Between Faith and Fire, THE CHOICE IS DOOM OR DEFIANCE 'TIS THE YEAR OF OUR LORD ONE THOUSAND FOUR HUNDRED FIFTY. LORENZO DI RANIERI, a sergeant of the Civic Militia of the Repubblica Fiorentina , returns to his hometown in the twilight ere the Greyfriar inquisitors set foot in Cortona. As the head of a noble family, he leads the perilous task of shielding his town from the Inquisition. Yet shall he and his fellows-at-arms prevail in warding not only his ruin but that of their kin and folk? In the mean while, as he evades wedlock to lovely yet spirited Costanza, Lorenzo discovers his soul's own kind-Vittorio, a wealthy merchant of cloths trapped in a loveless marriage to Elena. Natheless, steeped in shadowed craft beyond the stately draper he seems, Vittorio shall halt at nought to guard his truest love. A witch's guidance and the aid of a primordial god may tip the scales in their favor. Yet a wicked Franciscan Guardian and a cunning extortioner threaten to expose both their forbidden love and Lorenzo's uncanny abilities. Time is against them. The pyres of La Piazza stand ready. Will they burn or outwit fate ere the flames uprise?