Flaminia glanced at him, as the corners of her mouth twitched in a desperate effort not to cry. “That can’t be real… That can’t be true!” she cried out, “She got revenge by damaging Saul. That is cruel.”
He sighed and held her. Saul was, to everybody, more than a slave. She had loved him at first sight when Marcus Tiberius presented him to her. It was like having another son. He was her treasured one. She loved it when he sang, and told stories told about his land so far away, and she had suffered when she realized the dire consequences of the accident.
Her husband kissed her forehead and wiped the tears from her eyes with his knuckles. “Flaminia, I knew I shouldn’t say that to you. We all hold Saul dear, all of us in different ways. Unfortunately, Claudia is not of the same opinion. She is cruel to all her slaves.”
“Why shouldn’t we tell Flavius?”
“He has a hotter temper than I, and I am afraid he would do something he might regret forever. He is not able to act with calm. If you had seen the way he spoke about finding the man who did that to Saul…” he sighed.
“Are you worried that he might…”
Marcus Tiberius combed his fingers through his hair and grimaced in pain. “I am afraid of everything when we talk about Flavius. I don’t want to hide this from him forever; I was just thinking to give him more time to calm his spirits.”
“Maybe you’re right, but don’t you think that if he finds out, he will be upset with you?”
“I do not know what I should do. I do not want Flavius to act too impulsively. I am upset as well about what she did to him, but before getting blind revenge, we have to be level-headed and seek justice. I am wondering if Flavius is in danger living with her. Soon she will realize that it is not because of Saul that he does not love her; it is just so.”
“I still think that you should let Saul tell the truth to Flavius. He is a wise youth and has always been able to talk to his Master with the right words. He can reach where other people, including you, cannot. Let him speak to Flavius,” she proposed.
He had to admit that this time she was right. Saul could speak directly to people’s hearts. He was able to keep calm, except for one single time in his life.
“Maybe I should try…I will speak to Saul before Flavius arrives tomorrow.”
Flavius retired to his working room to think. He needed solitude to focus on all the happenings in his mind, to fit the pieces together, but no matter how much he tried, something didn’t fit. He could not name anyone who had any reason to seek revenge on him, and at the same time, have such a profound knowledge of him to know how dear Saul was to him. He recalled the names of the people he knew, all the people he had as customers, those who worked with him, and even those he’d met just once. Yet, he could not find a reason for anyone to be so upset with him that they would want revenge of that nature. But then, why Saul?
He propped his elbows on the desk and cradled his head with his hands. The more he tried to make sense of it, the less he could find any reason; everything sounded surreal.
His thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of Nara in the doorway.
“Forgive me, Master. Mistress Claudia ordered me to tell you that dinner will be served soon, and she requests your presence,” he said in a low tone of voice.
Flavius turned his eyes up toward him. “What happened to you?” he asked. Nara’s face showed a trace of blood from his nose.
Nara tried to wipe it away. “Nothing, Master, just a small accident,” he said, lowering his gaze.
Flavius stood and walked to him, gently held his chin, and forced him to meet his gaze. His eyes opened wide and his breath became shallow. Fear was evident on the slave’s face. Barely controlled by anger, Flavius caressed his cheek. “Claudia?” he casually asked.
Nara’s brow furrowed as if he did not understand.
“Did you upset her?” Flavius asked calmly.
Nara was unsure about how to answer. He didn’t want to get into bigger trouble by talking to Flavius.
“No, Master. I…I hit myself.” Nara stuttered as Flavius held his chin firmly in his hand to keep his eyes steadily on his own.
“Are you lying to me?” he asked, his tone still calm.
“I beg you, Master, let me go,” he said as his eyes welled again with tears.
Flavius let him go and Nara ran away from the room. He grinned, clenching his teeth. Many times, he had warned his wife to be less violent with the slaves, but it was in vain.
Anger flamed from his soul and spurred him to barge into the dining room where he was sure he would find her. She lay on the couch with a serene smile and observed the table in front of her filled with all sort of delicacies.
“How many times have I told you that I wouldn't tolerate any unnecessary violence with the slaves?” he snapped, entering like fury in the room.
“What are you talking about?” she wondered.
He ran out of patience and strode from the room, his sandals thumping on the mosaic floor. He went to get Nara and brought him in front of her. “This is what I mean. Look at his face!”
She averted her eyes. Flavius dragged Nara in front of her. Through gritted teeth, he repeated, “Look at his fucking face, NOW!”
“Stop screaming at me!”
“Why did you hurt him like that?”
“You little…” she said in disgust, her eyes shooting daggers at the slave.
Flavius slapped her violently, causing her to fall to the floor.
“Now you know how it feels to be hit. I don’t want you to take this as an offense, rather as a way to see both sides of the medal,” he growled.
Claudia, humiliated at being struck by her husband in front of a slave, started to sob.
Flavius hated to see a woman cry, regardless of whether she was a cruel person, and offered her his hand to stand up.
She slapped his hand away, stood, and ran off. She didn’t want him to see her crying.
“Why can’t you love me?” she wept as she arrived in her room. “Everybody is more important than me, including slaves. What should I do?” she sobbed, collapsing onto the bed.
Flavius walked in behind her and sat next to her on the bed.
“Claudia, please don’t make me look like the monster I am not,” he said gently. “You are right; our union is not based on love. I was practically forced into this marriage, as were you. I do not hate you, but you cannot ask for my love.”
“You love only Saul. A miserable slave is better than your wife. Am I really that ugly in your eyes?”
“I have practically grown up with Saul. He has been my best friend when I was alone, and not, as you said, because he was forced to. Surely, he is a slave, but you can recognize whether a slave is just obeying you or he is by your side. Sometimes I spend my nights with him, but I would never say you are ugly. You are amazingly beautiful, Claudia, and I like your beauty. But you won’t listen to me. Don’t beat the slaves because you are annoyed. Nara is one of our best, and I hate to see the terror in his eyes as I did a few minutes ago when he came to call me for dinner.”
Flavius understood that Claudia’s actions were mostly driven by the dissatisfaction and frustration of a wrongly arranged marriage.