To Crown a Caesar (The Praetorian Series: Book II)

by Crichton, Edward

  “Ten near the docks,” Santino radioed.

  I marked it.

  I personally didn’t care how many men were there. Only one person mattered and that was Agrippina. The caves five years ago had housed just as many terrorists, and those men had been equipped with AK47s, not swords and shields. If not for my piss poor driving skills, we would have been fine. Clearing out a village no bigger than a downtown city block, full of Romans who weren’t expecting us shouldn’t be a problem, especially if we were well prepared.

  There seemed to be a lull in the team’s updates.

  I glanced up from my notebook, the same one I’d been scribbling nonsense in for the past few months. “Any more tangos?” I asked

  “I’ve got one more coming out of the building,” Helena updated. “Maybe back from a bathroom break.”

  “Anything else?”

  Silence.

  “Good,” I continued. “Hold your positions for thirty mikes and maintain visual contact, then report back to camp.”

  I received a chaotic series of clicks in return, but it sounded like everyone got the message.

  I was already at our camp, maybe five miles from the villa Agrippina had occupied inside the village. Wang had spotted her on a balcony earlier, so we knew exactly where she was staying.

  We were near the beach behind a few high dunes in case the Romans came snooping. In preparation for the team’s arrival, I moved down to the shoreline and sketched an accurate representation of the town in the damp sand.

  North of Tripolis, Syria, modern day Tripoli, Lebanon, the town was negligible in size, but the villa that sat in its center was formidable. The complex sat on a little more than an acre of land, but half of that space consisted of the interestingly designed villa. Some kind of amalgamation of Roman, Greek, Egyptian, and Mesopotamian architecture, it sported arches, columns, cupolas, minarets, and designs I was completely unaware of. It looked like a piece of junk in my opinion, but I was hardly an expert. At least it had enough entrances and hiding spaces to sneak in a ten man squad from random trajectories.

  To my sketch, I added the four walls, towers at the corners and every guard lookout station we had identified. I added the dock, and made sure the size was as close to scale as I could manage.

  I took a few steps back and admired my handiwork. It would do. I started adding some more detail to the dock area, probably the most accessible route into the complex, when I noticed the first arrival. I looked up to see Helena making her way towards the camp, unaware that I was on the beach. She looked in our tent to find it empty, so I called out to her before she grew concerned. She waved back and entered the tent for a few minutes, emerging without her gear and wearing shorts and a tank top, her feet bootless.

  She walked down to the beach slowly and sat next to my diagram, burying her bare toes in the damp sand. She extended her hand to me. I looked at it for a second but she was insistent, so I let her pull me down to the sand next to her. I followed her lead and took off my boots.

  The sand felt good between my toes, almost like a massage, and I suddenly felt as though I were elsewhere. Alone, on the beach, with our toes in the sand, the moonlight streaming down from out over the Mediterranean, I almost thought we were on vacation.

  “Jacob, can we talk?”

  I let my eyes close shut of their own accord, feeling the image slip away with her words. The last time she wanted to “talk” was during that first month in Rome when she told me she’d been a green rookie covering our backs in combat. That had been bad enough.

  “If it’s about the mission, I really don’t want to hear it,” I told her matter of factly. “We have to do this. With luck…”

  “It’s not about the mission,” she cut me off quietly, her voice devoid of anger or frustration. “Or timelines or Agrippina or anything like that.”

  Her tone threw me. She’d been our most vocal advocate for taking down Agrippina since this whole mess started. She’d always had more reason to hate her than any of us. Even me. But just now she sounded as if she didn’t even care at all.

  “Then what’s this about?”

  “It’s… it’s about us.”

  “Us?” I asked, curious. “You finally breaking up with me?”

  “What? No. Of course not.” She shook her head distractedly. “I love you more than…”

  “I love you too, Helena,” I interrupted. “I don’t think I say it enough, but I do. More than anything else.”

  “I know you do, Jacob.” She sighed. “I’m sorry I’ve been so distant, but I’ve had a lot on my mind.”

  “This have anything to do with what we talked about in Galba’s tent a few months ago?”

  “In a way, yes,” she replied, still very distracted, “but also no.”

  She picked up a handful of sand and I watched as it streamed between her fingers, the wet clumps making tiny mounds as they impacted the beach.

  “Its okay, Helena. Just tell me.”

  She choked a halfhearted laugh. “It’s really so simple…”

  “Hey, lovebirds,” Santino called out from the dune, Wang, Gaius, and Marcus beside him, “leave room for the Holy Spirit down there.”

  I sighed and waved frustratingly at him, but I shifted my attention back to Helena. I was on the edge of my seat over what she was going to tell me. All the tension between us aside, I wanted to know what was bothering her. Had to know. She was staring at the sand and looked sad, rather than annoyed. I simply could not guess what was bothering her. What could do this to her?

  I reached across my body and gripped her cheek with the palm of my hand, rotating her face towards me. I waited until she met my eyes, her bright green ones confirming her sadness.

  “Now’s not the time for jokes,” I said. “I’d really like to know what’s going on. Once we’re done with the briefing, we’re going to sit back down, right here, and we’re going to talk about it.”

  She managed a small half-smile and leaned in to kiss me.

  She pulled back and said, “I’ll be here.”

  ***

  Fifteen minutes later, Helena and I were still waiting on the beach for our remaining teammates to make their way back. We sat there looking at the moonlight, her head on my shoulder, listening to the crashing waves and annoying banter from the peanut gallery back in the camp. I held her hand as we sat, my mind processing everything I could think of.

  Everything besides the mission, of course.

  But at least my mind wasn’t wandering on mission, for once. We weren’t planning to hit Agrippina until the following night, so I had time to think. But it was still frustrating. I couldn’t get Helena out of my head. This was a prime example of why the military frowned on combat operatives engaging in romantic ventures with one another. It was feared that one member of the pairing would becoming over protective of the other, usually the male towards the female, and in an act of desperation or overprotectiveness, do something that could threaten a mission. As chauvinistic as it may seem, it was basic social upbringing 101. Since our cavemen ancestors, it had always been the man’s job to protect the women, and the sense of duty subconsciously stuck.

  But, it was hardly my fault Helena and I ended up this way. Maybe it was fate. Stupid fate. Or maybe it was simply dumb luck on my part. Either way, it was currently spelling my downfall and leading towards my distraction.

  If tomorrow was going to be as important and dangerous as we all thought, we had to talk now. Not later.

  Thankfully, despite opportunity, I didn’t have much time to focus on it because Vincent, Bordeaux and Madrina finally arrived. Santino, Wang, Titus, Gaius, and Marcus were already on the beach, likewise shoeless, and examining my craftsmanship. Five minutes later, ten bodies, all lacking footwear, stood around my two by one yard drawing of our target location. Santino, of course, felt the need to point out that his five year old equivalent could have done a better job, but after I threw a clump of wet sand in his face, everyone was laughing at him, not with him.


  Once everyone settled down, I started the briefing.

  “All right, everyone, let’s keep this short. We’ll go over the finer details tomorrow after a good night’s sleep.

  “Based on UAV scans and ground based observation, our clearest point of insertion is the docks.” I used a small stick to circle the area of my sand painting I had designated as such. “A small team will amphibiously assault that spot, while the rest of us provide cover and sniper support from the north and south.”

  I pointed at the shoreline I’d added to my diagram.

  “Once inside the perimeter, our scout team will clear the guards within the courtyard while the rest of us make our way to reinforce them. From there, we’ll sneak through village and make our way into the villa. Once inside, we have three objectives; one primary and two secondary. Our primary one is to obtain Agrippina. Wang, as always, you’re on hostage detail.”

  I glanced at Wang. He stood with his arms crossed, all business. He nodded in affirmation.

  “Good. Our first secondary objective is to find Varus. The last time I encountered him, he was not happy about being employed by Agrippina, but chances are he’s still there and I’m certain he’d appreciate a rescue effort. Finally, if we find the second orb, we take it.”

  I sighed. “Keep in mind, the orb is still a secondary objective. Finding it means shit if we can’t fix the timeline, and that means turning over Agrippina to Vespasian. Once we have Agrippina, we extract immediately, no matter what. Understood?”

  I glanced around the circle, receiving nods and quiet affirmatives all around. Everyone seemed confident, maybe a little nervous, but that was normal. Only Titus and Madrina seemed a little worse for wear, but at least they had close companions to look to for guidance and reassurance prior to the mission.

  “Any questions?” I asked finally.

  There were none.

  “Good. Go get some sleep.”

  ***

  I glanced over at Helena as Vincent helped me wash away the diagram. She’d moved closer to the water and sat close enough so that the waves could lap up against her bare legs. I watched her draw circles in the sand, only to watch them disappear with the ebb and flow of the tides. She looked so distracted. So flakey. It was so unlike her. That was my MO.

  I patted Vincent on the back, thanking him for his help with the diagram.

  He gave me a reassuring smile. “Good luck, Hunter. It looks like she has a lot on her mind.”

  I nodded and parted company with the elder sage. Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly to build up my courage, I made my way to Helena at a slower pace than she deserved. I couldn’t believe it. I was actually worried.

  Upon my arrival, she was so out of it that I caught her completely off guard. She actually flinched at my touch, even though she must have known I was coming. Smiling to cover it up, she took my hand and guided me to sit in front of her. I plopped myself down in the sand, and spread my legs in a V, my feet extending past either side of her waist. She scooted in a bit closer, arched her knees over my legs, and gripped my hands.

  “You ready to talk?” I asked.

  She smirked. “Not really.”

  “Just keep it simple. Like what you said with Vespasian.”

  “The issue is simple by nature,” she explained. “Saying the actual words is not. I’ve been struggling with whether you should even know, considering what we’re about to do.” She laughed again. “I don’t even know how to put it in a way you, of all people, can understand.”

  “Then start with the most confusing,” I suggested. “Blindside me with it.”

  Her smile lingered. “Okay…well, let’s start over then.”

  “Works for me,” I said, shaking my shoulders to ease the tension. “Hit me.”

  She cleared her throat. “Jacob, there’s something I need to tell you.”

  “What is it, Helena?”

  “I… I think I missed a period.”

  I leaned in and squinted at her in confusion. “In which sentence? I’m already lost.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Why do I ever listen to you? Of course that would be too confusing. No, Jacob. I think I’m pregnant.”

  Neither one of us said anything for a long time. I just stared at her as I attempted to process this new information when for no apparent reason, I felt nothing but suspicion.

  “And who, may I ask, is the father?” I blurted.

  She started to laugh, but then noticed my unflinching expression, causing hers to shift almost immediately. Angrily, she pulled her hands away from mine and hit me in the chest with more force than she ever had before.

  “Ow!” I yelped, my hands moving to protect my chest. “What was…”

  “You are, you fucking asshole!” She yelled as she rained more blows against my body.

  I tried to grapple with her to calm her down, but she stubbornly avoided me. Her punches turned to wild slaps as she frantically tried to bat me away. She was so wild that I wasn’t ready for her when she shoved her open palm into my nose with almost as much strength as her original punch. The assault knocked me into the water where a large wave crashed into me, soaking me to the bone. I pushed myself up onto my hands and knees and felt blood stream down my chin.

  Helena stared angrily at me before soccer kicking me in the gut a moment later. It knocked the wind out of me and sent me careening into the waves once again. She reared back and kicked me two more times before she threw her hands down and screamed in frustration, doubling over in another uncontrollable pain attack at the same time. But her pain wasn’t going to quell her anger, and I watched as she turned on her heels and made her way down the beach.

  Idiot! How could you be so stupid?

  Pinching my nose, I cleared my head with some sea water and limped my way after her, my hand clutching my abdomen. She was hugging herself as she fled, and was also crying. I ran up behind her and put my hands on her shoulders, but she shrugged me off. I tried again, only to have her turn around and beat against my chest again, this time, however, with considerably less force. After enduring a few more blows, I was finally able to successfully grab her by the wrists and keep her at bay while she continued to cry.

  God, I was a fucking idiot.

  I pulled her in close, but she continued to struggle, and it was minutes before she finally ceased her assault and cried against my shoulder. I dropped us down to our knees, trying to pacify the situation while waves continued to flow around us.

  “I’m so sorry, Helena, I don’t know why I said that. Please, I… it was a stupid thing to say. I wasn’t thinking. I have so much on my mind, I can’t…”

  I stopped, realizing there really was no excuse for what I’d said, but her sobs began to slow as I spoke and she eventually pulled back and sat on her heels. She coughed and cleared her throat, rolling her eyes at the sky as she did both.

  “And you wondered why I couldn’t tell you,” she said around a few lingering sobs. “I knew you would react like a child. Say something stupid like that. I just knew it.”

  “I’m sorry, Helena. It was the only thing that popped into my head. I can’t think straight anymore and you surprised me,” I paused. “I still can’t believe it.”

  “Well you’d better start, you jerk.”

  “But how?” I asked, looking at the sand for answers. “It hasn’t happened before. We were always so carefu…”

  “These things sneak up on people all the time, Jacob.” She sniffed. “It must have happened that night during the siege when we were supposed to be covering Santino again.” She shook her head. “Or even back in Byzantium, I don’t know. Tracking these things has become more and more difficult the longer I’ve been here. I can’t tell for certain how far along I am.”

  “But you’re certain?”

  She pounded my shoulder again. “I know this isn’t the kind of thing you know anything about, but everything has been mostly normal for a long time and to miss…”

  “All right, I get it.�
��

  Female biology not only confused me, it practically scared me.

  Still.

  A baby? A son? A mini-Jacob…

  My family had never been large. It had been left small and became strained because of my father. As a result, ever since I could remember, I’d always wanted kids of my own. Fifty for all I cared. But I always figured it would be in a cushy suburb with a white picket fence, and a guy who still delivered milk to our front door. Not in the first century A.D., surrounded by people who wanted to kill me, not to mention an empress who probably wanted to chew on my guts while she killed me. I couldn’t imagine raising a kid in Rome. It almost seemed… irresponsible.

  “What are you thinking?” Helena asked.

  Most of the anger was gone from her voice by now, but the wake of tears were still evident on her lovely face, tears that caught me off guard. She really must have been worked up over this child to actually cry. Her reserved attitude over the past few weeks made sense all of a sudden… over the past year really. Had she wanted this all along? Was I really that blind?

  I glanced up at her. “A baby?”

  She smiled. “Yes, Jacob. A baby. Yours and mine.”

  She reached out and placed my hand against her stomach. I didn’t feel anything. I suppose I wouldn’t this early on, but something told me she was right. My child was there.

  “But how can we raise him here?” I asked. “Now? He doesn’t deserve to grow up in the ass end of civilization.”

  “She won’t. We’ll find a way to get home.”

  I pulled away from the future mother of my child, stood, and walked back towards the scene of our fight. I rubbed my chin and thought.