by Carol Ashby
The two lionesses hit them almost simultaneously. One quick bite to the neck, and Publius was free forever.
Lucius had already moved into the town house, and he expected to spend very little time in the near future at the estate that had been his home. His wife was there with their children, and the way Cornelia looked at him since his father was arrested...a loathsome bug would have felt more respected.
With Father dead, he was paterfamilias now. If it weren’t for Cornelia’s dowry money, he’d divorce her. That and not wanting a scandal so soon after Father’s death. He felt the condemnation in the gazes of many at the forum. Cornelia had many friends, and her brothers were too important to have as enemies. But at least he didn’t have to spend his evenings with her anymore. That thought drew a smile.
By moving into town, he’d also escaped the nuisance of his daughter crying at night. For some unfathomable reason, Cornelia had chosen to nurse herself, and more than once his sexual pleasure had been interrupted by the infant’s greedy cries. The baby was almost two but she still made much more noise than he liked.
He’d left the baby behind, but he hadn’t escaped the sound of a bawling female. The slightest thing triggered Claudia’s tears since Father had been taken away, and he was sick of it. He would never have admitted it to anyone, but her tears pricked what little conscience he had over getting his father killed.
As he walked toward her room, he heard the sobs yet again. It was long past time that she should have that under control.
When he stepped into the room, Claudia’s maid was standing at her bedside. He flicked his hand to summon her before he stepped back into the atrium.
The maid bowed her head and clasped her hands at her waist as she waited for his orders. He kept his voice low. What he told any slave of his was none of Claudia’s business.
“What are you doing to get Claudia to stop this constant fussing?”
“Whatever I can, master. I hold her hand. I rub her back. I sit with her after the nightmares.”
Lucius’s brows dipped. “It isn’t enough. I want this crying to stop. Father is dead, and it’s time she accepted it and moved on. You’re the closest one to her. I expect you to start cheering her up. Now...or there will be consequences for you.”
The maid’s eyes widened. “I truly am trying, master, but nothing I’ve tried seems to work. I just don’t know what will.”
“Figure it out. If she keeps this up, she’s going to make herself sick. I’ll give her two more weeks, and then...it has to stop. See to it that it does.”
She lowered her eyes. “Yes, master.”
With a flick of his hand, he sent her back to her mistress.
Lucius walked on to the library and seated himself at his father’s desk. The chair was comfortable; it was a pleasant place to spread a scroll and read. A matching chair gave equal comfort to someone who might sit across the desk for a board game. Father and Claudia had played there often. The painted seascapes and mountain views that adorned the walls made it easy to forget the urban congestion of Rome waiting outside. The barred window near the ceiling was too small to admit a thief while it added to the light streaming in from the atrium. The library had been Father’s favorite room. It had already become his.
Lucius picked up a bronze-tipped ivory stylus and drummed on the desktop. Crying herself sick―that could ruin Claudia’s beauty and diminish the money he expected to get for betrothing her in the next few weeks.
Father had turned down too many marriage proposals. Claudia was already sixteen; she should be married. Now that Father was dead, some of the wealthy patrician families that he’d refused were approaching Lucius. He would soon be making his selection.
Roman marriage didn’t officially involve payment of a bride price, but money often changed hands to sway the choice of a guardian. He hadn’t quite decided whether he would place more weight on the importance of the family or the amount of money they were offering to encourage him to give them Claudia. Most of the offers were impressive on both counts. The best were more than enough to repay him for the dowry he planned to provide her. He wouldn’t mind coming out money ahead when he made the final decision.
Lucius was reading some satirical poetry by Lucilius when the door slave came to announce a visitor.
“Master, Flavius Sabinus has come to see you. I have seated him in the atrium.”
“Bring him here to me.” Lucius rubbed his cheek. He hadn’t expected such a distinguished caller so soon after assuming headship of the family. He’d heard many things about Sabinus, most of which made it clear that he was not a man to be trifled with. His sudden appearance made Lucius a bit nervous.
Lucius stood respectfully as Sabinus entered the room.
He held out his hand to offer his influential visitor the guest chair. “You honor me with your visit, Flavius Sabinus. I’ve never had the pleasure of receiving a pillar of Roman society like yourself before.”
Sabinus looked around the room at the many shelves of codices and scrolls. The room reflected the personality of its former owner, yet the current one seemed more at home in it than he expected. Still, his inquiries about Lucius suggested the son would be much more receptive to his proposal than the father ever would have been. A man who would betray his own father to inherit early was a man he could deal with.
“I thought it appropriate to pay my respects to a man who loves Rome so much that he would choose her over all else. Rome should have many more sons who would choose her even over family loyalties.” His lips smiled, and he willed his eyes to be warm instead of coldly reptilian.
“It was the most difficult thing I’ve ever done. My father was a fine man until he chose to abandon his duty to Rome. His absence from this house has brought great sadness to us all.”
Sabinus was expert at reading people, and watching Lucius was entertaining. The new head of the Claudius Drusus family was still an amateur at the game of deceit, but he had the potential to become a master.
“I believe your sister Claudia was especially close to your father. She must be greatly affected by his death.”
“Yes. Father doted on her, and she almost worshiped him. This is very hard for her.” Lucius started to reach to rub the back of his neck, but stopped himself. Sabinus suppressed a smile. He liked to make people nervous, but he didn’t want this one to know that...yet.
“I have observed that the quickest way to get over a loss is a change of scenery. To remain in this house, with all its memories of better times, is very bad for her.”
“It’s hard for us all. I’m sure she will recover in time.”
“Perhaps I can help with that.” The crocodile began positioning himself to capture the prey. “I was in conversation with your father about marrying your sister just before he was arrested. While many fine Roman families might now be unwilling to accept the daughter of one who rejected his duty to Rome, I am a man who does not hold the crimes of the parent against the child. I’m still interested in taking her as my wife.”
Lucius’s two fast blinks ushered in a broad smile. “That’s extremely generous of you, Flavius Sabinus. We are honored that you would still consider Claudia worthy of your regard.”
Sabinus almost let his self-satisfied smile out, but he replaced it with a friendly one before Drusus should have seen.
Lucius’s brow began to furrow, then it smoothed. “I’m glad to say that many of the finer families in Rome share your generous spirit. Several have already let me know they would welcome Claudia as a daughter-in-law despite my father’s unfortunate choice.”
Sabinus kept his friendly smile, but he did not like that response. The son should have been easier to manipulate than the father. Competition for anything he wanted was unwelcome, and he wanted Claudia.
“That does them credit. She is a beautiful girl, and I am glad she won’t have to suffer rejection by Roman society.”
“As far as I can tell, she’s as sought after now as
she was before. My father had turned down several marriage proposals. I believe most of those families are still eager for my sister to join them.”
Lucius saw a flicker of emotion in the reptilian eyes. It might be anger, but it was gone before he could be certain.
“Yes, but their eagerness may not be equal to my own. Your father and I were discussing 50,000 denarii as a token of my great esteem for your sister.”
Lucius hoped he hadn’t let his amazement at the size of the offer show, but he was new at this game. Something about Sabinus wanting his sister that badly made his skin crawl. He’d heard the rumor that his last wife had died from a beating at his hands. Lucius wasn’t close to Claudia, but even he wasn’t eager to send his little sister into the hands of that kind of man.
“That’s an extraordinarily generous offer. There are some that are comparable, but that is certainly one of the most generous.”
“Your sister is an extraordinary beauty, worth the price.”
“This is a great compliment to her. I’ll be considering what will be best for Claudia over the next few weeks, and I will certainly take your admiration and respect for her into strong consideration as I choose her husband.”
Sabinus’s eyebrow rose, then settled. Lucius’s response was clearly not the one Sabinus had expected and certainly not the response he wanted.
“I am sure that, upon reflection, you will come to a wise decision that will benefit both yourself and your sister. An alliance with my family can be a great advantage that would extend far past my monetary expression of appreciation of her worth. Having the right friends and avoiding the wrong enemies can be of immeasurable value.”
A chill ran up Lucius’s spine as he looked into the predatory eyes of the cold-blooded power broker. He wasn’t sure just how dangerous it might be to cross him. He didn’t especially want to sell Claudia into a bad marriage, but if it came down to a question of selling Claudia or risking harm to himself, the sale would go through.
“Her grief is so intense right now that I’m reluctant to commit her to a marriage for a few weeks. I can assure you that your kind interest will not be forgotten when the time comes.”
More than anything, Lucius wanted to end this audience with the crocodile as soon as possible. He’d never before had the feeling of being no more than a bug to be squashed if he got in the way.
“I quite understand. A proper time of grieving must be allowed. My interest will remain when you think it’s time for her to move on and marry.”
Sabinus stood. “I have matters of state to attend to, so I must leave you now.”
Lucius stood as well. “Thank you again for the honor of your visit. You’ll be hearing from me when it’s time.”
“I’m sure I will.”
The crocodile smiled at Lucius before turning to leave. Lucius escorted him through the atrium to the door personally. One more cold-eyed smile from the crocodile at the doorway drove home the importance of making the right decision when the time came.
Lucius returned to the library and seated himself at his father’s desk. He was certain Father would never have taken the 50,000 denarii to marry Claudia to such a man. He knew he shouldn’t, either. He’d delayed having to turn Sabinus down, but he would have to respond to the offer sometime. Maybe something would come up so he didn’t have to make an enemy of one of the most powerful men in Rome.
Chapter 12: Selling Claudia
Claudia tossed on her bed as the lions entered the arena yet again. The great male with the black mane stared at Father. As the lion started trotting toward him, she heard his first scream of fear. He turned and ran, but the lion was much faster. The beast leaped upon him and began clawing his back open. So much blood. His screams changed from fear to agony. He rolled over and struggled to hold the lion’s fangs away from his face. Finally, he could resist no more, and the beast’s jaws clamped down on his head. Then everything turned red.
She jerked awake, shaking uncontrollably. In the darkness, she curled into a tight ball. First came the silent tears, then the sobs she couldn’t control.
Graecia came into the room. “Mistress? Do you need something?”
“Yes…I need my father.” Great hiccupping sobs made further words impossible.
Claudia rolled on her stomach, buried her head in the pillow, and continued sobbing.
Graecia sat on the bed beside Mistress Claudia and slowly rubbed her back. Tears filled her eyes as she watched the mistress suffer. If the last few nights were any indication, it would be at least an hour before the mistress cried herself to exhaustion and finally went back to sleep.
When Lucius walked into the garden, he heard the sound of Claudia crying...again. He would never have believed that one girl could possibly shed so many tears. He followed the sound and found her sitting under the grape arbor.
“Do you have to cry all the time, Claudia? It’s time for you to stop. Father’s dead, and tears won’t change that.”
She stared up at him as she flicked away some tears. “How can you be so unconcerned that Father’s been killed? It’s as if you didn’t love him at all. I know you and Father fought a lot, but he always loved you.”
“Do you really think so? I don’t. All he ever did was criticize me. And making me live like one of those God-fearers? He made my life miserable these last three years. I’m glad he’s dead.”
Her eyes saucered. “You can’t mean that. No son ever had a better father.”
“No son had a worse one. He disgraced our family name and betrayed Rome by becoming a Christian. I love Rome, Claudia. More than I ever loved him. It was my duty to report him.” Lucius hadn’t intended to tell her that, but somehow it felt good to get it out in the open.
Claudia was thunderstruck. “You? You had Father killed? For Rome?”
She was shaking. As she stared at him, he shifted under her penetrating gaze. Then her eyes flared as the truth struck.
“No. You didn’t do this for Rome. You did it for yourself. You wanted Father dead so you could have all the estates and the money and do whatever you wanted. You murdered him as much as if you stuck a dagger into his heart yourself. You should be flogged and sewn into one of those leather bags and tossed in the Tiber. I’d gladly use the scourge myself.”
She rose from the bench as her voice rose in pitch and volume. “You don’t deserve to inherit and lead this family. You should be dead instead of Father. I hate you!”
She raised her hand to strike him, but Lucius caught her wrist in an iron grip. “That’s enough. You will not speak to me like that.”
Claudia jerked away from him. “Don’t you touch me. I don’t want to be anywhere near you. Ever.”
The hatred blazing in her eyes triggered his anger. How dare she insult him like that? He was head of the Claudius Drusus family now, and he’d teach her to show him the respect the paterfamilias deserved.
“You won’t have to stay in my house much longer. Flavius Sabinus has offered me 50,000 denarii for the privilege of marrying you. I was going to think about his offer for a while, but no more. You will marry him.”
Claudia’s eyes saucered as Lucius declared her fate. “No! He’s so old, and I’ve heard such horrible things about him.”
“He’s the head of a noble Roman family with great wealth and political influence. You should be honored that he wants you. The decision is not yours, anyway. It’s mine, and my decision is final.”
Claudia swayed and sank to the ground.
Lucius turned to the slave who was working in the flowerbed. “Take her to her room, then come to me in the library.”
The slave lifted her from the ground and supported her as he dragged her, sobbing, back to her bedchamber.
Lucius strode into the library. He picked up his father’s stylus and drew a small wax tablet from one of the desk drawers. By the time the slave came from delivering Claudia to Graecia’s care, he had written his acceptance of Sabinus’s offer.
He handed the tablet to the slave. “Deliver this to Flavius Sabinus.”
“Yes, master.” The slave bowed and left.
Lucius stood and walked back into the garden. So Claudia wanted him dead and didn’t want to stay in his house. He would give her half of what she wanted. Sabinus should be very pleased to receive the tablet saying he had given serious consideration to the proposal and had decided Sabinus would be the ideal husband for his sister. Claudia would be getting what she deserved for saying what she did, and he’d be 50,000 denarii richer in the process.
It was almost time for the Sunday worship to begin, and Publius still had not appeared. Aristarchus was surprised and more than a little concerned. As Philip lifted the gospel by John and asked the Holy Spirit to inspire his teaching, Aristarchus offered a prayer that everything might be all right with his good friend, but he had an uncomfortable sense that it wasn’t.
Lucius was in the library, examining the writings his father had acquired over many years. Some he would keep; many he would sell. He was mentally sorting the titles when the door slave entered.
“Master, Flavius Sabinus is here to see you again.”
“Bring him to me.”
The slave left to bring Sabinus from the vestibulum where he was waiting. Lucius had not expected a personal visit by Sabinus that morning. There were many men he would rather see than his future brother-in-law, but he expected to feel more comfortable around the power broker as he got to know him better.
Sabinus was all smiles as he entered the library. “It is good to see you again so soon, Lucius Fidelis.”
Lucius’s look of surprise at the name brought a cool smile to Sabinus’s face.
“In my letter to Trajan yesterday, I mentioned your exemplary dedication to Rome in reporting your father’s treasonous decision. He will agree with my suggestion that he bestow a new name upon you, along with a monetary token of his appreciation of your loyalty as a true son of Rome. An emperor at the head of his fighting legions always values such devotion at home. It will take some time for the imperial messenger to return, but I wanted the pleasure of telling you myself right away.”
