Demeter's Gold

by Meghan Ray

  So, reluctant as he was to drag his friend into the arena, he knew that Leonidas would be interested in getting to the bottom of any corruption that threatened the cult and its integrity. Phil went up to Leonidas’s house dressed in his new outfit, carrying a basket of figs and hoping that any observer would take him for the slave he was disguised to be. The porter who opened the door, a man who had known Phil since he was elbow high, hesitated a minute before opening the door to admit the fig carrying servant. Luckily, Leonidas was at home. Phil followed the slave across the courtyard.

  Leonidas’s house was modest considering his ancestry but it was in harmony with both his taste and his means. Although it was small, it was well proportioned and filled with family treasures collected over centuries. Leonidas’s wife was pale and quiet. Her name was Psyche. She was beautiful and charming and Phil suspected she would rather he didn’t come around. But, when he did, she didn’t make a fuss, she greeted him warmly and then she went upstairs, leaving Leonidas to his own devices. Sometimes Phil felt jealous.

  Tonight he agreed with Psyche, Leonidas would definitely be better off without him as a friend. The two went into the andron and after Leonidas had had some wine and fruit brought in, Phil brought his friend up to date. He told him the salient details and warned him about the dangers he would be letting himself in for if he became involved.

  “Not just you, Leonidas.” He interrupted his friend as he started to object. “I know that you don’t give a damn for yourself, you never have. But your family could be at risk and I am not sure you can put them in jeopardy.”

  Leonidas shook his head, “My wife and my children live in this city too. They care when people are shot through the throat with arrows and they also care when their ancestral cults are desecrated by greed and corruption. I know them pretty well and I think that they would rather not live here without certain things. I know it sounds funny but I think that they also know that important things sometimes require sacrifices and I believe that they are ready to make them.”

  Phil smiled at his friend, “Easy, don’t get carried away by your own fancy speeches. You, especially, were always one to make the worse argument seem the stronger.” Leonidas actually smirked at the old saw and shook his head.

  Phil straightened up, “Listen, I know it all sounds like fun and important and everything but I want you to really consider what this means. Think about it overnight and to talk it over with Psyche or whatever you happy couples do. Okay?”

  Leonidas nodded, “Okay. But I want you here first thing in the morning because I have some ideas that I want to talk over. You know, you didn’t say where the coin is now.”

  Phil turned his hands, palm up, “It’s not important anymore. Why?”

  Leonidas shook his head, “I just wanted to see it. I thought it might give me some ideas.”

  “That’s great, just what I need, more ideas. But remember I want to keep you out of this as much as you can. I want you to try to be a silent partner, out of sight, out of mind. When I was telling you about danger before, I meant just from just talking to me. Don’t think you need to be publicly involved with this. Promise me you won’t. All I am asking is for you to snoop around discreetly. I know it isn’t your usual way but I am asking.”

  Leonidas kept his face straight and nodded at him with such big round eyes that Phil knew he was making fun of him. He didn’t hold it against him though; it was only fair considering everything he was asking. He walked out, shaking his head but he was also hoping that he wouldn’t regret this decision. Leonidas was his oldest and closest friend and Phil knew that no one would be able to forgive him if anything happened to Leonidas’ family, no matter what anyone said about duty, honor, etc. It seemed to Phil that he was being selfish and, all of a sudden, he wanted to get drunk.

  He went straight out to a taverna wearing his shabby clothes. At first, he noticed the difference being dressed as a poor man made to service. But in the end it all worked out. They took his money and brought him wine, for as long as he could pay, so maybe it wasn’t the cloths but the coins.

  He was weaving his way back to the room when he was violently pushed back into a dark corner. He didn’t actually say “Here we go again” but it was his drunken thought. He waited but, when he heard the thud and crunch he was expecting, he was surprised that he felt nothing. He knew he couldn’t be quite as drunk as that, so he spun around just in time to see Themis rock back after her violent attack with a used amphora, apparently one that had held scented oil. It’s former contents easy to judge from the eye-burning reek filling the night air.

  Phil straightened up, “Thanks again, I suppose,” he grinned lopsidedly. “How much time do you spend wandering the streets late at night. I am driven to wonder by your multiple timely arrivals. The wondering in no way lessening my appreciation for your services.” He knew that he was rambling and slurring and made an effort to enunciate, “You may of course feel free to wander as much as you like. Especially since it always turns out so well for me.” Phil stopped talking and looked at the girl. Her face was pale and she was clearly shaken. He started again, “I’m sorry. I didn’t think that any of this would bother you. It is an everyday occurrence for me, these days anyway.”

  She looked confused for a minute and then irritated. “What? No, this has nothing to do with you. My father is missing. He didn’t come home this evening and I was trying to back over his track to find out who saw him last. It figures that I go looking for him and I find you instead.”

  While the girl was talking, Phil’s head was clearing and he was more or less sober when he said, “Don’t take it so hard. You’re lucky finding me. I’ll help you look. Now, where was Meno supposed to be and how far have you traced him?”

  The girl gave herself a small shake and tried, with an effort to focus. She ticked of her list like a girl with her lessons, “First, he was going to a symposium at Polynices’. He was supposed to read some poetry there. Then, he was to stop off at Anaximander’s. He has been ill and Meno was going to bring some things over from the symposium as a treat. Then he was going to come straight home.”

  Phil tried a tolerant smile, “That doesn’t mean that he didn’t stop off some place else. You know how Meno is and how popular and easily distracted. He was probably invited somewhere at the last minute and felt that he couldn’t say no.”

  Themis shook her head, “He promised me he would come home after.” That was enough for her and, frankly, it was enough for Phil. He knew well enough that Meno’s word to his daughter would be unbreakable. It was the way he was.

  “Okay,” Phil nodded, “So let’s start again. How far have you got on his trail?”

  Tears welled in the girl’s eyes. “He never went to Anaximander’s. He has not been seen since he left the symposium. He left there as planned and no one has seen him since.”

  “Have you seen the night watch? They may have run across him or some sign of him.”

  The girl changed from scared to angry. “Those louts wouldn’t help, even if they weren’t handicapped by the donkey brains they are forced to live with.”

  Phil refrained from smiling, “Easy, it doesn’t help to make enemies in the watch. It won’t help us find your father.”

  The girl’s face was tense and impatient; “I asked the watch when I first learned that Meno had never made it to Anaximander’s. They just laughed at me and said that a man was allowed to go out for a night without a woman dogging his every step. They said that if he was still missing in a couple of days, I should go over to the headquarters and they would make an inquiry. As if that wouldn’t be too late.” The girl looked like she would cry.

  Phil said, to distract her, “Listen, where is your slave, what’s his name?”

  “Xanthius,” she supplied.

  “Right, where is he?”

  “He and I split up. He didn’t want to, he wanted to stay with me but when I made him see how important it was, he agreed.”

  “Okay, that’s fine,”
Phil spoke as if thinking out loud, ”What was he supposed to do… if he found Meno?”

  “Why, take him home of course.” The girl looked as though she was beginning to regret wasting her time.

  Phil tried to get her to focus again, “I mean how was he to let you know that Meno was found?”

  “There was no way for us to let each other know. The most important thing was to get father home and get help if he was injured.”

  Phil nodded. “Then he might be home now and you wouldn’t know it?”

  The girl shook her head stubbornly. “I would know it.”

  Phil didn’t want to argue, “Okay, then I suggest we find some torches to help us look.” He glanced down the street and saw a tavern owner closing for the night. He went over to the man and after some monetary persuading, the man let them have some burned down torches. They moved down the narrow and mostly deserted nighttime streets looking in corners and alleys, alternating between hope and dread.

  Hours passed and Phil was about to insist that they call off their search for the night, when he noticed a huddled figure in a dark corner. Without saying anything to Themis, he moved down the alley and over to the body. The man seemed to be alive, barely. Despite his care, Themis noticed that Phil had moved away and ran to join him just as he was pulling the cloak off the battered body of her father. She didn’t scream, although her eyes went wide with horror and her hand flew to her mouth.

  With a visible effort, she pulled herself together and leaned over the body. “Daddy, it’s me. Don’t worry about anything. Phil is here with me and we are going to get you home.” She turned to Phil, “Find something to put him in, anything, a cart, whatever you can find.” Phil nodded and left the alley.

  He looked up and down for some sign of life on the deserted street and just noticed a farm cart moving down the street and turning the corner from where he stood. He ran after the cart at full speed and caught up to the startled driver a few hundred yards further on. The man reluctantly agreed to go back, after Phil assured him that he would be rewarded for his help. The two in the cart covered the distance back to the alley quickly and with the girl’s help they loaded Meno into the back of the wagon, among the melons and figs. It wasn’t very far to Meno’s house, especially with no traffic. They gently unloaded Meno and Phil paid off the carter. In the meantime, the household was roused and Meno was carried to his bed. Xanthius was not back yet, so Phil was immediately sent for the nearest physician, receiving his instructions from Themis who was barking orders like a besieged general.

  Phil went back out through the courtyard and along the streets to the doctor’s house. He had to pound on the door for a few minutes before the door was opened not by a porter but by the doctor himself. The man was not pleased at being roused at such a late hour and he grumbled as Phil quickly explained what had happened. When the doctor learned that it was Meno who was in trouble, he hastened his step but he maintained a steady stream of invective, directed mostly at Phil but he also included some others, names Phil had never heard before. He didn’t inquire.

  They reached the house in short order and Phil showed the man where Meno was lying. Meno looked very pale and his breathing was shallow. Themis was bent over her father bathing his cuts and bruises with a cloth dipped into some herbal liquid, the smell of which filled the small room. The doctor pushed Themis to the side and examined his patient. He didn’t send anyone from the room but he didn’t speak either.

  After a while he shook his head and walked into the hall, motioning for the others to follow him. “It could be worse I suppose, but not much. He may live, there’s no telling. Keep on what you’ve been doing and if he’s still alive, call me in a few days.”

  At first, Phil thought that Themis was going to smack the doctor. Her shoulders came up and her hands balled into fists but in the end she just stood, staring at him with such intensity that he went away without bothering to collect his fee. She turned to go back to her father and was halfway across the hall when she turned and came back, “Thank-you for helping me… us.” She raised her hand to touch Phil’s arm. She looked as though she would say more but instead she turned back and walked into Meno’s room. Phil couldn’t think of any more he could do at the house except get in the way so he let himself out and went to see if he could find Xanthius.

  The thought of the old man roaming the streets all night for no reason offended Phil’s sense of order. It actually didn’t take long to find him. Phil had figured that they had split the neighborhoods working away from Polynices’ towards Meno’s house and that the old guy would be almost finished with his section. And so he was. Phil found him in an alley after about fifteen minutes. He listened to Phil, allowing him to bring him up to date and then he rushed off to the house without saying good-bye. That didn’t hurt Phil’s feelings but he found that he was still restless. He probably couldn’t sleep now and he was supposed to be at Leonidas’ in a few hours so he walked through the almost deserted Agora over to the Eleusinium to take a look at things in the quiet of the nighttime. When he got to the base of the Acropolis, he was surprised to see a light burning at the high window on the side of the temple. Surprised, but pleased. He stole around to the back of the building but he could hear and see nothing. He crept around to the front and gently pushed on the door to the courtyard. It was barred from the inside.

  Well, you couldn’t have everything. He moved over to the small wooded area to the side of the temple to wait and see who came out. He waited until dawn was breaking and still no one came. He was about to leave when he heard the heavy courtyard door creak open. In the half-light, he saw two men leave the compound and walk off in the opposite direction from where he was waiting. He did not recognize the men but he could hear their quiet voices murmuring in the pre-dawn stillness. He thought he made out something about there being no other choice and the thing having to be done but he could have been making it up. He was about to follow them but they were clearly suspicious and uneasy. They kept turning around, looking over their shoulders, trying to ensure that no one was behind them. If he had still had the cover of darkness, Phil might have tried it, but the rapidly lightening sky was making unobserved pursuit impossible and there were still not enough people on the street for him to blend into the crowd.

  He considered for a moment more and was about to start off behind the men in spite of the daylight when he realized that he should go to Leonidas’, making use of the early hour to slip in unobserved. So he let the men go. He went to Leonidas’ via a roundabout route that left him in a very narrow alley at the side door.

  He knocked and was let in immediately by Leonidas himself. He smiled, “You see that I am taking your warning seriously.”

  Phil smiled back, “But how did you know that I would be at this door?”

  “Easy, I know you and how you think, may the gods help me. But come into the andron and we can discuss your next move. I have some thoughts to share.”

  Phil followed his friend into the andron and the two waited as the servants brought in tables and food and wine. When they were alone again, Leonidas said, “This situation is like a brush fire in the dry season. I have gone over what you told me and put that together with things that I know have been going on in the cult in the past year. There has definitely been a power struggle between certain factions within the cult. It is not clear to me exactly what’s behind it but, at this point, there is a conflict between the priest of Eleusis and those of Athens. The Athenians want to move the treasury to Athens for safety. Never mind that Demeter herself has ordained Eleusis as her seat of worship. These priests act as though they know the wishes of the goddess better than she knows them herself. As if she would move her treasures from her chosen city. But these Athenian priests are impious men, men willing to incur the wrath of both Athena and Demeter for a few extra drachmas. I am not sure that I understand all of the motivation but that is what is happening.”

  Phil thought for a moment, “How did you discover these things? Do y
ou think other cult members know about them?”

  Leonidas shook his head, “No, they would never stand for the impiety if they did. I only know of them because my position in the cult allows me an inside track.” He smiled mockingly and took a breath, “I know that it doesn’t impress you but a few hundred years of ancestors gives you access to some information in this town. Especially when you are an elder in the cult and have been a councilman together with the priest of the Eleusinium here in Athens. People talk. The say three people can keep a secret if two of them are dead.”

  Phil had been listening and thinking. “You said the membership wouldn’t stand for the impiety, so how do these guys figure to float it.”

  “That’s where your information fits in. I think that they are planning to bribe influential members of the cult to bring them on to the Athenian side. You know how it is. If people hear something called a good idea often enough, especially if its from someone they respect, they start to think it’s a good idea too. It saves them thinking it through themselves.” Leonidas allowed himself a small smile, “The wealth those objects represent is significant, but the magic in them is more important. Well, it would be to a believer anyway.”

  Phil started to mention that he had become a believer in the coins too, that he had felt that magic for himself but he didn’t because he was off on another track, “Do you know Meno?” he had just got an idea and he didn’t like it.

  “Sure, everybody does.”

  “Would you say he was a respected member of the mysteries of Eleusis?”

  “Absolutely. I would say he is one of the most influential men in Athens.”

  “Bribable, do you think?”

  Leonidas shook his head and spoke, “No. I can’t imagine it.”