"Nic, don't!" Aurelia yelled.
Sal and I both turned, and from the panicked expression on her face, I thought she believed I was about to attack him. But instead, when Sal looked at me again, I placed my hand on his shoulder. He did the same to mine.
"I hear people talk about you," Sal said. "I know that none of what they say is true."
For once, I felt no need to lower my eyes when I spoke to him. "Thank you, Sal."
"That was unexpected." Aurelia walked forward, holding a satchel in her hands. It was made of thick gray cloth and bundled with a rope at the top. She swung the loose half of the rope over her shoulder but kept it close to her body.
"What's in there?" I asked. "Is it your other request to Sal?"
I looked to him for confirmation of the answer. He merely nodded and then disappeared back within the home.
"I'll tell you what's in here later. For now, let's go." She started toward Callistus, but I called her name and she stopped.
"Sal just told me I've been freed." I still couldn't believe it. "Is that what you meant, about how you'd use your inheritance?"
Her feet shifted again beneath her. "He paid the tax from his own savings. He told me a while ago that he wanted to do it ever since you rescued him in the arena. I just paid him enough to be sure he got it done today."
"I can't repay you for this," I said. "Not yet, at least, but I will."
She shook her head. "I don't care about that."
"Then how do I thank you?"
She stared at me a moment, biting on her lip as she did. Finally, she said, "Thank Sal if you must. You owe me nothing. Now take this. You said you were hungry." In her hands was a pear. A little underripe, but still good enough to eat. I placed it in the pocket of my tunic for later.
Then she backed away to Callistus and swung into the saddle, placing the satchel in front of her. Something was still bothering her, which concerned me, but I didn't know what it was and she clearly had no intention of telling me.
"Now where do we go?" I asked, climbing up behind her. It was equally obvious that Aurelia had a firm plan in place, and that I was only being allowed to come along since I had nowhere else to go.
"Crispus's home. He's planning a special supper tonight and wants me there."
I shrugged. "Am I invited too? He hasn't said anything to me about it."
She gave Callistus a pat on his shoulder, mostly ignoring me. "We'll see."
And this was what I'd meant by thinking that I did not speak girl. Her words had some sort of meaning. I just had no idea what it was.
We were welcomed into Crispus's home by his mother, who informed us that Crispus still hadn't returned from his business for the day. We already knew his business -- doing whatever was necessary to rescue Radulf from the courts. However, if he had a supper planned for the evening, then he should arrive soon.
Crispus's mother was a proper, nervous sort of woman who I'd noticed often held something between her fingers for distraction. Right now, it was an ivory comb that probably belonged in her hair. She glanced over my tunic with mild disapproval. Except for the tears in it from my explosion outside Radulf's home, and then the explosion of Radulf's home, there was nothing wrong with it, but it clearly wasn't fancy enough for whoever was coming to the supper. For that, I'd need a toga.
"Crispus's father had several," she said. "You can use one of his, if you don't mind wearing the clothes of someone who's died."
I did mind. Something in her expression blamed me for Valerius's death. Maybe I deserved that. I stared back at her while my heart pounded in my chest. Should I apologize to her? How could any apology possibly compensate for my failure to save him?
"Thank you," Aurelia said on my behalf. "Perhaps a servant can bring that toga to his room? I'd better go get ready too."
After Crispus's mother had left, I asked, "Who is coming tonight?"
Aurelia was making herself busy with anything that kept her from looking at me. "A friend of Crispus's family and nobody you'll know." Then she drew in a deep breath. "It'd be better if you weren't even here tonight, but since I know you won't sit quietly in your room, will you at least agree to sit quietly at the supper?"
"Can you tell me what this supper is for?"
She huffed, then said, "Crispus arranged this last night after he found out the Praetors' plans for Radulf. Crispus has always intended to do everything he could to clear him of the charges but knew it probably wouldn't work -- Brutus is far too powerful. So this is our other plan."
I pointed at the satchel in her hands. "What's in there?"
She shook her head, refusing to answer. "I don't want you trying to talk me out of this plan. Crispus already tried that, and you won't have any more success. You'll find out after everything is settled, not before." Then she disappeared deeper into the home, I assumed to the room that had been given to her whenever she stayed here. I suspected she had stayed fairly often. She'd never want to be in the same home as Sal, and besides, with her betrothal to Crispus, it wouldn't be unusual to see her here.
After an hour in my room, a knock came at the door. I opened it, expecting to see a servant with one of Valerius's old togas. I didn't have the first clue for how to wrap it around myself, but figured I'd be laughed at if I asked. Not nearly as much laughter if I didn't ask, I supposed. I needed help.
Except that it wasn't a servant, and I was horrified to see who had come. Livia.
Once I recovered from the shock of seeing her, I pulled her into my room and shut the door. "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be on the carriage with Mother!"
Livia's eyes darted away, then back to me. "Don't be angry --"
"I am angry. Livia, you're not safe here!"
"Are you safe here? Did you consider how it felt to be told I was leaving the empire, then told I would have to leave you behind? Back at the mines, I protected you! When did I become so useless?"
My heart softened, as it always did with Livia. "You have never been useless. But when a million Romans decided they wanted my magic, and when an entire army of Praetors realized if they can capture you, they can get anything they want from me, things changed." I drew in a deep breath. "Things have changed, Livia."
She pointed to the Malice on my wrist. "I retrieved that for you. I kept it safe from all those Praetors, and from the Mistress! I can still help you win."
"No, you can't." Frustrated, I ran a hand through my hair. "I can't destroy the Malice, which means this magic will always be a part of me, which means I'll always be a target. I've got to find a way to save Radulf. After I do, I'll send you both up to Britannia, and this time you will go."
Her delicate eyes softened. "What about you?"
"That's what I need everyone to understand." I shrugged. Despite all that I could do, or maybe because of it, my choices were limited. "I can't go to Britannia. Not ever."
"If you defeat the Praetors, and the Mistress --"
"There are only two ways to break the curse upon her. Neither of them is good."
Tears that she'd kept welled up began to slide down her cheeks. "You can't fight this war forever."
"No, but I can keep it from following me to Britannia."
She brushed away the tears, but more appeared in their place. "Then where will you go?"
I had no answer to that, and even if I did, it would only give her more sadness. So instead, I pulled her into an embrace and let her cry, while fighting against my own emotions. "This is for the best," I whispered. "Trust me."
She shook her head, even as it was buried in my shoulder. "You have to find a way. At least try."
"I will." Saying the words was the easy part. Everything that came next seemed impossible.
Another knock came at the door. "Nic?" That was Aurelia's voice.
Livia stood back from me and wiped her tears.
"Don't tell her any of this," I said. "Aurelia needs to go to Britannia too." With Crispus.
Livia nodded, and I asked Aurelia to enter.
Her eyes instantly went to Livia.
"What is this?" she asked. "I thought you'd left!"
"I learned from you." Livia faked her happiness well, I had to admit that. "My choices belong to me."
Aurelia smiled, making sure I saw it. "As they should! Well, you must join us for supper. Crispus will be thrilled to know you're still here."
"He won't be angry?" Livia said. "He was the one who told me to stay in the carriage this morning."
"He won't be angry ... with you." Aurelia also made sure I heard that last word, which was unnecessary. No one could stay angry with Livia for long. And besides, Crispus had only sent her away because I had asked him to. It shouldn't matter to him whether Livia stayed or left.
Aurelia handed me the toga that was in her arms. "I picked this one out myself. The blue fabric will look nice with your eyes. It will also blend in well with the background, which is your only job tonight."
Though there was a lightness in her tone, she wasn't teasing. She was clearly anxious about whatever the plan was for the supper, and she didn't want me interfering. That was fine. I had no intentions of causing any trouble until after it was dark and I left this home to go rescue Radulf. That would be more than enough interference for one day.
Aurelia put an arm around Livia. "We need to get you cleaned up for tonight." As they started to leave the room, she turned to me and added, "If you need help with that, just call out and someone will come."
"I don't need help," I said. The truth was, I didn't even know where to start with all this fabric.
She giggled and Livia joined in, but before they left, Livia looked back one last time, fighting away more tears.
I was glad they left when they did. Because the truth was, so was I.
Crispus arrived home only a few minutes before the supper was meant to begin. A servant outside my door told him I was here, and immediately he asked to come in my room.
"How is Radulf?" I asked as he adjusted the toga's knot on my shoulder.
Crispus's tight expression didn't offer much hope. "It's bad, Nic. His prison is damp and likely infested with disease. I brought him a little food, but if I gave him too much, he'd be attacked by the other prisoners for it. As weak as Radulf was when they put him in, he'll be worse when he comes out."
"And when will that be?"
"Tomorrow. They'll hold a trial in the Basilica Julia because they say his crimes originated with Caesar himself." Crispus licked his lips. "I'm only one of a hundred judges to hear his case. My vote will matter little. And the chairman of the trial will be Decimas Brutus."
Aurelia had explained it earlier when we rode together. At the trial, some orators would speak in favor of Radulf's conviction, and others would speak in his defense. The chairman's job was to ensure fairness during those speeches, though I hardly believed fairness was ever a priority for Brutus. In the end, Crispus and the other judges would cast their votes upon wax tablets. The votes were supposed to be secret, but again, I thought it was likely that Brutus would do everything he could to influence the outcome. After all he'd done to get Radulf arrested, he would not risk losing now.
"Are there any ways to avoid the trial?" I asked.
"Not unless Brutus drops the charges, and you can guess how likely that is." Crispus motioned for a servant to bring him a braided gold rope to tie around my waist. "Honestly, don't you know how to wear a toga?"
"No." Nor did I much care about it at the moment.
"You weren't supposed to be here," he muttered. "Listen, what's about to happen is not my idea. It's Aurelia's, and she wants to do this."
"To do what?" I asked. I did care about this a great deal, and if it took a properly belted toga to learn her plans, then I would gladly cooperate.
A servant opened my door and poked his head in, addressing Crispus. "Master, your guest has arrived."
"Aurelia's plan obviously involves Radulf's trial tomorrow," I said. When Crispus didn't answer, I added, "Is your guest tonight another judge?"
Crispus nodded. "A very influential judge. After the trial, others will watch his vote before casting their own."
Suddenly, I knew exactly what was in Aurelia's satchel, her reasons for inviting a judge to this supper. And I didn't like any of it.
Considering the food preparations under way when I'd passed by the culina earlier, I had expected a large group in attendance at supper, but Crispus's guest came alone. His name was announced as Manius Cornelius Nasica. I suppressed a smile when I heard it. Nasica meant "pointed nose," and this man certainly fit the description. Caela's beak was less sharp than his. The thin band most Praetors wore wasn't around his arm, which was a relief, though it hardly made me trust him.
By the time we entered the triclinium, Nasica was already reclined on a couch with Aurelia on a second couch. She had the satchel at her feet, and they appeared to be in quiet conversation. Aurelia eyed me as if she were displeased that we had come so soon, and then shook her head in a quiet reminder for me to not interfere.
"Welcome, my friend." Crispus was quickly growing into his role as master of this home. He seemed comfortable with greeting a man who was twice his age and at least twice his girth.
Nasica stood and gave a polite nod of his head to Crispus, but his eyes quickly rested on me. "This is the slave that does magic?"
"He's a freeman and a citizen." Aurelia spoke the words as if nothing more needed to be said.
"This is Nicolas Calva," Crispus added. "Our friend."
Nasica looked at me from over the top of his pointed nose, his lips pursed together in disapproval. That was fine by me. He didn't need to consider me a friend. I was in no hurry to befriend this fool of a man either.
After exchanging curt nods, Crispus sat beside Aurelia while I took the third couch. We had only just been seated when Livia entered the room, looking impossibly lovely considering that she'd only had a few minutes to prepare herself. I noted, also, that her toga had been correctly tied. Hers came up over one shoulder but was pulled beneath the other arm and was fitted with two gold bands, one at the lower waist and the other higher up. She looked natural in such fine clothes, unlike me, who looked as if I'd become tangled up in a bedsheet. This was the way Livia had always been meant to dress.
It was also the way Aurelia would dress once she was in Britannia, if people dressed in togas up north. Crispus would be good to her, provide her with a life I never could. If I truly cared for her, I should be happy to know that with him, all of life's comforts awaited her.
"Sit down, Nic," Livia hissed.
I hadn't realized she had moved from the entrance and was already on the couch beside me. Had Crispus introduced her to Nasica, or was he waiting for me to do it?
Livia giggled. "Really, Nic. Sit down."
Aurelia was giggling too, but I avoided looking at her. And before I could sit, Crispus's mother entered the room, elegantly dressed in the darker colors of someone in mourning. There was nowhere for her to sit except beside Nasica, and she did so, looking very uncomfortable. I considered offering to exchange places with her, but I had promised not to interfere tonight, and settling myself between Aurelia and Nasica seemed like a definite interference.
The supper was as extravagant as any meal I'd ever eaten. We began with radishes, boiled eggs, and a warm drink sweetened with honey. Then a variety of fish and carved meats were served, some of which I'd never tasted before, since Radulf preferred simpler meals. I ate a great deal because I was as hungry as usual, but also because the conversation was rather dull.
Nasica was a dim-witted sort of man who seemed to find amusement in sharing the details of trade routes to Africa, the exact shade of purple on plums as compared to grapes, his extensive family history, and other facts determined to put me to sleep. He must be very wealthy because nothing in his conversation helped me understand why anyone might follow his lead. In her kindness, Livia encouraged him by asking questions, though I knew she couldn't have held any actual interest in his dusty stories. Crisp
us and Aurelia paid polite attention, but I knew they were waiting for the main meal to end so they could get to the actual business of why Nasica had been invited here. And I was quickly losing patience with the entire ordeal.
Why didn't Aurelia just open that satchel at her feet and show him what was inside? How much of her inheritance did she intend to use as a bribe for Nasica? I doubted it would take much. If anything, Nasica owed us money as an apology for being forced to endure his stories all evening.
Once the meats were taken away, the servant announced a short break before he would bring out the fruit and cakes. Crispus's mother used the opportunity to stand and say she had a headache and would retire for the evening.
Crispus stood, offering to escort her to her room, but she nodded instead to me. "Perhaps Nicolas can walk me there."
I stood as well, but I didn't want to leave, not now. Had Aurelia prearranged for Crispus's mother to get me out of the room, or was it just a coincidence? I looked to Aurelia for an answer, but her head was still down as if suddenly fascinated by the tile floor.
"Will you escort her?" Crispus asked me.
What else could I say?
"Of course." I held out my arm to his mother, but as I led her from the room I gave one glance back at Aurelia. Her hands were wrapped so tightly around the satchel that her knuckles were white. Yes, they were going to discuss the bribe without me there. I hated this.
We walked most of the way to his mother's room in silence. I barely knew her and couldn't think of what I might say. Again I wondered, should I apologize for not being able to save Valerius in that battle? For bringing the battle to her property in the first place? For being here now? How could I possibly apologize for one fault without making myself even more guilty of the rest?
As we neared the door, his mother stopped, released my arm, and said, "Do you know why I asked you to walk with me?"
Because Aurelia asked you to? Because she and your son have a plan and all I can do is frustrate them? Because I was never supposed to be here in the first place?
Those were the things I did not say. I'd learned many times that speaking usually led to greater problems in my life. So instead, I only shook my head at her.