Caelius saw Catullus. His face registered simple surprise, followed by a lightning flash of emotion. Then a mask fell into place, which lifted for only an instant to show his confusion when he saw me. He hesitated, then gestured for his companions to follow as he approached us.
"Catullus!" he said, flashing a sardonic grin. "How long have you been back?"
"A few days."
"And you haven't come to call on me? My feelings are hurt."
"Actually, I did drop by your place," said Catullus. "Your old place. The neighbors said Clodius had kicked you out and put the building up for sale. They said I'd find you back at your father's hovel on the Quirinal
Hill."
"You should drop by." Caelius's smile never wavered.
"The Quirinal is a little out of my usual orbit. Besides, I shouldn't think that your father's house would be a suitable place for entertaining guests in your accustomed style."
"I don't know what you mean."
"The wine, the singing, the whores, the inventive sleeping arrangements. I can't see your papa approving."
"All that's behind me now," said Caelius.
"At least until after your trial. Then you may have to leave every-thing behind whether you want to or not."
The mask almost cracked. "I mean to say that I've seen fit to put aside some of the more boisterous habits of my youth, and to sever some of my more questionable associations. Perhaps you were right not to come calling on me after all, Catullus. One does have to hold to certain standards when inviting a guest into the house of one's father. It was thoughtful of you to spare me the embarrassment of shutting the door in your face."
There was a long pause, during which Catullus swirled the dregs in his cup and watched them spin, pursing his lips thoughtfully. "I think," he finally said, in a hard, low voice that made me hold my breath, "that for you to insult me in that way, Marcus Caelius-"
Caelius stiffened, as did his friends.
"For you to have insulted me in that fashion," Catullus went on, "by which I mean building an argument out of complicated sentences by logical steps-well, what I think about that, Marcus Caelius, is that you haven't drunk enough wine tonight!"
Caelius's face went blank, then he laughed. "Not nearly enough. And for you to do such a sloppy job of insulting me, Gaius Catullus, I think you must have already had far too much to drink!"
"I can't argue with that," said Catullus, grinning and swallowing the dregs.
"No matter," said Caelius. "The night's still young. Plenty of time for me to get stinking drunk, and for you to sober up."
"I take it that you know my friend here, Gratidianus," said Catullus.
"Gordianus," I corrected him. "Yes, Marcus Caelius and I are acquainted. We used to be neighbors."
"And a few times our paths have crossed in the courts," added Caelius. "Though never quite as they are crossing now."
I shrugged. "I'm not sure I-"
"But isn't it true, Gordianus, that a certain lady has hired you, and not for the purpose that she usually hires men?"
"You aren't worthy of kissing her middle finger," said Catullus, no longer friendly. "You certainly aren't worthy of insulting her."
Licinius, who had been peering at me, suddenly spoke up. "Wait, now I remember where I've seen this man before. He was there today, at the baths, when I-"
"Shut up, Licinius," growled Caelius.
"It isn't true, is it, Caelius?" Catullus leaned forward earnestly, his mood having shifted in the blink ofan eye. "It isn't true, what Gratidianus tells me-you wouldn't actually do her harm, would you? Not to her. Not for any reason. And certainly not by -"
"Shut up, Catullus," I said, clenching my teeth.
"Say, 1 recognize him, too!" Asicius stepped closer, peering at me. "He's the one who was hiding in the shadows across the street from your old apartment on the Palatine, Caelius, on the night that we took care of the old-"
"Shut up, Asicius!" cried Caelius, loudly enough to startle the gamblers next to us. One of them scratched his throw, sending the dice flying onto the floor-a bad omen which caused some of the players to vacate the table at once, whereupon those who remained began to shout accusations of bad faith at the quitters.
Catullus stood, a little unsteadily. "Are you looking for a place to sit, Caelius? Here, take my seat. The Salacious Tavern just became a little too salacious for even my tastes. Are you coming, Gratidianus?"
"Gordianus," I said under my breath, getting to my feet. Asicius and Licinius shoved past me and sat on the bench. As I stepped by him, Caelius seized my arm and put his mouth to my ear. "You're mistaken, you know. I didn't kill Dio, I swear."
"That's only one of the charges against you, Marcus Caelius."
He gripped my arm painfully hard and kept his voice low. "But you're only concerned with Dio, aren't you? You want to put his spirit to rest, because you knew him in Alexandria back in the old days." His handsome face was no longer nonchalant. A reckless, desperate man, Clodius had called him. I looked into his eyes and saw fear.
"How do you know these things, Marcus Caelius? How do you know about Dio and me, and about Clodia hiring me?"
"Never mind. What matters is that you're mistaken. It wasn't me. I didn't kill the old Egyptian. I swear to you by the shades of my ancestors!"
"And your friend Asicius?"
"He didn't kill Dio, either."
"Who did?"
"I don't know. But it wasn't me."
"And the night of the murder-where had you been with Asicius, before I saw you? What were the two of you up to? Tell me that, and swear by your ancestors."
"That's more than I can tell you."
"But still not enough."
Caelius squeezed my arm. "Gordianus-"
"Gratidianus!" said Catullus, seizing my other arm. Caelius released
me and I found myself being pulled toward the entrance, my head reeling from the stench of oil smoke and cheap wine.
Behind me I heard a stranger cry out, "By Venus! I wager everything and put my trust in the goddess of love!" Then a clatter of dice, and then the same voice, exultant amid groans of defeat: "The Venus Throw! The Venus Throw! It conquers all!"
Out in the street I breathed the fresh air and looked up at a clear sky spangled with stars. "Why such a rush to get me out of that place?"
"I couldn't leave you behind to tell them everything I'd just told you… about her."
"I wouldn't have done that. And please, stop calling me Gratidianus. My name-"
"I know what you call yourself. But for me you'll always have another name, the one I give you. Just as she has another name. In case I should write a poem about you."
"I can't imagine what sort of poem that would be."
"No?
Gratidianus thinks he's clever, and he must be, because Lesbia loves him, far better than Catullus and all his clan-"
"Stop, Catullus. You're too drunk to know what you're saying." "A man is never too drunk to make a poem."
"Just too drunk to make sense. I think I'd better find my way home." I looked up the alley. Beyond the lurid glow cast by the phallic lamp above the door, the way was swallowed up by an unreassuring darkness.
"I'll walk you home," offered Catullus.
A drunken poet for a bodyguard! What would happen if Caelius and his friends decided to come after us? "Quickly then. Do you know another route? Where no one would think to follow?"
"I know every path leading to and from the Salacious Tavern. Follow
me."
He led me on a circuitous route, slipping between warehouses set so close that I had to walk sideways to get through, picking a way around trash heaps where rats scurried and squeaked, and finally ascending a steep footpath up the western slope of the Palatine. It seemed a good route for avoiding assassins, but rather treacherous for a man who had been drinking as much as Catullus. I expected him to fall and break his neck at any moment, taking me with him, but he attacked the climb with only an occasional misstep. The climb seemed to sober him. His lungs were certainly strong enough. While I labored for breath, he had plenty left over to give vent to his thoughts.