by V. M. Sang
“I need to talk to you,” he said.
Huw stopped what he was doing and looked at the young man. “Well, what do you want to say?”
“I know I owe you a lot of money for buying back those two boys. It will take me a long time working for you, so I propose that I set up on my own as a trader.”
Huw put his hands on his hips and looked at Ailbert. “It's not an easy life, you know? You need to be away from home quite a bit.”
Ailbert looked at the ground and nodded solemnly. “I know. I've been travelling around with you long enough to understand that … but travelling around Britannia to trade doesn't take so long. It's not like travelling across Europa.”
“It's not as if you're married, I don't suppose. Well, good luck to you, Ailbert. Just as long as you don't offer me too much competition.” He laughed and clapped Ailbert on the back.
Ailbert heaved a sigh of relief. Huw had not been annoyed that he planned on becoming a rival. He would need to work hard, though, before he became a serious threat to Huw's business.
They planned on leaving in the next few days for Londinium. Ailbert said he would take his wagon and buy a few things to bring back to Eberacum to trade. Gwen gave him some cloth she had woven; he thought it would bring a good price. Maeve provided woollen cloaks she had made from Gwen's cloth and Awena furs that had come from the animals Rhodri had hunted.
After visiting Londinium, Ailbert returned with olives and figs, as well as an amphora of wine. It was a small start, but a start it was and he anxiously awaited the market in Eberacum.
Before the market, he managed to buy flour from a miller in the village that he hoped to sell to a baker in Eberacum; then he settled down to his accounts. He should make some profit from this journey, and he intended to plough it all back and buy more things next time.
He had other plans too that did not involve trading, like seeing and walking with Sylvia, which he very much looked forward to.
The day came when he and Huw set off for the town. They arrived in the late afternoon and stayed at the usual inn. Early the next morning, Ailbert went to visit Flavius' family. He made the excuse that he would come to give the boys their archery lesson later that evening but, in reality, he hoped to see Sylvia.
She did not appear, much to his disappointment. He hoped she would hear of his arrival and come to visit him at his stall.
All day he worked in the forum, selling goods. He did well and, by mid-afternoon, he had sold everything. Sylvia had still not arrived. He sat under the shade of the portico that ran round three sides of the forum and gazed at the crowds passing by.
Then he saw her. She paused at Huw's stall and looked at some of his goods, especially a glass cosmetic container Huw had purchased in Londinium. The container had been made in the shape of a bird's head and had come all the way from Hispania. Sylvia examined it, then brought out her purse to pay. She looked around and Ailbert saw her speak to Huw. He pointed in Ailbert's direction and, after passing her purchase to the slave who carried her parcels, she crossed the forum towards him.
Ailbert watched her and the boy carrying her parcels. He was momentarily reminded of the days when he had done the same job and his fists clenched. Then Sylvia was standing in front of him and he forgot all about his days as a slave.
He smiled. “Shall we walk?”
She smiled back. “Have you finished here?”
Ailbert nodded and Sylvia told the boy to take the goods she had bought back to the domus. If anyone asked, he was to say she had met an old friend and was going for a walk.
The pair followed their usual route through the gates and into the woodland. Neither of them spoke until they were in the clearing they had found some months before. There was a fallen tree by the side of a stream and the sun shone down through the space the tree had left. The little brook sparkled under its light.
Sylvia sat on the tree trunk and patted it for Ailbert to sit next to her. “This has been my favourite place,” Sylvia told him, “ever since we found it. I love the brook and the way the breeze makes the leaves rustle.”
“It'll soon be autumn,” Ailbert said, looking at the water as it burbled past, “then the leaves will have gone.”
“Don't say that, Ailbert. When it gets too cold, we won't be able to take our walks.”
Ailbert turned to her. “Sylvia,” he began, then paused and looked away. Drawing a deep breath, he tried again. “'I've enjoyed our walks, too. And the talks we've had. I don't want them to stop for winter.”
Sylvia opened her mouth to speak, but Ailbert interrupted. “Don't stop me. This is hard. I don't want to stop seeing you over the winter.” He turned away, coughed, and turned back. “What I'm trying to say, Sylvia, is … that I love you.”
Sylvia 's eyes opened wide at the announcement, then she lowered them. “I love you too, Ailbert. I didn't think my feelings were reciprocated. Oh, I know you like me and enjoy my company, but I had no idea it was more than friendship.”
“Then we should get married.”
Sylvia burst into tears and Ailbert took her in his arms. It was the first time he had done so, although he had dreamed of it so many times.
“We can't get married, Ailbert,” she sobbed into his shoulder.
“Sylvia, I know your mother will object because I'm not a Roman, but I can become one. I'll become a Roman citizen for you and live in Eberacum.”
“Oh, who gives a fig about what Mater thinks.” Sylvia dried her eyes with the back of her hand.
Ailbert frowned. “Then what …?”
“Pater's the one who'll decide. Mater will have to do what he says, and so will I. Only Pater has the power to decide the future of any member of the family.”
“Then why are you crying?”
“Pater has betrothed me to the son of a friend of his. I was betrothed when I was twelve years old, and am going to be married next summer.”
Sylvia began to weep again and Ailbert did his best to comfort her and persuade her she could break off this betrothal. They could go to Pen Coed and have a handfasting.
Sylvia was adamant that the betrothal could not be broken and the pair walked sadly back to the gates, hand in hand for the first and last time.
Afterword
After this, Ailbert threw himself into his work, building up his merchant business. He became successful and travelled all over Europe, searching for rare and valuable goods to trade. He went back to the Rhinelands, but he could not remember enough to be able to find his home village, and no one recognised the ash-blonde young man as the pale-haired six-year-old who had been taken as a slave all those years ago.
He married a girl from a nearby village and had eight children, five of whom grew to adulthood. As he became more successful, he moved his family to Eberacum and became a Roman citizen.
He sometimes saw Sylvia and her husband, and had the occasional few words with her. He never lost his love for her, even when she became old, but he hid it from his wife, of whom he was fond and would not have wanted to hurt.
He died in the year 136 AD a wealthy and respected Roman.
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Glossary of Roman Places and Welsh and Latin words
Atrium Large open area in a Roman house, from which rooms led off
Britannia Britain
Blaenafon Celtic, meaning source of the river. A village near Eberacum
Cambria Wales
Century A unit of 10 contuburnia led by a centurion
Compluvium A hole in the roof of the atrium allowing rain to fall into t
he impluvium and letting in light.
Contuburnium Smallest unit of the Roman army, comprising 8 men.
Deva Chester
Domus A town house, owned by a prosperous person
Dubris Dover
Dumnonia Cornwall
Durocortum Rheims
Durovernum Canterbury
Durovigutum Godmanchester
Eberacum York
Eira Celtic. Snow, the name of a horse
Gesoriacum Boulogne-sur-Mer
Hispania Spain
Impluvium A rectangular area to collect rainwater from the compluvium which drained through pipes to a cistern for household use.
Insula An apartment. Cheaper housing than the domus.
Londinium London
Mare Balticum Baltic Sea
Mater Mother
Mogantiacum Mainz
Oceanus Britannicus English Channel
Pater Father
Pen Coed Celtic, Wooded Headland. The name of a town near Eberacum
Pharus Lighthouse
Portico Entrance to a domus or villa
Primus Pilus Senior Centurion of a Roman Legion.
Rhenus Rhine
Tablinium A room in a Roman domus that was open to both the atrium and peristylium. It contained family documents and was often used as an office by the dominus.
Tân Celtic, Fire, The name of a horse
Thamesis River Thames
Triclinium Dining Room in a Roman house
Vestibulum A long, narrow passage leading from the portico to the atrium.
Author’s Notes
I have tried to be as historically accurate as possible in this novel, but I have found some aspects difficult to research. One example is about the bathing of slaves. I came across one source that said that slaves did bathe, but not how often, and I could find out little about the bathing in private houses, although some of the plans I looked at had baths in them so I assumed they did bathe at home on at least some occasions.
Most Romans used the public baths because it was a social and business event as much as a cleansing process.
In the country villas, though, I imagine that the domestic baths were used, as there was not usually a public bathhouse near enough to visit daily.
I wanted to have a new governor to ask for Avelina, so I took the liberty of moving Agricola's appointment as Governor of Britannia from 77AD to 80AD
For the names of the Britons, I have used Celtic names that I found on-line, in the main, Welsh, although the name taken by Adelbehrt--Ailbert, is Scottish. It was the nearest to Adelbehrt that I could find. The names of Adelbehrt and Avelina, as well as Odila, are ancient Germanic names, again found on-line.
Everyday life in the villages of the Britons was also difficult to find out about. There is plenty of information about the Romans in Britain and about the Romanised Britons, but not much about the Britons who were not Romanised: how they lived, what they thought about the new crops the Romans had brought with them and what crafts they plied. There is also some confusion about whether or not the Britons used bows and arrows. Some sources said they did not, but others that they did. I have assumed that they did use them.
When talking about the building of the houses, I have used familiar measurements rather than the measurements that would have been used by the Celts as this will give people a clearer idea of the size of the things used.
Thanks to the You Tube video of the building of a Celtic round house at Llynnon Mill on Anglesey, and to Wikipedia for many other things about Roman history.
It is important for authors that they get reviews of their work. There are so many books being published nowadays that to get word out about any one book is extremely difficult.
I would therefore be extremely delighted if you could spare a couple of minutes to review Vengeance of a Slave.
It needn't be an arduous task. Just a few words as to whether you enjoyed the book and what you found particularly enjoyable.
Thank you for your time.
If you want to read some of my thoughts, background to this and other novels and more of my writing, you can visit my blog.
http://aspholessaria.wordpress.com/
About the Author
V.M.Sang was born in Northwich in Cheshire, UK. and grew up in an idyllic place for children. With her friends she used to go out to play in the woodlands around the area. Of course, people were less anxious about what might happen to their children in those days. Not that they cared less, it was just that there seemed to be less to worry about.
While she was growing up she was a tomboy. She climbed trees, played hide and seek in the woods, dammed the streams, searched for caterpillars and butterflies, learned about the birds and wild animals and picked wild flowers. (That was not illegal then, of course.)
She always loved being with animals, especially dogs. She had a border collie and a corgie while she was growing up. Not at the same time, though.
When she grew up she went to teacher training college where she studied science with maths and English as subsidiary subjects. Here she joined the Hiking Club and on a hike to Kinder Scout in Derbyshire, she met her future husband.
During the time she brought up her children,she took up painting and a variety of crafts. She still does them when not writing. One of her favourites is tatting, a craft that not many people seem to do these days, which is a pity as it’s quite easy and makes many very pretty things.
She now lives in East Sussex with her husband and enjoys the company of her grandchldren.
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