The Gods Help Those Page 22

  When the coins began plopping into the water, the wretches beneath me plunged in after them. Others came running and fights broke out. People fell beneath the blows of clubs. Even as desperate as I was to get out, I couldn’t help but watch the uproar for a moment. I’ve heard that Caligula used to throw gold coins from the balcony of his house on the Palatine to crowds in the street below. Everyone thought he was being generous, but he actually just enjoyed watching people fight over the money.

  “Are you all right, my lord?” Archidamos asked as I emerged from Hades, smelling a lot worse than any mythical hero I’d ever read about.

  “I will be as soon as I can get a bath. Pile some of those barrels over this opening and let’s get out of here.”

  Even with only a small contingent of servants to escort Gaius, we had little trouble cutting through the crowds in the streets. People laughed and covered their noses as they got out of our way. The men bearing my litter even made good time. Gaius would have had us running if he could. I knew he was eager to get cleaned up and start the search for his mother, but I’ve always known that he’s sensitive to ridicule.

  When we were children he didn’t like it if I outdid him in our lessons. One of our tutors—a man I never liked—was particularly insensitive about Gaius being outshone by “a mere girl.” I tried not to best him regularly, but I couldn’t be too obvious about it or he would spot my deception at once.

  In the last year there has been one occasion—and one only—when he was unable to couple with me. He couldn’t “rise to the occasion,” as Ovid says. I didn’t laugh at him, of course, but he heaped enough scorn on himself for both of us.

  Whatever the future holds for us, I know I’ll have to treat Gaius delicately at times. If we don’t find his mother, I’m afraid he may fall apart completely. Sometimes I think neither of us appreciates how deeply attached he became to her because he lost his father so early and moved around so much as a child. But then, the same could be said about me.

  Gaius was walking as close to me as my nose would allow. “My lord,” I said, “I’m sorry I acted so rashly with the money. I have some saved up. You can take it, and I’ll accept whatever punishment you decide on.”

  “Nonsense,” Gaius snorted. “You did exactly the right thing. You deserve a reward, not a punishment.” The way he glared at Archidamos made me uncomfortable.

  When we got home I did not stop to explain anything to Naomi and the other women who came running up to me, then backed away. Aurora helped me wash off thoroughly before I got into the bath so I wouldn’t befoul the water for everyone else. When I was clean enough, I got into the pool, rubbed olive oil on myself vigorously, and scraped myself with a strigl as I had never scraped before. I wished the water could be even hotter.

  I emerged from the caldarium with a rosy glow to my skin. I still didn’t feel clean, but, as Aurora rubbed me with scented oil and helped me don a clean tunic, she assured me that she could not detect any hint of the odor of the sewer. Since we were alone, she kissed me on the neck and shoulder. “Would I do that,” she said, “if you still smelled like merda?”

  I sent a message to Tacitus asking him to meet me at the ruins of my warehouse. “I think that’s where he’ll go,” I wrote, “because it’s the one place in the city with which he is most familiar.”

  It was almost evening when Tacitus arrived at the warehouse, shortly after I got there with my servants. My mother was nowhere to be seen. I could not find any evidence that she and Simon had been there. I picked up a broken piece of timber and slammed it against a collapsed part of the wall. It splintered in my hands.

  “Where is he?” I yelled. “He took my mother down into the sewer. I’ve seen what’s down there. What if somebody—”

  Tacitus held up his hands to calm me. “We know how vicious Simon is. I doubt if a few starving sewer rats could overpower him and that knife of his. He won’t let anything happen to your mother because he has to have her to get his son back. Don’t let yourself go crazy, Gaius. We have to keep our wits about us.”

  I picked up another piece of wood and shattered it against the wall. “That’s what I want to do to Simon when I find him.”

  Aurora put a hand on my shoulder. “It’s getting dark, Gaius. Why don’t we get some rest and start again in the morning?”

  “Start where? Where in the whole city of Rome could I hope to find this bastard?”

  “Aurora’s right,” Tacitus said. “We can’t do any more than we’ve done today. It is almost dark. We all need to get home while the streets are still safe. We’ll be able to think more clearly after we’ve had some sleep.”

  “Sleep? Do you think I’m going to get any sleep tonight?”

  Aurora and Joshua spent the night in my room. Neither of us was willing to let the child—or our weapons—out of our sight. Contrary to my expectations, I did fall asleep at some time during the night. Aurora had Joshua in her arms the whole night, except when Miriam came in to feed him, which I was only barely aware of.

  When I awoke the next morning I found a piece of papyrus under my door. It was a note—written as a formal letter—from Simon to me:

  Simon ben-Hur to Gaius Plinius, greetings.

  Did you really expect to find me in that broken-down warehouse of yours? That would be the first place anyone would look. I’m not that stupid. If you want to see your mother again, bring my son to the Esquiline Gate at noon on the day you receive this.

  I am sorry to have caused your mother any distress. She is a fine woman, unlike that whore who calls herself my mother. I have not harmed her and I will not, as long as I get my son back.

  “How did he get in and out of the house again?” I said in a rage. “There were people on watch!”

  But watchmen, it turns out, need to relieve themselves or can’t stay awake for an entire night. And they think “it’s just for a few minutes.” On top of my displeasure with Archidamos, I felt my resolve not to whip my servants weakening. Aurora tried to soften my anger as we stood by the fishpond. I had to remind myself that no one had been harmed. But what about the next time, a voice in my head argued.

  I hadn’t answered that question when Tacitus burst into the garden. “Gaius! Gaius!” He gasped as though he had run all the way from his house. “It’s Simon. He came…after Licinia.”

  “So you’ve got him?” My spirits brightened instantly.

  “No, he’s got her.”

  “What? How—”

  Tacitus took a deep breath. “Maybe half an hour ago…he came over the roof…dropped into the garden…these damn gaping holes.” He pointed upward. “We might as well leave the front door open.”

  “Never mind that. What happened?”

  “Agricola’s veterans confronted him. I was just waking up when I heard the noise and came out of my room. I gave them orders to grab him and lock him up, but he said, ‘If you do anything to me, Gaius Pliny will never see his mother again.’ I asked him what he wanted and he said, ‘Licinia.’ What could I do? I let him have her. They walked out of my house as free as guests leaving after dinner. I’m surprised they didn’t ask for some leftover food to take with them.”

  “You did what you had to,” I said. “As long as he has my mother, we don’t have any alternative but to do what he says.” I showed him Simon’s note. “This means that he left her alone somewhere. Is she tied up? What has he done to her?”

  Tacitus pointed at the letter. “He says he hasn’t harmed her.”

  I scoffed. “Do you trust the word of a cold-blooded killer?”

  Tacitus patted my shoulder and shook his head. “Noon it is, at the Esquiline Gate. I’ll be there. Shall I bring some of Agricola’s men?”

  “I’ll have to think about that. After the exchange we could grab him.”

  “But,” Aurora said, “he might bolt if he sees any kind of force.”

  “I’ll get there them early and conceal them,” Tacitus said. “There are plenty of places around that gate where they could hi
de.”

  “He seems to have an extraordinary sense of what’s going on around him,” Aurora said. “It’s like he has eyes all over his head, like Argus.”

  “We have to try something,” I said. “I want to get my mother back, but we can’t let a killer escape.”

  “If he has Joshua,” Aurora said, “he will still have a hostage.”

  I put a hand on her shoulder. “I don’t think he’ll hurt his own child. Frankly, though, a threat to the child won’t be a strong incentive to leave him alone.”

  Aurora’s eyes widened in horror.

  “I promise you, we’ll make every effort to capture him without anyone getting hurt. But you know what he’s capable of, and his technique.”

  “That will be the plan then.” Tacitus gave me a soldier’s salute. “I’ll see you at noon.”

  When Tacitus was gone I retreated to my bench in the arbor. Aurora, with Joshua in her arms, stood in front of me. “Sit down,” I said.

  She sat beside me and patted the baby. “You have to give him back, don’t you? I know you do.”

  “Of course I do. I know how you feel about him, about some destiny that brought the two of you together. But what else can I do?” I turned sideways on the bench so I could look directly at her. “You’re not seriously suggesting—”

  “No! No! Nothing of the sort. Your mother comes first.” She hesitated and took a breath. “It did occur to me, though, that we might substitute a baby. Like you’ve told me, it’s easy to find unwanted children in Rome.”

  “Could you do something that callous to a child?”

  “A child who’s likely to starve to death in an alley, if he’s not eaten by rats first? Is a death like that better than a life with someone like Simon? I’ve heard you say that life is always better than death. Lorcis and Martial have told you their story.…”

  “This baby has been circumcised. I’m sure Simon will check that. And I can’t do anything that would put my mother at risk. As hard as it will be for you, I have to give this baby back to his father. I’m sorry.”

  A tear started down Aurora’s cheek and she put Joshua on her shoulder, close to her face. He snuggled into her neck and sighed.

  I was assembling a group of servants in the atrium to go to the Esquiline Gate. Miriam would be included, in case Joshua needed to be fed while we were waiting for Simon. A crying baby could attract unwanted attention. Archidamos had pleaded to go along, to redeem himself for his failure at the sewer yesterday. I decided on him and five others. That seemed an adequate number without being unwieldy.

  “You must remember,” I told them, “this man is ruthless and clever. He has been in this house twice without anyone seeing him. That’s how clever he is. Because he has my mother we can’t just rush in and attack him. Everyone, please watch me and do what I tell you. And do it immediately, with no hesitation.” I glared at Archidamos, who nodded.

  I thought we were ready to leave, but Naomi approached me. “My lord, I want to go with you. I want to be there to comfort your mother when we get her back.”

  I hadn’t thought in those terms, but it seemed like a good idea to have someone who meant so much to my mother with us. I appreciated that she had said when, not if. “All right. But stay back until we’re sure the exchange is complete.”

  The exchange would also involve Aurora. She would not let anyone else carry Joshua. I had to let her hold onto him until the last possible moment. Miriam had fed him, what I assumed was for the last time, and now Aurora was clutching him to her, cooing to him and rocking him.

  We arrived at the Esquiline Gate ahead of time, as I had planned. Because it’s close to the Market of Livia, it’s a busy spot. We call it a gate, but it’s really just an archway. Rome long ago outgrew the need for actual gates. No one is going to attack us. One road leads out of Rome at that point and then splits into the Via Labicana, running southeast, and the Via Tiburtina, which takes a sharp turn to the northeast. I did not see any sign of Simon, but I couldn’t see anyone I suspected might be one of Agricola’s veterans either. That I took as a good sign. Tacitus, sitting at a table in front of a taberna, waved when he saw me. I went over and joined him and ordered a cup of wine, which was served promptly.

  “Agricola’s men did a good job of concealing themselves,” I said.

  “There are eight of them, but I don’t think anyone other than Agricola could spot them.”

  A man, coming from behind me, sat down at the table with us. “Eight, eh? That’s good to know. I had counted only six,” Simon said.

  I jumped up, knocking over my wine. “By the gods! How—”

  “I could have easily killed a couple of them,” he said with a smirk, “but I didn’t want to damage my chances of getting my son back.”

  “Where did you come from?”

  “What if I told you I can walk through walls?”

  In spite of his appearances in my house, I didn’t believe that. He had shaved and, with a dark green cloak and a traveler’s broad-brimmed hat and a patch over one eye, had changed his overall appearance enough that I would not have recognized him if I’d walked past him on the street.

  “Where is my mother, you bastard?” I looked around wildly.

  “An aptly chosen epithet,” he said, removing the eye patch. “Where is my son?”

  “He’s right over there.” I pointed to Aurora. “But you don’t get him until my mother is standing in front of me.”

  “No, Gaius Pliny, you don’t make the rules. If I were to hand her over to you right here, you would give me my son—I believe you are an honorable man—but then you would set those veterans on me before I could walk through that gate. Oh, wait, the two I missed must be on the other side of the gate.”

  I felt absolutely helpless. All I could do was threaten him. “I will not give you your son until—”

  “Calm down! You’re going to get your mother back.” He placed a piece of papyrus and a key on the table. “Here are the directions to the apartment where your mother is and a key to the room.”

  “You left her alone, locked up somewhere?”

  “She’s not alone. Licinia is with her. She’s being fed and cared for. But I told Licinia that, if I’m not back with my son in two hours, she is to kill your mother. And you know she’s mad enough to do it, if she thinks you’ve done anything to me. When we escaped from Lucullus she wanted to kill Deborah and the baby.” He looked up at the sun. “Now, you don’t have a lot of time left.”

  “I see what you’re doing,” Tacitus said. “You’re going to take the child and leave. You’re not going back to the room where Plinia and Licinia are. And you know we can’t follow you because if Pliny doesn’t get there in time—”

  “Then why are we still talking?” Simon said. “I’m not sure how accurately Licinia keeps track of time. It’s hard to see the sun out the small window in that apartment.”

  I motioned for Aurora to come to the table. Naomi came with her. I pried Joshua out of Aurora’s arms and gave him to Simon, who immediately checked to see if the baby was circumcised. Joshua began to cry as Simon walked away from the table. Naomi followed him, with a stream of Aramaic spewing out of her mouth and her arms flailing. It was enough to stop Simon for a moment. She slapped him on the arm.

  At that point I felt I had to intervene before she provoked Simon and his knife came flying out from under his tunic. “Calm down, Naomi,” I said, pulling her away from him. “What did you say to him?”

  Naomi blushed. “I would be ashamed to repeat it, my lord, but I had to say it.”

  Simon hoisted Joshua on his shoulder and mocked Naomi. “ ‘My lord, my lord.’ Doesn’t that phrase just stick in your craw? I’ve said it for the last time. And my son never will say it.” He said something to Naomi in their language, then added in Greek, “You’re probably right, though, you old hag. And I deserve every curse you’ve put on me.” He gave Naomi a shove which sent her stumbling back into Aurora’s arms. The two of them joined Miriam on the edg
e of my group of retainers.

  Simon turned to me. “Your time is running out, Gaius Pliny, so I’ll let you get to it. By the way, your mother is a very nice lady. She’s very maternal, not a self-serving whore, like my mother. I truly am sorry for any discomfort I’ve caused her. I assure you, I have not harmed her.”

  I shook my fist in his face. “Maybe I can’t do anything right now, but once I have her back, I will not rest until I’ve tracked you down. You deserve to be punished for two murders—”

  “Two that you know of.”

  “You also killed Licinia’s mother, didn’t you?”

  “Lucullus told me to. She had found out what he was doing to Licinia.”

  “Does Licinia know what you did?”

  “I’m sure she will as soon as you find her.”

  “Well, it doesn’t matter how many you’ve killed. I’ll be coming after you for abducting my mother.”

  Simon threw back his head and laughed. “Do you see how I’m trembling?”

  He had taken only a couple of steps toward the gate when Aurora called out, “Simon! How do you plan to feed Joshua?”

  “Who?”

  “Your son.”

  “You’ve named him?”

  “Yes.”

  Simon held the baby up and looked him over. “Joshua, eh? That’s not bad. At least you didn’t call him Lucius or Marcus or some other slave name. But you’re right. I’ll have to think about how I’m going to feed him.”

  “Miriam here can do it.” Aurora put her hand on Miriam’s back and prodded her toward Simon, who said something to her in Aramaic. Miriam replied and the two of them walked away together.

  “What just happened?” I asked Naomi and Aurora.

  Naomi spoke first. “We devised a plan while we were walking over here, my lord. It was Miriam’s idea, in fact. She said she would go with the baby.”