For Life or Until (Love and Warfare Series Book 1)
Page 41
“Sorry about the spill. That was as stulte of me as Icarus’ mistake.” Blood mixed with dirt across Eric’s bare back and forearms, bruises already forming where his body had hit the ground first. He extended his hand to her, like Hercules.
Her heart slowed. She gripped Eric’s hand and the warmth of his skin drove back the darkness as the thoughts faded. She breathed again. “Icarus?”
“The Grecian myth about their escape from Crete. I saw the site of the legend last year on a trip to Greece.” His taut muscles brushed her back as he helped her stand. “Walk a little. See if anything hurts.”
“Will you tell me about it, please? And Greece? I need to know for when I go there someday.”
Eric looked at her. He stood so tall and was built like a Celt, though his brown hair and the fine linen wrapped around his thighs marked him as a Roman. He had the deepest brown eyes. “When? I doubt I’ll ever see you again, especially after I gave you that tumble. Are you sure nothing hurts?” He touched her elbow, steadying her.
“I’m well, thanks to your heroics, and you’re the one who won’t want to see me again after those gashes.” She indicated just under his ribs where blood oozed. If she had warm water and marigold oil, she’d bandage that for him.
He shrugged. “I needed a few scars. Don’t want to look weak.”
“You could never look weak.” The field faded as her gaze connected with his, like two souls joining hands.
“We have to go, Cara,” Edna called from across the track. “I’ve got the merchant’s wedding.”
Victor flicked the loose ends of Edna’s hair. “You have to go. She could stay.”
“Don’t even think about it.” Edna mock-struck her fist against his shoulder. “Cara, now. I’m late.”
Cara turned a pleading gaze up to Eric. “Next time I come, will you tell me about Greece?”
He smiled, the expression as warm as his hands had felt. “All right.”
“Victor.”
Finishing the wine in one swallow, Victor followed his father’s angry voice into the tablinum.
Hunched over the table, his crippled leg gathered up under him, the old man glared at the world. “Found out anything from the Paterculi boy?”
Victor slumped onto a stool. “I’m beginning to doubt Eric knows anything about his father the legate’s shipping enforcement.” Why wouldn’t the youth participate in any of the vices common to patrician males?
“Legate Paterculi’s soldiers seized three more of our smuggled shipments this month.” Like yesterday, Father upended the table and wood splintered against tile. “If you ever want to get out of this accursed province exile, I’d suggest caring.”
“What do you wish me to do?” Victor glowered at an ivory tusk hanging from the wall. Eric should be embarrassed at how little he’d seen of worldly ways, but instead, he made his own choices, swatting away his ridicule.
“Find out if the Paterculi raids are random or if they suspect us and are targeting our merchant ships. If Eric doesn’t have information, we’ll use him for extortion against Legate Paterculi to pay the Viri’s demands.”
The Viri demanded a percentage of each smuggler’s haul in payment for their protection, and the Viri killed those who didn’t pay. The plaster wall dug into Victor’s back as he squirmed. “Eric just wants to win an athletic competition. Do we have to use him?”
“Weakling. You’ll die in a hovel in northern Britannia with that infirm philosophy.”
Victor dropped his gaze to the tile. Would that he didn’t care about his father’s ridicule. “All right.”
His father leaned forward. “Then let me explain the plan….”
Find When Gambling and all the other great books in the Love and Warfare series wherever fine books are sold.
Translation Key
Armatura sword—a wooden sword used for practice.
Amphora—a tall ancient Greek or Roman jar with two handles and a narrow neck.
Confarreatio/in manus—an ancient form of marriage originally practiced by the upper class, which had more stringent divorce laws.
Denarius—a silver coin equal to a day’s wages for a laborer
Domina—the title for an elite married woman. A slave would also address his mistress by this title.
Dominus—the title for an elite man. A slave would also address his master by this title.
Domus—house
Ecce—behold, see, look
Equestrian—a person of higher rank who still wasn’t as elite as a patrician.
Familia—family
Legate—a Roman general
Legionary—a foot soldier roughly equivalent to our modern day private
Patrician—a member of the noblemen class
Mea culpa—mine is the blame, I’m sorry
Plebian—a commoner
Salve—greetings, hello, goodbye
Sestertii—silver coins worth about ¼ of a denarius
Stola—an outer garment worn by married women
Stulte—stupid, foolish
Terra firma—dry land
Tunic—a knee-length garment worn by men
Tunica—a floor-length, sleeveless dress
Tribune—a Roman officer position usually assumed by young men of the patrician class. This office was a stepping stone into political positions.
Quidquid—whatever
The Way—an old name for Christianity
Paterculi Family Tree
Discussion Questions
1. Unlike the patriarchal Romans, ancient Celts were known for the freedoms they allowed women. How did this cultural difference affect Ness and Aquilus’ relationship? When The Way swept across the Empire, how would Jesus’ teachings have affected marriages?
2. Income inequality was never more pronounced than in the Roman empire where you could be born an emperor or a slave, and there was little you could do to change your fate. How did being born a patrician male, and firstborn son, affect Aquilus’ character in For Life or Until?
3. Evolution and the denial of the gods, such as Cornelia referenced, was a popular theory among Greek philosophers in the first century A.D. Ness said that if human reason is merely a byproduct of random processes (evolution), not a gift of God, then one shouldn’t trust reason. What do you think?
4. Eric and Wryn have opposite personalities. How does that affect their bonding with Aquilus? Do you think the effects will linger for years to come? (Find out in the sequel, When Gambling…) How did your personality or your children’s personalities affect your parent/child relationship?
5. If Ness had been a more docile Roman bride would her marriage have worked out better or worse? Would their relationship have had the same depth in the end?
6. Cultures clash when one Celtic woman takes on Rome. When have you been in a situation where you are were the sole representative of your culture? How did that feel?
7. Courage was a virtue lauded by Roman and Greek statesmen and poets alike. Who, in your opinion, displayed the most bravery in this story, and when?
8. Ness and Aquilus are both followers of The Way so supposedly they draw their morals from the same place, yet since she is Celtic and he is Roman their principles often clash. Are your innermost beliefs more a product of your culture, your religion, or something else entirely?
9. Ever tire of flamboyantly selfish and immoral romance heroes who instantly stop using women and become devoted monogamists when they meet “the one”? Could Lucius instantly become a considerate, good person because he met an attractive woman who was “the one”?
10. While Ness is lost, Aquilus tells Ness’ father, “you raised that woman.” How does Ness’ upbringing as a farmer in the more egalitarian Celtic culture make her who she is? Are you a product of your upbringing? How?
11. Bernice and other Romans constantly imply that Aquilus will or should divorce Ness. While Roman marriage laws allowed women more freedom of divorce than many ancient cultures, there were still limits i.e. the children and
the income remained with the man. In modern centuries, many suffragettes have heralded divorce as a liberating thing that allows women to escape bad situations, such as domestic violence. How did the ancient patriarchal divorce laws make divorce an entirely less pleasant prospect for women?
12. Hurt people, hurt people is a saying in the counseling world. How do you think Bernice’s childhood, being bullied for her rank as an equestrian, and the praetor’s rough treatment of her affected her cruelty toward Ness? In contrast, how did Ness react to Rome’s contempt?
Historical Note
The ancient Roman satirist Juvenal decried educating women too much because no husband wished his wife to correct him. In Verrine Orations, Cicero, a Roman philosopher and orator, mocks a Roman leader by saying, “Do you feel no shame, Verres, that your conduct as a praetor has been wholly governed by a woman...?” (Verr.2.1.140).” Romans in the 1st century A.D. believed that women had inferior judgment, and thus the idea of a woman having political authority was anathema. The Greeks had an even lower opinion of women than did the Romans. Into this world, arose the ancient Celts.
When the Romans first met the Celts, they could not help but marvel, and decry, the role Celtic women played. Celtic women participated freely in the public and private sphere. In Plutarch’s Mulierum Virtutes, he writes about Celtic women engaging in martial and political affairs. Perhaps the most symbolic example of the freedom of Celtic women came in Boadicea, the Queen of the Iceni in Britannia who led her people into battle against the Romans in 60 A.D. She lost the revolt and her life, but she remained an iconic symbol throughout the Roman world of the empowerment of Celtic women.
Acknowledgements
Since I first created the character Ness at age fifteen, so many people have helped me craft this novel. I’d like to especially thank the following people.
To Hannah Cobb for telling me at age fifteen that her writing was good enough to land a book contract, and making me so insanely jealous that I determined I’d get one too. Also, thanks for all the proofreading, and editorial advice, and listening through the years.
To my friend, Kati for all her tireless editing and feedback.
To my literary agent, Linda Glaz of the Hartline Literary Agency, for her tireless efforts on my behalf. Thank you for believing in my writing and pushing me to grow as an author.
To Rosemary Sutcliff. I fell in love with Roman Britain when reading Eagle of the Ninth as a young teen and determined I’d have to write a story set in that land and era.
To my critique partners. Thank you for believing in my then typo-ridden and awkwardly worded first draft.
To my husband for putting up with frozen pizza, un-vacuumed floors, and incessant monologues about Ancient Rome while I crafted these novels.
To my parents for all the hours they watched “Joe-Joe” so I could write.
To all the friends and family that I bullied into reading the first few chapters of this novel before I found critique partners.
To my son, Joe-Joe, for inspiring the realistically sleep-deprived descriptions of new motherhood in this novel.
To Calvin, you’ll never guess which character in this book you inspired.
Cavé
CAVÉ - (pronounced kah-weh) Latin meaning Caution or Caution (You).
The Cavé Books imprint is dedicated to relating true to life stories from the historical period in the time of the early church. Scripture offers much wisdom on the topic of caution. Proverbs 14:16 informs believers that The wise are cautious and avoid danger; fools plunge ahead with reckless confidence.
Daily life for the followers of Christ the Lord during the latter part of the first century in the Roman Empire is truly difficult for modern Christians to imagine. These godly saints behaved so bravely in such trying times because they cautiously but devoutly followed the narrow path, the path of the cross - “the Way” (John 14:6; Acts 24:14-15). The legacy of their devotion and caution is the body of believers we know as the church today.
More Books by Anne Garboczi Evans
Love & Warfare Series
For Life or Until
When Gambling
To Deceive an Empire
Whoever Does Not Love
Lawmen & Suffragette Series
Hot Lead & Cold Apple Pie
Plum Pudding Bride
Short Fiction
Christmas Treasures: A Collection of Christmas Short Stories
Forever Family Series
What’s a Foster Family?
What’s A Forever Family?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
annegarboczievans.wordpress.com
Anne Garboczi Evans is a mental health counselor, military spouse, and mama to an opinionated preschooler named “Joe-Joe” and a very dramatic baby named “Chip.”
Reading Rosemary Sutcliff as a middle school student and taking Latin in college instilled in her a love of the Roman Empire, leading to her Love and Warfare series. Moving to the CO Rockies inspired her to write the Lawmen & Suffragette series, romantic comedies set in the Old West. Working in mental health got her interested in writing women’s fiction.
When not writing or reading, you can find Anne introducing her boys to the outdoor wonders of colorful Colorado.
Website: annegarboczievans.wordpress.com
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