'Porcius is back in town.'
'Porcius?' Macro raised an eyebrow.'Who the bloody hell is Porcius and why should I be remotely interested in him?'
The barman shook his head in wonder at the ignorance of the two army officers. 'Why, he's only the best charioteer ever to have driven for the blues! He's top of the bill this afternoon. Runs his horses like he was born with reins in his hands. Tell you what,' he leaned closer,'you got anything to spare for a bet, and I could get you good odds.'
'Leave 'em be,' a voice growled from the next table, and Macro saw the face of the guardsman from the palace as he turned towards the two centurions.'Porcius is a jumped-up little tosser. Only thinks he's good. If the man had any talent at all he'd be racing for the greens. Sir, save your money. Place it on Nepos. He's racing for the greens.'
'Nepos!' The barman spat on the ground. He looked at the guardsman with contempt and the usual unthinking hostility that ardent supporters of racing teams reserved for each other. Then he strode back to the bar, muttering one last parting shot to the two centurions. 'Might as well piss your money down the Great Sewer as bet on that twat Nepos.'
'I heard that!' shouted the guardsman.
'Racing,' Cato said quietly. 'If anything destroys the Empire, it'll be racing.'
Macro wasn't listening. His eyes were fixed on the guardsman. He turned towards him and tapped the man on the shoulder.
'Hello, friend,' Macro smiled. 'These races – any good tips you might be willing to share with a comrade in arms?'
'Tips?' The man glanced round at the other customers, but no one seemed to be listening. 'Yes, I've got one tip for you. Don't bet on that bastard Porcius.' He tapped his nose. 'I know what's what, and I'm telling you, sir, Nepos is your man. Bung a few denarians on him and you'll be laughing. Now, if you'll excuse me, sir, I have to go.' He grated his stool back on the flagstone, rose rather unsteadily to his feet, steered a course out of the tavern and was immediately lost from sight in the flow of people in the Forum.
'Doubt he'll get back to the palace in one go,' Cato muttered. 'All the same, I wish I had his problems.'
Macro turned back to his friend, desperately searching for some crumb of comfort he could offer Cato, but he had never been good at that sort of thing.
'It's rough luck, lad.'
'Rough luck?' Cato laughed bitterly. 'Oh, it's better than that. I mean, after all that we've been through, after all we've done for General Plautius, you can be certain that patrician bastard'll make sure I get the chop. There's something you can safely bet on. Just to make sure that his shining reputation as a harsh disciplinarian doesn't get a mark on it. And the Imperial Secretary will back him up.'
'He might recommend a pardon,' Macro suggested.
Cato stared at him. 'He might not. Anyway, aren't you forgetting something?'
'Am I?'
'You're also under threat. What if the general decides he wants to put you in the frame over the death of Centurion Maximius?'
'I don't think he will. There's no evidence linking me to his murder, just a few rumours put around by a handful of idiots who won't accept that he was killed by the enemy. I'm not worried about that, not really. It's you I'm worried about.' He looked away in embarrassment and his eyes fell on his purse, tied securely to his belt. 'But most of all I'm worried about the fact that we're broke, and we're going to be very hungry in a few days' time unless some back pay comes through. If it doesn't, then we'll be on the bloody streets once the next month's rent is due. All in all, it's not looking too healthy, Cato my lad.'
'No.'
'So we'd better do something about it.'
'Like what?'
Macro smiled, and leaned closer across the table. 'Like taking advantage of that tip, and getting ourselves down to the Great Circus.'
'Are you mad? We're down to our last few coins and you want to throw them away on the races?'
'Throwing 'em away is what mugs do. What we've got is a sure thing.'
'No. What you've got is incurable optimism. Me? I'm a realist. If we place that money on a race we might as well just give it away.'
Macro slapped his hand down on the table, making the cups jump. 'Oh, come on, Cato! What little we've got is as good as gone anyway. If the tip's any use we should get reasonable odds, and, who knows, if the bet comes good we'll be able to keep the lupine pest from the door for a while yet. What have we got to lose?'
'Apart from our senses?'
Macro glared at him. 'Just for once, trust to fate and see what happens.'
Cato thought it over for a moment. Macro was right, he had pretty much lost everything else in his life, and even the latter was almost certainly forfeit. So why worry about a few coins? The general's response would arrive from Britain before the landlord's heavies could pin him to the wall for any arrears. He might as well live a little, while he could.
'All right then, let's go.'
By the time they had pushed their way inside the huge arch of one of the public entrances to the Great Circus there were only a few places left in the section reserved for the army. Most of the stone benches had been taken by Praetorian Guardsmen who were busy drinking from wineskins and making bets. Here and there were small clusters of legionaries – men on leave or, like Cato and Macro, waiting for a new posting. Quite a few were ex-soldiers, pensioned off or invalided out of the legions and taking advantage of their veterans' rights.
Emperor Claudius, in a shrewd move, had changed the seating plan so that the guardsmen were arranged either side of, and behind the grand imperial box. The senators had been shifted further off, much to their chagrin, and spilled out over their benches where they were waited on by their slaves, who served them heated wine in small goblets. Glancing beyond them, Cato saw the enclosure for the vestal virgins, the less spacious seating reserved for lesser nobles, and then the packed ranks of the common citizens, and above them, on the rearmost benches, the freedmen, foreigners and unattached women, many of whom were obviously plying their trade. Macro followed the direction of his gaze.
'Forget them. You can't afford it. Not unless Nepos does his stuff.'
Cato swung his gaze back towards the huge expanse of the track stretching out in front of them. Several race officials were crossing to the central island, while around them scores of slaves raked the sand into a smooth, even surface in final preparation for the first race. The assistants to the priests wheeled a cage of unblemished white goats towards the sacrificial altar in the middle of the island, directly opposite the imperial box.
All around the arena the usual hawkers sold snacks, cushions and brightly coloured scarves for each team's supporters. Amongst them prowled the bet-takers, accompanied by a heavy or two to make sure that the money was kept safe. Macro swallowed nervously, stood up, and made for the nearest; a swarthy-looking Hispanic, clutching a bundle of waxed slates tied together. Behind him lurked two huge men, powerfully built and horribly scarred, as most ex-gladiators tended to be. Each man carried a money box on a strap across his shoulders, and had a thick wooden stave to hand.
'Let me guess,' smiled the bet-taker as he sized Macro up and calculated his worth. 'You'll have a gold piece on Porcius, to win.'
'Er, no.' Macro felt embarrassment burning in his cheeks. He glanced round and continued in a low voice, 'Five denarians on Nepos, to win.'
'Five denarians?' The bet-taker looked disappointed. He quickly reappraised the centurion, and continued sarcastically, 'Sure you can afford it?'
Macro stiffened. 'Yes, of course I can. Five on Nepos, like I said.'
'Nepos? You know the odds are ten to one?'
'That's what I'm counting on.'
'Well, it's your money. If you're sure…?'
Macro frowned. 'Do you want to take the bet, or not?'
'I'm happy to take your money. Just a moment, please… sir.' The bet-taker opened his tablets and prepared to make a new entry with his stylus. He began to press some tiny notation into the wax, muttering as he wrote. 'Five
den. on Nepos to win… Your name?'
'Centurion Macro.'
'Macro. Fine, now if I can just have your payment.' Macro handed him the silver coins from his purse and the bet-taker dropped them into one of the boxes carried by his heavies. The coins fell through the slot with a dull chink on to the money already taken in. The bet-taker nodded to the man carrying the chest. 'That's tally one hundred and forty-three.'
The ex-gladiator raised a large metal hoop from his side and fumbled amongst the small wooden pegs until he reached the right number and then worked it free and handed it over to Macro. The bet-taker smiled at him. 'Pleasure doing business with you, though I doubt we'll meet again. Now, if you'll excuse me…'
Macro tucked the wooden tally into his purse and hurried back to Cato.
'How much did you place on Nepos?'
'Enough,' Macro replied easily, then pointed across the heads of the spectators towards the imperial box. 'Look, there's Claudius' flunkies. He must be on his way.'
'How much?' Cato persisted.
'Oh, five denarians, or something.'
'Five den-Macro, that's pretty much all we have.'
'Actually, it is all we have.' Macro shrugged an apology. 'It's a risk, but I got odds of ten to one.'
'Really?' Cato responded sourly. 'And why do you think that's good news? He's got nine chances in ten of losing.'
'Look here,' Macro lowered his voice, 'our man said it was a sure thing. We stand to win fifty silver pieces when it's over.'
'I can do the maths, thank you. Fifty pieces, if Nepos wins.'
'He will, trust me. I have a feeling for these things.'
Cato shook his head and glanced away, letting his gaze turn to the imperial box. The household slaves were busy setting up a table of snacks and wines to the side of the Emperor's seat. Even at a distance of fifty paces, Cato could make out a platter of ornately arranged fowl glazed in what looked like honey. His mouth began to water at the sight and he felt his stomach churn with hunger.
The imperial household began to emerge from their private entrance to take their seats. A handful of favoured senators eased themselves down on to plump cushions set on the stools each side of the imperial dais. They were followed by some of the Emperor's freedmen and scribes, who stood at the back of the box. At last the white tufts of hair and the gilded wreath on top of Claudius' head came into view and a great roar of greeting swelled up from the crowd and echoed around the Great Circus. Louder than a battle, Cato thought. Far louder.
The Emperor stood still for a moment, basking in the popular acclaim. Only his head moved, in the characteristic twitch that no amount of self-control could prevent. At length Claudius slowly raised an arm and turned to greet his people, who responded to the gesture with an even greater roar. The Emperor's arm sank back to his side and he climbed on to the dais and slumped clumsily into his seat. As the Emperor's wife, Messalina, stepped up beside him, the cheering reached a new frenzy.
Macro leaned close to Cato and shouted into his ear, 'From what I've heard, I bet there's quite a few amongst them who know her almost as well as her husband.'
He grinned and Cato looked round anxiously to make sure that no one had overheard the comment. That was the kind of public comment that informers picked up and passed on to palace agents for a small reward. Then, one night, a squad of Praetorians would kick your door in and bundle you off, never to be seen or heard from again. Fortunately, Macro's foolish words were lost in the deafening roar of the crowd and Cato began to relax.
Then he saw another man entering the imperial box: thin, with dark hair and a plain white toga. Claudius beckoned to the newcomer with a smile, and indicated a seat just below the dais. Cato felt Macro cup a hand to his ear as he pointed towards the box with the other.
'Did you see who just arrived?'
Cato nodded. 'Our friend, the Imperial Secretary.'
'Do you think Narcissus knows we're back in Rome?'
'If he doesn't already know, he will soon.'
'Then we're in trouble. That bastard talked General Plautius into decimating our cohort.'
'I remember. He won't be happy that I'm still alive.'
Cato felt a surge of fear as he looked over the heads of the crowd at Narcissus. Not much escaped the notice of the man who controlled the Emperor's secret police, disposed of any threats and dispensed much of Claudius' patronage. And if he did know that Cato was in the city then he would be sure to tie up any loose ends as soon as possible, preferably by discreet strangulation in some dark, forgotten cell of the Mammertine prison. But there was a chance, an outside chance, that Macro and he had evaded the ever watchful eye of Narcissus, even now.
At that precise moment Narcissus turned in his seat and cast his gaze over the crowd and, before Cato could react, his eyes fixed in the direction of the two centurions. Cato felt his guts turn to ice. It was only an instant, then Cato slumped down on his bench, out of Narcissus' line of sight.
'Shit!' Cato muttered. 'Shit… shit… shit.'
Macro dropped down beside him, alarmed by the sudden change in his friend's expression. 'What's the matter?'
'He saw us. Narcissus saw me.'
'Bollocks. How could he? We're just a pair of faces amongst thousands. There's no way-'
'I'm telling you, he saw me!' Cato could almost feel the rough hands of the Praetorian Guardsmen Narcissus would be sure to send out to arrest him. It would all be over in a moment.
Macro stood up slowly and glanced towards the imperial box, before ducking back down beside his friend. 'He's not even looking this way. Just chatting with the Emperor. Nothing else. He can't have seen you. Relax!'
The cheering quickly died away as the priests prepared for the sacrifice to open the day's racing. Two assistants dragged one of the white kid goats out from the cage and, holding the struggling animal by its legs, they carried it up the steps to the altar and held it down on the gleaming marble surface. The chanting of the high priest could just be heard across the track, as he intoned the blessing of Jupiter, best and greatest, on the Emperor Claudius, his family, the senate and people of Rome, and the charioteers. Then, he raised a curved dagger above the bleating goat, paused a moment, the blade glinting in the sunlight, before he slashed it down. The distant bleating was abruptly cut off. For a moment the priest bent over the twitching body of the goat and worked at its stomach with the dagger. Then, he eased out the liver, glistening in purple and red as it steamed slightly in the cool air. He bent over the organ to examine it closely, then called over a colleague, who also looked at the liver before they discussed their readings. The priest suddenly lifted the organ aloft to signify that Jupiter had accepted the sacrifice and the races could proceed. A huge roar of relieved tension swept round the stadium. Macro slapped his hands down on his knees and grinned like a boy.
The pious speeches by the senate fathers were kept as brief as possible. It was the usual flowery offer of thanks to the sponsor of the races, in this case Claudius himself. The Emperor tapped his feet impatiently as he tried to catch the eye of the speakers and then made a quick waving gesture with his hand to get them to move on swiftly. The crowd cheered each speech politely, and then, as the last speaker climbed down from the podium on the island, they craned their necks expectantly, all eyes riveted to the line of gates at the far end of the Great Circus.
There was a moment of hushed expectancy. Then a great fanfare of trumpets shrilled out and the gates swung inwards to reveal the dark tunnels leading back to the marshalling area. There was movement in the shadows, then the chariot teams burst out of the tunnels and on to the sand of the Great Circus. The crowd jumped up and screamed with excitement, and slowly the cheers resolved into rival chants in support of each team, or of vulgar denigration of the opposition. Most of the Praetorians, clearly, were supporters of the blues and bellowed out the name of Porcius as he drove his team past the imperial box and saluted Emperor Claudius.
'Bastard better lose,' Macro said softly. Then he glanced a
round nervously and drew a deep breath.'Come on, Porcius!'
Cato raised an eyebrow as he caught his friend's gaze. Macro shrugged.'Just keeping on side. No point in starting a fight.'
The chariot teams completed a circuit of the track and then drew up in a line abreast, just in front of the Emperor. The crews clustered round, making final adjustments to the horses' harnesses and applying a last handful of grease to the chariot axles. The charioteers checked their reins and made sure that the razor-sharp safety knives were secure in their scabbards. Each charioteer wore a short, sleeveless tunic in his team's colours, and the light screens that folded around their legs were also painted in the team colours.
Macro focused his attention on Nepos, a wiry man with a dark complexion. Nepos stood erect and still in his green tunic. Too still for Macro's liking, almost as if he was too terrified to move. Or maybe he simply had nerves of steel. He'd better had.
Once the preparations were complete the crews withdrew from the track and the charioteers took the strain on their reins, holding back their horse teams. The animals had been raised to run flat out and jostled each other nervously, muzzles flaring as their powerful flanks heaved.
For a moment Cato forgot everything that troubled him as he sat forward on the edge of his bench and stared at the four chariot teams, tensed up and ready to explode into action. The Emperor nodded to the race marshal and the latter stepped up on to the podium at the front of the imperial box. He carried a small flag, which he carefully unfurled and slowly raised up until his arm was erect. Every eye of the tens of thousands of people in the Circus was on him and there was not a sound except for the snorting of the horses. The marshal waited until the teams were as level as they could be. Then he snatched his hand down and the flag dropped with a rippling flutter. Instantly the crowd roared. The charioteers cracked their reins and the horses kicked up plumes of sand as they yanked the chariots forward and the race began.
The Eagles Prophecy c-6 Page 4