EPISODE 203 – “THE BEAUTIFUL DECEPTION”
When her father tells heart-broken Lucrezia that Paolo’s suicide cannot be given a Christian funeral and will go to Hell, she refuses to feed either herself or her baby. Worried for his grandson, Alexander relents, but he also suspects what she has already realized: Juan murdered him. Soon however, the family faces a greater threat. The French army is marching from Naples, King Charles is eager for vengeance for having been tricked by Alexander, and what’s worse, his forces are backed by those of Giovanni Sforza, Lucrezia’s humiliated ex-husband, and his powerful cousin Catherina. The French lay siege to Rome once more and this time it seems the city must fall to Charles’ superior artillery. But Cesare concocts an elegant plan and works with Vittoria to outwit the French once again. Meanwhile, Della Rovere has arrived in Rome unnoticed, seeking conspirators for his new plot to assassinate the Pope.
EPISODE 204 – “STRAY DOGS”
Alexander’s old enemy Ludovico of Milan and the powerful Mantuan Duke Gonzaga seek the Pope’s blessing for an alliance with Venice to attack the French army, which is still laying waste to the Italian countryside. Cesare learns that the retreating French have burned the nunnery of St. Cecilia and his beloved Ursula has been killed; he and Micheletto recruit a band of cut-throat killers and mercenaries to seek revenge. Leaving Lucrezia in charge at the Vatican, Alexander and Cesare travel to join the Italian forces who seem doomed in the face of the French cannon. But the dreaded artillery does not fire – either because of Alexander’s fervent Papal prayers for rain or because of Cesare’s hired killers’ daring raid on a French ammo dump. The battle is a bloody inconclusive draw, but the wily Alexander has come out on top, seizing abandoned French booty as the price of his blessing and seeing potential enemies weakened by the slaughter. Back in Rome, Lucrezia tests her new power as she joins in Giulia’s quest to fight Vatican corruption and provide charity for the poor.
EPISODE 205 – “THE CHOICE”
Alexander is determined to deal with the twin thorns in his side: the haughty Sforza family and the rebellious Florentine friar Savonarola. He sends Cesare to Catherina Sforza’s castle at Forli to demand that she swear allegiance to Rome while he himself travels to Florence in disguise to hear the increasingly powerful Savonarola preach – not knowing that Della Rovere is there too, getting Savonarola’s blessing on his plot to assassinate the Pope. At Forli, Catherina receives Cesare graciously and proceeds to seduce him, but subsequently refuses to swear allegiance to the Pope. Enraged, Cesare kills her cousin Giovanni – as revenge for his brutal treatment and rape of Lucrezia during their ill-fated marriage. In Rome, Lucrezia, Vanozza and Giulia put their plan for reform into action by funding the renovation of a run-down brothel. Lightning strikes St. Peter’s Basilica during a Mass and the roof collapses – Alexander is almost killed, but courageously tries to save the lives of choirboys trapped in the rubble.
EPISODE 206 – “DAY OF ASHES”
Convinced that the lightning strike was a sign of God’s disapproval, Alexander begins a fastidious regime of Lenten fasting. Alexander’s political problems worsen: Cesare’s intemperate killing of Giovanni has hardened the enmity of the powerful Sforzas, while Piero de Medici flees to Rome with news that Savonarola now rules Florence and that Papal deposits with the Bank may be lost. Desperate for new allies, Alexander recruits Vanozza to persuade a reluctant Lucrezia to marry again. Lucrezia resists and plays the diva. Meanwhile, she and her mother along with Giulia, confront Cardinals Versucci and Piccolomini and demand that they channel curia money to the poor for whom it was intended. In Florence, Cesare confronts Savonarola, but is almost killed by the friar’s chilling child army. Seeking to prove to his father that he is capable of taking control of the Papal armies, Cesare and his “wild bunch” attempt a daring heist of Medici gold, but he is disappointed when he learns that Juan is coming back from Spain to take military command once again.
EPISODE 207 – “THE SIEGE AT FORLI”
Juan returns from Spain, flanked by a retinue of conquistador generals led by the proud Don Hernando. Alexander is impressed by his son’s newfound confidence and orders him to lead the Papal armies to besiege Catherina Sforza’s castle. Lucrezia meanwhile, stalls attempts to marry her off – her father favors rich Genovese merchant prince Calvino – but Lucrezia, obstinate and deliberately perverse, proceeds to flirt with his younger (and thus inappropriate) brother Raffaello. In Florence, Cesare and Machiavelli witness Savonarola’s puritan zealots strengthen their grip on power, culminating in the fevered destruction of art works and luxuries in the “Bonfire of the Vanities.” Della Rovere has recruited angelic-looking young friar Antonello as the “suicide” assassin for his plot, and begins to feed the willing boy small doses of poison to create a tolerance to deadly cantarella. Meanwhile, Juan’s siege of Forli reaches a stalemate until he manages to kidnap Catherina’s son Benito, whom he tortures and threatens to kill in view of the castle walls. Hernando is disgusted by this ignoble behavior and Juan’s true cowardly nature is revealed when he flees in terror as the siege is broken by a surprise attack by Ludovico Sforza’s reinforcements.
EPISODE 208 – “TRUTH AND LIES”
Back in Rome, Juan flaunts a wounded leg and spins a yarn about his valiant conduct at his army’s defeat at Forli. But Hernando brings the boy Benito back to Rome and Cesare is determined to have his father hear the truth of Juan’s cowardice. Juan, bitter and humiliated, is now dying from syphilis and the infected wound and turns to opium addiction to dull his pain. Lucrezia, Giulia and Vanozza discover that the improvements to an orphanage they demanded from the Cardinals have not been begun, so they turn to blackmail to finish the project. Lucrezia meanwhile, still prevaricates over marriage to Calvino while flirting with his brother; Vanozza gives her some homespun advice about taking lovers; and Lucrezia seduces Raffaello. Della Rovere’s assassination plan faces one last hurdle: how to replace the Pope’s taster with his own agent? While Della Rovere ponders the moral dilemma of killing a good man for a greater end, his accomplice Antonello takes matters into his own hands.
EPISODE 209 – “WORLD OF WONDERS”
It’s Easter, but Alexander continues to fast. A new taster is recruited, and Antonello gets the job – Della Rovere’s assassin is ready to strike. In Florence, Cesare challenges Savonarola to a trial by fire. Raffaello meanwhile, formally asks for Lucrezia’s hand but Alexander sends the brothers packing. Giulia persuades Alexander that his Papacy has been a good thing, so he ends his fast and orders a celebration for the baptism of Lucrezia’s baby. At the party, Antonello is ready to strike but is thwarted by Alexander’s switch from water back to wine. As the party continues, Juan is completely out of control, and threatens the life of Lucrezia’s child. A chilling Cesare at last comes to terms with what needs to be done.
EPISODE 210 – “THE CONFESSION”
While Alexander worries that Juan has not come home, Savonarola is tortured on the rack but will not confess. Cesare, determined to destroy his legacy as well as his body, fakes a confession and Savonarola is burned as a heretic. Meanwhile, a new suitor for Lucrezia’s hand – Alfonso of Aragon – arrives in Rome. Playful Lucrezia sets out to play the minx with him as with the others, then surprises herself by falling for him. She announces she will marry him. The Pope’s joy, however, is short-lived when he receives dire news, furthered by a shocking confession from Cesare. Later, during celebrations for Lucrezia’s betrothal, Alexander and Cesare reunite over a cup of wine, but Antonello is there and Cesare realizes the danger too late as the Pope raises the poisoned cup to his lips…
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