Pietro sat beside his grandfather, Sandro, while the old man described the scene of Savonarola’s death. When Sandro drifted off to sleep, Pietro remained sitting on the chair at the bedside, conjuring visual images of what had taken place on that day so long ago.
Many stories were still told of the friar’s teaching, his prophesies, and his death by fire. There were Florentines who still believed in Savonarola’s divine connection while others scoffed at the idea. True, he had led the Signoria to expel the Medici family from the city. Their power had declined once Lorenzo de’ Medici had passed away in 1492, leaving their banking empire in the hands of his weaker son, Piero. Without the forceful Lorenzo in charge, the anti-Medici contingent could force Piero and the rest of the Medici clan o
