The Last King of Rome

by Laura Dowers

  ‘Yes, my lord king,’ the man said thickly, his tongue as swollen as his lips. ‘Our homes were entered and ransacked, our men attacked and our women raped. Some of our livestock was taken too.’

  ‘There were killings?”

  The man nodded. ‘Most of the men in my village were killed. I would be dead too but for the sword missing its mark.’ He pointed to the red stain on his tunic. ‘A neighbour of mine was bashed about the head and hasn’t woken up yet. All the other men are dead, some of the women too. The bastards killed them when they’d had their pleasure.’

  Servius winced. ‘And this girl?’

  ‘Raped twice, my lord. She’s only twelve years old. She was a virgin until Prince Lucius found her. Now, no other man will have her for a wife, despoiled as she is.’

  ‘You accuse Prince Lucius of raping her?’

  ‘He took her first. I saw him go into her family’s hut. Then I was stabbed and fell down. I couldn’t move, else I would have gone to her. But I heard her screaming, begging with him not to touch her. I saw him leave, then come back later with another man. They both went into the hut and Prince Lucius watched while the other raped her.’

  The girl had started to weep as her companion recounted her ordeal. The man put his arm around her shoulder and she flinched at his touch.

  ‘You accuse the Prince, yet how can you be sure it was him?’ Servius asked, hoping the man was wrong. ‘By my remembrance, the night was dark, there was no moon to see by.’

  ‘Our roofs were set alight. Straw burns fast. There was plenty of light to see by and I saw Prince Lucius as clear as I see you now. I’ve seen him before. I’ve come to Rome many times. I know it was him.’

  Servius spoke to the secretary. ‘Bring Prince Lucius here.’

  The banging on his door woke Lucius. He blinked open his eyes, feeling the crust on his lids crack and break apart. Sunlight came thinly through the narrow window, enough to hurt his eyes. He shut them again.

  He and his friends had returned to Rome and made straight for a tavern, the wriggling animals they had stolen lost on the way. They had caroused for hours, until they had started vomiting over the floor and the tavern keeper told them to leave, a big stick in one hand and three of his biggest men behind him.

  Cossus had wanted to make a fight of it, but the others had had enough for one night. They pulled and pushed Cossus out into the street, the tavern keeper shouting and slamming the door behind them. They had sung each of the company to his own home, until only Lucius and Arruns remained, entering the domus through the back yard.

  Arruns had pulled his brother into a drunken embrace and kissed him sloppily on both cheeks and then they parted, each to their own cubiculum. Undressing would have taken too much effort and so Lucius had not even tried. He collapsed onto his bed still wearing his tunic, all stained and smoky from the night’s adventures. And this was how the secretary found him.

  ‘Prince Lucius.’ The secretary shook Lucius’s shoulder without ceremony. He didn’t like Lucius. He had seen him grow up and witnessed too many of his tantrums to have any reverence for his person.

  ‘Go ‘way,’ Lucius mumbled, trying to shrug him off.

  ‘The King demands your attendance at once.’

  ‘The King can go fuck himself.’

  The secretary grabbed a handful of tunic and tugged, making Lucius slide half off the bed. ‘He wants to see you now.’

  Lucius grunted and pushed himself up. With a great effort, he swung his legs to the floor. ‘All right,’ he snarled at the secretary. ‘I’ll be along as soon as I’ve bathed.’

  ‘There’s no time for that. You must come at once.’

  Half asleep and barely able to keep his eyes open, Lucius followed the secretary along the corridor to the tablinum. ‘What’s this about?’ he asked.

  ‘You’ll find out,’ the secretary said peremptorily.

  ‘Just tell me, you dog.’

  The secretary didn’t answer and Lucius was forced to cease his questioning. Every step jarred his brain and he cursed Servius for making him get out of bed. I’ll piss in his wine later, he thought.

  They reached the tablinum. ‘Yes, Uncle?’ Lucius sighed.

  He glanced towards the vestibulum, hearing the murmur of voices. Oh, by Jupiter’s great cock, there were plebs there. He looked down at his tunic. It was a mess, stained with blood and beer, and by the smell of it, vomit. He was in a disgusting state and yet here he was, on display to these peasants. If he could, he would have their eyes burned out for seeing him like this.

  Servius looked him up and down and Lucius saw his top lip curling in distaste. ‘Where were you last night?’

  Lucius blinked at him. ‘Wh— where was I?’ He laughed. ‘Oh, please tell me this isn’t because I wasn’t at dinner.’

  ‘No, it’s not because you weren’t at dinner,’ Servius roared, rising and banging his fists on his desk and sending his stool crashing to the floor. The noise hushed the onlookers and knocked the fug out of Lucius’s brain. ‘It’s because of them,’ and he thrust out his arm and pointed behind Lucius.

  Lucius glanced over his shoulder. There were two people in the room he hadn’t noticed before, a man and a girl. The girl was hiding behind the man but she was peering out around his elbow, her frightened eyes on Lucius. Lucius wondered why she looked familiar.

  ‘Well,’ he said, turning back to Servius, ‘who are they?’

  ‘Their village was attacked last night,’ Servius said. ‘This man claims you were among the attackers. Is it true?’

  Lucius licked his lips. Why was Servius doing this to him, humiliating him in front of all these people? He thought quickly. He could deny it, say he’d been with Cossus in one of the city’s brothels and get a girl to confirm it if he had to.

  But why should I? Lucius straightened and raised his chin. ‘Yes, it’s true.’

  Servius closed his eyes and took a long, hard breath. ‘Why?’ he growled.

  Lucius shrugged. ‘Because I could. Because I wanted to.’

  The man behind him bellowed in rage. ‘You killed our men and raped our women because you felt like it?’ He lunged at Lucius. Servius’s guards reacted quickly and pinioned him to the ground. He thrashed and spat curses at them.

  ‘Stop,’ Servius said, ‘leave him alone. Let him up.’ The guards released him and the man clambered to his feet. Fresh blood was leaking through his tunic for his struggle had reopened his wound. ‘You, control yourself,’ Servius ordered him sternly. ‘Now, you will both go with this man.’ He pointed to one of the lictors who hovered in the doorway. ‘He will take you to the kitchens and you will be fed. Send for the doctor too,’ he added to the secretary, who clicked his fingers at his junior and gave the instruction. ‘You will be looked after and you will be safe. We’ll talk later.’

  The lictor led the man and girl away and Servius told the secretary to remove the people from the vestibulum. The rest of his interview with Lucius would be private now he had acknowledged his guilt.

  ‘What is the matter with you?’ Servius asked as soon as the heavy double doors had closed. ‘What is it that goes through your head?’

  ‘I don’t know why you’re making such a fuss,’ Lucius said, rolling his eyes. ‘We—’

  ‘Who?’ Servius snatched at the word. ‘Who was with you?’

  ‘A few of my friends. And Arruns.’

  ‘Arruns?’ Servius’s mouth fell open. ‘Your brother was with you?’

  Lucius’s mouth curved upwards in an unpleasant smile. ‘Don’t look so surprised, Uncle. He isn’t the good little boy you think he is, you know.’

  ‘Arruns took part in the killing?’

  ‘He took part in all of it.’

  Servius ordered the secretary to fetch Arruns. ‘Whose idea was it?’ he asked Lucius. ‘Yours, I warrant.’

  ‘What if it was?’

  ‘Ye gods, do you know what you’ve done?’

  ‘Yes, I had some fun.’

  ‘You’ve
endangered everything I’ve been working towards, that’s what you’ve done. How can we be at peace with our neighbours if we carry out such senseless attacks?’

  ‘Peace is for women,’ Lucius sneered, ‘and for slaves.’ The look Lucius gave Servius was full of meaning and loathing.

  ‘I know what you think of me, Lucius,’ Servius said, breaking the stare. ‘You think I have no right to be king. Well, maybe you’re right. You certainly wouldn’t be the only one to think so. But I am king and I won’t have you ruining everything I’m trying to do for Rome.’

  ‘It was one raid,’ Lucius said. ‘One. We should raid when the fancy takes us. Why not? It’s good for us. It’s what Romans should do. In my grandfather’s time, there were always raids and he never complained. Raids keep us ready for battle. Not that with all your talk of peace we’ll ever get the chance to go to war now. You’d rather let the Latins raid us and do nothing.’

  ‘I have never shied away from war when it’s been necessary, Lucius. If the Latins were to—’

  ‘Oh, don’t give me that. If you had your way, you would have us all spinning wool with our women.’

  Servius laughed hollowly. ‘You see, that’s the difference between us, Lucius. I am ready to fight when there’s no other option. You’d rather fight than have peace. And that, let me tell you, is why you’re not fit to be a king. You understand nothing about ruling, Lucius, nothing. You don’t grow prosperous through battle. You grow prosperous through trade, and in order to trade, you need to be on good relations with your neighbours.’

  ‘It was one little village—’

  ‘Those people live by the Tiber. They are Romans. Those men you killed and the women you violated were your own people, Lucius. And yes, it was one little village last night, but then you get a taste for it and then you raid another, and another, and suddenly, we have everyone against us and we have nothing but war.’

  Servius broke off as the secretary returned shepherding a sheepish-looking Arruns before him. Arruns tried not to look at his brother.

  ‘Arruns, come here,’ Servius pointed to a spot beside Lucius. ‘Lucius tells me you were with him last night.’

  ‘Yes, Uncle,’ Arruns said, hanging his head.

  ‘You killed and raped?’

  ‘I did, Uncle.’

  ‘I—,’ Servius broke off and smacked the table. ‘I don’t understand. You, of all people, Arruns.’

  He looked to Arruns for a response but Arruns said nothing.

  ‘I know young men like to fight,’ Servius continued, his voice adopting a pacific tone. ‘I was young once. And I know there are times when we need to fight to preserve what’s ours. But when we attack our own people in senseless raids, we’re damaging Rome. We hurt ourselves and we hurt the monarchy of which you,’ and he jabbed a finger at Lucius, ‘are so proud to be a part. What do you imagine the people of Rome will think when news of what you did last night spreads?’

  ‘Well, you’ve seen to it that it will spread, haven’t you?’ Lucius sneered. ‘You could have said nothing but you made sure you humiliated me in public. I’m going to be the gossip of every tavern and brothel in Rome.’

  ‘And you deserve to be. The people must know that they can trust their king, that they can trust me. They must know that anyone who transgresses the law will be exposed and punished, regardless of their family name.’

  ‘We are not family,’ Lucius said.

  ‘We are family,’ Servius insisted, ‘whether you like it or not, Lucius. You may not have my blood, but you may have my throne one day. You’ll be happy to be known as my heir, won’t you? Well, you carry on like this and you won’t be. You won’t be elected king because the senate won’t trust you.’

  ‘Maybe I won’t need to be elected,’ Lucius muttered.

  ‘You will need the senate’s approval, Lucius, don’t think you won’t. And you won’t have your grandmother by your side to help you as I did. Think on that.’

  Servius saw his remark had hit home. Lucius’s face fell.

  ‘It won’t happen again,’ Arruns promised, looking from Lucius to Servius.

  ‘You can promise me that, Arruns?’ Servius asked.

  ‘Yes, I can and I do,’ Arruns said vehemently.

  Servius looked to Lucius. ‘And what about you?’

  Lucius pouted, refusing to make his uncle any kind of promise.

  ‘Both of you will pay restitution to the man and the girl,’ Servius said. ‘My secretary will work out a suitable amount for her violation and for the damage caused to the village. You will also make a sacrifice to Jupiter and to Pax to atone for your misdeeds.’ He sighed. ‘Even so, all the gold in Rome will not undo the damage you have done this night. Mark me, I will not tolerate any further raids. I promise you, Lucius, Arruns, you do this kind of thing again and I will have you both banished, never to return to Rome again.’

  Tanaquil rubbed her fingers against her temples and pressed hard. She’d had a sharp pain behind her eyes for almost three days now and she fancifully thought that maybe she could force the pain away with her fingers. It didn’t work, just as none of the potions prescribed by her doctor had done the slightest bit of good. She knew the only way the headache would go, or even just recede a little, would be through rest. All she wanted to do at this moment was lie down on her bed and sleep the pain away. But she couldn’t. Now, she had to deal with this.

  ‘Men will do this sort of thing, Servius,’ she said, trying to keep the tiredness out of her voice.

  ‘You’re condoning the rape and murder of innocent Romans?’ Servius said incredulously.

  ‘Of course not,’ she said. ‘But Lucius was right. Lucomo authorised raids on our enemies, and those he didn’t authorise… well, he turned a blind eye to. You went on a few raids yourself, if you remember.’

  Servius held up his hands in an acknowledgement but his face told her he wasn’t going to be placated by the reminder. ‘It was a different time, Tanaquil.’

  Tanaquil knew he was right. When she and Lucomo had arrived in Rome, it had been a vicious place, entirely in tune with Tarquinii and Veii and Volsci and all the other tribes who believed in fighting one another constantly. In her opinion, Rome was still vicious at heart, but over the years, it had at least acquired the appearance of a civilised society. ‘I think it is time,’ she said.

  ‘Time for what?’

  ‘Time for the boys to be married.’

  ‘Oh no,’ Servius said, shaking his head vehemently, ‘not after this. I’m not having my daughters married to men like them.’

  ‘What man isn’t like them?’ Tanaquil asked. ‘Don’t tell me you never ravished a woman on one of your raids.’

  ‘It’s what you do,’ he said after a moment’s hesitation, his tone regretful. ‘You kill the men and rape the women. By Jupiter, most of the slaves in Rome were captured during raids.’

  ‘Quite. They’re nothing, they’re nobodies. Those people the boys killed and raped don’t matter, Servius. They’re peasants.’

  ‘But my daughters…’

  Tanaquil rose, walked around the table and put a hand on Servius’s shoulder. ‘The children have grown up together. Lucius and Arruns will treat the girls well.’

  ‘When Tarquinia hears of what Lucius and Arruns have done, she won’t agree to the marriages.’

  ‘Then we won’t tell her.’

  ‘You want us to deceive her?’

  ‘If it’s best for the family, yes.’

  ‘But she’ll hear about the raid from her friends when she gets back from her holiday,’ Servius said. ‘You know what they’re like. They love nothing better than to gossip.’

  ‘If she hears of it, she hears of it,’ Tanaquil shrugged. ‘It won’t matter. She may rail against us and shout and cry but in the end, Tarquinia always does as she’s told. And I promise, things will be better when they’re married.’

  Servius turned his face to hers. ‘You really believe that?’ he asked hopefully.

  Tanaquil ben
t and planted a kiss on his forehead. ‘You’ve always trusted me, my boy. Trust me in this.’

  Tanaquil didn’t bother to knock. She opened the door and found Lucius standing naked in the middle of his bedroom while a girl washed him down, dipping a cloth into a bowl of warm water on the floor. The water was grey with tinges of red.

  Lucius looked around at his grandmother and Tanaquil could see the indecision in his face as to whether he should protest at her entrance. In the end, he said nothing. She walked over to the bed and sat down, pleased Lucius didn’t try to cover his nudity as she suspected Arruns would have done. It seemed nothing could embarrass Lucius.

  ‘Have you come to tell me off too, Grandmother?’ he said.

  ‘Don’t take that tone with me, Lucius,’ Tanaquil retorted. ‘You know you’re in the wrong.’

  ‘I’m not,’ Lucius said. ‘Everyone raids.’

  ‘Not these days. And I’m not here to chastise you. Servius has already done that. I’m here to ask you to behave in future, Lucius. No, you listen to me. I chose Servius to be king when your grandfather was murdered. I chose him because I knew he was the best man to rule Rome. And I’ve never regretted my choice, not once. He was a good king from the very beginning and he is doing his best to be a great one. And you are not helping.’

  ‘What have I done?’ Lucius was pouting just as he had when a boy and he’d been denied something he wanted.

  ‘You are not a child, Lucius, stop acting like one. I want you to be someone Servius can rely on, not his enemy.’

  Lucius, saying nothing, turned away from her as the girl worked her way around his body. Just as she knew he wasn’t one to be easily embarrassed, Tanaquil knew he also didn’t respond well to being told what to do.

  ‘Well, Lucius?’ she prompted, wanting an answer. ‘Can you do that for me?’

  His back was to her now as she waited. She could have asked again but she held back. She was in control here and she wanted him to acknowledge it.

  ‘Yes, Grandmother,’ he said at last.

  ‘Good,’ she said, rising from the bed and heading for the door. With her hand on the latch, she turned back to Lucius. ‘And you and your brother are invited to supper with me tonight. It will be just us three to chat about how things will be from now on. And unlike last night, Lucius, you will be there.’