Acco paid them no attention, and instead walked towards the Romans. ‘Come, prince. I have what I need. Will you take what you want and go? The warriors outside will not hinder you unless I order it.’
Arviragus sheathed his sword.
‘Can you trust him?’ Crispinus’ whisper came out louder than he had intended.
The druid spun around slowly, waving his hand around the circle, then turned and walked away. Arviragus licked his lips and took a pace towards it. ‘This is why we came,’ he said. The next step was a little more confident. He rubbed his hands together nervously.
‘You may make two choices, prince,’ Acco said. ‘Just as we agreed.’
Enica frowned, her thoughts still clouded. ‘What is he saying?’
Her brother stared at the circle of objects and did not even glance towards her. ‘It is meant to be. There is no other way.’ He knelt beside the helmet and cuirass. For a moment he hesitated, then he touched them with the tenderness of a lover. He smiled and lifted them. ‘Take these,’ he told the nearest of his guards.
‘One more, prince. Two souls for two things. That is the bargain.’
‘What?’ Enica almost spat out the word. ‘What have you done, brother?’ Ferox guessed that he and the lady were the druid’s price.
Still he did not face her. ‘It is the price of glory.’ For a while he held his hand over the mirror, until he shook his head. Next he stared for a long time at the neatly folded cloak of Claudius and Alexander. ‘No,’ he said in the end. ‘It must be this.’ No longer hesitant he strode over and snatched the torc of Caratacus and the high kings of the south.
‘So be it.’ Acco almost shouted the words and they echoed around the chamber.
‘Have I been wise?’ Arviragus asked as the sounds died away.
‘That is for you to discover. Now you must leave. You will not be harmed.’
‘What about them?’ Crispinus asked. ‘My centurion and the lady should come with us.’
Acco said nothing.
‘They stay,’ Arviragus said after a moment. ‘Let us go quickly.’
Acco nodded to the small warrior. ‘He will guide you and see that you come to no harm. Leave and live with your choices.’
The prince frowned. He was holding the torc and bent it back so that he could slip it around his neck. He swelled visibly as if it gave him strength. ‘Come on,’ he said.
‘We can’t leave them.’ Cocceius stood in the doorway and raised his sword. ‘They must come with us, sir. They just must.’ The lad sounded confused, but very determined.
‘Out of my way, boy!’ Arviragus yelled.
Crispinus shrugged. ‘Best obey, lad. Or we all die.’
‘It’s wrong, sir, and you know it.’ The young soldier sounded surprised at his own defiance.
Arviragus half turned back. ‘What do you think, my Lord Crispinus?’ Suddenly he plucked a sword from one of the guards, shifted his hand onto the grip and drove it into the lad’s belly, grabbing him by the shoulder to pull him further onto the blade. Cocceius was wide-eyed in surprise, gasping, but the prince merely threw him down. He ripped the sword free and stabbed down again. Cocceius went still. ‘Come on,’ the prince said, tossing the bloodied blade back to his guard.
Acco laughed softly. ‘Blood of king, blood of queen,’ he whispered as they left. Crispinus turned as if he had heard. ‘Do you remember those words, Flavius Ferox? The one who said them was wrong and yet right for the hour has come. Rest a while, before you both set out on a new path.’
Again the druid laughed.
XXII
‘WHAT ARE YOU doing?’ Claudia Enica’s voice broke the long silence, even though she spoke in a whisper. They were in one of the side rooms off the main chamber, the roof so low that Ferox felt his hair brushing the stones if ever he sat up straight. He could see nothing at all, for without any light they were surrounded by a blackness deeper than any night.
‘What are you doing?’ she repeated, her tone angry. They had been placed on the damp floor, back to back and a little apart, before Acco’s men left and took the torch with them. Ferox had listened for what seemed a long while until he was sure they had gone, before sitting up and shuffling towards her. There was no way to unlock the manacles, but they allowed him a little freedom to move his hands and he wondered whether he could untie Enica’s wrists. His fingers felt smooth warm skin. She shuddered, saying nothing at first, and he eased along, pushing up the hem of her tunic until he found a knot. It felt too small, although maybe that was because his fingers were clumsy.
‘Trying to get us free,’ he whispered.
‘Huh!’ No one could express disgust quite like the Brigantes. To display the same passion as a Roman Claudia would have had to spit on the floor in public. She was silent for a moment. ‘Would you like me to bring my arms to your hands?’
Ferox remembered the slim thongs tying the young woman’s little bathing pants. ‘Sorry.’
‘So are you planning on taking your hands off my arse?’
‘Sorry.’ Ferox drew back and with some wriggling Enica thrust her tied arms so that they brushed against his hands. He searched for the knot, found something much larger and felt for an end to the cord.
‘Can you tell the difference now?’
‘I am sorry.’ There was a piece of rope sticking out of the knot, but it was so tight that at first he could not move it at all.
‘Does he mean to kill us?’ Enica asked. ‘The talk of blood was not encouraging. Though I am not yet a queen and you are certainly not a king.’
‘Silures don’t have kings. Not really. And I am just a centurion.’
‘My brother means to be king. And more in time. He sees his road leading to the Senate and even beyond to the imperial purple. Acco appeared when he was born, or so he claims. Grandmother would not have wanted him, but she was ill, and father always sought to learn about the future. My brother claims that the druid said his destiny was to rise like a burning star in the night sky, climbing higher than any of his ancestors. Big brother believes that includes Caesar himself.’ She shifted slightly and Ferox wondered whether she was shaking her head. ‘He is not very bright. Takes after father.’
‘Acco told me that it is my destiny to kill him.’
She chuckled. ‘Well, it might help us out. He does mean to kill us, doesn’t he?’
‘Probably.’ Blood of king, blood of queen. The Stallion and his men had chanted the phrase and used it in their incantations, planning to make a royal sacrifice on Samhain two years ago. ‘Did Lepidina tell you about the attempts to abduct her?’ Her husband was a king of the Batavians as well as prefect of Rome, which meant that the priest had considered her to be a queen. Ferox had managed to protect her, but had failed to save Vegetus’ wife who was mistakenly taken instead.
‘A little. Thank you for not hiding the truth.’ She chuckled again, and soon the chuckle became a laugh. ‘Poor brother, he thinks he has the armour of our grandfather.’
Ferox had managed to loosen the knot slightly. ‘He does not, because you have.’ He felt her stiffen. ‘You paid Rufus and the others for them, and then watched as they rode off with the girl.’
‘It was unfortunate, but I saw no other way.’ Her voice was soft.
‘Then you were the one who met them and rode off carrying the spoils. And who ambushed the two men I sent after you.’
‘I did not know who they were and could not take a chance. Domitius wanted the helmet and the mail. Some folk loyal to me were in debt to him and to Narcissus. They were to be payment for this year and the next and would give time to gather enough to pay the rest.’ She laughed again, grimly this time. ‘I knew who he really is, but that only made it more important to help my people. The faith of the Brigantes.’ She shrugged as well as their bonds allowed. ‘I switched the helm and armour with the ones brother is now carrying away. The real helmet is a lot plainer. I thought it odd at the time that Acco did not realise the trick. Now I guess he knew all along.’