It was packed with senators all sitting on their low folding stools; at the far end, below a statue of Apollo, stood Regulus reading from a scroll. As Vespasian made his way behind the rear line of senators he heard the Consul declaiming in a highpitched, clear voice:
‘… and furthermore, Conscript Fathers, I consider his allowing of sacrifices to be made to him in public in front of the many statues of himself that now litter the city an affront to my position as your Emperor. I have made it clear on many occasions that I do not wish to be worshipped and have only allowed very few temples to be dedicated to me, and then only to bestow a mark of favour on the municipality that requested the honour if I considered them deserving of it; yet he would have the whole Empire worship him if he could.’
The slave led him to Gaius’ place at the rear of the left-hand side.
‘It’s started to happen, dear boy, look,’ Gaius whispered, pointing to the other side of the room.
Vespasian craned his neck to see over the massed heads of the senators in front of him. Over to Regulus’ right-hand side sat Sejanus with an impassive look on his face; as he was watching, two senators near Sejanus stood up and, picking up their stools, crossed over to Gaius’ side. The others surrounding him were whispering to one another, with countenances full of confusion or fear.
‘Tell Caenis: Aulus Plautius and Sextus Vistilius at “but what of his lesser qualities”; and those two, Silius Nerva and Livius Gallus at “have the whole Empire worship him”. Go, and take the slave with you so that you can come straight back in.’
Caenis was waiting for him outside and he quickly relayed the names to her. ‘It seems to be happening, Caenis,’ he said excitedly as she finished writing. ‘His supporters have certainly lost their triumphant demeanour.’
‘If it is, then we’ve got a lot to thank Caligula for,’ she replied seriously as he turned to follow the slave back in.
‘“As to his divorcing his loyal wife Apicata five years ago…”’ As Vespasian made his way back to Gaius to receive seven more names, Regulus read:
‘… on the assumption that I would let him marry my beloved son Drusus’ widow, I considered that to be an arrogant move at the time, and still do. Whether it was because he genuinely desired her or whether it was because he felt that in marrying her he would further ingratiate himself with me I will leave to you, Conscript Fathers, to decide.’
Having just managed to recall all the seven names and give them to Caenis, Vespasian returned for a third time. Regulus was still holding forth:
‘… and through a weakness brought on by my recurring bouts of sickness, consented to the union last year. That, Conscript Fathers, was an error which I will now undo. I now formally dissolve the betrothal of Lucius Aelius Sejanus to my daughter-in-law, Livilla.’
At that point there was a mass migration away from Sejanus; the noise of stools folding and senators walking across the floor forced Regulus to pause as Vespasian once again reached Gaius.
‘Well, that makes it easy, dear boy,’ Gaius whispered to him, ‘everyone else at “formally dissolve the betrothal”. You might as well stay and watch what happens; no one will notice you in this atmosphere.’
Sejanus was left completed isolated with his head in his hands as Regulus continued reading the Emperor’s words:
‘I hope that you will agree with me, Conscript Fathers — whose opinion I have always valued — that these and the numerous other offences that he has committed, including the bearing of false witness against many of your number, cannot go unpunished. I would therefore ask you, Conscript Fathers, to vote on whether or not he should be.. ’
At this point Regulus was forced to pause again as his voice was drowned by an eruption of howls of anger directed at Sejanus from all present. Even those senators who had until very recently been sitting close by him joined in, either through fear or because they believed that if they denounced him vehemently now their earlier support of the doomed man would somehow be forgotten.
Praetors, tribunes and quaestors, including Paetus, surrounded Sejanus but he made no move to flee to appeal to the crowd outside; he just sat in thought.
The noise died down and Regulus finished: ‘“… whether or not he should be imprisoned.”’
There was a stunned silence. Vespasian glanced around at the senators, all as visibly shocked as himself — Macro had not lied to Sejanus, the letter did ask for almost everything that he deserved.
Regulus rolled up the scroll. ‘Conscript Fathers, I believe that we are as one in wishing to grant our Emperor’s request.’
There was a general chorus of agreement; even the Junior Consul Fulcinius Trio was nodding his head slightly as he stepped forward. ‘Seeing that you seem to be all agreed,’ he said carefully, ‘I believe that the Senior Consul need only ask one of you for your opinion because it will be the opinion of all of you.’
‘So be it,’ Regulus concurred as the suggestion met with approval. ‘Lucius Aelius Sejanus, come here and stand before me.’
Sejanus continued sitting in thought as if he had not heard.
Regulus repeated the command; still nothing.
The third time he shouted Sejanus suddenly looked up. ‘Me?’ he questioned in the tone of a man surprised to be given an order after so many years of only delivering them. ‘Are you ordering me?’
‘I, in the name of the whole house, am ordering you.’
Sejanus looked around and with a dismissive sneer went and stood before Regulus.
‘Senator Pollo,’ Regulus called out, causing Gaius to almost fall off his stool, ‘do you think that this man should be imprisoned?’
Gaius winced and then, with some trepidation, got to his feet. ‘I do think that he should be imprisoned, Consul,’ he said slowly and clearly.
‘Then that is the will of the house. Take him to the Tullianum.’
‘And just who is going to escort me there,’ Sejanus drawled, ‘through my Praetorians? Do you think that they’ll let this happen? They’ll slaughter you all first, like the sheep that you are.’
‘Graecinius Laco, are your Vigiles all in position?’ Regulus asked.
A tall man with a few days of thick black stubble on his face stepped forward from the far end of the temple. ‘They are, Consul, and Tribune Macro has taken the Guard back to their camp.’
‘What!’ Sejanus roared, jumping forward and being restrained by at least four men. ‘Macro! The filthy whore’s whelp, I’ll have him for this when the Emperor sees sense and releases me; just as I’ll have every one you, you Convict Blatherers.’
‘Take him away, Laco,’ Regulus ordered. ‘Consul Trio, you and I will now address the people together.’
Vespasian watched as Sejanus was led, head held high and shrugging off the restraining hands of his surrounding escort, from the Temple of Apollo.
Vespasian and Gaius squeezed out of the door through the crush of senators and gave the last and easy part of the list to Caenis.
‘I should get back to my mistress now, my love,’ she said as Regulus and Trio took up position at the top of the temple steps, ready to address the confused crowd, who had just watched the man who had held sway over them for the best part of the last decade taken away in disgrace.
‘I’ll come with you, seeing as my services don’t seem to be required here now,’ Vespasian said with genuine regret; it had been the first execution that he had been almost looking forward to.
‘I’m going to listen to Regulus and then I’ll follow you, I think.’ Gaius looked less than pleased. ‘I’m anxious to see what Antonia will do now. Go around the back of the temple — there’s another set of steps there; you’ll never get through this mob.’
As Vespasian and Caenis made their way around the temple they heard Regulus begin his address.
‘People of Rome,’ he declaimed, ‘today your Emperor and the Senate have seen fit to protect you from a man who has sought to dominate you for too long.’ A scattering of cheers rang out. ‘A man who has grown too large for our city.’ More substantial cheers greeted this remark. ‘A man who, like Icarus, has flown too high and has now been burned by the sun. Is it not right, since our Emperor is like the sun to us, guiding us through this life, that this man, Sejanus, should have been brought down in the temple of the sun god himself: Apollo?’