"I thought you said that only you know what she looks like?"
Vellocatus's smile widened. "I do. My man works only for me. He got to know the girl. She kicked him in the balls when she escaped. He is keen to meet her again."
Baldurix grunted and fixed Vellocatus with a cautious look. "I want three quarters of this amber, you can have the rest."
"It is done," Vellocatus nodded. "Fine," Baldurix growled. His eyes blazed with sudden fervour.
"Why do you want to bribe two Roman forts?" Vellocatus asked.
Baldurix looked excited. "The amber will allow me to buy the services of the soldiers of the Roman forts and garrisons in the territory of the Vacomagi. The amber will allow me to tip the balance of power between the Decantae and the Vacomagi. Then," his eyes gleamed in triumph, "we will wipe them all from the face of the earth and my blood feud with them will be at an end."
Vellocatus laughed and raised his cup.
"Then are we agreed?"
Baldurix looked across at him and nodded. Their two cups clinked together.
"Agreed," Baldurix replied.
Vellocatus took a long sip of wine. Then he turned to study Baldurix.
"You know they hate us for what we are," he paused, "they call us sexual deviants, but I say fuck what other people think."
Baldurix grunted and raised his cup in the air again.
Chapter Twenty Six - The visitor, July 84 AD
It was noon and Eburacum shimmered in the summer heat. The small settlement had grown since the winter and the new white round houses along the river bank gleamed and baked in the heat. Further along towards the single wooden bridge that connected the civilian settlement with the Legionary fortress, new houses and workshops were under construction. The market stalls beside the bridge were doing good business as soldiers mingled with the throng of shoppers and stall owners. Down by the river bank a party of children were playing loudly and from the workshop beside the meeting hall came the dull ringing metallic beat of a blacksmith at work.
Vellocatus and Bestia sat outside on two stools across a table beside Vellocatus's home. They were bare-chested and sweating. A jug of wine stood in the middle of the table and now and then the men would reach for it and take a long slurp. The air was hot, stagnant and humid. The two men were playing a game of dice and a pile of copper coins gleamed on each man's side of the table. The dice rattled in their cup as Vellocatus made his throw.
"I win again," Vellocatus said triumphantly. He scooped up the copper coins with a grin and handed the dice over to Bestia.
Bestia farted.
"Tell me Bestia," Vellocatus said leaning forwards, "Did you really force those Roman prisoners to eat their own balls during the Batavian rebellion?"
Bestia sniffed and rattled the dice in their cup.
"Perhaps," he murmured.
Vellocatus laughed. "That's what I like about you Bestia. I never know whether you mean something or not. The uncertainty kills me."
"I mean what I say," Bestia threw the dice and smiled.
Vellocatus scooped up the dice. "So do I," he replied. "Seven months ago some money lenders here in Eburacum threatened to put an iron ring around my neck. Do you know what happened to them? The next day six corpses were dumped into the marshes down by the river. Bye Bye, money lenders. No one will ever know what happened to them."
"They didn't leave a record of their loans?"
Vellocatus grinned, "I made sure that I took all the documents. I burned them here. All gone. But the ledger made interesting reading. Did you know that the Legate of the Ninth had borrowed a large sum. Maybe someone should go and tell him that it was I who erased his debt for him," Vellocatus said boastfully.
Bestia glanced at Vellocatus.
"Who took all the money?" he inquired slyly.
"You know who," Vellocatus grunted, "The same man who killed them."
"Baldurix," Bestia said slowly, "and no one made inquiries into the disappearance of these men? They can't have had many friends."
Vellocatus threw the dice and looked disappointed. "Well actually someone did come inquiring about them," he said. "A man from the south. The money lenders had some friends amongst the Atrebates on the south coast. But no one knows what happened so he left without learning anything new."
"Still you should be careful," Bestia said taking another slurp of wine.
Vellocatus nodded. "I am," he murmured.
Bestia threw the dice once more. "So you never finished telling me what happened to your mother, the queen?"
Vellocatus rose from his stool and strode towards a barrel of water that stood beside the door to his house. He plunged his head into the water and raised it again sending droplets flying in all directions. He strode back towards the table and sat down.
"My mother, Queen Cartimandua, ruler of the Brigantes," he said wiping his hair from his eyes, "loved only two things. Sex and power. She could never keep her legs together for long but she would cut your throat if you displeased her. I saw her do that once when I was a boy."
"And her support for Rome, her betrayal of Caratacus and the civil war amongst the Brigantes, what was all that about?"
Vellocatus was staring into space. "She made many enemies with her behaviour," he muttered, "Her husband hated her. He hated my father too. Most of the nobles supported him. They didn't want to bow to Rome. So I suppose she needed the power of Rome to help maintain her position." He blinked. "I had seven brothers and sisters once and now all are dead. I am her last living descendent and if I have inherited anything from her, then it's her lust for sex and power."
Vellocatus looked at Bestia and laughed and after a moment's hesitation Bestia joined in.
Their laughter was interrupted by the approach of a horseman. Both Vellocatus and Bestia rose to their feet as the rider came ambling towards them. The man was covered in dust and sweat lathered his forehead. A long bow was strapped to his back and a quiver of arrows was slung over his shoulder. The horse too was covered in sweat.
"Are you Vellocatus?" the rider said, "They told me that I could find him here."
Vellocatus folded his arms across his chest.
"Maybe, who are you?"
The rider looked annoyed. Then he got down from his horse and patted the beast on its rump.
"Baldurix has sent me to find you," he said. "I am to deliver a message to you. Baldurix says that he has found the girl."
Vellocatus went very still. For a moment he stared at the visitor but the man looked genuine.
"Baldurix has found her," Vellocatus muttered to himself. He glanced across at Bestia and then back to the rider. "Where is she?"
"We spotted her in the highlands," the rider said with a confident voice, "the girl and her dog are with a war band. They are hiding in the hills. Baldurix says that he has a plan. He wants to meet you at the Roman fortress of Inchtuthil. He says that he will bring the girl but he wants your man to be there to identify her first."
Vellocatus suddenly looked excited. "Excellent, ride back to Baldurix and tell him that I will be in Inchtuthil by the next full moon. My man will accompany you and positively identify the girl."
Bestia turned on Vellocatus.
"I managed to bribe my commanding officer for this leave," he exclaimed, "But my unit are still expecting me back. If I do not report for duty soon they will list me as a deserter."
Vellocatus shrugged. "Then be a deserter. I need you to go with this man. If we can find this amber, Bestia, you are going to be rich for the rest of your life. You will be able to go anywhere. Who cares about your army career."
Bestia took a long deep breath of air. His eyes were filled with sudden indecision.
"Fuck your unit, desert, I need you. Are you really going to turn down an opportunity like this?" Vellocatus exclaimed jabbing his finger into the Batavian's chest.
"Alright I will do it," Bestia hissed, "But if you fuck me out of my share I will cut your balls off..."
"...and make me eat the
m," Vellocatus finished the sentence and grinned. "Don't worry, I look after my old friends."
"My horse and I can do with some water," the rider muttered.
"Over there," Vellocatus replied without looking at the man.
Then he stepped through the doorway into his house. The cool interior was a welcome relief from the baking heat outside. Baldurix had found the girl. He hadn't been sure whether the tall Caledonian would keep on looking. He had secretly doubted the man's persistence. But Baldurix was proving to be a man of his word. Vellocatus grinned as he found his money pouch and counted out a number of silver coins. If they had the right girl he would force her to take them to the amber cave. Things were slotting into place. Their plan was going to work and he was going to become a rich man at last. Then those Patrician Roman women would start taking notice of him again. Oh yes then he would be welcome again.
"Vellocatus," Bestia's voice sounded strangely tense. "There is another visitor here to see you. Come outside."
Vellocatus frowned. He slipped the coins into a small leather bag and turned for the door. Outside he saw a white haired man with a deep sun tan. The man was in his mid forties and was leaning on a wooden stick. His torso was covered by worn looking leather body armour. He looked Vellocatus straight in the eye.
"My name is Corbulo," the man said, "And you must be Vellocatus."
Chapter Twenty Seven - Londinium
The galley nosed its way carefully up the swollen river. The tide was in and the dark water lapped hungrily against its banks. A thick reed bed had formed around the spot where a tributary stream joined and on the south bank a group of men were busy fishing. Corbulo stood at the prow of the ship craning to get a first glimpse of the Roman bridge that spanned the Thames. He felt strangely excited. It almost felt as if he was coming home. He grinned. It was good to see Britannia again. He had spent twenty five years of his life in the province. The greenness of the land was soothing to the eye and there was a certain softness of character about the province and its people that he had found lacking on the continent. It was not the idle softness of the Greeks or the unemployed in Rome but a generousness of character, a willingness to let people live as they chose. The Britons, Corbulo knew, were at their most dangerous when they perceived that an injustice had been done. If one treated them fairly without tricks and cheating, then they were easily managed.
He grunted as up ahead he caught sight of the magnificent Roman bridge. It was huge and made entirely from wood. On the north bank, stretching along the river for a mile, the stone houses, wharves and warehouses of Londinium, with their new red roof tiles, glinted in the sunlight. On the marshy south bank Londinium's first suburb, Southwark clustered around the road that led to the bridge. The ship started to angle towards the solid wooden quayside on the northern bank. Corbulo's grin widened as a thousand memories were awakened.
He had first arrived in this port as a young eighteen year old recruit on his way to join the Twentieth Legion. A few years later and already a veteran of two major battles, he had been with the men who had accompanied Governor Paulinus as he had hastened southwards from Mona. Corbulo's grin faded as he remembered the desperation in the town folks eyes and voices as they had pleaded with Paulinus to stay and defend their town from Boudica's approaching army. But Paulinus had refused saying he did not have enough men and he had ordered the town to be evacuated. Boudica had burned Londinium to the ground. Corbulo had seen the smoking, blackened ruins. In time however the town had rebuilt itself for it occupied a far too important and advantageous spot for it to be abandoned. Now as he studied the approaching city, Corbulo saw that Londinium was prospering once more. The bridge over the Thames and the port were driving the growth of the town. Surely the town must have overtaken Camulodnum in size by now he thought.
Corbulo stepped smartly off the ship as two slaves fastened the mooring ropes to the waterfront. Then with a farewell nod to the boat's captain he strode along the wooden quayside and into the town. After Boudica had destroyed the city, the streets and houses had been rebuilt on the Roman model with a standard Roman street grid and stone houses closely built up against each other. The street grid was useful he thought for he had never managed to get lost when he had visited, even when he was drunk. The town extended a half a mile or so northwards from the river. Corbulo strode along until he reached Watling street. Then he turned left and entered the heart of the city. After the peace and quiet that he had endured on his long and lonely walk from Rome, the noise in the city was tremendous. A multitude of people from all across the empire, shoppers, children, slaves, tradesmen, merchants, bankers, soldiers and sailors jostled along the narrow streets, talking, haggling and advertising their wares in loud voices. People barged into him without looking up. Corbulo struggled on until he came to the forum. The market place and city centre was even more crowded and noisy. The merchant stalls were doing a roaring trade. He had forgotten how vibrant the place was. The people seemed so brash and confident as if they had collectively forgotten about the horror and destruction that the barbarian queen had unleashed. He craned his neck to see if the old tavern was still there. It was. The name on the sign above the door read, Cum Mula Peperit, but everyone had just called it The Mule. He grinned and felt a streak of sudden excitement. The tavern was just off the forum. He had first come to drink in the place twenty years before. It was the tavern where he and his army buddies would meet when on leave or if official business took them to Londinium. Maybe some of them would still be in town? After his long solitary journey he could do with having someone to talk to.
Absentmindedly he touched the phallic amulet that hung around his neck. Then he pushed his way through the crowd. The tavern was a simple two storey building with a large room downstairs and several tiny rooms upstairs for the whores. Corbulo stood in the doorway and clasped the wooden door post with one hand. His eyes quickly swept across the room taking in the faces of the drinkers. He grunted in disappointment. He didn't recognise anyone. Some of the men in the tavern looked like off duty soldiers but all of them were young. None of them were remotely near as old as himself. He grunted again. A new and younger crowd visited the tavern now. Well what had he expected, a welcoming committee of all of his old comrades? He licked his lips. He may as well have a drink for old time's sake. He shuffled across to the bar. An old fat lady was serving wine and mead. She looked up at him, frowned and then opened her mouth in surprise.
"Is that you Corbulo?" she exclaimed.
Corbulo blinked. He had not recognised her. The woman was the wife of the tavern owner. She was still here after all these years.
He nodded and grinned at her, too embarrassed to tell her that he'd forgotten her name. The woman had been serving in the tavern for as long as he had been drinking there.
"Take over for a while will you," the fat lady said to the younger girl who was helping her, "I am going to have a chat with an old acquaintance."
***
The two of them sat beside a table tucked away in the corner. The woman looked sad.
"So do you know why she did it?" she said.
Corbulo took a sip of wine. He hadn't had a cup of wine in seventy two days. The wine tasted delicious but his face remained glum.
"She was a good woman," he muttered, "She was loyal, I know that now and she was devoted to me and to Marcus." Corbulo sighed deeply, "I screwed it up. She must have been very lonely and miserable. I didn't give her the love she needed. I was hardly there most of the time. I beat my son and I was unfaithful. I drank too much but I reckon what drove her to kill herself was that I wanted to retire to Italy. I don't think she wanted to go but I was going to force her to come. Maybe she dreaded being alone in a foreign land."
The fat woman was silent for a while.
"And Marcus has gone missing?" she said.
Corbulo nodded and took another sip of wine. "He went missing late last year up north. I have come to find him." Corbulo looked up at the woman. "I have to make things right between
me and my son. It's what my wife would have wanted. I want her spirit to know that at least I tried to make things right. I have to try and find Marcus. I believe he is still alive."
The woman gave him a smile.
"So you decided to walk for seventy two days all the way from Rome with only enough money to buy yourself a new pair of sandals and the fare to cross the sea," she said raising her eyebrows. "You have got balls Corbulo, but then again you always did. I can see what that wife of yours once saw in you. Cut out the drinking and the whoring and you would be a fine man. I bet that was what you were when you were young, a fine man, a fine soldier."
"Any news from the others, you know, the boys who used to drink with me?" Corbulo said changing the subject.
The woman shook her head. "No, haven't seen any of them in years. They are probably dead or retired by now. There has not been much military activity so far this summer. The Ninth are up at Eburacum and the Twentieth are building a new fortress at a place called Inchtuthil in Caledonia. The auxiliary Cohorts are all busy up north too, building forts all over Caledonia. I haven't seen one of them soldiers around here for over a year. Poor bastards. A man's got to get leave some time doesn't he?" She paused to catch her breath. "Heard that Agricola has been recalled. We will soon know who the new governor is going to be. It's a shame as I rather liked that old Gallic warrior. He came in here once did you know that. He said that I ran a fine establishment."
"I know you do," Corbulo grinned.
"Oh," the woman said as she suddenly remembered something, "I heard that Quintus is up at Inchtuthil with the Twentieth. He was promoted to Centurion last year. He was your friend wasn't he?"
Corbulo nodded. "You are always surprisingly well informed about troop movements aren't you," he said. "Gods forbid that the enemy were ever to use you as a spy."
"Maybe they do," she said tartly. Then she laughed. Corbulo finished his wine and rose to his feet. She looked up in disappointment.
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