The End of a Dynasty

by David Adkins

  “She is a fine woman,” I agreed.

  He laughed and kicked my leg. “But you can only imagine, Parthenian. I tell you this, there is not another like her.”

  I felt a tinge of jealousy. “You are the Emperor.”

  “And I got the Aria thing settled,” he beamed. “You were not much help but I suppose you got little chance to talk with Corelia or even Aria.”

  “That is very true,” I agreed, feigning a smile.

  “Aria will fight in the arena at my Jupiter games. So we have the champion of old Rome against the champion of new Rome plus Corelia’s great protégé against a suitable opponent.” He was obviously delighted with himself.

  “Who is her opponent?” I asked surprised.

  “I do not know. She said she would find a gladiatrix at the school. You will liaise regularly with Petronius to make sure these events go as planned.”

  “I will but how did you get Aria to change her mind?” I asked.

  “That is the strange thing. On our second night in Tibur I had an argument with Corelia who told me that neither she nor Aria would take part in the sea battle. I was furious with her for even the divine gladiatrix cannot defy the Emperor. I was going to tell Corelia just that when Aria came to see me. She volunteered to fight in my games and when I asked if she had Corelia’s permission, she said that she did not need it and she was adamant about that. You had better keep an eye on things though, Parthenian.”

  I was staggered that the bits had seemed to fall so easily into place. “I will keep an eye on things,” I assured him.

  “Now I need a nap. The last few days have tired me out as I am sure you understand,” he grinned. “Do not disturb me, Parthenian.”

  “Perhaps if I rode on top with Casperius then you would be more easily able to sleep,” I suggested.

  “What an excellent idea. Stop the carriage,” he bellowed and I got out and joined Casperius on top with still more than half the distance to Rome to be covered.

  “I have been meaning to ask you something, Parthenian.” Casperius said as I settled down at the top of the carriage.

  “What is that?” I replied.

  “Are you aware of any Christians in the royal household?”

  My surprise at his question was not false. “No, I am not. Nobody would be that foolish to embrace that alien cult right under the nose of the Emperor.”

  “I expect you are right but be watchful. There are pockets of Christian activity all over Rome and I will be ordering some raids. We need many prisoners for the Jupiter games.”

  We both went quiet as we both seemed to consider the coming raids and the impact on the city. After a short period I broke the silence. “Have you abandoned Marcella?”

  “Glyca is her name,” he responded. “She brought this upon herself. We both cautioned her to leave Hylas alone. He was the Head Guard of the Emperor’s concubine. I kill people for a purpose but not for recreation. There was no need to take unnecessary risks and her folly put me at risk.”

  “And yet you agreed to help her as I did.”

  “We go back a long way. We both worked for Marcus Gracchus. We are both extremely good at our jobs and so we continued to work together after the death of Gracchus.” He did not elaborate on what she did.

  “She wanted revenge for the death of Gracchus,” I pointed out.

  He laughed. “It was a matter of false pride because she wanted to complete the job she had already started. It served no purpose as I told her many times. Her present predicament is her own fault and I want no more to do with it. What is your excuse?”

  “First I had feelings for her and then I was blackmailed as you well know.”

  “Then more fool you, Parthenian.”

  “At least it is over for me,” I stated.

  “What do you mean?” he asked and I noted a little anxiety creep into his words.

  I pounced. “She is a sorceress, you know.”

  “Nonsense, what makes you say that?”

  “I have seen her powers, Casperius, and I have seen her collections particularly the one of you.”

  He almost fell off the carriage and I knew that Marcella was so right about his superstition. “What collection of me?” He was trying not to sound nervous.

  “A piece of your hair, some likenesses, a small vial labelled Casperius and a few other things that I did not properly see.”

  He shuddered. “So she has a few bits and pieces relating to me. That is what sorcerers collect to show off but it does not mean they have any power.”

  “I saw her kill a cat,” I informed him.

  “I could kill a cat easily enough.”

  “Not from a distance; she cursed the cat one day and the next day it was dead. She was demonstrating to me her powers to keep me under her control because like you I did not believe in them but the cat did make me wonder. She was also brilliant with potions but you know that.”

  “I know she is good with poisons.”

  “Poisons and potions are very much the same thing,” I pointed out. “She was always very attractive but I swear after drinking one of her potions mixed in my wine that she suddenly became the most ravishing creature I had ever set eyes on and at that moment I would have done anything for her.”

  “That was how she sought to control you,” he pointed out.

  “Indeed, she is truly a sorceress. I bet you are glad to be free of her as I am.”

  He looked a little sick. “I am.”

  “She did tell me to give you a message but I am sure you are not even interested.”

  “What did she say?” He tried to appear disinterested.

  “She said to remind you of what would happen to you if she should die,” I said. “Just nonsense I expect.”

  He almost drove the carriage into some trees and had to pull hard on the reins to avert a collision. Domitian put his head out of the carriage. “What is going on? I am trying to sleep.”

  “I drove over a boulder which I did not see,” lied Casperius. “It is nonsense, Parthenian. Now do not speak further of Glyca for she has only herself to blame for her predicament.”

  “It is her predicament but the consequences may reach further afield. I do not mind admitting I am a little worried and I am surprised that you are not.”

  “I told you to shut up, Parthenian.”

  I sat back and closed my eyes and felt a warm glow of satisfaction. Marcella had told me his weakness and I had just exploited it and would do so again. My eyes were not shut for long because the carriage soon passed through the large palace gates and we were back at the Imperial Palace in Rome.

  Chapter 16

  Rome – Later Summer AD90

  On my return to the palace the first thing that I did was to visit the Empress. I kneeled before her and kissed her hand. “Empress, my aunt, it is good to see you again.”

  “It is good to see you, nephew.” There was warmth in her words and I felt that she was genuinely pleased that I had returned. She took my face in her hands. “I have missed both you and Drucilla, for you two give me the only intelligent conversation that I enjoy these days.”

  I smiled. “What about Flavia Domitilla? She is very intelligent.”

  “True but she has recently been staying at the residence of her husband, Clemens.”

  I then remembered that she was seeing the preacher Timothy at their home before he returned to Ephesus. I wondered if that meeting had passed without a problem. “I am back now, aunt.”

  “I sometimes feel like a prisoner in my own palace,” she sighed. “Domitian tells me that I cannot leave the palace without a bodyguard but he never provides one. I have asked but he puts me off and I would not wish to have that man, Casperius, as my bodyguard after the remarks he has been making.”

  “I will see what I can do, aunt,” I promised her. “I will make sure I come with you.”

  “Tell me, what you have been doing in Tibur?” she asked.

  “There was an incident.”

  “W
hat happened?” she inquired.

  “I went to the local taverna with Hylas, Corelia’s head guard, for a meal and some wine and when we left we were confronted by Tero and one of his guards. Tero, as you know, had a grudge against me and it was his intention to murder me. Swords were drawn and Hylas killed Tero in the resulting melee.”

  “Tero is dead,” she gasped.

  “Indeed. He was fortunately the only casualty.” I thought it better to give her the official version.

  “I cannot say I am saddened by that for, like his master, he was a brute. I am so pleased, Parthenian, that you escaped unharmed.”

  “They are good people at Tibur,” I said.

  “Even the gladiatrix?” she asked.

  “Corelia is most pleasant and a fine hostess and even better she is not ambitious, aunt.”

  “You seem to admire Corelia. Then it seems that Julia remains my only problem. I have been vexed by her and her silly maid, Petronilla, for they have started to take on airs and graces, but at least Tero will not be around to encourage them.”

  “I imagine Petronilla will be upset to hear of Tero’s demise for I think there was something going on between them,” I mused.

  “Will Drucilla soon return?” she asked.

  “I intend to visit her tomorrow morning and see how her mother is doing. I am also still involved in the gladiatrix contests for the Jupiter games, and the Emperor has instructed that I must once again visit the gladiatorial school.”

  She pulled a face. “So you are still involved in that nonsense.”

  I nodded. “Domitian wants me to make sure that arrangements are going to plan.”

  “Is Corelia fighting?” she asked.

  “No, she has refused,” I replied.

  “She is the only one who can defy the Emperor and live to tell of it,” she sighed.

  “But she is not ambitious, aunt,” I confirmed again and knelt before her.

  She offered me her hand and I kissed it gently but lingeringly. “Do not forget to try to organise a trip for us, nephew. I need something to look forward to. I have Julia coming to pay a visit very soon,” she sighed.

  “I will do my best,” I smiled. I stood up and bowed and left the august presence of Domitia Longina.

  *

  I flung open the window to my chamber and looked across the gardens at the gathering dawn. The air was cool before the heat of the day. It was the middle of August and Rome was a city of heat, swelter and sweat except for these welcome moments at the beginning of each day. I would start off early for the Subura for in a sweltering city the Subura sweltered more than anywhere else.

  I made my way down the Vicus Tuscus. Already the city was heating up and becoming unbearably oppressive and there was a stench of death upon the air. Christians and non-Christians alike knew there was a scourge coming. Domitian’s purges came with ever increasing regularity and the populace were well aware that in the months leading up to the games they would increase. Domitian wanted prisoners and many of them, and the Christians fitted the bill nicely. They had turned their backs on the old gods and were preaching sedition and defiance of Rome. Domitian saw the games as a way to help stamp out Christianity by setting an example that those who defied the state would pay with their lives in the arena, and in the most horrible fashion.

  I crossed the forum and headed towards the Viminal Hill and the edge of the Subura where Drucilla’s mother lived. It was already very hot and I wiped the sweat from my brow and took a drink at the forum waters. It was not the worst part of the Subura but it was still a dangerous and unsafe place, where inhabitants had to be ever watchful to survive. I knocked at her door on the ground floor of a crumbling tenement building. The door opened cautiously and I saw Drucilla peering out from within. “Parthenian, it is good to see you,” she exclaimed and opened the door wider to allow me entrance.

  I went in and acknowledged Drucilla’s mother who was a thin, grey-haired, elderly woman. I remembered her name from my one previous visit. “Are you well, Mata?” I inquired.

  “I am, by the grace of the father and his holy son,” she smiled.

  I shuffled uneasily, as the realization that I was in a Christian home alarmed me. “That is good to hear. You must leave your home as little as possible and try not to stray far when you do. The Praetorian guard with the help of the auxiliaries will be searching for Christians and christian sympathisers in the coming weeks.” I gave Drucilla a telling look.

  Mata nodded. “I will be careful but no Emperor will dictate to me as to what I believe or how I should live my life. I am too old to care about the Emperor or his Praetorian Guard.”

  “You should still be careful,” I cautioned.

  “My mother will be careful,” intervened Drucilla.

  “Good. Are you ready to return to the palace, for the Empress is missing you?”

  “I am, for I need the money to support me and my mother, but there is something you should know, Parthenian.”

  I felt apprehensive at her words. “What should I know?” I asked.

  “I was baptized while you were in Tibur.”

  “Does that mean what I think it means?” I gasped.

  “It means that I have converted to Christianity.”

  I felt outraged. “How could you be so stupid? You work at the palace right under the nose of Domitian. You work for the Empress who thinks extremely highly of you. Why do such a dangerous thing? This folly will put you in peril. Did your mother persuade you?”

  Mata sighed. “It was her decision. I put no pressure on her though I must admit that I am pleased that my daughter follows the path of the one true god, and that when the time comes she will take her place in heaven.”

  I was exasperated by such nonsense. “I came here fearing for you, Mata, but now I fear for both of you.”

  Drucilla smiled. “Parthenian, it is nice of you to worry about us but there is no need. We will both be careful and I will return to the palace and labour as I have always done, with hard work and dedication. Only you and I will know my secret but I felt that I had to tell you. We will tell the Empress that my mother has recovered well considering her age. You were mysterious about sending me here and so I assume that it is safe to return to the palace.”

  “It is safe,” I assured her and decided to make up an explanation of sorts. “I heard that Tero had it in for you because he believed that you had aided Stephanus in some way. I thought that while I was in Tibur you would be safer staying with your mother.”

  “Does Tero suspect that Stephanus is a Christian?” She sounded nervous.

  “I do not think he did, and Casperius certainly does not, for I had a long conversation with him and we have cleared the air a little, though I still do not like the man. As for Tero it matters little what he might have thought.”

  “What do you mean, Parthenian?”

  “Tero is dead. You were not the only one that Tero suspected and he also bore me a grudge. I was at the local taverna in Tibur having a peaceful drink with the head guard, Hylas, when he attacked me. In the ensuing melee Tero was stabbed and died and so we do not have to worry about him anymore.”

  “Did you kill him?” she gasped.

  “No, Hylas did. Casperius and Domitian have both accepted that the incident was totally Tero’s fault and the matter is now closed, as Domitian is preoccupied with his games and Casperius with rounding up Christians.”

  “If only the Emperor could be persuaded that Christians pose him no threat,” she uttered sadly.

  “That is not going to happen. Let us return to the palace, Drucilla, and not hope for the impossible,” I suggested.

  Drucilla said farewell to her mother and we were soon making our way back to the palace in the searing heat. “Have you really embraced Christianity or was it to please your mother?” I asked.

  “I have embraced Christianity,” she said. “It provides a purpose in life and is the future”

  “It is not a future I wish to be part of,” I said firmly.


  “Then we walk on different paths in different worlds, Parthenian,” she stated.

  “But we can still be friends, I hope.”

  “Of course we are still friends,” she confirmed.

  We walked the rest of the way in silence. I had noted that never once did she ask me if I would betray her secret. She trusted me implicitly and she was right to do so, for I would never betray her.

  *

  For the next week all was quiet at the palace, though I heard that the rounding up of Christians had begun. Domitian was totally obsessed with the games and with making sure every detail was covered. There were numerous meetings with his architect regarding the feasibility of the flooding of the arena. Everything was put in place but as it had never been done before no-one could be completely sure of the success of the undertaking. The main concern was how long it would take the water to drain away after the sea battle. In the end it was decided that the sea battle would be on the last day, and then a delay in the drainage would not matter. Casperius was busy with providing Christians for the event and keeping an eye on the Roman menagerie to make sure there would be enough wild animals for the coming events. Petronius was ensuring that the gladiator and gladiatrix contests were of the required standard, but as I was also involved in this I decided that a visit to the gladiatorial school was overdue. I had promised the Emperor the success of the two major gladiatrix contests, for they were close to his heart.

  A week after leaving Tibur I headed for the school hoping to see Petronius for an update. I wished that I had nothing to do with the games, for such entertainment never much appealed to me though, I had attended in the past out of curiosity. I also feared that any failure to live up to the Emperor’s expectations might be blamed on me. I arrived at the gates and gained immediate entry, as if I had been expected. Petronius met me in the courtyard. “I heard you were at Tibur until recently but when I heard you had returned to Rome I did not think it would be long before you turned up here.”

  “Domitian has made it my task to make sure the gladiatrix contests are on schedule and of high quality.”