by V. M. Sang
The man pulled a paper out of his pocket and showed it to the madam. She glanced at it and then eyed the seal at the bottom. It was obvious she could not read it, but she did not want the man to know and so she nodded once and passed it back.
She turned to Avelina and beckoned. “Come here, girl. You have a great honour. The Governor has asked for you. You’re to go with this man and do whatever the Governor wants. Remember your training so far.
“Whatever he wants you’re to enjoy, or at least make him think you are. Squeal or moan whenever he does something to you, and cry out when he finishes, as if you’re enjoying the most exquisite sensation. Don’t cry when he enters you though. It will hurt the first time and there will be blood. Now go and do us proud.”
Avelina walked to the door where the man waited. Could she use this as a way to escape? She would have to do it before she got to the Governor’s home though. Afterwards, would be too late.
The man took her by the arm, none too gently. When they had travelled some distance from the brothel, he spoke to her. “I’m not the slave of Agricola. That was just an excuse to get you out of that place. Someone’s helping your brother to escape at this very moment. Come with me.”
”Who are you and why are you helping us?” she asked, stunned.
“We’re a group of Britons who hate seeing our people enslaved by the Romans. We help Britons escape slavery whenever we can. A friend told us of your problems and we agreed to help. We can’t help everyone, unfortunately. Not if we’re to remain unsuspected. Now, come with me.”
Avelina followed.
9
About a week after Avelina had gone to the brothel, Adelbehrt walked through the town buying things for the Dominus when he felt someone push something into his pocket. At least he hoped it was something going in and not out. He slipped in his hand and found a piece of paper. He left it there until he got back to the domus.
As soon as he found himself alone, the young man pulled out the paper and read it: We understand you can read so we are contacting you this way. We can help you and your sister to escape the Romans if that is what you wish. If you want to escape, reply to this letter and give it to the beggar outside the Basilica in the forum. He has a patch over one eye and a crutch. Tell no one of this.
The note excited Adelbehrt. Here was a chance to escape the Romans’ clutches! Perhaps, in the future, he would find an opportunity to fight the Romans.
He knew rebellions went on from No line break here as it’s still the same sentence!time to time. He would seek one out and join. Then he would have a chance to kill Romans and exact revenge for all they had done to him and his family.
Adelbehrt stole some paper, wrote a reply, and carried it around with him. He did this partly because he did not know when he was going to be sent out to town and partly because he did not want to risk it being found if he left it in his room. He told no one of the note, not even Titus.
Several days passed before the young man again went into Londinium alone, but eventually the Dominus sent him on an errand and he found himself in the forum. He crossed to the Basilica and spotted the beggar in question. Walking up to him, he held out money to the man and, as the beggar reached up to take it, Adelbehrt slipped the note into his palm along with the money, and continued on his way without looking back.
A week later, when he was again in town, this time with the Dominus, someone jostled him. Turning, he looked around to reproach the man if he were a slave; he could not remonstrate a citizen, of course. A man was making his way through the crowds some distance away, too far away for him to say anything. He looked like a free man, not a slave, by the confident way he strolled and was, undoubtedly, a citizen.
Some time later, the young man put his hand into his pocket. He felt a piece of paper that had not been there when he left the domus. He refrained from looking at it immediately and it was with great anticipation that he waited until he could return to the domus to read it.
Meet me at the bathhouse tonight at midnight. That was all it said. He turned it over and on the back was a cryptic remark. It’s a cold night for June, yes, but not for January.
Adelbehrt frowned. It was neither June nor January. It was, in fact, November. How odd.
How am I supposed to leave the domus to go out at that time? Adelbehrt spent a lot of time thinking. He could not just walk out of the door, so he would need to wait until everyone in the household slept before making a break. Even then, there was the danger of someone waking and hearing him.
Marcus looked up from the ledger he was working on and saw Adelbehrt gazing into space. “What’s wrong?” He put down his pen. “Are you worrying about Avelina?”
“What? Oh, er, yes,” answered the boy. Adelbehrt pulled himself together and looked at his companion. “How long will her training take?”
“Well, I don’t really know,” Marcus replied scratching his head.. “I haven’t had any experience with training prostitutes.” He smiled. Then, he became more serious. “You should forget about her, you know. I know it’s hard, but there’s nothing you can do. She’s gone and that’s that.”
Adelbehrt’s head drooped as he returned to his work. Marcus had noticed his distraction and the young man decided he must not allow anyone to think he planned an escape. He only hoped these mysterious people into whose hands he was putting his life could manage to free Avelina too.
All too soon, night came. Adelbehrt went to bed as usual, but did not go to sleep. As soon as it became clear the household was asleep, he opened his chest and took out the money he had collected over the years, and crept out of his room, sandals in hand, towards the slave’s and servant’s door.
He drew the bolts. The door made a creaking noise as it opened, and Adelbehrt froze. Would anyone hear it? How come he had not heard the door creaking before now? He stepped into the shadows and waited, holding his breath. After a couple of minutes, when all remained silent, he slipped into the yard.
There were sounds: animals shifted in the stable and in the nearby distance a dog barked. Adelbehrt felt grateful that the family did not bring any dogs back to Londinium with them.
He pulled a hood over his fair hair. He reasoned it would show up in the darkness of the city, especially when passing beneath the oil lamps affixed to the walls.
Over the years, Adelbehrt had come to know the city of Londinium well. He was a trusted slave and had been out alone many times. He had money, and often went to spend it on treats or essentials and so had become familiar with the way to the bathhouse. Sometimes he accompanied the Dominus, when he went each evening, to hold his towel and do any other little tasks the Dominus wanted. The bathhouse was a social and business centre, and no Roman would miss his daily visit.
When Adelbehrt arrived at the baths, he noticed a shadow in the doorway. Was this the man he had come to meet? How would he recognise this person?
The shadow stepped forwards. “It’s a cold night for June.”
“Yes, but not for January,” replied Adelbehrt, remembering the mysterious words on the back of the note he had been given.
“Come, follow me.” The man walked away.
Adelbehrt had to walk quickly to keep up. They wound their way through the streets into the poorest quarter of the town. Here the insulae were crowded together. Fires often broke out among the wooden buildings, so the people did not cook in their insulae but bought food at the many food stalls in the vicinity.
They came to a door, on which the man knocked three times, then a gap, and then another four times. The door opened a crack.
“Ah, you’re back,” a female voice said. “Come on in.”
The door opened and they entered. The old woman who opened the door stood back to let them pass. Adelbehrt found himself in a dark room with a bed in one corner and a table with four chairs around it in the middle. In a dark corner was another chair with a shadowy shape on it.
The woman who let them in turned to Adelbehrt. “Your sister isn’t here yet. We exp
ected her before you, but they shouldn’t be much longer.”
“How are they going to rescue her?” Adelbehrt asked anxiously.
“I’m not really sure. It isn’t easy rescuing people from that place. Sometimes, Romans ask for girls to be brought to their homes. That is, if their wives are away!” She chuckled softly.
“I think they’re going to pose as the slave of a well-known Roman and ask for her by name. Then, when they get her out, they’ll bring her here.”
Adelbehrt wanted to ask more questions, but another knock, in the same code, echoed through the dwelling. Two people were ushered in and a broad grin spread over his face as he recognised Avelina.
She saw him and rushed over, threw herself into his arms, and immediately began to cry. Adelbehrt stroked her hair and tried to calm her as much as he could.
“Addy, it was horrid,” she sobbed into his shoulder. “I was so frightened. They were teaching me all sorts of things I didn’t want to know. They said I was nearly ready for my first client. Then, this person came.” She indicated the man who had brought her in. “He said his master had asked for me personally. He gave them a name and showed them something to prove he was from the person he said, and they called me over and told me I was to go with him and to do whatever his master wanted. I thought his master was going to be my first client.” She sobbed again and clung to her brother.
“That’s all over now, Avelina.” Adelbehrt stroked her hair comfortingly. “These people are going to help us escape.”
The shadowy figure in the corner spoke for the first time. “Well, young man, we’ll need to do something about your hair and your sister’s too. There will be notices for your recapture as soon as they find you gone. There are so few people with hair as light as yours that you’ll be quickly spotted and retaken.”
Adelbehrt thought he recognised the voice, but could not quite place it. He decided he must be mistaken, but then the woman spoke again. “Go and get the walnut juice so we can dye their hair.”
The old woman nodded and hastened through the door, into the street. When she was gone, the man also left; the two young people found themselves alone with the mysterious figure.
She stood and walked into the light. Adelbehrt gasped. It was the Domina’s friend, Maeve.
“Yes. Adelbehrt, it’s really me. You see, although I’ve become a Roman citizen by marrying a Roman, I’ve not forgotten I’m a Briton, nor have I forgotten my people. I’m a Briton first and Roman second, unlike my friend Annwyl, who seems to have forgotten she’s a Briton at all. She fawns around those so-called Roman friends of hers, but I don’t really think they consider her a true Roman.”
Adelbehrt began to ask why she had decided to help them, but she interrupted him. “I know you aren’t Britons, but I like you and your sister. More to the point, I don’t like a girl as young as Avelina being forced into a brothel.”
Adelbehrt thought of Odila. She was probably not much older than Avelina when the Romans took them as slaves. He was now old enough to know what had happened when the girls had been taken to the officers, and understood why they were so distressed when they returned. He clenched his fists at the thought of the mistreatment of those young and innocent girls.
Maeve continued and so he silenced his thoughts and listened. “I decided to make an exception in your case, Avelina, but knew if I rescued you, I would have to rescue your brother too. Now, the people here don’t know you aren’t Britons. They’d refuse to have anything to do with you if they did. They’re British patriots. The fact you can’t speak the language is no problem. You were taken as slaves at such a young age, you can say you’ve forgotten it. You’ve probably forgotten your native tongue anyway.”
She paused to listen. “No, she’s not coming back yet. There are no names here, so no one can betray anyone. You know mine, unfortunately, but I think I’m fairly safe because it’s not in your interests to tell anyone.”
“What if we’re captured?” Avelina asked. “We could betray you then in order to save ourselves.”
Maeve smiled fleetingly. “We’ll just have to make sure you don’t get recaptured then, won’t we?” She looked at Adelbehrt and frowned. “Now, if you give your real names to our people, they’ll instantly know that you aren’t Britons, so I suggest you change your names. I’ve thought about this and suggest that you Adelbehrt take the name of Ailbert and Avelina the name of Awena. They’re fairly close to your …” She paused as the door opened and the woman who had let them in re-entered the room.
“Here’s the walnut juice,” she said, setting a jug on the table.
“You can begin then, and I must go or I’ll be missed. Good-bye and good luck, Ailbert and Awena.” Quickly, she slipped through the door.
“Right, which of you is to be first?” the old woman asked.
When Adelbehrt—now Ailbert—stepped forward, she pulled a bowl and jug from a cupboard and placed them on the table.
“Bend your head over this bowl, Ailbert is it?”
The young man did as she asked and the old woman poured the walnut juice over his hair. It was still fairly long by Roman standards, just as the Domina had always liked it.
After pouring several times, she declared him done, wrung as much of the juice as she could from his hair and turned to Avelina—now Awena—and did the same to her.
“Tomorrow morning at dawn, a man will come for you. He’ll take you out of the city to a safe place. You’ll need to keep putting the walnut juice on your hair though, until you’re far from Londinium. Now get some sleep. You can use the bed there. I’ll snooze in this chair.”
A sharp knock sounded on the door. Ailbert woke with a start, looking around and, for a few seconds, wondering where he was.
The old lady roused herself from her chair and woke Awena. “There are clothes on the chair over there.” She pointed to one at the table. “You’ll need to wear our type of clothing if you’re to escape. You’ll be travelling with other Britons. You won’t look right in those Roman clothes. Go through that door if you want some privacy to dress.” She indicated a doorway at the back of the room.
It led to a small room that seemed to be used more as a cupboard than a room, judging by the amount of stuff in it.
Ailbert quickly dressed in the clothes left for them. He told Awena to go into the room to change, but he changed where he was. He regarded the clothes. There were undergarments in linen, which he quickly donned after checking to see the old woman was not looking in his direction. Then he pulled on a pair of woollen trousers woven in a grey-and-yellow check. A tunic, also grey and yellow, lay on the chair and this he quickly slipped on.
Awena exited the small room dressed in a red-and-blue woollen dress that came down to her ankles. She carried a blue shawl and her dress was pinned with an ornate brooch. Ailbert smiled at her and, for the first time since she entered the small dwelling, she gave a brief smile in return.
“If you’re ready, we’d better go.” A man broke off his conversation with the old woman. He was tall with light sand-brown hair. He sported a beard and moustache, and his brown eyes smiled at the pair. He wore clothing similar to that which Ailbert had donned.
“Put on your cloak and shawl,” the woman told them. “It’s cold outside. It is November, after all.”
They did as she instructed, pinning them together with more brooches, then followed the man outside.
“My name’s Huw. Now, we need a story to get you past the guards at the gates. They saw me come in yesterday with goods to trade and I had no one with me.” He paused and looked up and down the street. People were beginning to come out now the sun was almost up.
“The story is this. You’re my sister’s children. You came to Londinium to see your aunt, my other sister, who lives here. I’m taking you back home.”
All three climbed onto the driver’s seat of the wagon and the man clucked to his oxen, who lumbered forward. The man continued talking. “They'll have discovered you’re missing by now, of cour
se, but not necessarily that you’re both together. Your descriptions will have been circulated to the gate guards. The dye in your hair will, hopefully, make you unrecognisable.”
He turned the oxen into the main street, heading towards the gate on the northern side of the city. “It’s better to have you in full view rather than trying to hide you under sacks. Since they’ll be looking for you, they’ll search all the wagons leaving the city. If you’re hidden, they’ll find you and quickly establish who you are. The best place to hide is in full view.”
The ox cart lumbered through the city streets and soon they arrived at the north gate.
A soldier held up a brawny hand to stop them. “We have to search your wagon, I’m afraid. There are two runaway slaves. A brother and sister. They should be easy enough to spot though, as they both have very blonde hair. Almost white, they say and about the same age as your two passengers. I don’t suppose you’ve seen anyone of that description, have you?”
Awena held onto Ailbert’s hand and gripped it so tightly it almost hurt him.
“Don’t worry,” he whispered. “You heard what the soldier said. They’re looking for people with blonde hair, not brown like ours.”
The soldier continued asking Huw questions, including who the two with him were. He remembered Huw coming into the city without anyone else in the wagon. Huw gave him the explanation he had told the pair previously.
The soldier looked at them and said, “I hope your aunt is in good health.”
Ailbert smiled as best he could under the circumstances and endeavoured to look relaxed. “Yes, thank you. She’s quite well.”
“You speak good Latin,” the soldier commented. “Where did you learn it? Hardly any accent at all. You could almost pass for a Roman, you know.”
Ailbert thought quickly. “We were brought up in the city,” he improvised. “Our mother thought we should learn Latin, so she sent us to live with her sister, our aunt, who had married a Roman.”