As Phanes fawned and grovelled, Hanno’s brain raced. The name ‘Phanes’ was familiar.
‘Why are you here, Phanes?’ asked Calavius. ‘It’s not just to share your wine with us.’
‘Well. .’ The Greek licked his lips. ‘I have a number of debtors who have fallen severely behind on their payments.’
The moneylender! realised Hanno. The one with the stranglehold over Aurelia’s mother. Gripped by fury, he listened even harder.
‘That’s unsurprising. There’s a war going on, in case you hadn’t noticed,’ snapped the third man.
‘Peace,’ said Calavius. ‘You may disapprove of his profession, but he and his fellows provide a service to the city. Let him speak.’
‘Fine. I’m for the caldarium then.’ With a courteous nod at Calavius and a scowl at Phanes, the third man got up and walked out. A moment later, he was joined by the man who’d been dozing. Hanno snorted as if stirring, but then pretended to fall asleep again. There was a short pause before, apparently happy, the Greek spoke again.
‘I would like to approach the courts for permission to seize their properties in payment for their debts. I was wondering whether, perhaps, the judges’ decision would be made easier if they had a little guidance. A word or two in the right ears would ensure that my appeals were heard favourably.’
‘Are any of these people nobles whom I would know?’ asked Calavius.
An awkward cough. ‘Some, yes.’
Atia could easily be on Phanes’ list, thought Hanno, seething with anger. In his mind, the first seeds of a plan began to sprout.
‘I could not countenance that,’ said Calavius sharply. ‘In these straitened times, those who have fallen on hard times must be afforded some leeway. More time to pay.’
‘But-’
‘No, Phanes.’
A short pause.
‘I do not like to mention it, but there is the small matter of your son-in-law,’ muttered Phanes.
‘That is none of my affair,’ snapped Calavius.
‘Not quite true. How would it look if it were to come out that one of Capua’s most illustrious magistrates was father-in-law to a degenerate — a gambler who has wagered away his entire family’s wealth? A man who spends his time in the city’s lowest taverns and fleshpots? Your chances of re-election might suffer considerably in the light of that information.’
‘Curse you, Greek!’ hissed Calavius.
‘You give me no option. I am entirely within my rights to ask for a court ruling on these debts,’ protested Phanes.
‘You’re still a bloodsucking parasite!’ Calavius let out a heavy sigh. ‘What is the price for your silence about my son-in-law?’
‘As a gesture of goodwill, I will write off his debts in their entirety. Not a word shall pass my lips about him either. In return, I ask for not a drachm. As I mentioned, all I need is for the judges to approve the list of properties that I wish to have seized.’
‘I want to see the names first,’ said Calavius.
‘It will be delivered to your house by the end of the day.’
‘Then I believe that our business is done. I seem to have lost my taste for your wine.’ Without another word, Calavius rose and stalked off.
Hanno sensed Phanes’ gaze rest on him. He kept his breathing slow and regular, and after a moment he heard the Greek rise and leave the room. After an acceptable amount of time had passed, he decided to enter the caldarium himself. It was far busier than the tepidarium had been. The air was intensely warm and moist. Nearly a dozen men were relaxing in the hot pool, among them Calavius and the big noble; others were using strigils and oil to scrape the dirt from their skin or performing stretches; several were lying face down on waist-high stone benches while slaves massaged their muscles. There was no sign of Phanes, and disappointment filled Hanno. Then he heard a woman’s voice from one of the cubicles off to the side and he remembered the attendant mentioning the other services on offer. It was a gamble that the Greek was engaged in such activity, but it was better to stay where he was. If Phanes had gone through to the next room and he followed too soon, his quarry might grow suspicious. Hanno climbed into the pool, avoiding eye contact.
After so long without a bath, the hot water was unadulterated bliss. He longed to immerse himself up to his chin, but conscious of the charade with his neck cloth, he lounged against the side with his arms stretched out along the tiles. The chatter here was all about the war: about this man’s son and the unit he was serving in; how Fabius was too cowardly to fight Hannibal; what a blessing it had been when the Carthaginians had headed east once more; how the numbers of refugees were filling the city to bursting point; and so on. Hanno was too far away to eavesdrop on Calavius and the third man, and he heard no mention of Atia or Aurelia. Patience, he thought. If his plan came off, Phanes would be able to tell him where they lived. It wasn’t long before there was a friendly query from his neighbour about the strip of fabric. His explanation was accepted without question, but Hanno moved off soon after. He had no desire to enter into conversation with anyone. After he had cleaned his body with a strigil, he dried himself off and went to pick up his clothes. It was imperative that he was outside before the Greek.
The two thugs were still parked opposite the bathhouse entrance. It was the best spot for observing who entered and left and so Hanno was forced to take a seat at an open-fronted restaurant a short distance away. Picking through a plate of tasteless gruel that was being sold as ‘meat stew’, he kept a regular eye on proceedings and wondered if it would be more prudent to continue his search for Aurelia. It didn’t take long to make up his mind. At this late stage, being sensible had nothing to do with it. Just coming to Capua had been an insane notion. Now that he was here, he had a definite link to Aurelia through Phanes, which was more than he’d discover by wandering around like a fool.
When the Greek emerged, Hanno was annoyed and dismayed to see the two heavies fall in line behind him. Why did they have to be his bodyguards? he railed silently. His plan to interrogate Phanes was slipping away before his eyes. With a grudging nod at the stallholder, he paid for his food and sidled after the trio. It was soon apparent that the moneylender was making the rounds of some debtors. The reactions of the shopkeepers who saw him was uniform: one of surprise and dismay. Yet their attempts to avoid Phanes, or to shut their premises, all failed. His two companions were adept at jamming their feet in doorways or seizing men by the scruff of the neck and pinning them up against a wall. This was done in the most upfront of ways, without even a look as to how the passers-by might react. Any thoughts that Hanno might have had about tackling the pair disappeared. Not only were they armed with short cudgels, but they were well able to handle themselves. To have any chance of tackling Phanes, the Greek would have to leave his men behind. Morose because this did not seem likely, he dogged their footsteps for more than an hour.
By this stage, Hanno was no longer paying such close attention. On a less busy street, he had nearly caught up with the bodyguards when he noticed the Greek’s absence. Hastily, he feigned interest in the display of ironmongery outside a shop. On impulse, he bought a small but sharp knife. When he turned, the bruisers’ gaze was locked on the staircase that led up to the shrine’s entrance, which told him where Phanes had gone. Slipping the blade under his tunic and into the waistband of his undergarment, he walked right past them. There was little room to pass on the stairs. Soothsayers promised readings of the future, men were selling hens suitable for sacrifice, or votive lamps and trinkets to leave as offerings. Half an as bought Hanno a tiny clay amphora; anyone who glanced at him would assume he was another worshipper. At the top, six mighty fluted columns supported a triangular, richly decorated portico. In the centre was a painted figure of a winged woman standing with a sceptre in her hands. On either side sailors in ships reached up to her in supplication. Fortuna, he thought. The moneylender prays to Fortuna for good luck. It felt quite apt.