CHAPTER SIXTY-NINE
Suleyman strode across the floor of the Divan Chamber. All of the Pashas and their advisors had been gathered to this urgent meeting of the council, and now the Grand Vizier translated the message from Francis into the language of the Court.
As the letter came to a close, Suleyman glanced up toward the golden lattice of the Sultan’s Eye—a shrouded, latticed window high above and behind the chair of the Grand Vizier. He knew full well that Haseki and possibly the Valide Sultana would be secreted there to listen to the proceedings.
“So!” he bellowed at last. “That young bastard, Louis—who, may I remind you, is only fourteen years old—has kept our Janissaries busy with skirmishes in Hungary for three years now. Meanwhile those Hapsburg dogs, Charles and Ferdinand of Aust
