by Glover, Nhys
‘How would you feel about becoming a blonde?’ he asked as he helped her across the rounded pebbles to the water’s edge.
‘Why?’ She didn’t look at him, as she dropped his hand and bent over to splash the cool, clean water over her burning face and arms.
‘More of a disguise. We’re not going to cover as much ground as I’d hoped. It’s going to take us maybe eight days, maybe more, to get to our destination. I’m rethinking the idea of you spending your nights in the open. If we bleach your hair, and take a room in an Inn as a couple, no one would recognise a description of you, if your mother sent out scouts to find you. You’d be safer and more comfortable.’
She splashed more water on her face, before cupping her hands to drink thirstily. ‘All right. How do I do that?’
‘I’ll show you after we eat. That’s why I bought those citrons. You can do it with wood ash and tallow. That’s what my people used on their beards, but it’s harsh on the hair. This is gentler.’
‘Do your people have beards? I can’t imagine you with a beard.’
‘Where I come from it is very cold most of the year round. Snow and ice cold. So you don’t bother with cutting your hair or your beard. It helps keep you warm. I was too young to grow a beard when I left home, but my hair was half way down my back. I wore two braids here and here,’ he indicated either side of his face.
Her curious expression as she tried to imagine it made him chuckle. ‘A different world, little mi… Lara. You would find it harsh and primitive. But we were happy. Everyone always laughed a lot. Not the cruel laughter of the Romans, in their comedies or with each other. But joy-of-life laughter.’
She smiled at him but said nothing. How could she understand a world so different to the one she had known all her sheltered life? With a heavy sigh, he led her back to the shaded blanket.
He couldn’t contain his ravenous hunger, and polished off what was left of the supplies they’d brought from Rome. Then he started on the bread and cheese he’d just bought. With a little encouragement, he managed to get Lara to eat half of the berries and some of the cheese.
‘Now we’re going to do your hair. I’m going to squeeze the juice from these citrons into the mug, add some water and then soak the full length with it. Then I want you to lay your hair in the sun to let it dry. Doing it now while the sun is still hot is probably the best idea. But we’ll put a wet cloth over your face. You’ve had more than enough sun on it for one day. Does it sting?’
She nodded and shrugged as she began to unbraid her beautiful hair. It was sacrilege to change its colour. But if it meant keeping her a little safer, and allowing her the comfort of an Inn, instead of the ground for her bed, then it would be worth it. It would grow out or fade.
Patting the citron juice into the long skeins from root to tip was one of the most sensual things he had ever done. She sat silently and still throughout, letting him do what he wanted with her, trusting him. By the time he had emptied the mug his hands were shaking. The desire to touch the perfection that was so close was almost more than he could stand. Getting her to lay on her back on the blanket, her hair strewn out above her in the sun while her body and face stayed in the shade, almost undid him.
Finally, he had her positioned just right, although the sun would continue to move, and her face would soon be unprotected. He dampened a new tunic he’d purchased for himself and laid it over her face.
The heat was making them both groggy. ‘Try to sleep, litt… Lara. We’ll get back on the road when it gets cooler.’
Her drowsy voice came from under the cloth. ‘Can we try sleeping under the stars tonight, Vali? I’ve never done it, and I think I’d enjoy it, no matter how hard the ground. I feel free out here. No walls, no roof. Nothing to keep me trapped.’
Her words surprised him. He wouldn’t have thought she needed to feel free. After all, she was not enslaved. But when he thought of her life, how bored and frustrated she’d been when he knew her, he started to understand. She had always answered to others. Her life had never been her own. Secluded, protected and yet abused by those who should have loved her, what kind of life was that?
‘If you like. Now sleep. I’ll wake you when it’s time to go.’
The sun was dipping toward the west when he finally woke her. To his great annoyance, he’d dropped off himself for an hour, coming to full wakefulness in a sudden start, unsure where he was, heart beating like a drum. When he looked around him, saw the horses and the chariot, saw the girl with her pale hair strewn across the warm grass, he relaxed. He was where he needed to be. Safe. Happy. Oddly content.
He didn’t give himself time to contemplate those emotions. Instead, he climbed to his feet quietly, and went to fetch the horses. By the time he had them hitched up, he could wait no longer. Dropping to her side, letting his body shield her from the sun, he reached for the cloth on her face.
One step after another, allow no thoughts beyond your next step, allow no thoughts of your destination, allow no thoughts of the reason for your destination…
Some mischievous spirit redirected his hand, and he found himself stroking the silky lengths of light, golden-brown hair. The hard callouses on his palms and fingers snagged the fine threads, so he kept his touch feather-soft, one tentative stroke after another, just as he would have stroked a nervy mare’s gleaming coat. The sharp tipped blades of grass that pierced the golden waves were a counterpoint to the sleek pleasure of those skeins against his skin. Pain and pleasure. Could there ever be one without the other for him again?
His touch must have been enough to wake her, because she drew the dried cloth downward until her face was revealed. Big, golden eyes stared up at him, still drowsy with sleep. They were the exact colour of her hair now.
He jerked back his hand, embarrassed to have been caught caressing her in such a way. She shouldn’t have felt his touch. She wasn’t supposed to know what she did to him.
‘That felt nice. Has my hair changed colour?’ Her words were slow and drugged, her lips curling up languidly at the edges. Vali fought his baser urges, focusing on her words instead of her ripe lips.
‘It’s lighter than I expected. Sit up and have a look for yourself.’
His words, delivered with stern force, were enough to break the insidious spell. Her eyes blinked rapidly, hurt reflected there, digging a dagger into his gut. Better this way. Cruel to be kind. She belongs to another. Think of the reason for your destination! No that wasn’t the way it worked for him. Don’t think of the reason for your destination! One step after another…
He helped her to sit, catching her grimace of pain before she could hide it. She didn’t complain. Silently she drew her loose hair over her shoulder and stared at it in bemusement.
‘It doesn’t look like mine at all, does it? No one will recognise me now.’
‘Yes, it’s a good disguise. Now get up. It’s later than I’d planned. We’ve only got a few hours more of daylight. Do what you need to do in the bushes over there, and then let’s get going.’
It still embarrassed her to have him refer to bodily functions, even in an indirect way. So be it. It was time she experienced the baser aspects of life. Smothering her in luxury had never served. In the next week she would gain a crash course in how the other half lived.
‘Oh Gaius, I didn’t expect to see you here,’ Salvia said languidly, as she reclined on her couch as her handmaiden brushed her auburn hair in long, steady strokes.
‘I was told you want Anniana to accompany you to one of Titus’ orgies later in the week. You know how I feel about her going to the palace. Her innocence is her greatest value, and it can be taken too easily in a place like that.’
‘I’ll watch over my baby, don’t you fear. But it’s time Titus saw what I’ve been telling him about all these months. This will be a major political gain for you to have your daughter as empress of Pax Roma.’
‘And I’ve told you I have no interest in political gain anymore. Certainly not at Anniana’s
expense.’
‘And I’ve told you that I don’t care what you want. If you don’t let that spoiled little girl of yours make the most strategic marriage possible, I’ll leave you and take her with me. You know I can do it. My father is only waiting for the word.’
Bibulus gritted his teeth and clenched his fists tightly at his side. ‘If Titus gets to taste the fruit first, he won’t buy it.’
‘Ah, now that’s the shrewd politician I married. Do not fear, I have no intention of letting him taste our ripe, little berry before he marries her. But he does need to see her again. It’s been many years, and she’s blossomed into quite a beauty in the last year.’
‘Titus is still occupied with establishing his power base against any threats. He has no time for marriage, especially not to someone who won’t increase his political power. He’s more likely to take her as his mistress, and then she’ll be worthless. Better to leave it for a while longer.’
Salvia studied him from beneath lowered lashes, a sweetly insincere smile playing on her rouged lips. ‘You have said that before. But Titus has stabilised his position. And he has no reason to make another politically motivated marriage. He needs a sweet titbit to refresh his jagged palate. And being my daughter, well that’s all the better. You know he lusted after me in his youth. Now he can lust after my youngest daughter in his maturity.’
‘It’s a dangerous game you’re playing, wife. Titus is not a youth any longer, and he has much experience with the power-plays of the court and the senate. You will not best him on this one.’
‘I don’t plan to. I’ll leave that to my sweet daughter. You of all people must see what a gem she is. All she needs is the right setting.’
‘When is this gathering?’
‘On Vulcanus’ Day. There will be a huge bonfire and sacrifices. Someone suggested throwing criminals into the flames, but Titus has vetoed that idea. But there will be enough animal sacrifices to make it an enjoyable spectacle. Not a large celebration, as he is not a god in favour. But reason enough for something a little different.’
‘That’s in two days. I planned to take Anniana with me to Reati. Vespasian left me something of value on his estate at Aquae Cutiliae. I thought it might be a nice chance for Anniana to get out of Rome for a few days and see a bit of the countryside. We didn’t go away this year.’
‘If you take her with you, make sure she’s back by the evening of Vulcanus’ Day, or I will be most displeased. And you know what happens if you displease me too much, husband.’
‘I’ll have her back for your celebration, I assure you. It’s no more than an overnight stop. She’ll feel better for it.’
Salvia studied him for a moment, her golden eyes narrowed. ‘You seem oddly discomforted, husband. Nervous. What troubles you?’
Bibulus threw up his arms and began to stalk toward the door, not having to feign his fury or frustration. ‘Your plans for my daughter’s future trouble me, Salvia, as you well know. And I can’t do a thing about them. I sometimes wish I’d never married you.’
‘If you didn’t marry me then you wouldn’t have your precious daughter. But then, you may not have her much longer anyway. Enjoy your journey, Gaius. It may be the last you have with Annia Minor.’
As Bibulus strode down the columned Atrium, his heart beat like a drum. He had to get his fake daughter out of the house at first light and keep her away for as long as possible. She would become ill while they were away, necessitating a longer absence. It would anger Salvia, but with any luck, she would see it as his last ditch effort to postpone his daughter’s inevitable fate, not as the diversion it actually was.
He hurried on to find Ninia. She would have to dress as her mistress and share the litter with him. If anyone asked where she was, it would seem only natural that the handmaiden had accompanied her mistress on the trip. As long as there were no witnesses who would notice the lack of a handmaiden as they left, they’d be safe.
It would take a week for his lamb to reach Pompeii and complete her marriage. How was he going to keep her absence hidden that long? He should have come up with a better plan. He should have sent them by sea and risked Salvia’s spies telling her where Anniana had gone. Another mistake to add to his long, long list of mistakes.
He couldn’t get it out of his head, the thought of his innocent little lamb being forced to watch her brother rape her beloved handmaiden. How could he have been so blind as to not have seen how far that sly little monster would go? Hadn’t he caught him pulling the wings of a bird when he was only five? That he’d been torturing his lamb all these years, and he hadn’t known of it… horrifying.
With a mother like Salvia, it made sense that two of his four children would take after her. He’d become aware of her sickness and corruption not long after he got her with her fourth child. Her belly already rounded, he’d walked in on her games with a slave she’d recently bought as her ‘bodyguard’. A big, rough brute of a man, Bibulus couldn’t believe that a refined patrician would ever let someone like him have her body. But he’d seen it for himself. And ignored it.
There had been a steady series of such slaves in Salvia’s bed since. Vali had been the best of them, and he still regretted not standing up to Salvia when she told him she planned to sell him. His finances had never been the same since. A mistake -- just one of so many.
But he was attempting to right some of those mistakes now. All he could hope for was that the Vali he had known four years ago was still loyal to Anniana. If he had given her over into a monster’s hands, he’d never forgive himself.
Chapter Five
When they left the Albion Hills behind them, they began to move faster through the flat Pontine reclaimed marshlands. To their right, high sand dunes blocked their view of the Tyrrhenian Sea. To their left, some ten miles distant, was the Volscian Mountain Range. There was less road traffic here, as most travellers had opted for a smoother canal ride. The long, straight canal ran parallel to the road on the side closest to the dunes and was dotted with rough canal boats that were being pulled along by donkeys. Lara envied them their comfort.
They pushed on through the late afternoon, watching the fiery sun begin to sink behind the dunes. That was when Vali began to scan the flat land to their left. It was crisscrossed by muddy waterways and dotted with clumps of spirelike pine trees. Eventually, he selected a drier section of the land and drove the horses across it to the shelter of the largest and densest stand of trees in the area. Hidden behind these trees, their campsite would be less obvious to passing travellers on the road or canal.
Lara sighed as the carrus came to a halt, just as the sun finally dropped behind the dunes. It had been the longest day of her life. Every muscle ached, her skin burned hotter than a furnace, and she was so tired it was a strain to even breathe. Her body was filthy, her hair unkempt and sticky from the citron juices Vali had used on it. She smelled bad.
And she was happier than she had ever been in her life.
The new person that she was, this Lara the liberti, was a freedwoman, and for all the hardships, that was how she felt. Free. She was on a journey between her old life and her new, her only companion a childhood friend, a changeable warrior from a distant, unimaginable land. No walls surrounded her, no roof blocked the sky from her view; she was part of the natural world for the first time in her life.
‘Stay there until I get the blanket spread,’ the new Gaius Annius Vali ordered. Such a Roman name for the barbarian that he was.
‘I can help,’ she said, ashamed of the weakness in her voice.
‘You’ll fall flat on your face if you try. Stay there!’ He was being harsh with her again. It hurt. She didn’t understand why her once gentle friend spoke to her that way. Or why his eyes scraped over her like she was poison, or trouble, or a nuisance. That wasn’t the way she remembered him.
Obediently, she sat like a mouse in the carrus, as he prepared the blanket. When he came back and swept her into his arms, his touch was gentle and warm. How coul
d he be harsh one moment and gentle the next? It made no sense. In her limited experience, people were either one thing or the other. They were either kind or they were cruel.
Her mother was cruel in her indifference and scathing in her comments, when she deigned to acknowledge her daughter’s existence. She was never kind.
Her father, even when he was tired or upset, was never anything but kind to her. As was her older brother Gaius. But he had been gone a long time now, serving with the Imperial Army in the wilds of Magna Germania. It was hard to bring his face to mind. Would that happen to her father’s face if she didn’t see him for years? The thought cut deep.
As Vali gently laid her down, his rough hands lingering, she thought of another slave in her life: Ninia, the little handmaiden who’d been more friend than slave. The daughter of their cook, she’d been assigned to Anniana when she was five, to fetch and carry for her. But she’d been a playmate long before that. To her, Ninia was more sister than her own ever could be.
And it was because of her that Ninia had suffered. She pushed the memories away, feeling the tears stinging her eyes. This was no time to remember. Exhaustion and hunger were making her weak. She couldn’t afford to be weak. Not now. Not when Vali already saw her as a burden; already considered her a foolish, frivolous waste of space. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of being right.
The new Lara watched as Vali unhitched the horses and led them to the edge of the muddy water. The horses were tired. Vali was tired. His shoulders sagged, and his movements were slow.
He had too much to do. She wouldn’t behave like a spoiled patrician now. Lara the liberti would never sit around while there was work to be done. Staggering to her feet, she made her way to the curras and began to unload their food. There was the goose to be cooked. That meant they would need a fire. How did one build a fire?
Firewood. They would need firewood. Not neatly chopped logs like they used in the ovens at home, but fallen branches and twigs.