Rufinus nodded as he digested the information, still unsure where he fitted into this affair.
‘The crowning piece in my collection has been stolen, Rustius! And where, might I ask, were my expensive and carefully-selected guards when such a theft was perpetrated?’
Her voice had risen to a dangerous, shrill pitch, and yet Rufinus found himself rising angrily to the veiled accusation.
‘With respect, majesty, the duty of the guards as laid down when I first took on the job was…’
Lucilla’s voice jacked up another notch as she interrupted him. ‘That is not the issue!’
Rufinus ignored the interruption, his own voice rising to ride over the top. ‘The duty of the Guard is to police the palace for intruders and prevent any danger from threatening yourself!’
He fell silent, his face red as the lady Lucilla stepped back, startled. For a moment, Rufinus went cold. He had just been very outspoken in front of a woman who could have him crucified before he could blink.
Lucilla’s eyes bulged worryingly, but when she spoke, her voice was quiet and cold. ‘And you failed. An intruder has taken my most prized possession.’
Rufinus took a deep breath and straightened. ‘I apologise, ma’am, but there is no evidence of an intruder, and my men have had this palace secured so tightly that if a terrapin breaks wind, I know about it a moment later. This is not a failure of security.’
Lucilla glared at him but said nothing. Rufinus swallowed noisily. ‘The guard cannot take on the task of protecting your majesty’s jewellery, as it is secured in your private chambers, and no guardsman is allowed within even the access corridor. As I say, the brooch has not been taken by an intruder. That being the case, we should look closer to your imperial person for the culprit. It has to be someone who has access to your chambers. That fact narrows down the suspects quite severely.’
Lucilla began to nod slowly, frowning. ‘You’re sure this is not theft by an interloper.’
Rufinus shook his head. ‘I have been most thorough, Ma’am. At no time during the day or night is there any point of access to the complex that is not under scrutiny. Both Phaestor and Vettius had a hand in the system. If an outsider had come in, we would know.’
‘Then it was one of the servants or slaves.’
The slightly lisping voice by Rufinus’ ear spoke again, causing him to jump. He’d forgotten the man was there. ‘I shall run up a list of those who have access, my Empress. We shall burn and wring the truth from them one by one until the culprit is revealed.’
Rufinus squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath, the momentary image of Senova being caressed with white-hot irons flitting across his mind as he turned angrily on the fellow next to him, staring into his kohl-painted eyes. ‘That is both time-consuming and wasteful. How many innocent and well-trained slaves and servants will you torture to death unnecessarily in order to find the right one?’
He returned his gaze to Lucilla, feeling the hot, irritated breath of the chamberlain on his shoulder. ‘This is a task for your guards, ma’am. May I ask when you need the brooch?’
Lucilla’s eyes narrowed in suspicion and Rufinus felt the lead-certainty that he had just hit on a very important question entirely by accident. For a moment, the empress looked down and Rufinus could just see her fingers moving slightly as though making some sort of calculation.
‘Not for a while yet. I was preparing ahead of time.’
Rufinus nodded. ‘Then may I ask that you leave the matter with us for the time being, majesty. I have every hope that we will be able to deliver you both the brooch and the culprit in short order.’
Lucilla’s gaze remained locked on him for some time, her eyes narrowed. ‘You have three days, or I will take matters into my own hands.’
Rufinus nodded. ‘We may need access to the imperial apartments, majesty?’
‘If you do, then speak to Vettius or Menander’ she indicated the chamberlain – the first time Rufinus had heard him mentioned by name.
‘Yes ma’am.’
‘Go then. Be about your work.’
Rufinus gave a short half-bow and backed out of the room as the empress returned to her seat. As he emerged at the entrance to the baths, pausing at the doorway to replace his military boots, Hactes the gladiator bustled round him.
‘There’s talk of a theft… of interrogations and executions?’
Rufinus shook his head. ‘It won’t come to that. In fact, I doubt this will take me more than an hour or two.’ He grinned at Hactes’ baffled expression. ‘Get back on duty. Pass the word to the rest that everything needs to go on as normal.’
The gladiator shrugged and nodded, hurrying away, leaving Rufinus standing in the chilly, damp morning air. He had absolutely no doubt as to the culprit, though the motive was still obscure, and the matter of prime importance would remain finding the stolen brooch. Tapping his finger thoughtfully on his lower lip, he strode from the baths and out into the open, past the arch of the guard-house once more.
At least he was currently off duty and supposed to be asleep, so no schedules would be put out by his investigation. Senova. He needed Senova.
The intoxicating British slave girl had not been present in the bath house, which had seemed a little odd. Senova was rarely far from Lucilla. But if she wasn’t with the lady then she was surely preparing something for her.
Turning on his heel, he re-entered the palace, this time heading toward the imperial apartments. A quick journey through the corridors and he arrived at the vestibule that led to Lucilla’s private quarters. It was forbidden for the guard to enter, and he’d not spoken to the major domo or the chamberlain. For a moment, he toyed with entering anyway, but stopped. There was muffled conversation from the other end of the corridor and the sound of urgent work.
‘Senova?’
The shuffling and clattering stopped and the muted conversation drifted off.
‘Senova?’ he tried again.
‘Rustius?’
There was another brief, muffled exchange, and then the creamy-white-faced slave girl with her delightfully upturned nose appeared in the corridor, hurrying toward him with an armful of sheets.
‘Rustius? What are you doing? You should not be near here. You will have us both punished!’
Rufinus smiled at her, which simply raised an exasperated sigh. ‘Senova, I need a favour.’
Quarter of an hour later, Rufinus paused at the top of the stairs and glanced around. The slave quarters murmured with the drone of life. The wood of the balconies and walkways was slightly slippery with the morning dew that clung to Latium with damp fingers.
He could just hear the Senova’s voice at the base of the stairs and padded quietly across the top balcony to the vaulted chamber next to the one outside which he’d been standing. With held breath, he listened, but could hear no sound from the room. Lifting the damp blanket that served as a wall to one side, he ducked within to the simple chamber, grateful to find it empty.
He had been a little delayed by his return to the Praetorium, where he had changed into his soft boots and paused to feed Acheron. Briefly he’d wondered if the dog would be of use, but had decided that stealth would win out here.
His breath coming in light bursts, he leaned against the wall, close to the blanket and listened carefully. Two distinct sets of footsteps lifted and fell as they reached the top of the flight of stairs and alighted onto the balcony.
‘So will they bring everyone in for questioning?’
The voice quivered nervously. Rufinus, not distracted by Senova’s physical presence, could read volumes in that voice. Fear mostly. Fear, and panic, and urgency. Not just that. In the aftermath of such an event, all those who had cause to be close to the empress would now be in a cold sweat, panicking about the torture and death that would be heading their way. But this voice held something other than fear, panic and urgency. Hidden beneath those tones was a healthy dose of guilt. Rufinus could almost hear her very bones and blood crying out her culpability and once more shook his head, wondering at the motive behind it all.