A couple of days after the ides of January one such dinner had just finished and the guests had taken their leave when there was a knock on the door. Gaius, thinking that it was one of his guests returning to collect a forgotten item, opened the door himself, to reveal Pallas.
‘Good evening, master, I’m sorry to intrude on you so late,’ the Greek steward said in his faultless Latin.
‘Good evening to you, my friend. Come in. I assume that you are here on your mistress’ business?’
‘I am, master.’ Pallas quickly looked around outside and then stepped into the atrium. ‘I have taken great care not to be followed. It is a matter of the utmost urgency and highly confidential.’
‘In that case we shall speak privately in my study. Follow me.’
He led the steward through the atrium to his study at the far left-hand corner. Pallas nodded his respects through the open door of the triclinium to Sabinus and Vespasian, who were still reclining at table with their parents, and then disappeared into Gaius’ private domain.
‘Who is that?’ Vespasia asked of the two brothers. ‘He obviously knows you.’
Being unable to deny it Sabinus replied: ‘He’s the steward of Lady Antonia; but what he’s doing here I don’t know,’ he added, anticipating her next question.
Vespasia looked at her husband. ‘I’ve never known anything good come of a late-night secret meeting,’ she said darkly. ‘I suppose it has something to do with whatever was being discussed at that dinner.’
As if to prove her point Gaius appeared at the triclinium door. ‘Vespasia, my dear, and Titus, would you excuse your sons a moment? There is something that I need to speak to them about.’
‘I told you,’ Vespasia said.
‘Of course, Gaius, with pleasure. Go on, boys,’ Titus replied graciously.
‘With pleasure indeed!’ Vespasian heard his mother snort as he left the room.
Gaius’ study was surprisingly spacious. The far wall was shelved, from floor to ceiling. Hundreds of leather cylinders containing Gaius’ books were stacked neatly between the upright partitions. In the middle of the room stood a heavy wooden desk behind which Gaius sat. In the dim light of two oil lamps and a brazier Vespasian could make out the small statuettes and artwork that he’d expected of his uncle, knowing his tastes only too well by now.
‘You need to go at once with Pallas to Antonia’s house,’ Gaius said without asking them to sit. ‘You must do whatever she asks of you, and believe me when I tell you that it is of vital importance.’
‘What is, Uncle?’ Sabinus asked.
‘It would be best if Antonia explains it herself. I shall send for Magnus and his colleagues to escort you, it’s too dangerous to travel without guards at this time of the night. How you got here unharmed, Pallas, I don’t know.’
‘I am but a mere slave, master, what would anyone want with me?’
‘Mere, indeed!’ Gaius smiled and then looked at his nephews. ‘Now go and get your cloaks and travel with the hoods up.’
Magnus arrived quicker than expected; it was almost as if he’d been expecting a summons from his patron.
‘I brought six of me lads, sir,’ he told Gaius as he stepped through the door, ‘on the basis that if you’re going somewhere at this time of night on urgent business it ain’t for a convivial bit of socialising, if you take my meaning?’
‘Yes, yes, very wise, though I hope it won’t come to that.’
‘Come to what, Gaius?’ Vespasia was hovering near the door desperate to find out what was going on. ‘And what’s that man doing here again?’
‘Good evening, madam,’ Magnus said, bowing his head.
‘It’s all right, Vespasia; he’s here to escort Pallas, Sabinus and Vespasian to Antonia’s house,’ Gaius said, anxious to avoid a repetition of their last encounter.
‘At this time of night?’
‘Yes, that’s precisely why he’s here, because it is this time of night.’
‘But what’s so important that it can’t wait until morning when they won’t have to go creeping around the place with a bunch of no-good ruffians?’
Magnus’ face remained inscrutable; he was getting used to being insulted by ‘that woman’, as he now thought of her.
‘Vespasia, let it rest,’ Titus ordered. ‘Whatever Antonia wants from our sons is her business – we should be honoured that they can be of service to such a great lady.’
Vespasian and Sabinus appeared back in the atrium in their thick woollen cloaks, each sporting a long dagger on their belts.
‘Why do you need to be armed?’ Vespasia asked suspiciously.
‘Better safe than sorry, Mother.’ Sabinus grinned. ‘Good evening, Magnus, shall we go?’
‘Evening, young sirs, we shall if you’re ready. Where are we going?’
‘To the Lady Antonia’s house on the Palatine.’
‘Ah! Well, if you must.’ Magnus looked unsure.
‘Yes, we must.’
‘Take care, dear boys, I have a feeling that you have a long night ahead of you. May the gods go with you.’ Gaius put a hand on each of their shoulders and gave them an affectionate squeeze.
‘I don’t know what you are going to be asked to do but I think that “Be careful” would be suitable advice,’ Titus said, putting an arm around his wife.
‘We shall, Father,’ Vespasian replied. ‘Mother, don’t worry, Sabinus will be fine, I’ll look after him.’
Sabinus gave his younger brother a sour look. ‘Very funny, you little shit.’
‘Sabinus!’
‘Sorry, Mother. We’ll see you in the morning. Goodbye.’
The two brothers stepped out of the door followed by Pallas and Magnus to the sound of Vespasia berating Gaius again for getting her sons involved in affairs that they, or more to the point she, didn’t understand and could not control.
Outside Magnus’ men were waiting with a couple of flaming torches. A light rain started to fall as they headed off down the hill. Their footsteps echoed around the deserted street and the torchlight reflected a deep orange off the glistening wet paving stones.
‘I’ve taken the precaution of leaving a man hidden behind us to see if we’re being followed,’ Magnus told Sabinus and Vespasian. ‘I told him to count to five hundred, then make his way down through the side alleys and meet us on the main road.’
‘Might take some time,’ Vespasian mused.
Magnus looked at him quizzically and then laughed. ‘Oh, I see. Yes, you’re right, he ain’t the brightest of the brothers but I reckon he’ll make it to five hundred in a reasonable time; had it been Sextus here I would have only told him two hundred.’ He gave his mate a playful nudge and got a good-humoured laugh in response.
They reached the main road and had to wait for only a brief time before their rearguard, a huge, bald man with a stump where his left hand had been, caught up with them.
‘No one behind us, Magnus,’ he puffed, out of breath from his quick run through the back streets.
‘Well done, Marius. How did the counting go?’
‘What?’ Marius looked puzzled. ‘It was all right.’
The rest of his brothers burst out laughing; realising that he must be the butt of some joke made behind his back, Marius grinned sheepishly, mumbled: ‘Yeah, yeah, very amusing,’ and fell in with the group as they headed off in the direction of the Palatine.
The rain was falling steadily by the time that they reached Antonia’s house. Once the new doorkeeper had admitted them Pallas gave orders for Magnus and his companions to be shown to the kitchens for some refreshment and then ushered the two brothers through to Antonia’s private room, where they had dined back in December.