The afternoon turned to evening. One by one the entertainers packed up and left, and the traffic across the bridge slowed to a trickle. As darkness fell about them, and the city dissolved into a myriad of twinkling lights, Charlie took a deep breath and finally voiced the fears of all.
‘She’s obviously not coming. I suggest we make our way to the bureau. She might contact us there, or we may get word from Point Zero. At least we can find Agata Zeldt’s location in Rome. Does everyone agree?’
Nathan and Lucius reluctantly pulled themselves to their feet, but Jake did not move. ‘I’ll stay here,’ he muttered.
‘Probably not such a good idea,’ Nathan said quietly. ‘This place is dangerous at night. The whole city is. The bandits come out like vampires.’
Jake shrugged. ‘I think you should go and find the bureau, but I want to stay here.’
Nathan and Charlie exchanged a look.
‘I stay with him,’ said Lucius, puffing out his chest. ‘I am not frightened of bandits. I eat them for breakfast. Go! Yake and I stay together.’
For a moment Jake thought he would rather take his chances with bandits than with Lucius, but then he smiled up at him. Nathan and Charlie took some convincing, but in the end it seemed sensible to split up. Nathan even grudgingly agreed that Lucius, for all his faults, was the strongest of the four and most suited to the job. They agreed to meet again the following morning, and Nathan and Charlie set off for the bureau.
To begin with Jake and Lucius sat quietly, only occasionally smiling at each other or commenting on the weather (a chill wind had drifted up the river, banishing the day’s heat). Then Lucius offered to show off his repertoire of bird songs. Jake listened to them one by one, and although he thought they all sounded the same, his nods of appreciation encouraged Lucius to continue for an hour. Occasionally they heard hurried footsteps approaching in the darkness. They would both look up, reaching for their swords, but there was no sign of Topaz. Silence would fall again, punctuated only by dogs howling from nearby streets or distant bells tolling.
By the middle of the night, both were feeling cold and miserable. To take his mind off things, Jake decided to find out some more about his companion: ‘So, did you always want to be a soldier?’ He knew it was a silly question.
There was a long pause and Lucius’s eyes narrowed. ‘No,’ he replied brusquely. There was another lengthy silence, then he added, ‘My father was a shipbuilder in Apulia. I thought I would do the same.’
‘Ships – really? That’s amazing.’ Jake was certain he had found a good subject.
‘Amazing?’ his companion grunted sarcastically. ‘Really? You know nothing.’
Jake was taken aback – even in the gloom, he could see the sudden murderous look on Lucius’s face. There was another hiatus before he continued delicately, ‘And your father? Is he still . . .?’
‘Not seen my father in seven years,’ Lucius snapped. ‘Or my mother.’ He didn’t look at Jake, but seemed fascinated by something on the back of his hand.
It was clearly a sore point. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to . . .’ Jake’s voice trailed off, but then he went on quietly, ‘I know how you feel. I lost my—’
Lucius interrupted Jake with even more venom: ‘We change subject – yes?’ To show that the matter was closed, he stood up, tugged at his tunic and strode over to the other side of the bridge, his lips pursed.
Jake yearned to talk to him; to tell him how he too had lost his parents for a while. The story of how he found them again might reassure Lucius. Jake also longed to share his own heartache for his lost brother. On the other hand, he was hurt by Lucius’s reaction; it was as if he were the only person in the world who had ever suffered.
Conversation stalled after that. They were both exhausted and tetchy. Jake pulled his cloak around him and settled down beside the stone balustrade; and just as he was thinking it would be impossible even to doze in such a place, he drifted off.
14 DAWN ENCOUNTER
JAKE WOKE TO the sound of footsteps. He sat up. His neck was stiff and his throat parched. Dawn was breaking across the city, and shafts of searing light extended between the buildings. They burned into his eyes, making it almost impossible to see the lone armour-clad figure heading from the city gates towards the bridge – a slight figure, walking with a determined stride.
‘Lucius,’ Jake called over to his companion.
In a flash the soldier’s eyes were open, and he fixed them on the approaching form. A moment later, he was on his feet, his sword drawn.
When Jake realized that the figure wore the feathered epaulets and helmet of the Hydra, he too hurriedly unsheathed his weapon. ‘What do we do? Do we run?’ he asked, looking around for the best escape route.
‘Two of us, one of him,’ Lucius grunted, clutching his sword tightly while grabbing the jar of vinegar, pulling the cork out with his teeth and taking a swig. He passed it to Jake, who followed suit. He could see something bulging on the forearm of the advancing man – presumably a metal bracelet. Jake wasn’t sure about Lucius’s plan of action – more soldiers could well be approaching from different directions. He peered over the parapet to see if they could escape by water, but below them – a long way down – surged a foamy torrent.
The man did not break stride, his boots echoing on the stone bridge, his helmet glinting in the morning sun.
‘Hold your ground,’ Lucius growled at Jake, feet planted, ready to rebuff an attack. The man continued to advance. Jake stood beside Lucius, narrowed his eyes, and assumed a warlike stance.
The man stopped just short of them. For a moment he did not move. All three of them stood there like statues at the midpoint of the bridge. There was silence, broken only by a flock of lapwings taking flight over the island.
Jake realized that the metal bulge around the stranger’s forearm was not a device, but a tightly wrapped length of thick chain. The man removed his helmet. Immediately long honey-coloured tresses tumbled down. There was a moment of astonished silence, then Jake’s face lit up.
‘Topaz!’ he exclaimed, his heart soaring.
‘Je savais que tu attendrais. I knew you would wait,’ she replied breathlessly, rushing towards him and hugging him tight. ‘It’s so good to see you. I didn’t know who to expect. Sorry I am so late. I could not get away.’ As she clung onto him, Topaz and Lucius shared a lingering look.
Jake blushed. ‘Yes, well,’ he said in the deepest voice he could muster, ‘Nathan and Charlie are here too. They went to find the bureau.’ He could hardly get the words out; he was so overwhelmed by the warmth of Topaz’s welcome, especially after the coolness of their last meeting aboard the Lindwurm. He noted that she had come straight to him, not Lucius, and suddenly felt thrilled.
However, now Topaz broke away and turned to the soldier. ‘You know, the last time I saw Jake,’ she said, ‘he sailed all the way up the Rhine just to save me; fought his way onto the enemy’s ship. C’est le garçon le plus courageux que je connais. He’s the bravest boy I know,’ she said, tickling him under the chin, ‘and he’s even more adorable when he blushes like that.’
Jake went a deeper shade of crimson as Lucius took Topaz’s hand, gathered her to him and lifted her off her feet.
‘Arrête,’ she said, half laughing. ‘Lâche-moi.’ As he carefully put her down, Jake heard her whisper in Lucius’s ear, ‘Thank God you’re safe!’
Jake’s dream evaporated in an instant. He was embarrassed for even thinking it. Topaz and Lucius were clearly besotted with each other. With Jake, she behaved more like an older sister.
At last she untwined herself from the soldier and suddenly became serious. She swung round and checked that no one was watching. ‘Quickly! We don’t have much time and nowhere is safe. Follow me,’ she said, setting off across the bridge towards Tiber Island. ‘We can talk in the temple of Aesculapius. Then I have to get back before they notice I am gone. As you can see’ – she indicated her armour – ‘I had to go to some lengths to escape fr
om the villa.’ She knocked on her epaulettes to show that they were hollow. ‘I don’t know how you men carry great shoulders around with you all day long. We females are far neater.’
The comment made Lucius smirk and flex his muscles. He caught up with her and took her hand, while Jake followed behind.
Topaz led them onto the island, through a dense copse of trees, across a small courtyard where the obelisk was situated (Jake noticed that it was inscribed with Egyptian hieroglyphics) to the temple. It was an impressive building: high, square and colonnaded on all sides. As she went up the steps, Topaz took one last look around, then the three of them slipped inside.
They found themselves in a large, dim chamber, lit only by the embers of two braziers and soft shafts of light filtering in through the high windows.
As Jake grew accustomed to the gloom, he noticed that there were people inside: most were lying on the floor, but some were moving amongst them with the quiet, careful tread of nurses.
‘The sick come here for comfort and protection,’ Topaz explained in a whisper. ‘It is one of the most civilized places in the city.’ As she passed one of the helpers, who looked angelic in flowing white robes, Topaz smiled warmly and received a serene nod in response. Jake scanned the row of patients, some trembling, some hunched in pain. One in particular drew his attention: a youth – barely more than a boy, one-legged and painfully thin – who shook with fever.
Topaz led Jake and Lucius into the shadows in the far corner of the room. She stopped and leaned in close. ‘Écoutez – listen carefully, I am going to tell you what you must do.’ She started to uncoil the chain from around her forearm. ‘As I said, I have barely any time. Agata Zeldt, my “mother”, has begun, little by little, to trust me, and it is imperative, absolument imperatif, for the safety of everyone – for the safety of the world, of history – that I retain that trust. Do you understand?’
Jake and Lucius nodded, the latter clenching his jaw with determination.
Topaz continued: ‘She has been preparing for an event that she calls the end of dominions. You should know that she does not exaggerate. If her plan is to end dominions, that is what she will do – and on an unimaginable scale.’
‘Topaz . . . your wrist!’ Jake interrupted. He could now see that the chain was attached to a manacle that was so tight, it cut into her skin, leaving painful sores. He remembered a similar device in her room on Vulcano and immediately put two and two together. ‘They chain you up?’ he asked in horror. ‘You said she trusted you!’
‘I said she has begun to trust me,’ Topaz replied. ‘Which, believe me, is more than I could ever have hoped for.’ She spoke simply so as not to confuse Lucius. ‘Jake, you know my mother and I were separated for many years? You know where I grew up, living with her greatest enemies? I have convinced her that I have changed, turned against all that. Que je cherche la puissance noire. That I am now seeking dark power.’ She took a calming breath and gave the glimmer of a smile as she held up the end of the chain. ‘Besides, as you can see, I found a way to undo the links. So, right now, I’m not chained up. I’m here with you.’
Jake said nothing. He nodded, but was secretly frightened by Topaz’s manner: despite her warm welcome on the bridge, she seemed far steelier than when he first met her. Her face looked harder, more cunning. He couldn’t help wondering if, in her attempts to convince her family, she really had changed, really had been tinged with some of her mother’s malevolence.
‘So listen,’ she continued. ‘I have only one key piece of intelligence of my mother’s plans: the first strike will take place tomorrow.’ She looked at them both very seriously. ‘It will all begin with what is called a caedes publica – a public murder.’
‘A public murder?’ repeated Jake, the notion sending a shiver of dread down the back of his neck.
‘I don’t know who or where – or indeed how this will lead to the end of dominions, but I have heard the phrase repeatedly.’
Jake nodded seriously.
‘And you need to find out more.’ Topaz took a deep breath. ‘So, your instructions. My mother has a campaign room in the compound of her villa. Needless to say, it is heavily guarded and almost impossible to infiltrate. I have tried on two occasions; both times I nearly broke my neck – it is not a solo job. Tonight she is holding a masked ball. You must all attend. Cover yourselves well – especially you, Lucius. My mother will not recognize you – soldiers’ faces mean nothing to her – but there could be guards from Vulcano. Try to gain access to this building and discover her plans.’
She unrolled three pieces of parchment and gave the first to Jake. He saw a list of names. ‘Use those aliases when you arrive. They are entirely credible and will match those on the guest register.’ She passed him the next roll, which was covered in roughly drawn maps. ‘This is the location of the villa, on the southwestern corner of the Palatine. And this’ – she handed him the third – ‘is a plan of the building. The party will take place in the arena in the centre of the compound. My mother’s campaign room is on the far side in this domed structure . . .’ She indicated it on the map. ‘The only possible access is over the roofs. Understand?’
Jake and Lucius nodded.
‘Tonight, there will be dinner followed by what my mother calls ludi sanguinei – blood games. I cannot say when is the best moment to make your move, but when the time is right, find the concealed door at the north end of the arena, next to a statue of Saturn. This key will unlock it . . .’ She handed Jake a small bronze key. ‘Inside there is a staircase that will take you to the top of the building, onto a private terrace. From here you can climb across the roofs to the campaign room. You will enter through the open skylight at the apex of the central dome here. It is high, so you will need to be lowered on ropes – that is why you must all go.’
‘And what are we looking for?’ Lucius asked. He was clearly a little out of his depth.
‘Anything – find anything! For we are completely in the dark. We need to know about this public murder, and why Agata went to so much trouble to pick up the actor from Herculaneum – Austerio, I believe he is called – and if there is any connection between the two.’
Trying to sound as knowledgeable as possible, Jake chipped in, ‘I saw a film once where spies used an actor to memorize secret information; maybe that’s why they have him.’
‘Who knows? I caught sight of him only briefly from my carriage window, when he was collected in Herculaneum. After we arrived in Rome he was taken to another part of the villa and I have not seen him since.’ Topaz looked up at the high windows. Light was now streaming through them, illuminating a swirling constellation of particles. ‘Morning is upon us and I must return.’ Having given her lacerated wrist a chance to breathe, she started to wrap the chain around it once again. ‘One last thing: tonight, on no account should any of you acknowledge me. You will not speak to me or even look at me. Is that understood?’
Jake nodded.
‘If I cannot look at you tonight,’ Lucius added with studied charm, ‘I will ask a kiss of you now.’
At first Topaz shook her head, but when he pulled her to him and embraced her, she did not resist, melting into his arms. It went on for so long that Jake had to pretend to be interested in the mosaic floors.
Finally he coughed nervously. ‘Just one last question,’ he asked, still unable to look up. ‘Who else will be at this party?’
At last Topaz was released. Her cheeks flushed, she took a moment to compose herself and straighten her clothes. ‘What I call the milliardaires affamés – the hungry billionaires,’ she replied. ‘Dignitaries from all over the empire: merchants, lawyers, generals; people with one thing in common apart from their wealth – a desire to be more wealthy, by any possible means. It’s incredible – Agata’s lived here for just three years, but in a city famous for its snobbery, not a single person has questioned where she came from or who she is. She just appeared one day, with a load of gold. She headed for a vast villa on the Palati
ne, next to the emperor’s. An old aristocrat had lived there for decades, but she just kept increasing her offers of money until he finally moved out.’
‘And why did no one question her?’ Jake asked. He couldn’t help but be intrigued by Agata Zeldt.
‘Because she is the richest of them all; richer than the devil, they say.’ Topaz looked stern, her mouth a tight line. ‘Not just richer; crueller too.’
She turned and saw that the white-robed attendants had started handing out bread and water to their patients. ‘Now, I must return.’ She started to lead Jake and Lucius back towards the exit. Suddenly she stopped, unclasped a gold necklace from around her neck, and approached the poor one-legged youth Jake had seen before. With a kindly word, she dropped it into his trembling hand and closed his thin fingers around it.
She returned to Jake and Lucius, and they left the temple. Topaz hurriedly said her goodbyes.
‘And remember,’ she called back, ‘you don’t know me.’ She replaced her helmet and hurried back over the Pons Fabricius into the city.
It was another half-hour before Charlie appeared for their agreed rendezvous. Jake quickly filled him in on their meeting with Topaz – explaining about the public murder and showing him the papers she’d given him.
‘I know this building from my research – it’s one of the grandest in the city,’ Charlie commented, studying the map. ‘It even has its own miniature stadium. Let’s go back to the bureau now and make plans. The place hasn’t been used for a while and it was overrun with creepy-crawlies. Nathan is still cleaning up.’
History Keepers: Circus Maximus Page 17
