The Last King of Rome

by Laura Dowers

  ‘I am not paying that woman five hundred aes for nine books I have no intention of reading,’ Lucius told her.

  ‘You won’t be paying me five hundred aes for nine books,’ a voice said, making Lolly and Lucius jump. ‘You’ll be paying me five hundred aes for six books.’

  ‘What do you mean?’ Lucius asked the Sibyl.

  ‘I mean, King Lucius, that I burnt three of the books yesterday. There are six left. Now, will you pay me the sum I named?’

  ‘You really must be mad,’ Lucius said. ‘If I wasn’t going to pay you for nine, why would I pay you for only six?’

  ‘Because you want to know what is in the books,’ the Sibyl said as if the answer was obvious.

  ‘Could we perhaps just look at the books?’ Lolly asked, pointing at the leather bag over the Sibyl’s shoulder. ‘Just to ascertain that they are worth what you ask?’

  The Sibyl gave her an unflinching stare. ‘No, lady, you may not.’

  ‘Well,’ Lolly said, glancing back at Lucius, ‘perhaps we could manage three hundred?’

  ‘Don’t pander to her, Lolly,’ Lucius said angrily. ‘We’ll pay her nothing. You’ve had another wasted journey, Sibyl. You’ll get nothing from me.’

  ‘Very well,’ the Sibyl said, seemingly not at all discouraged by Lucius’s response. She once more followed the lictor as he led her from the domus, not even waiting for Lucius’s dismissal.

  ‘Lucius,’ Lolly whined as they went.

  ‘Enough, Lolly,’ Lucius snapped. ‘The woman’s a fraud.’

  ‘We don’t know that. There must be something in those books to make her so sure of herself. You’re the one who worries about curses and prophecies. Wouldn’t you rather know what the future held? Even if it does cost so much?’

  ‘I already know my future. I had my horoscope read, remember?’

  ‘But can you be sure that the astrologer told you the truth?’ Lolly asked earnestly. ‘After all, he told Cossus what he had said to you after swearing he wouldn’t.’

  Lucius didn’t answer. Maybe he had made a mistake in dismissing the Sibyl, but it was done now and he wouldn’t humiliate himself by having someone go after her and bring her back.

  While Lolly and Lucius were arguing, the Sibyl made her way to the forum again, walked up to the brazier by the Temple of Vesta, and burnt three more of the books in her bag.

  ‘She’s back,’ Lolly said quietly. ‘She’s waiting in the atrium. Here.’ She waved a slave into the room and he deposited a small chest on the table before Lucius. ‘There’s five hundred aes in there. Give it to her.’

  ‘No,’ Lucius said shortly.

  ‘Lucius.’ Rushing to him, Lolly grabbed his chin and jerked his face towards hers. ‘Give her the money. What she has may be nothing but I’m not risking our future and the future of our children for a few ingots.’

  ‘It’s not a few—’

  ‘Give her what she wants,’ Lolly pleaded.

  ‘Wise advice, lady,’ the Sibyl said behind her, having not waited for the lictor to announce her.

  Lolly turned to her, her heart beating fast. ‘There’s five hundred aes in there,’ she pointed to the chest.

  ‘And there are three books left in here,’ the Sibyl said, gesturing at her bag.

  ‘Only three?’ Lucius said.

  ‘I burnt three more because of your intransigence. I would have burnt these last three if you had still refused to pay.’

  Lucius gave a mirthless laugh. ‘You cannot ask for five hundred aes for only a third of what you originally offered.’

  ‘Can I not?’ the Sibyl’s eyebrow raised again. ‘Then I shall return to Cumae, after I have burnt these three.’

  ‘Wait,’ Lolly called desperately as the Sibyl turned to leave. ‘We will pay. Take the chest and leave the books.’ She put out her hand to stop Lucius, who was about to grab the chest himself. She turned her face to him and her pained expression convinced him. He nodded and gestured to the Sibyl that the chest was hers. He fell back onto the couch, angry at Lolly.

  The Sibyl smiled. ‘You should have persuaded your husband to see sense before we came to this pass, lady,’ she said, taking out the last three scrolls and placing them on a table by one of the couches. ‘Much has been lost.’

  Lolly picked up the scrolls reverently. ‘There are no copies of those that were burnt?’

  ‘None. That’s what made them valuable.’ The Sibyl bent and picked up the chest. It was heavy and she had to hold it in both arms. ‘I hope you make good use of those, King Lucius, if you find anything of value in them.’

  ‘Thank you, Lucius,’ Lolly said, kissing his chastely on the cheek when the Sibyl had gone.

  He softened. ‘That better be the last we see of her,’ Lucius muttered, ‘and you can forget about buying any more silks or jewellery for a while.’

  Lolly knew that was her punishment for defying him and giving in to the Sibyl rather than the fact they couldn’t afford them. She didn’t mind. ‘Let’s see what’s in these,’ she said, picking up one of the scrolls.

  Sextus had seen the Sibyl leave and rushed up to his mother. ‘Tell me what she said,’ he said, bouncing around Lolly excitedly.

  ‘Go to your room, Sextus,’ Lucius said, holding out his hand to stop his son getting too near the valuable scrolls.

  ‘You always tell me to go away when something interesting has happened,’ Sextus whined. ‘I can stay, can’t I, Mother?’

  But Lolly was too absorbed to pay her youngest son much attention. ‘What? Oh, no, Sextus, go and play. Your father and I are busy.’ She picked up one of the scrolls, untied the twine and carefully unfurled the parchment. It cracked ominously and she winced.

  ‘Be careful, Lolly,’ Lucius said. ‘These cost a fortune.’

  ‘I know,’ she said through gritted teeth, pulling the paper a little further. ‘Sextus, be careful!’

  Sextus had knocked his mother’s shoulder as he craned his neck to look. ‘What’s that?’ he asked, screwing up his face as he tried to read the words.

  Lolly looked over the top of the scroll at Lucius. ‘It’s in Greek,’ she told him. ‘I can’t read these. Does your secretary know Greek?’

  ‘I doubt it,’ Lucius said, holding out his hand for the scroll. ‘We’ll have to get a Greek slave to read it. Do we have one?’

  ‘You’re mad if you think I’m going to entrust these to a slave,’ Lolly said, taking the scroll back as if she thought he was going to find a Greek slave there and then. ‘We don’t know what’s in them.’

  ‘Then what do you suggest?’ Lucius asked, sitting back as Sextus forced himself onto his father’s lap. He wrapped his arms around his son’s waist and rested his chin on the small shoulder.

  ‘Is there anyone we know who can read Greek and who we can trust?’ Lolly wondered.

  ‘You’re not asking much, are you?’ Lucius asked sarcastically.

  ‘There must be someone,’ Lolly sighed and they both lapsed into silence as they tried to think.

  ‘Doesn’t Uncle Manius speak Greek?’ Sextus asked, picking up his father’s wine and taking a sip. ‘He tried to teach me when we went to his farm last summer.’

  Lolly and Lucius looked at one another and burst out laughing. Sextus stared at both his parents and asked indignantly what was so funny.

  ‘Nothing, my boy,’ Lucius said, ruffling his son’s curls. ‘You’ve just managed to find the very person we need and you didn’t even realise it. What a clever boy you are.’

  Manius dropped his leather bag on the floor of the atrium and fixed a smile onto his face as Lucius came towards him.

  He had received the summons to Rome four days earlier. The note, handwritten by Lucius, had been brief: I need you. Come to Rome. You’ll stay with us. No mention of why he was needed and no consideration that it might be inconvenient to leave his farm.

  It was inconvenient. Manius’s father had recently died and it had become rapidly clear that his old age and decrepitude had caused some mi
smanagement of the farm to occur. Manius was having to work twice as hard as normal to try to sort the farm out properly. Some suppliers had been paid twice for goods received and never owned up; other suppliers hadn’t been paid at all and were talking about redress. Two of the head farm workers who hadn’t been paid for months had left to take up work elsewhere and four of the slaves had fallen sick and died, leaving him with a labour shortfall.

  Manius had considered writing back that he couldn’t possibly come to Rome at such a time, but his wife had reminded him that one could not simply refuse the King, especially not a king with such as wife as Lolly, a woman who could drive over her father’s body and cut off his hand without flinching. So, Manius had watched as his wife packed his bag with bread and cheese wrapped in muslin for the journey and ensured he carried a stout stick to protect himself.

  ‘Manius, it is good of you to come,’ Lucius said, embracing him.

  ‘You said you needed me,’ Manius said, ‘and it’s nice to be needed.’

  ‘Come through.’ Lucius put his arm around Manius’s shoulder and led him to the garden. ‘Lolly! Manius is here.’

  She was still a pretty thing, Manius thought as Lolly came towards him with her arms wide. She’d only put on a little weight after having the children and her hair still looked thick and lustrous. He took her hand and kissed it.

  ‘Manius,’ she said with a smile that made her cheeks dimple, ‘it’s been too long. I’ve told Lucius he should have invited you to visit us sooner.’

  So, we’re pretending this is a friendly visit, Manius thought. ‘Well, I’m not sure I could have come had you invited me. I’ve been so busy with the farm.’ And still am, he felt like adding.

  ‘Yes, of course,’ Lolly simpered, taking his arm and leading him to one of the stone benches. As he sat his nostrils were filled with the scent of lavender. ‘We were so sorry to hear about your father.’

  ‘It was a relief, actually, when he died. He was in a great deal of pain towards the end. It’s hard to watch your father suffering.’ Manius saw Lolly catch Lucius’s eye and he could have kicked himself. Lolly had had no qualms about making her father suffer. He hurried to cover up his gaffe. ‘Anyway, what do you need me for?’

  Lucius opened his mouth to reply, but Lolly spoke first. ‘No rush, Manius. It’s only a little thing, but we thought you were the best man to help us with it. Let’s get you settled in and then we’ll show you later. Come, I’ll take you to your room.’

  Lolly rose and Manius did the same, hooking his bag back over his shoulder. Lucius smiled at him as he passed, but there was a thoughtful look on his face that Manius recognised. It was no little thing they needed from him, he realised, despite Lolly’s assurance, but they wanted to pretend it was. Despite his annoyance at being summoned so peremptorily, Manius found his interest was piqued.

  ‘Well?’ Lucius looked up at Manius. ‘You can read them, can’t you?’

  Manius nodded. ‘Yes, I can read them, but I’m not sure I’m understand them.’

  ‘Why not?’ Lolly said, moving her stool nearer. ‘Are they in code?’

  ‘More like riddles,’ Manius said, drawing his finger along a line of text. ‘You know, you really should get a priest to take a look. They’ll understand more than I will.’

  ‘No,’ Lolly said sharply, then tempering her tone with a smile. ‘These may be nothing. Foolish writings by an insane woman for all we know. A priest would probably want to make something out of it and then there would be gossip.’

  ‘It’s best we keep these, whatever is in these, to ourselves,’ Lucius agreed.

  ‘Not that we expect much,’ Lolly said with a nonchalant shrug. ‘We didn’t think much of the Sibyl who delivered them, did we, Lucius?’

  ‘What? Oh, no. Didn’t look anything like you would expect.’

  ‘What did you expect?’ Manius asked sardonically. ‘Sibyls come in all shapes and sizes.’

  ‘Do they? And how would you know?’ Lucius bit back, not liking Manius’s tone.

  ‘That’s why, Lucius,’ Lolly’s tone was warning, ‘we need Manius. He obviously knows about these things. So, what can you tell us?’

  ‘Here,’ Manius pointed to a line halfway down the exposed page, ‘it seems to be referring to an enemy of Rome, one that must be defeated with cunning rather than arms. But I can’t see that it says who the enemy is or when it will happen.’

  ‘For Jupiter’s sake, what use is that?’ Lucius shook his head.

  ‘And it goes on that the cunning person will not be revered but reviled.’

  ‘But it doesn’t say who that is?’ Lolly asked earnestly.

  Manius searched the text. ‘Not that I can see.’

  She tutted. ‘Anything else?’ Lolly tapped the parchment.

  ‘Plenty of things I don’t understand. But this one,’ Manius pointed to the scroll he had in front of him, ‘doesn’t seem to deal with Rome much at all. This one has a bit more in it,’ he said, pulling over another. ‘You see, here, it says a child of Rome will bring shame on his father and bring down his house through the virtue of a woman. But again, it doesn’t say when or give any names.’

  ‘And the last one?’ Lucius asked, growing bored.

  Manius shook his head. ‘As far as I can tell, there’s nothing in it that relates to Rome. Plenty of talk about Egypt, but that’s all.’ He let the scroll roll up. ‘You look disappointed,’ he said to Lolly.

  ‘No,’ she lied with a drawn-out sigh.

  ‘Well, I am,’ Lucius said. ‘Five hundred aes we paid for that load of rubbish.’

  ‘Five hundred?’ Manius was astonished. He had never seen such wealth, let alone have it to buy books with.

  ‘We don’t know what was in the other books,’ Lolly reminded Lucius. ‘If you hadn’t made such a fuss about paying her—’

  ‘Oh, so it’s my fault,’ Lucius said.

  ‘Well, it isn’t mine. I said we should pay her. Who knows what we might have learnt from those other six books.’

  ‘If those three are anything to go by, nothing at all,’ Lucius said, snatching up a fig from the plate on the table and biting down hard.

  ‘Their meanings aren’t clear to us now,’ Manius said, thinking he deserved some thanks for his efforts and realising he probably wasn’t going to get any. ‘That doesn’t mean they won’t be understood in time.’

  ‘Probably long after they might have been of any use to us,’ Lucius said. ‘Oh, put them away, Manius. I’ve had enough.’

  ‘What will you do with them?’ Manius asked, depositing the scrolls gently into a circular box and closing the lid.

  ‘Throw them on the fire?’ Lucius suggested.

  ‘Don’t be ridiculous, Lucius,’ Lolly scolded. ‘We’ll have them stored in the temple. Manius is right. They may be of use one day.’

  ‘Thank you for coming,’ Lucius said, resting his head on the back of the couch.

  Finally, Manius thought, pouring himself another cup of wine. The three books of prophecy had been taken away, Lucius’s most trusted secretary given the task of transporting them to the temple, with strict instructions he was not to show them to anyone. Manius thought Lolly was being overcautious. The scrolls were of interest certainly as a literary, perhaps even historical, record, but only a priest or scholar would be able to glean any meaning from them, and then what good would it do?

  Manius had always been scornful of prophecies, soothsayers and the like. His mother had consulted astrologers and soothsayers about the fortune of the farm and Manius had always held that its success lay in clever management, not the spurious predictions of mystics. More to the point, he doubted that had the scrolls explicitly said an action of Lucius’s would lead to such-and-such event, that Lucius would be able to change his mind and act differently to avoid it. Manius knew his friend. Once Lucius’s mind was made up, it was fiendishly difficult to change it.

  ‘Still enjoying your life in the country?’ Lucius asked.

  ‘I’m busy, I
told you,’ Manius said. ‘I never realised how much there was to do.’

  ‘You have a farm manager, don’t you?’

  ‘He’s new to the job. Still learning. I dare not leave him. Not yet.’

  ‘How soon before you can?’

  Manius frowned at Lucius. ‘Why are you asking?’

  Lucius nibbled on his bottom lip before answering. ‘The truth is, I’d rather like to have you here in Rome.’

  ‘Don’t you have anyone to go drinking with?’ Manius asked, tipping up his empty glass and looking around for another jug. ‘Cossus is still around, isn’t he?’

  ‘I’m not talking about drinking, Manius.’ Lucius passed Manius his own jug of wine. ‘Cossus is good as a bodyguard, as someone I can use to threaten. That’s what he’s good at, but I can’t really take him into the senate and pass him off as an adviser. He scares the shit out of the senators.’

  The wine was doing its work and Manius felt warmed through from the top of his head to his toes. It felt good to sit here with exceptionally good wine — where did Lucius get it from? It was so much better than the stuff Manius produced on his farm — and be able to forget about lazy workers and mice in the grain stores and whether the harvest was going to be good or bad this year. Manius did like Rome. He liked the bustle, the shops, the temples. He even liked the people, the sheer quantity of them. In the country, on his estate, he could talk to his family or he could talk with the staff, and sometimes, neither appealed. And there were times when he felt he was rusticating in the country. All that education he had had, sitting alongside Lucius and Cossus in the schoolroom, somehow seemed wasted in the country. What had his father educated him for if not a life in politics?

  ‘He scares the shit out of me,’ Manius said, only half-joking.

  ‘So, you don’t want me to ask him to join us later?’ Lucius asked with a cheeky smile.

  Manius made a face. ‘I’d rather you didn’t. A little of Cossus goes a long way.’