Claudia, Wife of Pontius Pilate: A Novel (16 page)

 24 

I
n the early spring, Dimitris, a Greek, and a friend who had served with Lucius in the Roman army, was transferred to Caesarea. Lucius invited him to join them for dinner.

The two men clapped each other on the shoulders despite the fact that Lucius was now a higher rank as governor of Judea.

“So tell me, Dimitris, what is happening in Rome?” Lucius leaned back on his couch and waited.

“It is not good, my friend. Tiberius remains on Capri, with no intention of ever returning to Rome. Sejanus is in full control of the empire and the city. He sends messages to Tiberius and receives them in return, but still, the emperor will not leave Capri.”

Claudia felt Dimitris was measuring his words, knowing that Lucius was loyal to Sejanus.

Lucius shook his head slowly and reached for a piece of fruit. “I don’t understand the emperor’s desire to remain on Capri. It is like a ship without its main sail.”

“There are rumors that Tiberius intends to name Sejanus co-regent one day.”

Lucius’s hand paused in midair. “Co-regent?”

“I believe this is what Sejanus has been working toward.”

When Lucius’s eyes narrowed at this statement, Dimitris spread his hands. “I am only repeating what is being said in Rome. And why not? He’s been running the government for two years now. The people even celebrate his birthday as a national holiday.”

Lucius merely nodded, but the fingers of one hand drummed on the table. Claudia said nothing, but was troubled by this news. Sejanus was becoming more and more powerful. How would that affect their tenure here in Judea? There had been no repercussions after the incident with the banners.

Dimitris was feeling expansive and after taking a few bites ventured another piece of information, gauging their reaction.

“Tiberius has also given his consent for Sejanus to wed Levilla.”

“What?” breathed Lucius.

Claudia stopped eating to stare at Dimitris.

Finally, Lucius reached for a slice of meat. “I suppose I am not surprised. He has been petitioning Tiberius for some time.”

Claudia decided to take the opportunity of news from Rome to inquire about her grandmother. “Have you any word on the Lady Scribonia? I have written her, but not received a response.”

Dimitris winced. “Forgive me, Lady Claudia.” He reached into a pouch under his cape and drew out a small scroll and handed it to her. “I bring a letter from her. She is not in good health, though my sister says she has been seen at the baths.”

Claudia’s heart lifted as she quickly unrolled the missive.

My dear Claudia,

Dimitris called on me at Lucius’s request and I am sending this with him. I am not well, but the gods have not called me yet. Medina sends her love and wants me to assure you that she will go to the Villa Ponti at my demise and wait there for you to return to Rome. There is much fear in Rome but I can say no more. I am pleased that you are so quickly giving Lucius a child.
A good omen from the gods. I pray all will go well with you and look forward to the birth of a great-grandchild.

Your loving grandmother,
Scribonia

Claudia read the letter again. Her grandmother was not well. At least she was still alive. She would write back and send it with a courier.

The men’s conversation seemed murmurings over her head as she pondered other things.

After dinner Dimitris bid her a good evening and the men retired to her husband’s study, no doubt to discuss matters that did not concern women.

Claudia went up to her room to share the letter from her grandmother with Hotep. She found her maidservant staring out the window, and she seemed startled when Claudia entered the room.

“Your dinner is over, Domina?”

“Yes. It is difficult for me to sit very long. I have a surprise, a letter from my grandmother. She is not well. Medina assured me again that she will go to the Villa Ponti when my grandmother is gone.”

Sadness suddenly overwhelmed Claudia. Her grandmother was probably dying and there was no way she could see her before she died. The thought caused tears to surge to her eyes. She wiped them with one hand.

She seemed to have little strength these days. The babe was taking much of her energy. The early nausea had passed, but now, months later, had returned from time to time and she was uneasy with it.

Hotep helped her undress, brushed her hair, and saw her comfortably in her bed before bidding her mistress good night.

As she lay on her bed, Claudia thought about the incident in the plaza. Lucius had to make some difficult decisions and she admired the clever way he had gotten out of the matter of the banners. It could have been disastrous. She tried to picture the soldiers wielding their
broadswords and tearing into the crowd of Jews. It was horrible to contemplate. She was relieved and grateful that Lucius rescinded the order. Sleep came quickly and she didn’t know when or if Lucius came to bed.

The next morning as she started to rise to breakfast with Hotep, she realized two things. One, Lucius had spent the night in his own quarters, and two, she felt violently ill.

“Domina!” Hotep saw her face and quickly brought a basin. She was just in time.

Claudia lay back down on her bed as her maidservant carefully wiped her face with a damp cloth. “We must send for the physician.”

“Find my husband. He will know what to do.”

The maidservant dashed out of the room and in what seemed like moments, Lucius was at her side. “I have sent for the troop physician.” He pulled a chair to the side of the bed and took her hand, his face clouded with concern.

The military physician came. His lined face looked weary, but he looked down at Claudia with kindness. “I see you are with child, my lady. When is the child due?”

“In early summer.” She told him of the weariness and the nausea that came and went.

“Though this is common in the early months, my lady, some women do suffer longer. You are healthy. Perhaps you should rest more.”

Lucius, who stood back when the physician came to Claudia’s bedside, now took her hand again. “You will do as the physician asks, beloved?” It was more a statement than a question.

“Yes, Lucius.”

He kissed the palm of her hand. “Rest, my love, and conserve your strength.” He turned to the doctor. “Will it be safe for her to travel?”

“Excellency, women have been having babies for a long time. She can travel, but preferably not by horseback. Where were you going?”

“We move to Jerusalem for the spring. She will travel in the
carpentum.
The Jews celebrate Passover and the city is filled with pilgrims. I felt it best to be there watching over the activities at that time.”

“That should not be a problem, Excellency.” He turned to Claudia. “In the mornings, eat some bread and drink a little mulsa before you rise. It should help with the nausea.” The doctor gave a slight bow to his superior and left the room.

“I have duties to attend to, beloved, but Hotep will take good care of you as she always has. I will try to join you for lunch here in your quarters. It is best you do not come down to the dining room at this time. I will try to come here and join you for the evening meal.” He kissed her cheek and left the room.

Hotep pumped the pillows behind her. “We will be more careful, Domina. I will take care of you.”

Claudia nodded. “That is well and good for the future, but for now, bring me some bread and mulsa quickly. I want to be able to stand up.”

 25 

W
ith Lucius away from Caesarea visiting another part of Judea to inspect one of the cohorts stationed there, Claudia sent for Jeremiah. In a week they would leave for Jerusalem, and she was anxious to know more about the Jews before she got there.

She carefully made her way downstairs with the help of her maidservant and waited in the alcove in the garden, looking forward to more of this interesting story of the Jews.

When Jeremiah came, at her invitation, he settled himself slowly on the end of the bench.

“Let me see, my lady, where did I leave off?”

“It was the people of Israel settling in the land of Goshen.”

“Ah, yes. Well, the people lived in Egypt many years and, with the favor of the Most High God, multiplied into a great nation just as the Most High God had promised Abraham. But there came a day when a king arose in Egypt who knew nothing of Joseph. He felt the people of Israel were too many and feared they would take over his kingdom. He made them slaves and used them to build the great pyramids and cities of Egypt. Nearly four hundred years had passed since the people had come to Egypt, and now they were doing backbreaking work for Pharaoh. They cried out to the Most High God for deliverance for a long time. The Most High heard their cries and sent them one
of their own, a man by the name of Moses. He had been born to a Hebrew couple, but Pharaoh had decreed that all male children were to be killed . . .”

Claudia’s eyes widened. “All of them? That seems so cruel.”

“Cruelty comes in many forms, Domina.”

Jeremiah waited, letting his words sink in.

She let the comment pass. “Go on, Jeremiah.”

“The parents hid their son for three months, and then one day the mother made a basket and put pitch in all the cracks and crevasses so it would float. It was placed among the reeds on a day when Pharaoh’s daughter came down to the river to bathe. The baby’s sister, Miriam, hid nearby and watched over her little brother. Just as the family hoped, Pharaoh’s daughter came and found the baby. The princess called him Moses, for it meant “drawn from the water.” Moses was trained in all the knowledge of Egypt, but his true mother, who had been called to be his nurse, taught him about his people, the Hebrews. One day Moses tried to settle a fight between an Egyptian and a Hebrew and killed the Egyptian. He was forced to flee into the wilderness to hide from Pharaoh’s wrath. He married the daughter of a Midianite chieftain and raised two sons. When he was eighty years old, he was herding sheep in the wilderness one day when he saw a burning bush—”

Claudia interrupted. “A prince of Egypt one day and then reduced to being a shepherd in the wilderness? If he was the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, would she not protect him?”

“Perhaps she could not, Domina. Our God always has a plan and this was his plan for Moses, for a time. When Moses saw a bush that seemed on fire but did not burn, he turned aside to see what this strange sight was. When he approached, God called to him from the midst of the bush and told him he was to go to Pharaoh and tell him to let his people go. Moses was reluctant to do this. He was old, he did not speak well, and he knew that Pharaoh would not listen. God made his brother, Aaron, his spokesman, and finally Moses obeyed the voice of the Lord and went.”

“What happened when he returned to Egypt? Was he not in danger of his life?”

Jeremiah glanced at the shadows that were filling the courtyard. “Perhaps another day, Domina?”

“Yes, another day, Jeremiah. I will think on what you have told me.”

After she had slowly returned to her quarters, Claudia burst out. “Some of this is very hard to believe. A fiery bush that does not burn? I wonder if Jeremiah is making this up.”

“I believe he is sincere, Domina. It is an unusual story.”

Claudia laughed. “Yes, indeed. The Jews are an unusual people. I cannot wait to hear what Pharaoh says when an old man of eighty and his brother come and tell him to let the Hebrews leave the land.”

Hotep was somber. “Would it not be the same if a foreigner came to Caesar and asked him to let all the slaves go? He would not do this.”

When Lucius had not returned the next day, Claudia sent for Jeremiah again. In the courtyard she would be aware if and when her husband returned.

Jeremiah lowered himself again to the end of the bench and, after clearing his throat, continued the story of his people.

“Pharaoh would not let the people go. He did not arrest Moses, but deemed him a crazy prophet he could dismiss from his presence. When the Pharaoh refused, the Most High God sent ten plagues on Egypt to change Pharaoh’s mind.”

“Ten plagues?”

“Yes, my lady. First, the rivers were turned to blood; then the land was overrun by frogs, then gnats; a plague of boils on cattle and people alike; a plague of hailstones that killed people and animals; a plague of locusts that came by the millions and ate what crops were left; a plague of severe darkness where a man could not even see his hand in front of his face. Yet, no matter what the plague, Pharaoh would not listen and refused each time to let the people go.”

“Your god did this? And in spite of each of these terrible plagues, Pharaoh still refused?”

“Yes. It took one final act for Pharaoh to finally agree to let the Hebrews leave Egypt.”

“What more could this god of yours do?”

“A most terrible thing, my lady, the plague of the firstborn. The Most High God called Moses and Aaron and gave them instructions they were to pass on to the people. At twilight they were to kill and roast a lamb or a young goat over the fire and eat it with bitter salad greens and bread made without yeast. Nothing was to remain until morning. They were to eat this meal in haste with their sandals on their feet, fully dressed and walking stick in their hand. They were to take blood from the sacrificial lamb and, with a hyssop branch, smear it on the sides and doorposts of their homes. They were not to go outside that night, as the death angel of the Lord would come and would pass over any home marked with blood and they would be safe. Any home without the sign of the blood would lose the firstborn son in that household, from the son of slaves to the son of Pharaoh. We were told to celebrate this night, the Passover, from generation to generation as a special festival to the Lord.”

She leaned forward. “And did the death angel come?”

He nodded solemnly. “Yes, my lady, and there was the terrible sound of weeping and wailing throughout the land as people awoke to death in their homes. Pharaoh, grieving the loss of his own son, the Prince of Egypt, called for Moses and ordered him to leave Egypt with his people.”

“How sad, Jeremiah, that the Pharaoh would not listen and allowed such devastation to his own country and people.”

“Perhaps, my lady, we also do not always listen to the voice of our God.”

“So this is why there is the celebration of Passover in Jerusalem every year?”

“Yes.”

“Tell me, Jeremiah, did the people then settle in the land your god promised them?”

He shook his head slowly. “We have been called a stubborn people, my lady. You have seen this over the matter of the standards. When Moses went up on Mt. Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments from the Most High God—”

Claudia interrupted him. “Your god gave you ten commandments? These are the laws for your people?”

“Yes, my lady. They are the basis for our laws, before the entire law was given to the people through Moses.”

“What are these commandments?”

Jeremiah paused, considering, then recited from memory, “You shall worship no other God but the Most High; You shall not make for yourself an idol of any kind; Do not misuse the name of the Lord; Remember the Sabbath, to keep it holy; Honor your mother and father; You shall not commit murder; You shall not steal; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not testify falsely against your neighbor; You shall not covet anything of your neighbor’s.”

She considered them. “They seem like good rules to follow. We as Romans have laws to follow. That is what civilized people do. They obey the laws.”

“But you worship many gods, my lady, and there are idols throughout the city.”

She still didn’t understand. “Why is it wrong for us to worship many gods just because you choose to worship only one?”

“Because the Most High God is the only true God. He created the heavens and the earth.”

This was getting out of hand. More and more she felt confused and that Jeremiah’s tale was just that, a tale. Yet, why would the Jews be willing to die for a myth? She had to know more.

“Moses brought the Ten Commandments down from the mountain, and . . . ?”

Jeremiah frowned as if he sensed her disbelief. “The people thought
he was not coming back after being on the mountain forty days. They rebelled and began to worship a golden calf that Aaron made for them.”

She was amazed. “Aaron was the brother of your leader and served your god, yet he made an idol for the people?”

“Yes, my lady, he sinned greatly in this. His life was saved only because he repented and Moses cried out to God for him. Unfortunately there were other sins that angered our God and the people were forced to wander in the wilderness for forty years.”

“Instead of the land your god promised them?”

“Until Moses died, and God called Joshua to take up the leadership of the people. Joshua was a mighty warrior and the armies of Israel were victorious in battle and conquered many people. When they had driven out the people God had told them to conquer, they were finally able to settle the land. It was divided up into twelve portions, for the twelve tribes. From this beginning, down through the generations, through the tribe of Judah, we were given David, and his son Solomon, the greatest king that Israel has known.”

“I have never heard of Solomon. How was he a great king?”

“God blessed him above all other men and gave him wisdom beyond his years. He ruled much of what is the Roman Empire at this time. He was wealthy beyond anything we could imagine. Kings and queens came from other countries to hear his wisdom. Yet, his son was not wise. After Solomon’s death the kingdom was lost to enemies through his descendants who were wicked in the eyes of the Most High God.”

Claudia looked down at her hands and tried to comprehend all that Jeremiah was telling her. What a complicated people the Jews were. She might as well hear the rest. “What did they do that was so wicked?”

Jeremiah hesitated. “They worshiped abominable idols and sacrificed their children to the pagan gods of the land, which the Most High never ordained.”

Since Claudia’s household gods and the Roman gods were all she
had ever known, Jeremiah’s words disturbed her. “At least we Romans don’t sacrifice our children!”

“No my lady, but sometimes they are the victims of their father’s sins. Your Roman women starve themselves to death and families are murdered because of the crimes of the father. Good men commit suicide at the hint of a scandal to save their family name. The Most High God never commanded such a thing.”

That was true. Some well-to-do families in Rome had suffered death because of the acts of the father. If Lucius was convicted of a crime by Tiberius, would she be willing to starve herself to death? It was a chilling thought.