly and leave the table.

After Anna entered his office one minute later, he began berating her. He rose from his desk, walked an already besotted body around to where Anna stood, and raised his voice in her face. "Do you think I don’t know you’ve hidden another gift under il porco’s bed? Wasting more money? Because you like him best? Because you want to betray our agreement?"

Anna had no chance to respond that the gift was from Eduardo’s friend. He delivered a roundhouse slap to her face, heard both by staff and children. Don’t try to fool me, you liar. You make up stories that fool no one. I don’t need to hear it. Another slap. "Now get out of here.