Hannibal took a deep breath. He pondered the same question for hours now. He knew the Gallic tribes weren’t dependable. They only joined him for glory and wealth, both of which he’d already brought them. Unfortunately, he needed them. While he loathed them more than the Romans, if they stood against him, it would be impossible for him to secure enough supplies from Spain to continue his campaign in Italy.
“I suspect they will remain loyal, for the meantime. There are a number of settlements south of us, and more than a few of the chieftains have expressed interest in sacking them,” Hannibal answered.
“And you agree with this? We will need Italian settlements to stand with us against Rome,” Braca’s words were like ice as his mistrust boiled through each word he uttered.
“I do not have much of a choice, not at this moment,” Hannibal shot back. He wasn’t angry by Braca’s words, but at the realization of hard truths. His war was against Rome, not the Italian people, yet it was they who would suffer the most. It sickened Hannibal. Most of the northern settlements that would fall prey to his horde were once, a century ago part of greater Gaul, until the Republic came and conquered them, unifying all of Italy under Rome’s banner. Nevertheless, those barbarians with him did not see distant kin, but only weakness, a prey easily crushed and sacked for their unquenchable thirst for blood.
“No, we must continue as planned,” Hannibal reiterated as he collected his wayward thoughts. “Ready your men. Once they’ve finished toying with the Romans, I will give the word to march to our next objective.”
“As you command, my General,” Barca nodded before he turned his horse and began to trot off.
“Barca!” Hannibal called out. The officer stopped and turned his head, “Steady your heart and mind, and remember why we are here. It will only get worse from this point forward.”
With a heavy heart, Barca nodded his understanding and rode off.
“Victory or defeat, I am set upon my course, “Hannibal uttered to himself as he turned his attention back to the battlefield. “Send me your legions, Rome…Send them all.”
PART TWO
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Gaius lowered his head and allowed the sweet aroma of Julia’s scent to swirl around him, drawing him nearer to her as he took a deep breath, inhaling her essence. Julia was in his arms as they sat on the river’s edge, several miles west of Rome’s gates. A brisk, but tapered wind blew across the water’s edge as they sat, arm in arm, looking over the horizon, watching as the last vestiges of leaves fall from the surrounding trees.
They had spent as much time together as they could over the past week; every free moment either could spare. They found any excuse, both real and fictional, to escape their duties before they found one another outside the city gates and venture out into the wilderness. There they would spend hours with each other until the sun went down, leaving promises for another day of passionate lovemaking and long quiet afternoons together.
These were the best days of Gaius’ life. He never wanted them to end, and even though he knew that Julia’s pending marriage loomed, they refused to speak of it. Right now, each day is a gift, and both wanted to appreciate it to the fullest.
Julia ran her hand over Gaius’ arm, wrapped loosely around her shoulder and chest. She wore only a loose sheet, draped from her shoulders, hanging low. One hand was gently placed over the top of her right breast. She pressed herself nearer to his body, so that she may share his warmth.
They said nothing to one another. They hardly had to speak to fill the endless hours. Each other’s touch, their smell and sight were all either needed or wanted. Both had, however, shared quite a lot about one another — stories told to no one else. They were living in the moment as only two young lovers could, with no thought of the future and the obligations that both had to Rome, family and the Senate. If they pretended hard enough, with the slow current of the moving water in front of them and the sounds of the calm wind against the bare branches of the trees, they could have lost themselves in time, as if they were the last two souls left on earth.
Julia tilted her head back and stared up at Gaius for a moment. She raised her hand and rubbed her palm against the rough fuzz on his cheek, admiring the man he had become. However, beyond the robust body, a few scars and more hair, his eyes were as she remembered — proud, calm, strong and loving. When she looked up at him, she was taken back ten years when she was but a child. Then, as now, she looked at Gaius and saw courage and strength. She had always felt safe with him, and while one might cast off her affections for him as a child’s crush on an older boy, she knew, like she knew at the moment that her feelings for him were very real.
Julia loved him, and that love had grown.
Gaius knew without her having to say it. He could see the passion in her smile, in her endless gaze as she stared at him, and in her touch. He wondered if this was what it was like when his father had first seen his mother. He prayed to the gods that they give him the chance to give to Julia the same love and affection that his father showed to his mother, now years past.
He knew, with her in his arms, he could do anything. However, he was a practical man. Julia was a dreamer; she always had been, while Gaius was stuck in the here and now. While he did not say it, when she looked at him like she was currently, when anything seemed possible, the truth of his reality caught up with him. It wasn’t enough for him to have her now — her body and her heart. He needed her like he needed to breath, and the thought that in a few months, another man would have her, nearly brought tears of rage to his eyes.
“What troubles you?” Julia asked, as she could see the sudden shift in his expression, as faint as it was.
She turned all the way around; the thin silk sheet falling off from her shoulders, revealing her naked body as she repositioned herself, now sitting in front of him as she wrapped her legs around his waist.
Gaius lowered his hands and held Julia assertively by her waist, fixing her gaze into his.
“Do I not make you happy, my love?” she asked with a sweet smile as she ran her hand through his close-cropped hair.
“More than I have words for,” he answered, trying as hard as he could to hide his true thoughts. However, she was like an oracle, able to read his mind — knowing his darkest fears and lingering doubts.
“You are concerned about Paullus? It is he that takes your thoughts from my loving embrace, isn’t it?”
Gaius felt ashamed as he grabbed the sheet that lied on the grass, and tried to wrap it back around Julia. When he attempted, she pushed his efforts away.
“Gaius,” she began. “I love you, and nothing or no one will ever come between us. Say the words and I will leave Rome and my father behind, to be with you. We can run, go elsewhere; to the south, onto Sicily, or to the east, toward Greece, perhaps even beyond, deeper into the Hellistic world. You only have to utter the words.” Her words were spoken with honesty and without concern.
Gaius knew that if he should say the words, she would do as he wished without a second’s hesitation. Nevertheless, lingering doubts remained at the knowledge of taking her away, what it would mean for them when Varro hunted for them.
The prospect of fleeing across the Republic, traveling to shores beyond their wildest imagination, it was exciting, even Gaius had to admit to himself. However, he knew it was a foolish dream of two very young and naive individuals in love.
“Julia, the world doesn’t work that way. All because we desire it, that doesn’t mean we can just get up and leave everything behind. Your father and Paullus would track us to the ends of the earth. And I couldn’t betray Antony’s friendship either,” Gaius spoke with a painful heart, more so at the sudden sadness that crept through Julia’s eyes.