In this short scene, Dr. Bledsoe tries to convince the Duke of Castile to let the eviction of Cluny take place. The Duke refuses, saying that he has nothing to do with the eviction and that the eviction is a good thing for the city. He also says that he helped Dr. Bertram in his search for the boy, but that the Duke has not succeeded in fooling him. The duke says that the king will forget his good deed if he gets too interested in the affairs of the Duke's friend, Flavius. Dr. Bardolph, the Duke, says that it is better for the Duke to stay away from the whole thing, because he knows that Flavius is innocent and that he would not want to torture him. He then asks the Duke if he would let a friend who was innocent be tortured, and the Duke replies that it would be better for him not to do so. The Earl of Northumberland, who is also present at the meeting, tells the Duke that he was present at a raid on the slave boat that was next door to Cluny's house, and he was told that the ship's lookout knew where the boy was being taken. He was also told that a second slave boat was headed for the same spot, and that its captain was going to retire. The king lost his mind when he lost sight of the boy in the shadow of the count, and it is clear that he did not care about the boy's safety. He asks the duke to give him back the boy and to tell him where he hid them.