On the following day, with the conclusion of vespers, the marchesa walks through the solitary aisles to the north cloister of San Nicola, feeling agitated. As such, Schedoni is able to glean that she has not entirely accepted his suggestion.

He continues to urge her by implying a lack of courage on her part and an inability to rise above “vulgar prejudices” while being unprepared to assert justice. Virtue never trembles, he tells her. The marchesa, however, remains unconvinced, to which Schedoni assures her that she would have protection and absolution from the church.

When he brings up the idea of mercenaries to murder Ellena, the marchesa suggests, albeit indirectly, that she would like to him to perform the deed. However, she remains appalled and is almost determined to abandon the plan altogether. But this reluctance is only fleeting in the onslaught of her violent passions.

Schedoni mentions that there is a nefarious man who lives on the shore of the Adriatic who might be suitable for the deed. However, the marchesa wonders how such a person can be trusted, hinting that she wishes Schedoni to kill Ellena himself. He, in turn, recoils with displeasure.

As the marchesa advises him that it is best to avoid violence and let her die quickly, she glances up and is momentarily shocked by seeing an inscription over a confessional that reads “God hears thee!” After briefly recovering herself, she is then frightened by the sounds of mournful music, remarking that it was “touched by a fearful hand” since vespers had long ended. Reflecting on how the body of the deceased is now cold when it was warm and animated only an hour ago, she begins to cry.

Schedoni feels contemptuous, deploring women as a sex which he regards as the slave of passions and the dupe of senses. The marchesa decides to resume the discussion at a later point.