Both Livia and Germanicus looked at the slight, balding man in shock. The imperial family wasn’t used to being addressed by anyone in that fashion, let alone a man they’d clearly dismissed merely as my lackey. Germanicus slowly folded his arms. ‘And I suppose you still wish for your reward? To be appointed a jurist?’
Aulus lifted his chin in defiance. ‘That has always been my dream. But if it comes at a cost of standing by whilst unfair criticism is levelled at my own family, it is a price too high.’
Germanicus’ face went red with anger. I thought he was about to strike my brother-in-law. Livia saved us both by pealing with laughter. ‘It seems the mouse has found his voice. Maybe he is made of sterner stuff than you thought, Germanicus. The law courts could do with a man of principle, wouldn’t you say?’
Germanicus looked at his grandmother incredulously. ‘You think I want him?’
I took up Aulus’ case. ‘You promised my brother-in-law a place as a jurist in the Centumviral Court if he helped resolve the Paulus brothers’ case. This he did with distinction. Even you yourself said that the resolution couldn’t be more favourable to the imperial treasury. Aulus isn’t to blame for my failings with the monoceros.’
Both Livia and Germanicus turned to look at me with narrowed eyes. Germanicus was still angry with me, and I doubted that Livia approved of me questioning her grandson’s word. I held my ground and stared back at them.
After a long pause, Germanicus straightened and held his hands behind his back. ‘Very well, you’ve made your point. I’m a man of my word, and I did promise. Let no man say I ever go back on what I say.’ He turned from me to look at my brother-in-law. ‘You can be a jurist to the court, under my supervision. But don’t think it will be easy for you. I don’t like having my hand forced.’
Aulus bowed his head. ‘Of course not, my lord, you do me great honour. Thank you.’
I could see that Germanicus was still seething, but he waved his hand. ‘The appointment is effective immediately. Now, wait outside. My grandmother and I wish to speak to Cassius alone.’
Aulus did as he was bid, turning and walking out the small door that was guarded by a member of the Praetorian Guard. As soon as he was gone, Livia turned to me. ‘Now all the preliminary details are dealt with, we need to turn to your real mission. Do you have Arminius’ brother with you?’
This was hardly the way I wanted to approach this subject. Germanicus still looked ready to kill me, and I’d even managed to annoy the unflappable Livia. However, there was nothing for it. ‘I do. He is being held by Marcus Scaeva in the Praetorian camp.’
Livia sighed and looked at her nails, examining them for imperfections. ‘So at least this trip hasn’t been a complete waste.’
Germanicus grumbled something under his breath, and I swallowed hard. ‘Yes, I have him in custody. But since questioning him, I have come to the conclusion that he is innocent of any involvement in the events that took place at the Teutoburg.’
Germanicus just laughed, and Livia looked at me sharply. ‘Is this a joke?’
I needed to hold my ground, but it wasn’t easy having both of them looking at me in such a manner. I took another breath. ‘Yes, my lady. We have found letters from his brother that show an estrangement between the pair. On a more personal note, I must tell you that he has fought valiantly these last few months, killing a known outlaw and saving the life of a Praetorian optio.’
Germanicus stared at me, eyes wide with incredulity. ‘You let him remain armed?’
I looked at Germanicus and gave a deep sigh. ‘As I said, these last few months have been complicated. But I promise you, throughout the whole campaign, Flavus’ loyalty to Rome has never wavered.’
Livia gave a shake of her head. ‘I seem to remember his brother being equally unwavering in his support of Rome.’
My back stiffened. ‘But my lady, Flavus isn’t the same man, he cannot be—’
She held up her hand. ‘You’re wasting your time trying to convince me, Cassius. My opinion doesn’t matter in this respect. Now Flavus Arminius is in custody, have him brought here immediately. His case will be heard at once.’
This took me off guard. ‘But who will hear the case?’
Livia gave me a deep frown. ‘Why, my husband, of course. Who else? A matter as important as this can’t be trusted to anyone else. He will hear the arguments for the prosecution and the defence and come up with the correct verdict. Normally such cases are heard in a public place, but due to the sensitivity of this case, my husband thought it wise to hear it in private.’
My throat felt dry. ‘Then he’s been expecting this?’
Livia inclined her head. ‘Naturally. He has been awaiting your arrival with great eagerness, although, truth to tell, not the greatest of temper.’
I felt my knees weaken. ‘In that case, we will need to call Aulus back. He is fully versed in Flavus’ defence. He will be able to represent him.’
Germanicus gave a short laugh. ‘Oh no, you can’t use Aulus now. Sorry.’
I looked at him aghast. ‘Why ever not?’
Germanicus lay back down on a divan. ‘Because he’s now a jurist. He can only advise on cases, not partake in actual trials himself. Sorry, those are the rules.’
The blood must have left my face. Livia looked up at me and said, ‘Don’t worry, Cassius. You can still ask him for advice.’
I turned to her sharply. ‘Me?’
She shrugged. ‘Who else? Unless you know of someone else trained in law who knows the ins and outs of this case at such short notice. You’ll need to be quick. My husband isn’t known for his patience.’
There was no one else. I’d always presumed that Aulus could defend him. ‘But who will I be facing?’
Germanicus gave me a grim smile. ‘That’ll be me.’
Chapter Forty-two
I sent Silo down to the Praetorian camp with a message for Marcus to bring Flavus up to the Palatine. I wasn’t happy how events were panning out, but I knew I had no choice. I was waiting in a small room outside one of the vast palace reception rooms where Augustus was planning on hearing the case. Aulus was with me, and I was berating him. ‘Why didn’t you tell me that you wouldn’t be able to defend Flavus once Germanicus made you jurist?’
Aulus opened his arms innocently. ‘I didn’t expect it to be relevant. Normally, newly raised jurii are sworn in at the start the year, in March. I could have hardly known that he’d make an exception and make me a jurist at once.’
I paced back and forth. ‘Well, it’s damn inconvenient that he did!’
Aulus gave a long and deep sigh. ‘Would you like me to decline the post so I can defend Flavus?’
I turned to look at my brother-in-law, to see if he meant what he said. He did. He looked up at me from the small chair he sat on with complete sincerity. I sighed. ‘That’s a very kind offer, Aulus. I know how much this role means to you. But in truth, it’s too late for that now. Livia has already told her husband that’ll be speaking on behalf of Flavus, and they’ll never agree to you taking my place.’
Aulus nodded. ‘It shouldn’t matter, Cassius. You can do this.’
I resumed my pacing. ‘I can hardly see how. My training in law was years ago, and since then I’ve only had a few weeks following you around.’
Aulus looked up at me. ‘It doesn’t matter, Cassius. You have a feeling for the law. You’ll do fine.’
I spread my arms wide. ‘How? Germanicus is one of the best lawyers in Rome, and he now hates me. Augustus is judging the case, and he’s never liked me either. Added to that, it’s in Rome’s interest to find Flavus guilty so they can execute him as an example to his brother. It’s hopeless.’
Aulus stood up and took hold of my arms to stop me pacing. ‘It’s never hopeless, Cassius. We still have a chance because we both know he’s innocent. But if you’re going to convince anyone of this, you better start believing that it can be done.’
His change in tone had an effect. I stiffened. ‘
Yes, you’re right. I’m sorry. I must pull myself together.’
Aulus put his hand on my shoulder. ‘It’s alright to be afraid, Cassius. I know you are worried for Flavus, but you are better at this than you give yourself credit. It was you who came up with the solution for the Paulus brothers, not me.’
I looked down at the floor and nodded. ‘So what do you think our defence should be? Did you find anything in past cases that we could use to help us? Should I plead for a lesser charge?’
Aulus sat back down heavily on the chair again. ‘I don’t think so, Cassius. As we found, the more obscure laws tend to have a death sentence attached anyway, so it doesn’t help. I think you need to concentrate on the letters from his brother. They offer evidence of an estrangement between the brothers. Possibly simplicity is your best angle.’
I nodded in agreement, but I wasn’t sure of it myself. The three letters we had hadn’t convinced me of his innocence. ‘Let’s hope it’s enough.’
A young male slave opened the door to our chamber and announced, ‘The imperator will see you now. The court is ready.’
I looked at Aulus. ‘This is it then?’
He gave me a reassuring nod. ‘I’ll be right behind you the whole time. If you need any advice, you can consult me and I can give you my opinion. I just can’t speak for you.’
I stiffened my resolve. ‘Thank you. For everything you’ve taught me, and for your support.’
He gave a final grip of my shoulder. ‘Remember, you can do this.’
I looked into his brown eyes and saw the trust there.
I took a deep breath, and Aulus and I followed the slave out to the large marble room with a raised dais at its centre upon which was placed a small stool. At the dais stood Germanicus, and several senators, who had come to witness the proceedings, sat on marble benches. Of Flavus and Livia there was no sign. Whether this was unusual or not, I wasn’t sure. My attention was fixed on the occupant of the small stool. On it sat Augustus, dressed in his formal toga, with a rolled scroll in one arm that signified his full imperium over the city. His eyes bore into mine as I approached him.
I gave a full military salute before the dais and declared, ‘It is an honour to stand before you this day, Imperator.’
‘Don’t address me as Imperator, you may call me Princeps this day,’ he grumbled.
I ground my teeth. How were you to ever know what to call him on any given day? ‘My apologies, Princeps. Will the defendant be brought up to hear his case?’
Augustus looked around and said, ‘Yes, where is the traitor? Can someone bring him up? It’s only fair he hears his fate, I suppose.’ One of the jurii who was attending the imperator signalled that the prisoner should be brought in.
This wasn’t a promising start, but I knew I couldn’t let Augustus’ remark pass without comment. ‘It is my belief, Princeps, that Flavus Arminius is no traitor and is in fact a loyal citizen of Rome.’
Augustus turned to me, his face a stony wall of imperial authority. ‘So I hear.’
I didn’t let myself flinch. I held his gaze but remained quiet – my point had been made.
The silence was broken by two Praetorians who came into the marbled throne room with Flavus between them. His wrists had been chained but his ankles were bare so he could walk freely. Flavus’ face was impassive, but I saw the fear in his eyes. I asked Augustus, ‘May I have a few moments alone with my client, so I can discuss our defence?’
Augustus looked over at Germanicus. ‘Do you object?’
‘Yes I do. There should be no need. He is either innocent of collusion with his brother or not. If he has nothing to hide, then why speak in private?’
The gathered senators all gave mumbles of agreement, and a few clapped their hands in approval. I looked over at Germanicus. ‘In that case, I withdraw the request. You’re right, he has nothing to hide.’
A few of the senators scowled, but I ignored them and said loudly to the whole court, ‘My client is a loyal servant of Rome and no traitor. I intend to prove this. He had no part in his brother’s betrayal and wishes that man’s destruction as much as anyone.’
Germanicus stepped forward. ‘It is my intention to show that the defendant is a traitor to Rome and colluded in his brother’s betrayal.’
Augustus turned to the jurist by his side and told him, ‘Let the relevant formula be written up as to what the defendant is charged with.’ He then turned to Germanicus. ‘As you will be making the complaint against the client, you may outline your case first. Are you ready?’
His adopted grandson gave a solemn nod. ‘I am indeed, Princeps. But first may I give a brief outline of events that has led this man to be brought before us today?’
Augustus inclined his head. ‘How do you intend to do that?’
Germanicus addressed the whole court. ‘I would like to bring forward my first witness. A former centurion from the Seventeenth Legion.’
I gasped in shock. How had he found a survivor of the battle for this trial? Then I remembered telling him about the tiny retired legionary colony I’d set up in Gaul for the survivors of the battle. Germanicus had agents dotted all around the Roman provinces, including Gaul. It wouldn’t have been hard to send someone there to find someone willing to recount his tale.
A man walked into the palace throne room wearing a simple tunic. Since the battle, none of the survivors had been permitted to rejoin the legions. The imperator didn’t want the stain of bad luck he perceived that surrounded them to infect other units. It wasn’t a man I recognised, but that wasn’t unexpected. I hadn’t visited the colony myself, and I hadn’t met many of the survivors personally.
As the man stood before the court he gave me a hard look; there was no doubting he recognised me. The last person he would have expected to see defending Julius Arminius’ brother was a fellow survivor of the Teutoburg. His look gave me a moment’s apprehension whether I was doing the right thing. Was I betraying the dead of the Teutoburg by defending Julius Arminius’ brother? From the look this man gave me, he clearly thought so.
Germanicus asked the man to state his name.
‘Nicator, sir.’
Germanicus nodded. ‘And you served as a centurion for the Seventeenth Legion, which was all but destroyed at the Teutoburg?’
‘Yes, sir,’ he answered in a brisk military tone that seemed at odds with his civilian tunic.
‘And are you prepared to tell the court of your involvement in the battle and how you came to survive when so many others fell?’
The man said loudly, ‘Yes, I am.’
At Germanicus’ prompting, the man started retelling the tragic events that had occurred in the German forest of Teutoburg. The former centurion was very well informed to have gleaned so much knowledge of the events that led up to the titanic battle. He must have been suitably high up the chain of command to have background knowledge that the general rank and file were normally ignorant of. Either that or he’d been prompted by Germanicus beforehand, I decided.
He explained how the three Roman legions went into the Teutoburg forest to foil an unexpected alliance between the Angrivarii tribe and dissidents from the Cherusci. The two tribes had been traditional enemies, and up until that point the Cherusci were recognised as Rome’s foremost ally in the region. He spoke of how all three legions marched in with a massive show of strength that was supposed to quell this dangerous union between the two tribes.
Germanicus couldn’t have found a more perfect witness. His voice was calm, measured, and yet authoritative. He described the first attack of the Angrivarii that had forced the three Roman legions to retreat behind a hastily constructed wooden palisade. I found myself brought back to that cold, wet, windswept day, forced behind the camp’s walls as the Angrivarii screamed outside our gates.
‘But this wasn’t the ambush that sealed the fate of the three legions?’ Germanicus asked.
Nicator shook his head. ‘No, sir. This was merely the first taste of the German tribe’s betrayal.
It was only when the Roman legions tried to join up with their alleged allies in the region, the Cherusci, that we discovered the true scale of their treason.’
Germanicus seized on this. ‘Do you mean those led by this man’s brother?’ He pointed at Flavus, who stiffened but remained silent.
Nicator directed a look of hatred at Flavus. ‘Yes, a man called Julius Arminius. He was supposed to be one of us. He led part of our cavalry. He looks like this man, so it must be as you state. We were told Arminius had only come to the leadership of the Cherusci tribe with Rome’s help. And by the gods, how he repaid us for that error!’
Germanicus said softly, ‘Please continue with your tale.’
Nicator’s voice lowered to a sombre tone. ‘The Roman legions headed east, through the wind and rain, and we made our way to join forces with our allies.’
As the audience, myself included, hung on his every word, Aulus came up behind me and whispered in my ear, ‘You need to put a stop to this.’
I turned and whispered back, ‘But how can I? He was at the Teutoburg. I can’t do that to him. His tale deserves to be told.’
Aulus growled in my ear, ‘Not if you want Flavus to live.’
I looked around the room; everyone seemed spellbound by the witness’ words. As Livia’s grandson prompted the former Roman centurion, he explained how the legions burned the civilian baggage train and their artillery before heading down the mountain. Every person present listened in rapt attention. Aulus was right. Unless I did something to stop this, Germanicus would hold such a grip over the court, this trial would be over before it began.
I hated to do what I now planned. This man had fought alongside me at the Teutoburg and had been through so much already. But I couldn’t let his story condemn an innocent man. I coughed loudly and interrupted Nicator’s unfolding tale. ‘Excuse me, may I speak?’
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