Capitolinus stared at Javenoli for a long moment before allowing his eyes to look over his shoulder at the men standing alert behind him. “Then you stand in my way, Gaius” he said slowly. “I am Jupiter’s man. You know it. I know it.” He returned the cool smile that Javenoli had given him seconds before. “I want my gold Javenoli. And I will get it.” With that he moved away and called his men to join him, striding up the hill towards his home as Javenoli let out a slow breath, feeling his heart thumping in his chest.
********
Chapter 27
The morning had broken with a fearsome heat which had caused several cohorts to draw thousands of buckets of water and prepare for the trek back to Rome. The Etruscan prisoners, each a rich noble who could afford to ransom himself and therefore save his skin, numbering into the hundreds, had been marched out earlier that day with no such luxuries as a water skin, their feet and hands bound together as they snaked out of the Roman camp. Officials from Rome had appeared at first light, sent by the senate to prepare the documents for allegiance and repayment to Rome for their support to the City, and taken control of the situation.
Marcus breathed-in the stifling air and looked about at the killing ground from the previous day. Small dark patches were all that remained of both the blood of the fallen and the burned bones of those sent to their gods by funeral pyres which had burnt all night. The morning supplications to the gods for their victory had been completed in front of the whole army, Vascius was sitting up and conscious, though still not able to speak properly as his face had drooped on one side from the shock of his injury. His angry burbling was the butt of many jokes as his juniors attempted to understand his orders and made up various humorous suggestions, most of which had been acted upon by the soldiers. Marcus had found the funniest one to be the removal of the camp goats to be packed on to the wagons for their return to Rome. The trussed-up animals had been brought to Vascius for inspection before packing on the carts, and his face had turned puce with rage as he attempted to berate the officers around him as he attempted to say ‘gates’ and to which every officer raised his eyebrows and repeated ‘goats?’ with a quizzical look to the encumbered animals. Marcus had found the whole thing extremely funny, a catharsis after the horror of the previous day and night in the city and had agreed with the men that the animals were, in fact, packed and ready to go just as their senior officer had commanded. Vascius had given up after this and retreated to a cool tent, where he was watered and left to his continued grumbling.
As he climbed onto his horse a messenger arrived with a note scratched into a lead sheet. He unfurled the item and read it slowly. A message from Cossus. It was both perplexing and interesting at the same time and held him in-situ for a few minutes as the column of men looked to their leader for the signal to depart. There was continued trouble in Rome. Fights in the streets and various fires causing minor damage across the city. The note also said that a closed group of senators was to debate the issue of Marcus Manlius Capitolinus, whom many believed was behind some of the issues within the city. The meeting would take place before Marcus returned, but Cossus was making him aware so that he knew exactly what was happening. He also noted that the first legion had returned to Rome, bringing great joy to the people and an abundance of treasures which were to be dedicated to various families across the city, including those plebeian families who had given their men to support the wars. Marcus smiled at that. The consular tribunes had been voted into position, and Marcus was able to stand down and return to his family once back in Rome. He noted that Cursor, Sergius and Cornelius had all been voted into position, at which he nodded, all good men, he thought. Feeling very tired, Marcus nudged his horse and waved to the trumpets to sound the march, all was good again.
*********
“And you see that is how the patricians have stolen your gold” said Menenius, the crowd now baying for blood. “Every single As you earn is taxed for them to store up in their enormous estates. Where are our land grants? Where are our pots of gold and silver, which are given to the patricians at the end of every campaign? I’ll tell you where. They share the first pot to the gods, which disappear into the temples and are never seen again. The second pot goes to the patricians, because they are the chosen men of the gods, or so they say.” The crowd jeered at this. “And the rest?” he stared out at the crowd with wide eyes as if asking them where the gold was. “Have you got it?” he pointed at a man with a disfigured arm, clearly the remnant of some painful accident at some time. The man cried that he had only the clothes on his back and the love of the gods to feed him, waving his disfigured arm around at the crowd as if asking for sympathy. Faces turned away from him in disgust. “No, you don’t have it, because the patricians have it. They take the gold from the temples when they need it to feed themselves in times of trouble. Have you had any gold from the temples?” he asked again, the crowd jeering at him and berating the system which kept them hungry. As he continued his rant several men appeared, clubs in hand and faces dark with anger.
“You” cried the voice of a man in a white toga, his official stripe clearly displayed. “Get down from there. This crowd is to disperse immediately” cried the official as the crowd jeered him, the newly arrived men raising their clubs aggressively.
“Wait” cried the voice of Capitolinus, who was sat on the steps behind Menenius, his booming voice trained over years as an officer in the army. “You have no right to break up a discussion. We men have free speech in Rome, we can discuss what we wish” he said as he came and stood next to Menenius.
“This is no discussion” called the official. “It is an accusation against the senate which should follow the proper channels of law if you believe it to be true Marcus Manlius Capitolinus.”
“Ah, then you know me” laughed Capitolinus. “Then you will know that I know that the patrician’s horde our gold, bought with the lives of the plebeian people of Rome. These are democratic words, not treasonous. We, the people, ask for the senate to explain where the gold has gone, how the land grants have been served out, almost exclusively, to patrician families and how debts are crippling our people whilst the bellies of the patricians grow fatter despite the senate telling us that times are hard and food is scarce. Tell me how this is treasonous, these are simple questions which demand an answer. Tell me, how do we resolve our complaints?”
The official, purple-faced, ignored the shouts of the crowd and waved at the men with their clubs to disperse the crowd. Angry shouts split the air as the crowd ran to and fro to avoid the club-wielders. More men arrived, these armed with clubs too, as Capitolinus called over their heads. “See how they treat you when you ask a reasonable question that they don’t want to hear. It is your right as free men of Rome to know where your gold has gone and why your land grants go to the richest families.” More shouts were drowned out by the fight that now ensued around the steps of the temple of the Vestals which overlooked the south west corner of the forum. The clatter of horse’s hooves soon changed matters, as people, upon hearing the sounds, fled in terror. It was one thing to fight a man with a club, but a mounted beast was another matter.
The official stepped up to the new-comer and thanked him, asking who he was and why he had raced into the city.
“I am Titus Romilius, from the Pompteine territories. I must speak to the senate immediately, we have been attacked by the Volscans and demand that Rome come to our aide.”
*******
Chapter 28
“Where do these Volscans keep appearing from?” asked Brevo as he staggered along with a heavy pack tied to a pole, suspended from a shoulder.
“Who knows?” replied the legionary marching next to him. “I just hope they’ve got plenty of coins, and not just the usual copper rubbish either.”
Brevo agreed, before seeing a face he knew marching past. “Hey, Crastinus” he called as the centurion looked over his shoulder to see who’d called him. Seeing Brevo he scowled.
“Back in line, soldier” he shouted as h
e marched on, hearing the ex-centurion grumbling as he continued on his way.
“Bastard” spat Brevo. The legionary next to him laughed. “Saved his miserable life more than once, you’d think he’d have given me a break” he said miserably. The legionary looked at him momentarily, but said nothing.
Looking up he watched Crastinus catch up with Narcius, who was striding along behind the horse of the newly announced dictator, Cornelius Cossus. The man was a head shorter than most Romans, but a formidable figure in public life. He knew that the man’s family owned half of the fields through which they had marched since leaving Rome, and that his money chests were said to be so heavy that he had to reinforce the floor in his home. Brevo’s mouth turned down at the edges in disgust at how rich the man was, it was just as Capitolinus had said all along. The rich got richer, and the poor got poorer. He spat, his anger starting to rise. If that bastard Narcius had given him a reprieve he’d had solved all his debts and things wouldn’t be as bad as they were now. Cossus was just another rich prick out to fleece them of all their savings.
***
“Sir” said Crastinus as he approached and greeted Narcius, the first spear nodding in response. “Everything’s good and in order, all men in position.”
“Good” replied Narcius. “Shouldn’t be long now. It’s been a hard march” he added as a bead of sweat ran along his neck and soaked into his already wet tunic. Crastinus nodded.
“Strange not to have the boss here with us” he said as Narcius gave him a cold stare and slowed his walk a little to drop back from Cossus.
“Keep your voice down” he scolded his second in command. “We fight for Rome, not for Camillus” he said quietly. “Cossus is a good leader. He’s experienced, he’s got the connections, the men like him” he added without conviction.
Crastinus grinned. “Maybe a little less now that he’s marched them for four days solid with little rest.”
Narcius rubbed his neck as another bead of sweat dripped off his chin strap. They’d been made to march in full uniform every day, something that Marcus wouldn’t normally have ordered on a long march. “Stop your grumbling” Narcius said with a disgruntled look at his second cohort centurion, who was smiling at him, knowing he was rubbing him up the wrong way. Narcius shook his head. “Don’t your men need you?” he asked pointedly.
“I’ve trained the men well, sir. They can march just as smartly without me” came the quick reply. Ahead a commotion had caused the leading ranks of the army to come to a halt, and the order was now being passed down the line. Continuing to walk forwards both officers came level with the dictator’s horse. They listened as the dictator was informed that the Volscans had set up camp nearby and were digging defensive ditches to await the Roman army. Cossus clapped his hands, rubbing them together with glee.
“Men of Rome, prepare to show me the iron hand that you have shown to our enemies” he said. “Inform the men to prepare for war, we march straight to the Volscan camp.”
Crastinus and Narcius looked to each other in surprise. The men were already tired, another half days forced march would put them close to their limits.
*****
“And with this debt they enslave you” said Capitolinus as the men around him nodded their heads vigorously. “They take your liberty by foul means, gentlemen. “They have hidden the gold that was used to buy freedom from the heathen Brennus. You know it’s true. They continue to take all that is of value from every campaign and they give small grants of the hardest, most un-ploughable, land to our people.” He placed his hands on the table and was in the process of speaking again when a great commotion disturbed him as a clattering at his door was followed by yells and shouts. Jumping to his feet he raced to the entrance, where several men were attempting to enter his house.
“What is the meaning of this?” he shouted as his house guests, leading plebeians invited to dinner to discuss topical issues, all appeared behind him. “I know you Quirinus” he said as a thin, pallid, man stepped forwards and looked at him with scorn.
“I hear you’re claiming that I have taken lands which do not belong to me, Capitolinus” he shouted, his finger pointing at the house-owner. “I’ve come to hear your accusations to my face, you mongrel.”
Capitolinus laughed aloud, angering the slightly built man even more as the door slaves held him and his family members back from entering the house. “Not just you, little man” he continued to laugh. “All patricians have taken land that doesn’t belong to them. That land should, by rights, belong to these men. They fought the wars, they lost their sons, they deserved to own the fields in which their sons died” he said with a conviction which turned the face of the man in his doorway as bright shade of red. “Jupiter knows” he said loudly, as several of the people in the doorway recoiled as he spoke the name of the god. “Go from my house before I call on Jupiter, greatest of the gods, to send his lightning bolt upon you” he shouted.
Quirinus turned to those behind him, half of whom were cowering and looking up at the sky in fear. “You won’t get away with this treachery, Capitolinus” he called back as the slaves pushed him through the door. “The senate will hear of this.”
Capitolinus let the door close and then turned to the men around him, speaking calmly. “I think we should take a walk down to the forum and speak to the people. They need to know how they are being cheated by the rich.” Heartily agreeing the group of followers all streamed down the hill talking excitedly. News that Marcus Manlius Capitolinus was to make a speech in the forum preceded him, such that upon his arrival there was already a substantial crowd gathered at the foot of the curia which stretched past the old gaol. Capitolinus smiled as the crowd cheered his arrival, his face beaming at the people as they called his name. Turning towards the Capitol Hill he exclaimed “Jupiter has sent me down here to speak to you.” People turned their faces towards the temple at the top of the hill, visible above them. Many knelt and waved hands in the air, some women chanted Jupiter’s name as they looked up in awe at the vision of the god on his great chariot. “With this right hand I saved you, in Jupiter’s name. I saved you to free you from debt, to rid you of servitude to the rich” he said as the crowd cheered at his words. “The senate have taxed you of all your worldly goods, taken it for themselves and now hide chests of gold which we should use to rebuild the city not fill their bellies while you starve. People of Rome I tell you, if this gold were used to re-pay all debts then Rome would be a greater place, a place where freedom would reign and servitude be removed for all. Surely this is the Rome that this right hand saved when the Gauls came climbing the Tarpeian Rock? Yet the state takes your taxes and use them for their own good. The patricians grow fatter on your sweat, your labour and your blood. Why don’t the senate tell us where this gold is hidden so that we can claim it back. Where is this gold? Why have they appropriated what was yours? I tell you, people of Rome, that I would never shirk from giving you what was truly yours.” He turned towards the temple again. “Jupiter has given me this voice, this strength, to proclaim his anger at the treatment of his people. The senate keep you in debt, they take…”
“Marcus Manlius Capitolinus” called a voice from back in the crowd as people were roughly shoved aside, wooden clubs striking those too slow to move.
Capitolinus smiled as he saw several senators approaching with their bodyguards, Quirinus in their midst. “Here they come” he shouted to the crowd. “Let them pass, they come to give us answers to our most democratic questions.”
Lucius Iulius stared at Capitolinus with the cool eye of a man used to dealing with tricky situations. He turned towards the crowd and eyed them all suspiciously before speaking. “Marcus Manlius Capitolinus, you make claims that the senate is hiding gold taken from the Gauls. Tell me who do you believe has taken this gold?”
Capitolinus shrugged. “Jupiter asks that the men who have taken the gold come forward of their own volition and share the gold with these people. It is not my role to name who these
men are, their love of Rome should suffice for them to vouch their wrongdoings and own up to their trickery” he replied, crossing his arms and looking down his nose at the senators.
Iulius sighed, his eyes ranging over the crowd. “This man accuses us of stealing gold, yet this man is of patrician blood and surely if we are all stealing gold from you, then he is as guilty as we? He has claimed that gold from the temples has been taken and never returned. Again, I ask you Capitolinus, who has taken this gold? You cannot accuse any man without naming him and offering proof that this gold you speak of has been taken. Tell us who it is and we will arrest him immediately and call a proper trial.”
Eyes darted to Capitolinus as voices murmured agreement to Iulius’ words. Capitolinus smiled benevolently as he replied, using the height of his position to look down his nose at the emissaries from the senate. “When the time is right I will reveal the names of those who have appropriated the gold, Iulius. But I say, with the chosen grace of Jupiter himself, that I give these men the time to replace this gold from their hidden chests, to do what is right for the people. To help to re-pay the debts which cripple the plebeian classes like a man trampled underfoot by a thousand soldiers. Here” he raised his right arm “in the sight of Jupiter greatest and best, I ask you senators to look within your hearts and see the greater good that you can do. Denounce servitude to greed. Let Jupiter enter your hearts” at this point the ladies in the crowd started to sing Jupiter’s name again as they had before, “and tell the truth to the people of Rome. Jupiter demands it, and so does every Roman citizen” he said, waving his right arm over the heads of the cheering crowd.
“You say this because you do not have proof Capitolinus. Where there is no evidence there can be no blame, so the twelve tables state. Provide proof Capitolinus or desist from this talk of stolen gold, of removing debts which people have entered into fairly in the eyes of the law. Remember, Capitolinus, that the senate has the power to silence you if you cannot prove your claims.”
The King of Rome Page 41
