The Black Book
- Francisco and Monticelso enter. Francisco says he doesn't want to pursue revenge—making war on Brachiano would be an unjust burden on his subjects, and a sin that will come back to haunt him.
- Monticelso says he's not in favor of war either—just using treachery to undermine Brachiano.
- Francisco pretends he's not in favor of treachery, but asks to see Monticelso's "black book"—containing the names of known criminals.
- Monticelso leaves to get the book. Alone, Francisco says he doesn't trust Monticelso, and won't indicate exactly how he plans to pursue revenge.
- Monticelso returns and explains the different kinds of people listed in the book: pirates, robbers, women who dress in men's clothing, usurers, corrupt lawyers and priests, and more. He exits.
- Francisco, alone, ruminates on the book. He doesn't like it, since it's a tool of corruption—people like the cardinal use it to collect bribes from the known criminals in exchange for not turning them in. But he, Francisco, will only use it for one purpose—to find people to help him get revenge. He laments, though, that religion lets itself get twisted to these corrupt purposes—what with a cardinal owning books like this.
- In a melancholy frame of mind, he sees the ghost of his sister (who enters), which makes him feel extremely sad. But he dismisses it as a hallucination—he needs to keep his mind on revenge. The ghost exits.
- He writes a fake love-letter to Vittoria and tells his servant (who enters) to deliver it to her in her place of imprisonment when Brachiano's followers are around (in order to make him jealous). The servant leaves.
- Francisco decides to pay Lodovico to be his instrument in gaining revenge. As the scene ends, he swears to have Brachiano killed.