by T. L. Higley
Octavia joined the conversation again. "Why should that interest you?"
"Ah, dear lady, it interests me very much." He turned on Cato. "I want to see a fight."
"There are no games scheduled—"
"Not in the arena, silly man. Here. In your home. Tonight."
Cato felt his mouth drop open.
"Don't look at me as though I am mad. Bring one of your slaves in, and pit the two against each other for me. Come, don't tell me it's too much trouble after I've come all this way?"
Valerius turned to the slave to lead him to his chamber, as though the matter were decided. Cato watched him cross the courtyard and flounce down the colonnade.
"Vile man." Octavia's voice was low. She used the same words to describe Nigidius Maius on their first meeting, and, indeed, the two men were much alike in attitude, if not appearance. "What will you do, Quintus?"
Cato turned away in silence. There was another to whom he needed to speak.
"NEVER. YOU CANNOT ASK me to do this."
At Ariella's vehement response, Cato rubbed at his throbbing temples. "I would not, if I did not believe it necessary."
Her eyes were wide, accusing. "Necessary to humiliate me?"
He held out his palms. "Ari, the man demands entertainment, and I fear he will not help me expose Maius if I don't please him. He would have me bring in the worst sort of debauchery, but you could wear your helmet and he would never recognize you."
He stepped toward her, but she moved away until her back was against the wall, her hands flat against the stone at her sides. "Nothing has changed, then. You still force me to fight, for the sake of your own popularity!" Her voice pitched higher. "Why did you not leave me in the barracks where you found me?"
"It is not the same! It is one fight, not even a real fight—only an exhibition. You will be masked and there will be no danger." He crossed the room to stand before her. "And I do not ask you for my own sake, but for my sister's."
"Yes, your sister." She nearly spat the mocking words in his face. "Everything is for your sister. You bring my enemy to the door, then force me to perform for him. All for Portia."
"Yes, for Portia!"
"For yourself, Portius Cato! You would win this election at any cost because if you fail you cannot still consider yourself a man."
Cato's hand formed an unconscious fist and he pounded the wall beside her head. Ariella winced and turned from him.
"What? Do you think I would strike you?"
She leveled dark eyes at him. "You have already proven you will do anything to get your way."
Cato whirled from her. She was unreasonable. She would wear a mask, and with the fight staged to make her the winner . . . there was no reason for her to refuse. And she clearly had forgotten that she was a slave to be commanded, not entreated. "Be ready after the first course is served. I will have Italicus fetch equipment from the barracks for both you and Ruso, and you can work out the staging with him."
She said nothing, and he left her to think through her irrational obstinacy.
Hours later, the triclinium had been laid with enough delicacies of food and comforts of appointment to render it the slave quarters' antithesis. As Cato surveyed the work of his slaves, he felt the first twinge of uncertainty over his request of Ariella.
But the sun had set, and guests were arriving. Cato greeted each at the doorway of the triclinium, and seated them around the U-shaped table arrangement according to their status, as was customary. They wasted no time in setting to the wine and breads, and speaking in low tones of money and property and politics.
Valerius appeared some time later with several of his slaves, including the young man for whom he appeared to have a special fondness. The senator took the middle couch.
Cato welcomed them all and summoned the slaves to bring the first course of oysters and wild poultry. Hired musicians began to play stringed lyres in the corner, and the wine was kept flowing. His younger sister's face appeared at the room's entrance and he shooed her away, to Isabella's great annoyance.
Cato had planned this dinner party for days, but now found himself unable to concentrate. He reclined next to Valerius, but the man's grating, high-pitched laugh and vulgar conversation forced his thoughts elsewhere. Ariella would appear soon. She feared interaction with Valerius. Why? Should he have asked?
He tried to taste the oysters with their spicy garum sauce. Had it gone rancid? No one else seemed bothered. But even the smell sickened him.
He was beginning to think he had made a mistake when a figure darkened the doorway. Ruso, the slave Cato had assigned as Ariella's opponent. He wore the simple armor of a Gaul, and stood silent, his eyes on Cato.
"Ah, here we are!" Valerius sat up at once. "Something to save us from the tedium of this party." He patted his fingertips together. "Is this the fighter you have purchased for yourself, Cato? He looks a bit weak in the chest, if you ask me."
"This is Ruso." Cato half-rose on his couch, his stomach churning. "He will fight my gladiator, Scorpion Fish."
At that, Ariella stepped to Ruso's side and the room applauded. Cato's choice of entertainment had won them over, but the victory felt hollow and his mouth had gone dry.
Ariella wore her helmet with the fish insignia. He could see only her eyes, and they were trained on him and him alone, as though even to look at Valerius would invite recognition.
Do not look at me thus, Ariella.
"Come." Valerius pushed himself to standing. "It will not do to see a battle here. To the atrium!"
The rest of the guests followed suit, as though Valerius were their host. It was just as well, for Cato had lost the use of his tongue.
He was the last out of the triclinium, and reached the atrium with heart pounding and his palms slick with regret. It was a mistake. Her eyes told him that and more. He crossed the paving stones to where she stood opposite Ruso.
"You do not have to do this." He kept his voice low, for her alone. "I was wrong—"
She jerked her trident up between them, and Cato had to pull backward to avoid injury.
The dinner guests hooted in amusement. One of them shouted, "Careful, Cato. You'll be the first casualty!"
"No, he is a seasoned fighter," another called. "Remember the arena?"
More laughter, but Cato's eyes were still on hers. Pleading.
But Ariella had made up her mind. Her eyes were like two dark bits of stone shining through the slatted helmet, cold and hard as Bellona, goddess of war. Ari lowered the trident until its three prongs rested at the base of his throat.
Again he heard the catcalls of his guests. Cato took two steps backward and was pulled to their circle, leaving the open space for the two fighters.
Ariella faced her opponent, legs slightly bent in that familiar stance he had first seen in the training yard so many weeks ago.
And then she rushed him, trident upraised. With the first clash of iron on iron, Cato's hand went to his forehead, eyes covered.
He had brought this shame on her—and now he could not bear to watch.
CHAPTER 37
Balance the weight. Slightly forward. Back and forth.
The training flowed back into Ariella's arms and legs as though she had left the barracks only moments ago.
Eyes on Ruso. Always watch the eyes.
She and Ruso had not had much time to drill together. Had her rushed lesson on exhibition been enough to keep the slave from stupidity?
Cato stood apart. His hand shielded his gray eyes, as though he could not watch.
She forced her attention to the fight. Only the fight. To think of her audience was to invite danger. She would not even look on her enemy's face.
Ariella thrust forward to her opponent's pullback and noted his pale face.
Follow me, Ruso. Focus.
She flutter-stepped back and forth, circled the young man, swung her sword arm. Her weapon clanged onto his and the sound echoed off the stone walls and pillars. The green of the courtyard
's shrubbery blurred with the white togas of her audience, their purple- and red-edged robes like strange flowers among the garden.
At the first strike, the party guests sent up a raucous cheer, like young boys watching a street brawl.
She would not look at Valerius. The thought of him there in the circle, his pretty face and vicious temper focused on her, made her sick. Snatches of memory fought for her attention, images and horrors from their time together.
She drove forward, propelled by angry memories, backing Ruso toward the guests. Then parried and circled, her feet sliding and scraping the stone pavement in a familiar rhythm.
The trident and net brought back some sense of invincibility. She welcomed the feeling. Behind her helmet, she was unknown and unknowable.
He had promised.
In the blur of garden and guest, somehow Cato's face alone remained distinct. She saw his agonized look. An illogical pity flamed in her chest. Do not fear for me. I am invincible.
They had only to give a good show, a believable display, with no harm on either side. But such a feat was more difficult than it looked.
Ruso's steps faltered. He tripped and fell toward Ariella's trident. She yanked the weapon away, but not before it had pierced the leather across his chest.
The men around her once again let out a yelp, and Ruso's eyes widened.
Ariella saw the panic there, backed away to give him space. But it was too late. He had lost the confidence of the display, and she could read the fear. He believed the fight had become real.
Ruso came at her in a rush, their choreographed movements forgotten and the fire of self-preservation in his eyes.
Even in the fury of battle, Ariella's sense of Cato's every expression did not waver. He stood now with hands on his hips, as though angry at the entire proceeding, and a deep channel furrowed between his brows. She could smooth out that furrow if she could end this farce.
A flash of yellow behind a thick column revealed Isabella watching. Ariella swished her net toward Ruso's feet, ashamed that the girl should see her once again degraded.
The guests had gone silent with anticipation and only the scrape of sandal sounded in the atrium.
And then she heard the laugh. That shrill, discordant laugh that she reviled.
Though she knew it to be a mistake, she looked toward the sound, as one who looks at a dead animal on the roadside or at a public execution. She could not help herself.
Her eyes swept Valerius's fine-boned features, saw that he had not changed at all, then pushed past him. To the young man at his side. A slave.
At the slave's features, a heat like lightning blazed through her body and seemed to spark from her fingertips. Her feet stilled, then her arms. Silence swallowed the atrium, and her mind, and her heart.
Micah.
Her brother.
Ruso's panic swept him across the stones toward her.
A moment later she hit the pavement on her back. Her helmet smacked the stones and air whooshed from her chest. The stars shone down through the roof opening above, cold and harsh.
Ruso's sword point was at her throat. She heard the cheers and waited for death.
Another yell. Cato's voice. Then Cato's feet and legs at her head. He shoved Ruso backward.
Valerius crowed. "An ignoble end for your gladiator, Portius Cato! Beaten by an untrained slave!"
She felt the odious man patter toward her where she lay.
"At least we must see his humiliation!"
Before she knew what he was about, Valerius reached down and yanked the helmet from her head.
Cato was there, stepping between them, full toga shielding her. But it was not to be. He could not protect her from the circle that closed upon them, from the toes that prodded her to stand.
And in truth, she wanted to stand. Wanted to stand and turn and look upon the face that she had longed to see for nine torturous years, never knowing if he were dead or alive, fearing the worst and not daring to pray for hope.
It was Micah alone that she saw when she stood and lifted her eyes. His lips parted in sudden recognition. She felt the tears spring to her eyes, and then they were in each other's arms, the embrace of two who had believed they were forever parted.
"How?" Micah's voice was a whisper in her ear.
"I did not know where to find you—" Oh, for a hundred years to sit and talk with him.
But the voice she hated trilled from behind them.
"Well, this is most surprising." Valerius circled the two of them like a beast admiring its prey. "The gladiator is not only a woman, but she is a woman who belongs to me!"
Cato stepped between them, facing Valerius. "Not any longer. She is my slave now, purchased from the gladiators where you sold her."
The guests had gone silent, like an audience before an impromptu theater performance.
Valerius laughed, the sound high and juvenile. "Is that what she told you?" He patted Ariella's cheek, and she jerked away from his touch. Her brother circled her waist with an arm.
But Valerius was not put off. He leaned in close. "Lovely as always, despite the hair." He turned to Cato, whose face had gone as dark as a summer storm.
"I did not sell her, Portius Cato. Why would I part with such a beauty? No, I fear you were duped into purchasing a runaway slave. And as such, she must be returned to her rightful owner." He clapped his hands together like a delighted child. "And that is me!"
The heat that had coursed through Ariella at the recognition of her brother drained away, leaving her icy.
Cato's eyes were on her, inquiring. Pleading, even. She had to look away.
"What will you take for her, then?" Cato's voice was edged with something like fear, and it hurt Ariella to hear it.
Again the sick laughter. "I would not take all the wealth in the world for her, my friend." He lifted Ariella's chin with his fingertip. She kept her eyes trained downward. "The little Jewess and I have unfinished business, do we not?"
He turned from her, giving Cato his attention. "I knew that when I found her brother, it was a good omen. She could not be far behind. But I must admit, I did not expect to find her in Pompeii."
"Her brother!"
Ariella met Cato's eyes, and a moment of exultation flowed between them. It meant everything to her to find Micah, he knew that. Without taking his eyes from her, Cato spoke to Valerius. "I will purchase them both from you. At whatever price you name."
Valerius clucked his tongue and elbowed Ariella. "It would seem your illegitimate master is as taken with you as your rightful one, my girl." She was going to be sick, and grasped Micah's hand for strength. Valerius shook his head, then spoke to the group at large. "You are all my witnesses. Portius Cato is in possession of my property and I am reclaiming it." He clapped his hands. "We shall not be guests in this house. I fear that Cato's affection for my slave would overcome his good judgment and I should not find her still present in the morning. Micah, fetch the other slaves and my things."
Cato grabbed his arm. "I must speak with you of other matters, Valerius." He eyed the other dinner guests, as if weighing his options. "The reason I brought you here."
Valerius waved away Cato's words. Ariella watched the drama play out, too stunned to think. Her brother disappeared, obedient to his master.
"I know, I know. You are opposing Nigidius Maius and you want information that will damage him." He chuckled. "Really, Cato, you must think me an idiot. Would I come all this way without knowing why?"
Cato's voice was low. "Will you help me?"
"Will you let me take my slave girl and leave?"
Ariella's breath shallowed. The election, his sister, these were objectives Cato would not surrender. Not for a gladiator-turned-slave. She watched his face drain of color.
Valerius smiled. "Ah, but I will save you from making a choice, Portius Cato. For you have no choice. She is my slave. And Nigidius Maius, for all his cowardice, is my ally."
His slaves rushed into the courtyard, carrying
his baggage. Valerius took Ariella's arm and yanked her toward the door.
Behind them, Cato called out. "Stay the night, Valerius. You cannot leave for Rome at this hour!" Ariella heard the desperation in his voice and it shredded her heart.
"Oh, but we do not go to Rome, Cato." Valerius's words dripped with sweetness. "We go to the home of Nigidius Maius."
With that, he pulled Ariella into the night street where slaves and chariot waited. She glanced over her shoulder, back into the torch-lit atrium, for a last look at Cato framed by the doorway.
It seemed to her that he had aged ten years since the evening began.
CHAPTER 38
Ariella gripped Micah's hand as they ran behind Valerius's chariot through the dark streets of Pompeii. One of his other slaves held the horses' reins, but the other two ran behind the brother and sister, keeping them penned.
She ran on wooden legs, numb to both feeling and thought. Only one truth sustained her: she had found her brother and he was alive. Everything else had crashed like the basilica's columns after the quake.
The road to Maius's house on the outskirts of the town led upward, through the eerie Street of Tombs, toward the mountain barely visible in the night sky. They arrived at the huge estate breathless and weary and were prodded through the doorway on the heels of Valerius.
Ariella had not faced Nigidius Maius since the last time in Rome, when he had visited Valerius. She has seen him only from a distance since coming to Pompeii. But she would have known him anywhere, and when his florid face appeared in the atrium, she swayed on her feet in the rush of unwelcome memory. Micah released her hand and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. It was like a nightmare, all of it.
"Clovius Valerius." Maius held his arms wide in welcome. He was clearly intoxicated, and his lascivious lifestyle had aged him. "I had heard you planned a visit to our little town. Welcome, welcome."
The two men gripped arms. Joined by a common depravity.
"It has been a fortuitous arrival already, Gnaeus." He turned on Ariella and she shrank back. "I have found a runaway slave girl, whom I have been longing to recover."