Blood Never Lies (Mark of Mars)

by Juliet Anderson

  “Why did you choose this time?”

  “I didn’t, my tutor did. However, I would have selected no different. Emperor Trajan was, or rather is, my favourite of the Emperors.”

  “Why?”

  “He does so much for the city. Many of the past Emperors have only been interested in their own glory. Trajan believes in the glory of Rome. And because he was a General before he became Emperor, he has a huge respect for the soldiers that are giving their lives to expand the Empire.”

  “I saw that passion for the Emperor when you saved his life.”

  “Yeah. According to our history books, he was not due to die that day.”

  “Have you had your invitation to the palace yet?”

  “Not yet. But to be honest I don’t expect he will remember one insignificant temple handmaiden.”

  Marcus put a finger under her chin and tilted her head up. “Oh, he remembers you,” he smiled. “The insignificant maiden who saved his life.”

  “On second thoughts, I probably haunt his dreams. The outspoken harpy who does not bow to a man’s rule.”

  “That is more like it,” he grinned and kissed her.

  Jenna’s mind was a complete blank a short while later. It irritated her that he could drown out any thought she had. “Have you seen much of Arianna recently?”

  “No. She is too busy tracing tutors to train her in the oriental fighting style. As soon as she has a few candidates, she will be in touch with you so you can assess them.”

  “What of Brutus?” she teased.

  Marcus just snorted and raised her temperature even higher, just for taunting him.

  “I must go soon, it is getting late.”

  “Do you have to?” he murmured. “I like waking up next to you.”

  “We were both dressed and I was actually unconscious on that one occasion,” Jenna reminded him.

  “Maybe this time we can both be naked,” he whispered in her ear, his mouth sending her nerve endings crazy.

  She sat up and slid off the couch. “No Roman seduction techniques,” she wagged a finger at him. “We are given medicine to make us immune.”

  “Really,” he pulled her back to him. “It doesn’t seem to be working too well.”

  She gave him a few minutes before getting back up. He really should come with a health warning, her blood pressure must be at an all-time high. “Behave. Now I must head back.”

  “Fine. I will ask Aius to have Hercules brought to the door.”

  The ride back to the temple was trouble free, but then no-one in their right mind would stop the Marshall of the Peace. Not unless they had a death wish.

  He walked her to the temple entrance. “I do not want you going into troubled areas without an escort again.”

  “I am sure it was just an isolated case.”

  “Nevertheless, I won’t risk your safety. I will arrange for a centurion guard to accompany you and Amelia each day.”

  “But...”

  “No arguing,” he kissed her hard. “Now get inside before I decide to take you back to my villa and do all the terrible things that are running through my mind.”

  Jenna looked at him with an eyebrow raised about to challenge him, then thought the better of it. There was every chance he would do exactly that. Not that she would object too much, he was rather gorgeous after all.

  “You are looking troubled, father,” Minerva wandered out to the peristyle to join her father.

  “I am,” he glanced up at his daughter. “Our favourite mortal.”

  “What has Jenna done now?”

  “She was set upon in the city today.”

  “I take it she was not harmed?”

  “No,” Jupiter smiled. “As we have witnessed, she is rather good at defending herself. But the Olympus Guard were very close to stepping in.”

  “Would that not have been to our advantage, for people to know she is protected by the Gods?”

  “No. At least not until Mars has seen that mark on her shoulder. And I do not know how Jenna would have reacted. She asks a lot of questions about the Gods’ existence but I do not think she is prepared to actually meet us in person yet, or our guards.”

  Minerva threw her hands up in frustration. “How can my brother be finding it so difficult to lure a woman into bed with him? He has never had any trouble before.”

  “This is not just any woman. She is very special and she will not fall easily.”

  “All he has to do is get her clothes off, that is all we need. Not the actual deed itself.”

  Jupiter laughed. “Jenna does not strike me as the kind who would drop her clothes for no reason.”

  “Can we not engineer something?” Minerva huffed. “I grow tired of waiting.”

  “Actually, my darling daughter, I think we might be able to.”

  “How so?”

  “She shares a bond with a young boy called Julius. They were together in my temple recently. He is desperate for me to return his father from Britannia and will use just about any means to get my attention. I think I have the perfect scenario.”

  “You do?” Minerva’s eyes sparkled.

  “Yes. Jenna did say she could swim, did she not?”

  Minerva nodded.

  Jupiter rubbed his hands together. All he needed was for Jenna to remove her robe in sight of Mars. He just had to glimpse that perfect golden arrowhead on her back, then their job was done.

  CHAPTER 3

  “Where are we headed to?” Amelia asked Augustus as they left the temple with Jenna and Julius.

  “The Tiber. Julius wants to go back there.”

  “I thought you’d prefer the Colosseum?” Jenna looked suspiciously at the young boy.

  “I like the river,” he shrugged nonchalantly.

  “You are suffering no ill effects from the fight?” Augustus stepped closer to Amelia.

  “No, I’m fine. Jenna takes care of all the fighting. I’m only ever a spectator. Besides, Julius saw to it that we came to no harm.”

  Augustus glowered at his young brother. If he had his way, he would be at home studying, trying for a better future. But all the young boy was interested in was fighting. And he had taken a great shine to Jenna. Watching her fight, it was hardly surprising Julius had latched on to her; if you were going to learn, you might as well do it from someone highly proficient.

  Jenna let Amelia and Augustus get ahead of them a little to give them some privacy. She noticed Julius was unusually quiet. “Are you in trouble for something?”

  “No,” was his monosyllabic response.

  “OK, out with it,” she sighed.

  “Out with what?”

  “Whatever it is that’s bothering you. I have never known you so silent.”

  “Promise you won’t tell Augustus?”

  Jenna winced. “I can’t make a promise like that, Julius. It depends how bad the problem is.”

  “He’ll laugh at me,” he responded sulkily.

  “Ah, if it’s that sort of a problem, then it doesn’t sound like he’ll have to know.”

  “I need to find the Seraphina tree. It grows down by the Tiber.”

  “And what happens when you find said tree?”

  “I have to pick a flower from the branch that overhangs the river.”

  “I see where we’re going with this. Does Jupiter appear in a flash of light and grant you your wish?”

  “No silly. I have to offer up the flower in his temple. Then he will grant me my wish.”

  “And there was I thinking I was about to meet the great man himself.”

  Julius let out a small giggle. “No-one ever meets a God.”

  “Sad but true. Otherwise I would be queuing up for Mars to leap into life.”

  The late afternoon sun was glorious as they strolled through the busy streets. Jenna was always struck by what a lovely couple Augustus and Amelia made, both so gentle and kind. But like her relationship with Marcus, it was one that could never be permanent.

  Augustus
stopped for them to catch up. “Are we just walking along the bank, Julius?”

  “Yes,” his brother responded.

  “This is your outing, so whatever you want to do,” Augustus stared at his brother. A quiet Julius was never a good sign.

  In the distance Jenna spotted a strange looking tree overhanging the river. It was massive. Julius looked at it and nodded. He didn’t speak until they drew level with it.

  “I want to climb the tree.”

  “What?” Augustus responded.

  “I want to climb the tree. It’s huge and will be fun.”

  “You’re not expecting me to go up there with you?” Jenna asked staring up at it. “I only climb trees when half of Rome isn’t watching.”

  Julius gave a nervous giggle. “No, it’s just me.”

  “Don’t climb too high,” Augustus grunted and flopped down on the grass. Jenna and Amelia joined him.

  “Are you both going to the festival of Ceres?” Augustus plucked at a blade of grass.

  “When is that?” Amelia asked.

  “Soon.”

  “What happens?”

  “We celebrate a good harvest for the farmers.”

  “Let me guess,” Amelia grinned. “Is there drinking and dancing involved?”

  “Of course. But with very fetching headdresses made from flowers and grasses.”

  “You can count me out,” Jenna curled her lip. “The last festival I went to wasn’t really that great for me.”

  “It wasn’t the festival that turned you into a hurling handmaiden,” Amelia laughed. “Although the sight of you with your head in an empty trough puking was quite entertaining.”

  “I aim to please,” Jenna grunted. “And no, I still won’t be going.”

  “Spoil sport,” Amelia retorted.

  “If you wish to go, I can accompany you?” Augustus offered.

  “I will need to check with Cassandra first,” Amelia responded demurely.

  Jenna saw the faint flush of colour in Amelia’s cheeks and looked away whilst she and Augustus had a moment. She looked up into the tree and couldn’t see Julius. Jumping to her feet, she headed to the banks of the river and her heart stopped. He was inching along the furthest branch overhanging the river, it was painfully thin and unlikely to hold his weight.

  “Can your brother swim?” Jenna hissed at Augustus.

  “No. Why?”

  She nodded towards the river.

  “Has he got a death wish?” Augustus stood up quickly.

  A second later they heard an almighty crack and both branch and Julius landed in the river.

  “Shit,” Jenna swore kicking off her sandals. “You owe me big time for this.” She ran along the bank for a few meters before launching herself off the side in what she hoped was the most elegant of dives. Powering through the water, she could see Julius up ahead clinging to the branch but it was not big enough to keep him afloat and he went under again. Taking a large lungful of air, she dove under the water and swam down, grabbing hold of him before he sank out of reach. The air was running out fast in her lungs but she finally made it back to the surface.

  “Are you crazy?” she barked at the half-drowned child. “Getting yourself killed is not going to bring anyone back.”

  His response was to bring up mouthfuls of the Tiber he had swallowed. She held his back tight to her, trying to remember her lifeguard training.

  “I need you to relax completely and trust me, Julius. I’ve got you, you’re no longer in danger. Can you do that?”

  He let out a muffled squeak which she took to be a yes.

  With her left arm firmly across his chest, she began the long process of swimming one handed to the bank. When she’d done her training, she was in a swimsuit, not a long robe. She definitely preferred the swimsuit. There was a bridge in the distance which had steps running down into the water. That was a good exit point rather than trying to clamber up a slippery, muddy bank.

  “You still okay there, Julius?” she asked.

  He squeaked again.

  “I guess this makes us even,” Jenna tried to lighten the mood a little. “You helped save my butt the other day, now I’m returning the favour.”

  She vaguely noticed someone in red running along the bank, she figured it was Augustus. The steps were almost within reach, a good job as her energy was running out fast. Feeling the slippery stone step under her hand was wonderful. She grabbed Julius and pushed him forward to his waiting brother before hauling herself onto the steps. She flopped back on them, still half submerged in the water, completely drained.

  “If I catch some vile disease from this stinking water and die, I will definitely come back and haunt you from the afterlife, Julius,” she sighed.

  “I don’t think it’s the water you have to worry about.”

  Jenna was aware of someone standing above her and opened her eyes. She squealed, shielding her eyes with her hand. “Bloody hell, Marcus, I can see right up your skirt.”

  “I hope you are suitably impressed.”

  “It’s not all about size. It’s what you can do with it that really counts. So I’ve been told.”

  “I have both size and technique,” he responded. “So I’ve been told.”

  Jenna sat up, trying to focus on something other than what Marcus had under his tunic. He extended his hand and pulled her to her feet.

  “Where…where’s Julius?” She was starting to shiver, her robe sticking uncomfortably to her body.

  Marcus threw his cloak around her and led her over to Augustus and Amelia, who were helping Julius bring up a few more lungfuls of water.

  “Is he alright?”

  “For now, yes. But when mother and I finish with him, he won’t be,” Augustus growled.

  Jenna knelt down and hugged the small boy. “You take care, young man. I’ll see you in a few days’ time.”

  “Thank you, Jenna,” he murmured.

  She noticed his hand was still clenched.

  “Did you get it?” she whispered.

  He nodded.

  “Right. I need to get back to the t….temple. I’m bloody fr…freezing,” Jenna was shivering majorly now.

  “I’ll take you to my villa. You can wash there,” Marcus stated flatly.

  “I’ll be f…fine at the t…temple,” Jenna chattered.

  “The temple does not have a warm bath, and the Baths of Trajan are not open to women at this time. Now stop being so bloody awkward,” Marcus snapped.

  “Okay, okay,” Jenna shook. “Just get me warm.”

  “Now there’s an offer,” Marcus raised his eyebrows before leading Jenna over to where Hercules was tethered.

  Marcus rode quicker than usual back to his villa, as she was shaking badly. He carried her straight through to the bathroom and deposited her on the stone seat.

  “Take your wet clothes off and get in that water right away,” he instructed.

  Jenna just sat there shaking. He let out a frustrated growl and stripped off the cloak. “I’ll undo your shoulder clips then leave. Can you make it to the water?”

  She nodded.

  “I’ll be back shortly. If you’re not in that damn water, I’ll strip you myself.”

  Jenna heard him leave. With a monumental effort, she stood up and peeled off the cold, damp robe. Suddenly standing stark naked in Marcus’ bathroom got her legs moving and she eased down the steps into the wonderful warm water.

  Slowly the silken, perfumed waters began to restore feeling to her cold and shaking limbs. She ducked under the water and washed the remains of the Tiber out her hair. At least now she smelt a damn sight better.

  Marcus reappeared carrying a beautiful silk robe. “I borrowed this from Minerva.”

  “It’s lovely, but I’m not sure cream is really your colour,” Jenna replied flippantly.

  Marcus fixed her with a hard stare. “What in the name of Neptune possessed you to hurl yourself into that river without a second thought?”

  “I couldn’t let Ju
lius drown. And as I have been trained, albeit a long time ago, to pull drowning people out the water, why would I not?”

  “You could have been hurt yourself.”