The Skystone

by Jack Whyte

  I wondered what he was moving towards. “So?”

  He twisted his face again, registering distaste and disgust. “Malice,” he said. “That is the only word I seem able to think of when that man crosses my mind. Malice. Aye, but worse than that, Publius. Malevolence. The man’s malevolence is boundless. He is still actively hunting you. At least, he is hunting the man he perceives you to be. His wretched relative Nesca has had his bullies on the watch for crippled grey-beards ever since this happened.”

  I jerked my head in a nod. “I know.”

  “From what I have heard, for you know I never laid eyes on him before you did, he was physically quite remarkable before you destroyed his beauty.” I nodded an unnecessary assent, and he went on. “Well, he isn’t any longer. He will never forgive you for that. The fact that he doesn’t know who did it only makes it worse.”

  I grunted. “He wasn’t beautiful. Not really. He was warped even then, long before I met him. He may have thought he was beautiful, but he was far from it.”

  “Very well, I’ll accept that. He thought he was beautiful. But that’s all that’s necessary. For a man of his… tastes, physical beauty is all-important. You marred him, Varrus, permanently and incontrovertibly. If he ever finds you, he’ll kill you. Unpleasantly.”

  “I know.” It was getting late, and I stirred, feeling that I should be moving. “What has this to do with Phoebe?”

  He shook his head in a way that conveyed extreme impatience. “I don’t know. Perhaps I am just being a pessimist. But our noble Procurator let slip a reference in his cups that night to at least one woman who died under interrogation in the matter of a limping, grey-haired man.”

  “Phoebe?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t know. As I said, he let the reference slip out and then covered it. It wasn’t mentioned again. I knew nothing of Phoebe at that time, and I did not want to bring the matter up again openly. Nor did I want to arouse either his anger or his suspicion by attempting to question him subtly. I let the matter rest, but it worried me. As Military Governor, my job is difficult enough. I have no desire to become involved in the actions of our inestimable Procurator. Had I obtained any more information, I would have been forced to initiate inquiries, without knowing where to start or what to look for.”

  Outraged, I glanced at Alaric. He was listening attentively, his face devoid of any emotion. My own emotions were more volatile.

  “Damnation, Tonius, that’s abominable! What did he say?”

  “I didn’t catch all of it. I had been drinking heavily myself, remember. I heard him muttering something about almost having had the whoreson. Had had his whore, but the bitch was stubborn. Died without saying a word. It was the mumbling of a drunken man I heard, Publius. By the time I had begun to hear what I was hearing, if you know what I mean, it was almost over. I thought about it for a few seconds and decided I didn’t want to hear any more. But it stayed with me. I could not get it out of my head.”

  “I’m not surprised. Murder is against the Roman law, Legate.”

  “Perhaps. But was he really talking of murder? I don’t know that, Varrus. And even if I had known for certain, there was nothing much I could have done about it. My only informant would hardly have been likely to repeat his self-condemnation when-sober, would he?”

  I was seething with impatience. “Well? Was that all he said?” Tonius nodded. I made no effort to keep the anger out of my voice. “So what makes you think this has anything to do with Phoebe, in God’s name? A drunken man’s hint about some woman who died, and may have been deliberately killed, in a hunt for a crippled man. That doesn’t say ‘Phoebe’ to me!”

  Tonius stood erect. “It does to me, Publius. Be serious. The crippled man we’re talking about is you! And the woman was from Verulamium. That much I heard. I didn’t think about Phoebe because I didn’t know of her existence. It was only when Alaric told me of his own concerns for her that I made the connection.”

  Though I was angry, it was not at Tonius, but at this situation. I knew it had to be coincidence. In my frustration, I rose to my feet and held my open palms towards the fire.

  “Damn it, Tonius, nobody in Verulamium except Alaric knows who I am, let alone that I knew Phoebe! What you two are suggesting just isn’t possible! There is no way, absolutely no…” but I stopped in mid sentence, and my flesh crawled with cold bumps as I saw a face in my mind — the face of the cutpurse in the crowd leaving the amphitheatre in Verulamium, the face of the man I had handed over to the army for execution in Alchester. He had been holding a bare blade in his hand, coming towards me. Someone had been robbed and had shouted, and I had looked and seen the man I supposed to be the thief. That had been coincidence. But there all coincidence ended. He had already singled me out. He had been watching me. And that meant he had seen Phoebe with me. He had died in Alchester, but he had been travelling with seven companions on the road, two of whom were still alive. One, or both of them, might have been with him in that crowd. Or he might have spoken to them about recognizing me for the first time that evening, when I was at the theatre with a woman. And he would have described the woman.

  My stomach heaved with sickness. That would have been all that was necessary. A recollection by one of the two surviving assassins that I had been seen in the company of a pretty woman with red hair. Verulamium was not a big town, and I had made no effort to be secretive while I was there with Phoebe. A hundred people could have remembered seeing us together, and any number of them might have recognized Phoebe. All of this flashed through my mind in an instant, and I knew beyond any doubt that Tonius and Alaric were right, and she was dead, and the burden of guilt crashed down and physically buckled my knees.

  Alaric caught me before I fell against the brazier, and he and Tonius almost carried me between them back to my couch, where I sat like a man in a swoon for many minutes before they could get any response out of me.

  I have no recollection of any of that. I can remember only the realization that I had killed Phoebe with my lust. Had I not gone to see her on my way through Verulamium that day, she would still be alive. After that, I have only blankness in my memory until I became aware of Alaric sitting across from me. leaning forward and staring intently into my eyes, his face drawn with lines of worry.

  Later, much later, I accepted the fact that my guilt was futile and unjustifiable, but that made the pain no easier to bear. I also accepted the fact that Claudius Caesarius Seneca and I were fated to the death. One of us would kill the other, and I was determined that I would survive the outcome.

  That same night, I told Luceiia what had happened, and she mourned with me for the unfortunate young woman who had died simply because I had befriended her. In the endless time of a sleepless night, I decided to conceal my grief from the wedding guests and swore to mourn Phoebe later, when there would be time for mourning. I swore to avenge her death, and I fantasized about what I would do to Seneca when next I faced him.

  XXIV

  The wedding celebrations went on for two more weeks. Civic dignitaries and provincial administrators mingled with military officers and soldiers of all ranks and descriptions, including young Picus. There were bishops and Druids and priests, merchants, landowners, farmers, stonemasons, smiths, clothmakers, shoemakers, weavers, soothsayers and musicians. There were Romans of Roman descent, Romans of British descent, Greeks, North Africans, Britons of all descriptions, Gauls from across the sea and Celts from the mountain country at our back. It was a holiday celebration to rival the Saturnalia of bygone days, and it was enjoyed to the full by everyone. On the day of the wedding itself, the sun shone bright and warm, and I was even more expansive than a bridegroom has the right to be. I had spent the previous night in the arms of my love, and the last seeds of doubt over Phoebe had been purged with the gouting of my own seed and the love and understanding of the woman I was to marry the following day. Spring had finally arrived; everything was green and bedecked with flowers. There was no wind, and the air was
rich with the perfumes of springtime and alive with bird-song. My bride looked brilliantly beautiful in her wedding gown of African cloth, and I knew in all modesty that I looked magnificent in the suit of supple leather clothes Luceiia had made for me with her own hands. As we exchanged our vows, binding each to the other, even the birds seemed to stop singing so that all might hear the sound of our voices — Luceiia’s clear and sweet, and my own surprisingly timid. Our contract was sealed with a kiss, and the celebrations were under way in earnest.

  Each glorious spring day was filled with games, athletic competitions of all kinds, hunting contests and the like. There was food in abundance and everyone had his fill of it whenever hunger irked him. The evenings were filled with song, dance and dalliance, and I fancy I was not the only man who consummated a relationship in the course of that time.

  I know that Caius enjoyed himself thoroughly during those two weeks, although his motivations were hardly connubial, for he saw in this gathering of all his most trusted friends a unique opportunity to sound them out on their views of the Empire’s affairs, and to promote his own beliefs.

  During those two weeks, I was to witness and be midwife to a miraculous birthing; I would remain forever after a nursemaid to the entity that was born then. There may be some who are inclined to scoff at those words and dismiss them as fanciful, but I am prepared to stand by the truth of them. My wedding feast was the occasion of the spiritual birth of what we came to call our Colony, and I recall clearly the circumstances that triggered the chain of events that was to reshape the destiny of all of us.

  Caius had been talking for years about his ideas on the Empire and his fears about its future, not only to me but to each and every one of his friends and acquaintances.

  Some agreed with his opinions; others disputed them; still others suffered them good-naturedly, humouring him and casting long-suffering glances heavenward whenever he launched into one of his diatribes. All would admit, however, under pressure, that he was partially correct; all was not right with the Roman world. Nevertheless, few could really bring themselves to believe that things were quite as black as Caius liked to paint them, and I counted myself among the doubters.

  Terra and Firma Atribatus changed all of that in the course of one evening.

  The brothers were identical twins whose real names were Terrix Polonius and Arpius Fermax Atribatus. They had grown fabulously wealthy as joint owners of the richest fleet of seagoing trading ships in Britain, and it was inevitable that their nautical activities should result in their becoming known to their friends as Terra and Firma. I did not know them personally, but they had been close friends of the Britannicus family since boyhood. Their names were high on the list of invited guests, so when they had failed to arrive by the end of the first week of the festivities, their absence had been generally noticed. They did arrive, however, after dark on the evening of the tenth day, and their welcome was the more tumultuous since, by then, they were no longer expected.

  I met them very briefly and welcomed them with Caius, and then I returned to the open-air fire, leaving Caius to see to settling them in their quarters.

  I had enjoyed these evening gatherings more than anything else except my new wife, for it was then that Caius and his friends were at their best, assembled by a blazing fire with a cup of wine or Celtic mead or a jug of locally brewed ale. Then it was that conversation and debate emerged and was enjoyed for itself. The talk from evening to evening might be of politics or philosophy, of religion or of poetry, or of agriculture and the weather patterns of past years, but always it was enjoyable. On this particular evening, before the arrival of the newcomers, we had been talking about the great Republic and the Roman way of life — the old days and old ways. Caius had been in his element, and even Plautus had thrown himself into the spirit of the debate, forgetting his normal reticence in the casual company of Tonius, his Commander. Without the catalytic presence of Caius, however, the conversation had become desultory. I was thinking lazily of seeking my new wife and hauling her to bed when Quintus Varo commented that it was taking Caius a damnably long time to bring the newcomers back to the fire. I stood up and stretched, yawning loudly, which earned me a round of laughter and lascivious comments. Gaius Gallus, another close friend of Britannicus, leaned elegantly forward and threw a small stick onto the flames.

  “Tired again, Publius? So soon? Did no one ever tell you that beds are for sleeping in, too?”

  I grinned, feeling peculiarly shy, and denied myself.

  “Who’s tired, Gaius? I’m bored, that’s all. I’m going to go and find Caius and our new guests. We need some fresh wit to leaven the conversation around here.” I walked away from a chorus of jibes and pleasantries and went to look for Caius.

  I found him in his private day-room, deep in conversation with the twins. Seeing their general demeanour and the intensity of their talk, I stopped in the open doorway, reluctant to interrupt them. I was turning to leave when Caius, who had seen me from the corner of his eye, stopped me with a peremptory wave of his hand. As I hesitated there, he half-turned his face towards me, keeping his eyes fixed on the twin who was talking. As soon as the man’s voice reached a natural pause, another gesture of that upraised hand held him to silence momentarily.

  “Pardon me, Terra.” He turned towards me. “Publius, you must pardon me, too. I had no thought of being ill-mannered, but I didn’t want you to leave. Terra, Firma, this is my new brother-in-law, Publius Varrus. You met him earlier, but your arrival was rather hectic. Publius, these are two of my oldest and dearest friends, and you have heard me talk of them many times. This one here is Terra — notice the blue tunic. This one is Firma — white tunic. Tomorrow they may change clothes and confound us both.”

  We all nodded to one another, smiling, and then I shook my head to Caius.

  “I’m sorry, Caius, I had nothing important to say to you and I didn’t mean to interrupt you. I was on my way to bed, and the others were wondering what had become of you. I said I would look in on you on my way and send you out, but you are obviously talking about important matters and so I’ll leave you to it and tell them not to wait for you.” I moved to leave again.

  “No, I want you to hear this, Publius.” He paused. “But then again, I think the others should hear it too. How many of the crowd are still there?”

  I ran my eyes around the mental vision of the group I had left by the fire. “Gaius, Varo, Tonius, Plautus, a few others, about five. That’s all. The rest left before I did.”

  “Good. Those are the ones I want.” He turned back to the twins. “I think we should finish our discussion here and then tell Varrus and the others what you have told me. Do you. agree?”

  The twins shrugged identical gestures of acquiescence and Caius turned back to me.

  “My respects to the others and please ask them to wait for us. We will join them shortly.”

  I smiled. “Does that include me? I believe my wife is waiting for me somewhere.”

  He did not respond to my smile. “Yes, I’d like you to stay, too. We have a lot to discuss.”

  I shrugged my shoulders, my curiosity aroused. “As you wish,” I said. “I’ll ask them to wait.”

  I rejoined the others, and we spent several minutes in speculation about what could be so important that it must keep a new bridegroom from his duties.

  Caius and the new guests came to the fire a short time later, to the severe detriment of a filthy story being told by Quintus Varo. Their three faces were sombre enough to put a mantle of seriousness on the greetings that were exchanged across the fire, and as soon as they had seated themselves Gaius Gallus asked the question we were all thinking.

  “What’s going on, Caius?”

  Caius looked from face to face around the group before answering. “Terra and Firma want to buy a villa in the area. Do any of you know of one for sale? Or two?”

  There was a short silence, then Varo asked, “Two? Are you serious?” He looked at Terra and Firma, his face
showing tolerant disbelief. “You two are looking for a retirement home? Here? Among the peasants? What about your villa outside Londinium? And your place in Aquae Sulis? And your island in the Aegean? Your palace in Constantinople? If I had your money and your youth, lads, I’d be basking in the sunshine, not trying to gull people into believing that I’d be interested in living in a quiet backwater like this.”

  Firma grimaced. “They’re all gone, Quintus.”

  “Gone?” This was Gaius Gallus. “What do you mean, gone?”

  “Just what I said. We no longer have those places.”

  “You mean you had to sell them?”

  “No.” The word was said with a rising inflection that demanded attention to the words that followed it. “We had to forfeit them.”

  “Forfeit!” Gaius Gallus’ shocked tone reflected the astonishment of everyone there. “You mean you’re bankrupt? Cleaned out?”

  It was Terra who responded. “No, far from it. But we are out of business.” He cleared his throat and then continued. “We’ve been losing a lot of shipping to pirates, recently. Too much.”

  “How much?” This was Varo again.

  “Seven ships in the last two months.”

  “Seven?”

  “Seven. One ship, one crew and one cargo every eight days, and it grows worse all the time. One of those ships was a quadrireme. The others were four triremes and two biremes — big ships, big cargoes, big losses.”

  “By the Christ!” Varo was outraged. “Nobody can sustain losses like that! Where was the navy?”

  “Where it always is — at sea.” The sigh that followed this was short and frustrated. “It’s not the navy’s fault, Quintus. They can’t do a damn thing. They’re powerless. Too few ships, too much sea and too many pirates.” He paused and looked at each of us individually. “Tell them, Firma.”