Second Chances

by Carol Ashby

  The Drusus estate east of Rome

  Father thought Tertius was going to the chariot races, but he headed to the eastern estate instead. He mostly stayed in Rome now that he was eighteen, but his mother and sister never came to the town house that had been his grandfather’s before Father turned Grandfather in as a Christian so he’d die in the arena for his faith.

  Father’s sister, Aunt Claudia, had accused Father of murder. To punish her, Father had tried to marry her to a rich, sadistic old man from one of the noblest Roman families. Mother had tried to stop him, and she and Father had hardly spoken to each other in the eight years since.

  Drusilla meant the world to Mother. It took no imagination to believe Father would let something terrible happen to her just to hurt Mother. But Father wouldn’t hurt Drusilla if Tertius could stop it.

  A slave scurried over to take his horse when Tertius trotted into the stable yard. He threw his leg over the horse’s neck and slid to the ground. “Where’s my mother?”

  “In the garden, Master Tertius.”

  He tossed the reins to the slave and strode through the archway that separated the garden from the stable area. “Mother? Are you here?”

  Cornelia Scipia’s eyes snapped up from her codex when she heard Tertius calling. She rose from the seat under the grape arbor and waved at him. When he reached her, she embraced her youngest son.

  “What a pleasant surprise. I hadn’t expected to see you until next week.”

  “There’s something you need to know today.”

  The grim set of his mouth ramped up Cornelia’s heart rate. “What’s wrong? Are you well?”

  “I’m fine, but Drusilla won’t be if we don’t do something to protect her.”

  A cold hand of foreboding gripped her heart. “What might happen to Drusilla?”

  “Father is planning to betroth her to Gnaeus Corvinus.”

  “Marcus’s youngest?” She’d heard too many rumors about the boy. “Are you sure?”

  “After Gaius told me, I went to Father and asked him. I told him how dangerous Gnaeus is. He didn’t care. He’s planning to do it anyway just to help out his friend” Tertius sucked air between his teeth. “We can’t let him do that, Mother. She’ll end up hurt or dead.”

  Cornelia drew herself up to her full height, and her mouth set into a determined line. “Your father is a traitor to this family. He murdered your grandfather, he would have hurt Claudia if she hadn’t escaped, and now he’s planning to get Drusilla killed.” She slapped her fist with her palm. “Well, I won’t let him. I’ll do whatever it takes to protect her.”

  “How can I help?” Eager intensity lit his eyes as he squared his shoulders.

  Cornelia’s brow furrowed as she pursed her lips. “First, don’t tell your father you came here. He mustn’t know I’ve been warned, or he’ll take her away before I can do anything.”

  “I can’t tell him. Father said we wouldn’t discuss this again.” His lips curved into a wry smile. “If I’m to be a good son, I must never say anything to him about it.”

  If Drusilla hadn’t been in mortal danger, Cornelia would have laughed at her son’s twisted interpretation of the duty to a paterfamilias that grown sons continue to obey their fathers in everything. Her mouth turned up a little anyway.

  Cornelia clenched her hand and tapped the top of her fist against her pursed lips. “I’ve stayed married to your father only so he wouldn’t take you all away from me, but you boys are grown. It’s been eight years since he completely abandoned me for other women. It’s time I divorce him and reclaim my dowry. Then I can take Drusilla where he can’t hurt her.”

  “But children always belong to the father in a divorce. Where could you go that he couldn’t get her?”

  “Away from Rome. Maybe away from Italia. Far enough away that he might decide it’s not worth the effort to find her and bring her back.”

  “I want to help. Tell me what to do.”

  Cornelia covered her mouth and stroked her cheek with her forefinger. “I think, for now, it’s best that you not know what I’m going to do. If he thinks you’re not part of this, we might get advance warning of what he’s doing to get her back. Later, I’ll let you know where we are so you can warn me of anything he’s planning.”

  She wrapped her arms around Tertius’s chest and stretched up to kiss his cheek. “I’m so proud of you and your brother Lucius. Two of my sons grew into fine men like your grandfather Publius. Marcus...well, he’s too much like his father.”

  Tertius hugged her back. “If I can’t help right now, I should go to the Circus Maximus. I told Father I was going there to meet Gaius, and I’d better know who won.”

  “Go. I already have an idea what to do, but I need to think about it more.”

  Tertius kissed his mother’s cheek and left.

  Cornelia began pacing. She would need her whole dowry back. As steward and overseer of all the Drusus estates and her despicable husband’s under-the-table business ventures, Malleolus was the only person who could get it quickly and without Lucius knowing what she was planning. The moment he knew she was divorcing him, he’d come for Drusilla.

  Secrecy was vital, but Malleolus would keep everything secret. Even though Lucius Fidelis was now head of the Claudius Drusus family, the old steward’s loyalty still belonged to Publius, even eight years after his death. Saving Publius’s granddaughter was something he’d be eager to do.

  Rome

  Breakfast was over, and Aristarchus and Helena walked Hector to the stable. It was a four-hour ride from their house near the eastern edge of Rome back to the ship in Portus. In a few days, Hector would sail back to Thracia, where he would spend the four months that the sea was closed due to winter storms at his farm near Perinthus.

  Aristarchus expected his captain of the Claudia to dine with them and spend the night whenever he brought the ship to Rome. Hector was, without doubt, the most deserving man he had ever bought and freed. He had served in the family’s merchant fleet for twenty-five years, first as a slave, then as a freedman whose maritime skills had elevated him to the rank of captain. He was loyal and honest to a fault, and he had been the best friend of Aristarchus’s youngest son, Philip, since they worked together one summer fifteen years ago.

  Each time Hector had visited this shipping season, Aristarchus saw the dark shadow enveloping him. He was worried about his captain, who was more son than employee. Hector’s wife and daughter had died just before he reached home last fall. The deep grief had a grip on him that he could not shake. His smiles were sad, and his eyes seemed weary. He was barely forty, but sorrow made him seem much older this visit.

  Helena, Aristarchus’s wife of over forty years, wrapped her arm around Hector’s as they walked him to the horse he had rented for the ride from the coast.

  “I’m so glad you came up to see us. We love having you here.” She stood on tiptoes and kissed his bearded cheek. “You’re my sixth son. I’ll be praying for you until I see you again.”

  Hector smiled in response, but there was no joy in his eyes. “God truly blessed me with both of you.”

  Aristarchus wrapped his arms around Hector in a crushing hug and slapped his arm when he let go. “May God be with you on your voyage and bring you happiness again.”

  “And may He continue to bless you both with a long life together.”

  The tightness at the corners of Hector’s smile and the two hard blinks that stopped any tears betrayed his captain’s longing for the years with Damara that would never be.

  Hector mounted and waved before kicking the horse into a trot and heading down the street. Helena wrapped her arm around Aristarchus’s and leaned her head against his shoulder as she watched Hector ride away.

  “It breaks my heart to see him suffering so. I don’t know if it’s Damara or Charissa he’s missing more. To lose them both at once...” She sighed. “He has so much love to give, and he needs someone to give it to. He needs to
remarry and have more children.”

  Aristarchus shook his head as his mouth turned down. “That is not so easy for a man who has known the joy of having the perfect wife. I am not sure I could remarry if you died.”

  She slapped his arm before she hugged it. “Don’t say that. I would want you to remarry and find happiness again, God willing. That will be my prayer for Hector. I’m going to ask God to bring a woman to heal his heart before we see him again next spring.”

  Aristarchus smiled down at the sweet, godly woman who had graced his life for so long. She might think a man can just remarry to replace a lost love, but some women were irreplaceable. He would know. He was married to one.

  Chapter 3: The Perfect Ally

  The Drusus estate east of Rome

  Early the next morning, Malleolus rode up to the stable at the eastern estate. It wasn’t so easy to ride anymore. These days, his knees told him how far the ride from the town house was. It might not be long before he would need to take a sedan chair in the daytime or drive the two-wheeled cisium when the ban on wheeled vehicles on the streets of Rome ended two hours before dark. That would be a sad day. He was still a man of thirty from the inside looking out, but riding reminded him that the wrinkled old man in the mirror with the fringe of silver hair was him and not his father.

  Although he came every week, he never found much needing his attention. Cornelia ran the estate herself better than the overseers at the other Drusus estates. The main reason he came was to visit Cornelia and Drusilla. Cornelia had become a dear friend in the eight years since Publius’s murder, and Drusilla loved him like a grandfather. It felt good to spend a few hours with people who were like family. He had none of his own.

  After he dismounted, he placed his hands on his knees and bent forward to limber up for walking. He flexed his rein fingers a few times. Too bad there wasn’t axle grease for the joints of a man nearing seventy.

  The stable slave bowed as he took the reins. “Mistress Cornelia said you were to come to her in the garden the moment you arrived.”

  Malleolus’s face remained impassive when he heard the command, but those words triggered unease. He’d never been met with such a message before. He arched his back to loosen a few more muscles and walked as fast as was almost comfortable to find his mistress and friend.

  When she saw him walk through the archway, Cornelia rose and held both hands out to him. “I’m glad you came early today. I have something important to ask of you, and it’s vital that you start on it as soon as possible.”

  Malleolus’s gaze swept the garden near them to see if any ears were listening.

  Cornelia followed his gaze. “I’ve already given orders that no one is to come into this part of the garden until I say. I’ve been watching, and no one is here. Our conversation needs to be totally private. Drusilla’s life depends on it.”

  Malleolus was a difficult man to upset, and he’d mastered the art of concealing his thoughts even when he was. Her words broke through his unflappable demeanor, and his eyebrows rose.

  “Drusilla’s life? What’s going on?”

  “That loathsome husband of mine is planning to betroth her to Gnaeus Corvinus. I’m sure you’ve heard all the rumors about the boy. I know at least some of the worst are true. We can’t let that betrothal happen.”

  His brows dipped downward as he tightened his lips. “No, we can’t.”

  She sat down and patted the bench so he would sit beside her.

  “I’ve decided to divorce Lucius and take Drusilla away from Rome before he commits her to that marriage. I need my dowry money as soon as possible, and I need your help in getting it without him knowing I’m preparing to leave.”

  Malleolus rubbed the underside of his jaw. “Normally it would take some time to get you that much money, but as luck would have it, I can do it as soon as this afternoon. I was about to buy two estates ten miles up the Via Aurelia to make one large one. I’ve already arranged to have more than enough gold at my disposal to make the purchases. I only need to have most of it delivered here instead.” One corner of his mouth rose in a wry smile. “Lucius is required by law to return your entire dowry immediately when you divorce him. I guess he’ll have to wait to get his new estate northwest of Rome.”

  She leaned over and embraced him. “I knew you’d be able to help.” The smile that had appeared at the news of the gold dimmed. “The next part might be harder, and I’m not sure how to do it.” Her gaze swept the garden from the arched entrance to the farthest wall. “I plan to go to Thracia, where Titus and Claudia are living. I’m sure they’ll be glad to let me stay with them for a short time while I find an estate of my own to buy where no one will recognize us.”

  Her brow furrowed. “I want to go by sea, but I’m not sure how to arrange everything. You’ve shipped things all over the Empire. Can you find a good ship for us without Lucius suspecting anything before we sail?”

  He stroked the bottom of his chin. “If he’s still living in Rome, I know the perfect man to ask to help with this.” The corner of his mouth lifted. “The same man helped me sneak Claudia out from under Lucius’s nose eight years ago. Actually, help isn’t the right word. He did everything. Publius called him a good friend, and he couldn’t have been a better one. I think he’ll be willing to help save Publius’s granddaughter as well.”

  He rose. “I’ll go now to see if he can help. When I return, we can make final plans.”

  Chapter 4: To the Rescue...Again

  Rome

  Malleolus reentered Rome through the Porta Esquilinas and immediately turned south to look for Aristarchus’s house near the Gardens of Maecenas. But what if the Greek merchant had moved in the last eight years? If he had, would whoever owned the house now know where he went?

  He found it with no difficulty. Even the door color hadn’t changed in the intervening years. He dismounted and led his horse to the door with the same small window he remembered.

  When he knocked, the window opened to reveal the face of the doorkeeper.

  “Is this still the house of Aristarchus of Thessalonica?”

  “Yes. Your name and business with him?”

  “Claudius Malleolus.” His voice dropped to a near-whisper. “I have an urgent request for help for the family of Publius Drusus. He was a close friend of Aristarchus eight years ago.” Even the whisper seemed to echo off the garden walls lining the street.

  “Take your horse to the side gate and tell the gatekeeper Vitellus said you can enter. Someone will meet you to take you to the master.”

  The window in the door closed. Malleolus led his horse around to the gate and knocked. When its small window opened, he repeated the doorkeeper’s instruction. The gate swung open just enough for him to lead his horse through.

  A stableman took his horse as a curly-haired boy of about nine scurried toward him. “Please come with me. The master will see you now.”

  Malleolus followed the boy into the atrium. When Aristarchus emerged from one of the adjoining rooms, Malleolus fought his eyebrows rising. How little the Greek merchant had changed. There were more and deeper wrinkles, but his eyes still sparkled with the enthusiasm of youth. Eight years earlier, his hair and beard had been silver-streaked black. Even though they were silver now, he still looked fit enough for a hard day of work. As he approached, he made a sweeping gesture toward a bench by the pool.

  “Malleolus, steward of my brother Publius. I did not expect to see you again. Vitellus tells me you have a problem. Tell me about it, and I will see if I can help.”

  As Malleolus lowered himself to the bench beside Aristarchus, tension drained from his body. Once again, he had the perfect ally for thwarting Lucius’s plans.

  He drew a deep breath before launching into his request. “Last time I asked you to help save my master’s daughter. This time I’m asking for his granddaughter. Lucius Fidelis plans to betroth her to his friend’s son.”

  Malleolus’s disgust pulled th
e corners of his mouth down. “The boy is vicious, but her father doesn’t care. His wife is going to divorce him and take Drusilla far from Rome to protect her. She wants to join Claudia and Titus in Thracia and then buy an estate where Fidelis can’t find them. Cornelia will be very wealthy once she reclaims her dowry, so payment is not a problem.”

  He raised hopeful eyebrows. “Can you help arrange her passage so Lucius won’t know she’s leaving or where she’s going? All must be done secretly, or he’ll take Drusilla before Cornelia can get her away.”

  Aristarchus nodded slowly. “So, you are asking me to join in another kidnapping.” His lips curved into a wry smile. “That seems to be my specialty when serving my brother Publius.” He slapped his knees. “I will be glad to help. I even have the perfect ship anchored in the harbor at Portus right now. It is the same one that took Claudia.”

  A sigh of relief escaped Malleolus. “Excellent. I already have the gold to return Cornelia’s dowry, and she’ll pack a few trunks of personal items.” He massaged his neck. “Now I only need to arrange for a freight wagon and raeda to get Cornelia, Drusilla, and Cornelia’s maid to the port. I can’t use the ones from the estate and keep anything secret. When and where should I plan on having them arrive in Portus?”

  Aristarchus stroked his beard. “I think it will be much safer if I provide the carriage and wagon. My own men will drive and be armed guards. Fidelis can never trace them. Can you have everything ready in the morning four days from now?”

  “Yes. I’ll return to Cornelia’s estate when I leave here to tell her our plan. She’s a very capable woman. Three days will be more than enough for her to do everything needed.”

  “And what will you do after you arrange their escape?” The Greek’s brow furrowed. “Fidelis never discovered the role you played when Claudia vanished, but he will suspect you when Drusilla also disappears. You will never convince him you knew nothing of Cornelia’s plans since you are recovering her dowry gold.”