Rubicon

by Linda Coleman

  Antony grunted in disgust. “I knew this was too good to be true! She only says this because she knows Curio and I have plans for her and her whiny friend and she thinks she can prevent the inevitable.”

  “Perhaps, Antony, but for that sound judgement alone I should applaud her.” Caesar was trying hard to hide another smile. “Lissa you say your name is?” Close enough, Melissa thought and nodded, encouraging Caesar to continue. “Lissa, I will consider your proposal and send word to you of my decision in due course. If nothing else you have bought yourself at least a short reprieve from Antony’s bed. I want your word that you will not try to escape, though, or I will ensure you are made available to the entire camp when he and Curio are done with you.”

  “I give you my word, Caesar, there will be no attempt at escape. My fate is in your hands and I obediently wait on your decision.” Melissa bowed her head in respect to the mighty general.

  Antony slid his hand under Melissa’s armpit and pulled her roughly to her feet. He pushed her out of the tent, instructing one of the guards to take her back to Curio. Just before he let her go he pulled Melissa against him so closely that their bodies touched completely and said in a quiet voice, “Mark my words, if you are lying to him I will make you wish you had not been born. I will enjoy every hour that I take with you and, rest assured, I will continue to use you for my pleasure for many days before I am done.” He kissed her so forcefully that she could not prevent his tongue entering her mouth and hungrily searching its interior. Then he turned and re-entered the tent, without giving her another glance.

  Chapter 8

  Mark Antony was not a stupid man. He had been reckless in his past and done a great many stupid things, but that could be put down to the innocence of youth. Antony had always lived his life to the full, including loving as many women as he could. Generally, he liked to treat them well, having found his liaisons to be more enjoyable that way, but there was something about the way this foreigner stood up to him that infuriated him. She should have been scared of him, but she showed no such fear. Her apparent arrogance was a challenge to his authority and it could not go unanswered.

  Antony was used to strong women. He preferred them to have a mind of their own rather than merely being pretty decorations. His mother, Julia, was strong. She needed to be. His father died in disgrace when Antony was ten, leaving him a bankrupt before he was even a man. She had remarried another man called Lentulus who had been a good step-father to the young Antony and his two younger brothers. When Cicero was consul, he had Lentulus put to death for his alleged part in Catalina’s conspiracy against the Senate, and a combination of grief for Lentulus and hatred for Cicero had driven Antony off the rails. He had moved into Curio’s circle of acquaintances and the wild parties and dubious sexual encounters had begun in earnest. He ran up huge debts and eventually joined the army to escape his creditors.

  He had grown up a great deal since then. His army career began in the Eastern Mediterranean provinces under another former consul called Gabinius, before serving under Caesar. He made the most of every opportunity that presented itself to demonstrate his capabilities to both generals and had quickly progressed through the ranks as a result. Being related to Caesar, albeit distantly, had not done him any harm either, though neither man ever mentioned that fact. Now he had become one of Caesar’s most trusted officers.

  Antony was far from convinced by Melissa’s performance. Despite her knowledge of Caesar’s epilepsy, he doubted every word she said. He believed her to be a con artist, though admittedly a good one. Perhaps the reason he had such a strong desire to take her on and prove her a fraud was to increase his standing still further.

  Returning to Caesar, Antony felt it prudent to ask for his general’s opinion before making any statement of his own. “What do you believe? Does she tell the truth?” he asked without committing any emotion that could betray his own opinion.

  Caesar was shaking his head. “You know my scepticism on the subject of seers. I doubt any person can accurately predict future events. That said, this woman does seem more plausible than many and she certainly has guts to come here before me, and to engage you so openly. She has detailed knowledge of recent events that you were party to, yet there is no possibility she was in Rome at the time. If she had been she could not possibly have arrived at the Rubicon on foot before your party on horseback and yet it appears she did. And explain to me if you can how it is she knows of my sickness? None except those closest to me have knowledge of that. I trust each of those people to keep that secret, including you, Antony. She has made no wild predictions and needs no trance or ritual to ‘see’ the future; on the contrary she has remained lucid at all times and appears to be very intelligent. These two women are definitely foreign and I do not believe we have come across their kind before. You only need look at their odd form of dress to know this. And if her people truly have gifts of foresight then they would offer us a distinct advantage in the future. The benefits of such an alliance speak for themselves. The question is whether or not our visitor is trustworthy.”

  “And how do we find that out?” Antony could tell Caesar was going to go along with Melissa’s suggestion, but he knew better than to challenge his general outright at such an early stage.

  “Lissa is obviously concerned for her own safety and for that of the other woman. She is no fool and most probably is under no illusion about the desires of an army that has been away for many years; she certainly knows what you want to do to her, my friend! It is interesting that she seems less certain in regard to her own future than mine. She seems unsure whether we will hurt her or not. This leads me to suspect that she may be elaborating her usefulness to save herself. For this I can only commend her efforts; were I in her place and bargaining for my life, I would do the same.” Caesar paused as he recalled a time when he had been taken hostage by pirates. He had convinced their leader that his worth was far greater than the ransom that had been demanded in order to buy time and to save his own life. He wondered if Melissa was aware of that incident also and had used the same tactics to impress him. He found he believed so and smiled to himself before continuing.

  “The question we must ask ourselves is, do we give her the benefit of the doubt? It is my belief that we should for now. We have nothing to lose from having patience. I must say her proposed tactics for our advance were exceptionally well-thought out – for a woman! If she is proved correct, then I believe I can come to an agreement that is in the interest of us both, but there can be no visible links to me. It would not look well with the people for Caesar to have a woman for an advisor.”

  “And how do you intend to avoid any such stain on your reputation?” Antony asked.

  Caesar thought for a moment. “I will place both of them into your care, Antony, as you have no reputation to protect. Assign them a bodyguard, a man you can trust to not defile them. Treat them well and do nothing to make them fear or distrust you. That may be difficult, I know, but we do not have long to wait until we reach the towns Lissa mentioned. We can review her worth to us at that point.”

  “And if she proves to be of no value?” Antony was fishing. He only needed the hint of ambiguity to dispose of the women in the most debauched way imaginable, and Antony had a very vivid imagination.

  Caesar shrugged. “They are your responsibility. What happens to them will be for you to decide.”

  “Gladly!” Antony replied, relishing the wicked thoughts that were forming in his mind. “I am sure I can devise a fitting way to dispose of them.”

  “Do not get ahead of yourself, my friend,” Caesar chastised Antony like a child. “There is still the possibility that they will prove useful. If this is to be the case, I will need you to utilise that famous charm of yours to best effect.” Caesar paused, staring into space. He was again thinking back to his walk beside the Rubicon. Had Mercury heard his thoughts? Was this woman the answer to his prayers?

  He returned his gaze to Antony, and smiled. Caesar was fully
aware of his lieutenant’s reputation with women and knew he needed to be very clear with his instructions to prevent any misunderstandings. “Something about this woman intrigues me. Lissa may yet prove to be one of the most intelligent women you or I will ever meet. I would advise you not to underestimate her, as she is easily your equal. Appeal to her with your mind, Antony, not your baser instincts. I have little interest in the younger one. I find her immaturity distracting. She may prove to be of little value in her own right, other than as leverage with Lissa. Take her if you must in time, but do not touch Lissa without my prior consent. No one is to do so. Do we understand each other?”

  “As you wish,” Antony replied. He was far from happy, but he knew he had to go along with Caesar’s request, for now. Proving Melissa to be a fraud would only increase his standing, and the enjoyment he knew he would get from making her slip up definitely made it a task worth pursuing. The more he thought about it, the more interesting the prospect became. First he would play her game, luring her into her own web of lies until he could catch her out. Then he would make her beg for his mercy and for him to save her from Caesar’s wrath.

  The more Antony thought about it, the more he realised he was going to enjoy this game after all.

  Meanwhile, Rebecca was sitting on the floor in Curio’s tent. She was hugging her knees and rocking to and fro, trying to comfort herself. She had never liked Melissa, and the way the older woman had treated her was appalling, but sitting here alone made her realise just how frightened she was. Melissa had been gone for ages and right now, the sight of a familiar face was something she desperately wanted to see, no matter how much she might despise the person it belonged to.

  After they left Caesar’s tent, she had been dragged forcibly by Curio to the other tent. He had handled her quite roughly and her arm still stung from his firm grip. On their arrival, he tried to talk to her again and although she had no idea what he was saying, she knew precisely what was on his mind. He tried to force her onto the camp bed, but she managed to push him away. Then he grabbed her tightly and kissed her, so she bit his lip to make him stop. At that point he had slapped her round the face so hard that she had fallen at his feet. She was sure he would have gone much further if he had not been called away by another soldier.

  Rebecca was baffled as to why every person she had come into contact with today seemed to want to slap her. Melissa had done it twice and then this horrible man. His ring had come in direct contact with her cheekbone and it had split the skin. Occasionally she put her fingers up to feel it to see if it was still bleeding, but the more she touched it the more it bled. She was confused, frightened, and all she really wanted to do was go back to Anthony’s villa.

  The tent flap opened and Melissa was shoved through it. Rebecca got to her feet and rushed over to her, hugging her tightly. To her surprise, Melissa hugged her back. After a moment they separated. Melissa looked at Rebecca’s face and immediately felt guilty. “Did I do that?” she asked turning Rebecca’s face to get a better look.

  “No,” Rebecca replied, “the man who brought me here did.”

  Melissa spotted a jug on the table and went over to it. She fished in her pocket, retrieving a tissue, and tipped just enough water onto the material to make it damp and cold. “Here, put this over it,” she said, handing the tissue to Rebecca. “Don’t worry, it’s not too bad, but it’ll be worse in the morning.”

  The two women sat down on the small camp bed and Melissa pulled the blanket up around them. It was freezing and they needed to keep warm. She had no idea what to say to the young girl next to her, so she started with an apology.

  “I’m sorry for shouting at you and for hitting you in the other tent. Rebecca, we’re in a lot of trouble here and I really need you to trust me and not fight me. Can you do that?”

  Rebecca nodded warily. “I’ll try, but I want to know what’s going on,” she replied.

  Melissa was unsure just how much information Rebecca would be able to absorb, but she had to be honest. She took a deep breath and began.

  “OK, I don’t know quite how this has happened, but we are not looking for evidence of Caesar’s camp anymore – we’ve found it. The real thing, I mean. This is 49 B.C. and we’ve just seen Julius Caesar in his Praetorium, which is what they call his command tent. That’s why they are all talking in Latin. I’ve tried to convince Caesar that we could be of use to him, by saying we can see the future all the while we are virgins. We’re going to have to wait and see whether he believes me or not, but, if he does, it should stop him from handing us over to the men.”

  “Where did you get that idea from, because I’m not, and no one would believe you were after last night!” Rebecca exclaimed. She seemed to have missed the point yet again.

  “It’s not my idea − it’s been around for centuries. The priestesses at Delphi in Greece were supposedly virgins and even Ian Fleming used the same premise in one of his novels, but this is all irrelevant. What’s more important than anything is that we don’t do or say anything to change the course of history. That could be bad for us in so many ways.”

  Melissa looked at Rebecca for some sign that she had understood what Melissa had said, but Rebecca looked just as confused. Melissa tried again. “Look, whether you are a virgin or not doesn’t matter. All that matters is that they think we are both still virgins to make sure they keep away from us. Got it?”

  Rebecca nodded finally. “What about Anthony? He’s here. Why is he being so off with us?” Rebecca still did not seem to understand he was not the man she thought he was.

  Melissa sighed. “That man isn’t Anthony. I know he looks like him and I don’t understand why that is, but I assure you it isn’t him. Next time you see him, take a good look. This man’s a little shorter than our Anthony and he has a number of scars on his face that ours doesn’t have. He is Mark Antony, as in Antony and Cleopatra. He has a reputation for being a bit of a ladies’ man, just like our Anthony does, but there the similarities end. He will try to charm you and he will more than likely try to sleep with you, but you cannot trust him and he will hurt you if it suits him to do so. And remember, wherever he is, Curio will not be far behind, if you get my drift.”

  Rebecca shook her head. Melissa sighed again. She could not believe how dim this girl could be at times. She would have to spell it out for her. “It’s like a supermarket offer; buy one, get one free. You let this Antony anywhere near you, and his best friend will expect the same. I’m guessing he’s already had a go. Curio didn’t just hit you for fun, did he?”

  Rebecca looked down and shook her head again. “No. He kissed me and I bit him. That’s when he hit me.” She leant against Melissa and put her head on Melissa’s shoulder. “I don’t think I want to let him to touch me again unless I have to.” Her voice tailed off to a whisper.

  Melissa put her arm around Rebecca and hugged her again. “Listen, I’ve tried everything I can think of to stop that happening, but I can’t promise you it won’t. What happens to us is up to Caesar now. If he believes me, Curio won’t dare to come near you again, nor will anyone else for that matter. If not …” Melissa stopped as the words stuck in her throat. She found she was unable bring herself to tell Rebecca what was likely to happen to them if Caesar decided to hand them over to the five thousand lecherous men waiting outside.

  Neither woman had been paying any attention to the doorway, where Mark Antony now stood watching them. He could not understand what they were saying beyond the mention of his name or that of his colleagues, but the behaviour of these two women intrigued him more by the second. In public, the older woman had treated the young one like a slave. In private, she was showing concern for her. Their odd behaviour warranted further study. Know your enemy, Antony thought.

  He cleared his throat, making Melissa and Rebecca both look in his direction in fear. Melissa turned her body towards him, pushing Rebecca behind her for protection and for once, Rebecca did not resist.

  “Well, well,” he said.
“This is a sight to excite a man! I would be happy to see just how close you intend to get, but I do not have the time and so must make do with my own imagination of where this could lead us.” He crossed the tent and stood in front of Melissa. “Caesar has considered your request and I regret to inform you ...” Antony left the words hanging as he allowed his eyes to wander down to Melissa’s breasts. Fearing the worst, she instinctively pulled the gaping shirt together to cover herself.

  Antony looked back into Melissa’s defiant eyes. He shook his head and made a gesture with his finger that inferred she was to let go of the material, which she unwillingly did. He nodded and smiled smugly, obviously pleased that he had forced her to obey him. He admired her heaving chest for some time, watching its rise and fall, the only visible sign of her growing fear as she awaited his words.

  When he felt he had tormented her long enough he continued, “... I regret to inform you that Caesar has granted your wish. You are to travel under my protection from this day forward. I have assigned you a guard who is outside. You will remain here tonight, whilst Curio will move into my quarters. More permanent arrangements will be made tomorrow, but then you already knew that, surely?” Antony’s last words were laced with heavy sarcasm. He could tell Melissa had no idea what he was going to say and that only raised his suspicions further.

  Melissa closed her eyes as the relief spread across her face. She squeezed Rebecca’s hand and whispered to her, “It’s OK.” Then she opened her eyes and addressed Antony again, ignoring his sarcastic tone. “Thank you. I am most grateful to Caesar for his generosity. I hope we can be of service to him for many years to come.”