The Barbarian's Mistress (20 page)

‘We’ll stay here tonight and find the quickest way back to Paestum at first light,’ Herakles said as they went.

Ninia nodded wordlessly. She had already asked why they had overshot their destination. Her father had patiently explained that the larger, faster crafts making their way along the coast didn’t stop at small townships like Paestum. They were better off going to the closest major destination, even if it was further south, and working their way back.

They were wandering through the forum, hoping to catch a shipping agent still open, when they found themselves behind a pair of ruffians badgering a pale, skinny shipping clerk.

‘A tall, blonde man with a girl. You couldn’t miss ‘em. One of the Germanic scum. Hair almost white. The girl is young and pretty,’ one man said; his voice gravelled with threat.

Ninia froze midstride and pulled on Herakles’ arm. It was clear her father wasn’t paying attention to the conversation of fellow travellers. He frowned at her, and was about to ask what was wrong, when she motioned him into silence.

Bending down, as if to retie her sandal, she listened more intently.

‘I… I’m not sure sir, give me a moment.’

The two men shared a quiet word while they waited for the frightened man to return. Ninia took the opportunity to study them out of the corner of her eye. They w
ere a frightening pair. The older man had grizzled, grey hair, hollowed cheeks and two fingers missing off his left hand. The other was young, maybe mid-twenties, and tall. Not as tall as she remembered Vali being, but tall. They both carried themselves like warriors.

The frightened clerk came back with a much older man. This man looked the two up and down before speaking.

‘Such a man may have taken ship this morning. What business is it of yours, sirs?’

‘He’s a friend, and we’ve been trying to catch up with him for some time. We seem to always be missing him. We was told at Paestum he’d come here to take ship.’ This was the young one, who seemed to be making an effort at civility.

‘Friend? But you called him scum,’ the nervous man put in, almost beside himself with shock at his own audacity.

For the first time Ninia noticed the scar down the side of the young one’s face. It ran from eyebrow to chin. His dark hair, olive skin and Hispanic features might have made him handsome, if not for that ugly disfigurement. Ninia was immediately wary of him. No wonder the clerk had reacted like a bird confronted by a cat.

‘Vali’s not scum, but his countrymen are. Enough. Just tell us what we need to know, and we’ll make it worth your while,’ Missing-Fingers snapped, what little patience he’d had, now gone.

Her father was still and listening now. He began fiddling with his shoulder bag as if looking for something. His dark eyes darted toward the two men.

‘The man you spoke of took ship with his wife to Carthago on the
Utica
this morning. Or I assume they did. It was the ship we recommended.’ The agent spoke stiffly, as if insulted at the offer of a bribe.

‘Carthago, not Rome. You’re certain?’

‘Very certain. I dealt with them myself. Nice young couple. Liberti, I checked. We do not deal with escaped slaves. Their documents were in order.’ The man sniffed, his back becoming even stiffer, if that were possible.

‘Right. Then tell us when the next ship to Cathago passes here, so my friend can try to catch up with them. I need a vessel heading for Rome.’ The younger man tried for civility again, but the way he seemed to loom over the shipping clerk belied his tone.

‘There’s another vessel heading to Africa at dawn tomorrow. It’s called the
Tanit
. There’s a clipper heading to Rome later in the day that would be your fastest option. It’s called the
Argos.
It should arrive around midday, unload, and be on its way early afternoon, unless the winds aren’t favourable.’

‘Good. That’ll suit us well.’ Scarface grinned wolfishly.

Ninia and Herakles moved away just enough to appear interested in the notice on the board next to the agent’s booth. When the two men left, Herakles approached the counter.

‘Two for Cathago, as soon as possible.’

‘That will be the
Tanit
at dawn. It’s unlikely to be fully loaded, so there’ll be spaces. But I suggest you get there well before dawn. There was a man just here looking for a berth on that same vessel. If they’re short on space it’ll be first on board that gets the places.’

‘Thanks. We’ll take your advice. Is there a decent inn near the dock?’

In a short space of time, Ninia and Herakles were hurrying away, back in the direction they’d come. Once they had a room, they went down to find a meal. Sitting out in the garden courtyard they sipped on watered wine and ate stew of a fair standard. They spoke quietly, conscious of possible listening ears.

‘This is luck. We now know that the young mistress and Vali are heading to Cathago, not following the missive’s direction and returning to Rome,’ Herakles said thoughtfully.

‘And Anni doesn’t sound injured. She wouldn’t have accompanied Vali to the agents if she was. Just like the mistress to lie. But why Cathago?’ Ninia said as she sipped her watered wine.

‘Major city far from Rome. They say it’s growing fast since Augustus re-established it fifty years ago. A perfect place for a smart young man like Vali to make his fortune.’

‘But with Anni? Surely he’d be trying to get her to Gaius. If he thinks Bibulus is dead, then Gaius would be head of the paterfamilias. Anni would be his responsibility. And, last I heard, Gaius was in Magna Germania.’

‘I don’t know, love. I’m just an ignorant slave. All this is beyond me. You’re the one with the brains. Take after your mother that way.’ He smiled crookedly at her, showing his missing teeth on the right side of his mouth.

‘Don’t joke, papa. This chasing across the world is just craziness. Maybe we should go home and tell Bibulus what we’ve found out. Let him send trained men to find them.’

‘We’ll get a message back to the master, but with one cutthroat on their trail, I think we’re better off keeping our eye on him. As long as the money holds out. We might not be able to fight such a man, but there may come a time when we can let Vali know he exists. That would be all he needs. That young man was a good choice as protector for the young mistress. Hard as nails, capable and quick witted.’

‘But with a cruel streak,’ Ninia added, feeling her protective instincts screaming, as they had since she’d heard Anni had been sent off with the man. What he’d done to Salvia made her stomach turn. It made Publius seem almost gentle.

No, Anni was in as much danger with Vali as she was with her mother. And that she was masquerading as his wife meant they were sharing quarters. Who knew what sick acts he’d made her perform to satiate his animal needs.

She imagined her sweet Anni  on her hands and knees like an animal while the ice mountain, as she thought of him, took his pleasure, roughly, painfully. Anni would cry and plead. But Vali wouldn’t stop. He’d laugh and go harder, until she had no strength left to hold herself up.

That was what had happened to her. For Anni, it would be worse, because he was such a big man. Publius had been a skinny, little boy, hardly much stronger than she was. But look at the pain he caused. Vali would be ten times worse.

Ninia shuddered, wondering if she had the strength to help Anni pick up the pieces, the way her mistress had helped her. She knew how bad that dark place could be, and how hard it was to climb out of. How did she help someone else climb out of that place when her own position on the edge of the abyss was still so precarious?

She felt so overwhelmed by everything that was happening. Who was
she to be chasing all over the Empire after Anni, preparing to rescue her from frightening men with scars, or handsome men with violence in their heart? She was just a weak, young woman afraid of her own shadow, living on the border of sanity. The pit was too close and too dark. Surviving it this time, without Anni, would be impossible.

4 September
79CE, Regium BRUTTIUM

She lay quietly next to Vali in the great room. It had been the only place they could find to sleep the night before. Around them on pallets of straw, more than a dozen people slept. The air was fetid with unwashed bodies and flatulence. Lara buried her nose into Vali’s neck. His body was unwashed too, but his scent pleased her, even though it overwhelmed.

Vali drew her closer in sleep. She loved the way he did that, as if, even in the vales of Morpheus he wanted her close. On his right side he had his sword beneath his hand. On his left, he drew her close. He seemed to breath
e in the scent of her hair.

She could see the sky lightening at the open window. They needed to get up and on the move. The sound of market stalls being set up in the forum was a distant series of clunks and clatters. Food, they would need food for this day and the next. The ship’s master had told them they’d drop anchor somewhere along Sicilia’s north coast tonight, but it was unlikely to be near a village or town. It would be the next day, when they reached the old Carthaginian stronghold of Lillybaeum, at the
western tip of the island that they would dock and restock for the two day journey across the Tyrrhenian Sea to Africa.

Fingers tightened on her arm, and Lara knew Vali was awake. She wondered if he felt their lack of release as she did. Every night they gave each other pleasure and release, and it was like taking a cork out of a fermented jar very slowly. It took the edge off what existed between them, but didn’t defuse it completely. After last night, she felt the built-up tension as a physical sensation in her core.

‘Ready to get moving?’ he whispered against her hair. She nodded as she let go of him and started to rise. They’d brought their own pallets to sleep on. And though not thick enough for true comfort, at least they knew they were free of bedbugs and other human detritus any mattress in such a place would be sure to carry.

They collected their belongings and made their way over sleeping bodies to the door to the street.

The fresh, cool air was a balm to Lara’s exhausted body and mind. It did nothing for her sexual tension. Vali must have felt something similar, because, once the possibility of observation was gone, he drew her hastily against the wall and took her mouth in a hungry kiss that thrilled her to the tips of her toes.

‘That was torture. Having you next to me all night and not being able to do anything about it…’ He kissed her again, even more deeply. But Lara could feel that he had no plans to take it further. They both knew these few stolen moments were short. They had too much to do before dawn found them boarding their ship again.

Finally, Vali drew away reluctantly and led them over to a well on the edge of the forum. Here they washed as best they could and tidied their tunics. Then they moved into the gloomy forum to buy food from the sleepy stallholders who were still in the process of setting up.

By the time they reached the docks, the sky had turned a light purple lined with palest lemon. A bank of clouds, the first they had seen since leaving Palinurus, hovered above the line of the dark grey horizon. They could see the hulking outline of Sicilia across the strait.

They’d left their canvas strung up overnight and were pleased to see it still there as they crossed the gangplank onto the already busy deck. A few sailors gave them a nod or a smile as they found their way to their allotted space and settled themselves in. Then they stood on the deck, staying out of the way of the crew, and looked at the town that was slowly being revealed by dawn’s pale light.

Regium was not a pleasing sight. Not like Paestum, with its beautiful ancient temples and green hills laced with white dwellings. No, this place was a seaport proper, that served only one purpose; the needs of the maritime world. It was cramped and dirty, smelling badly of fish and seaweed, mixed with the human odours of urine and decaying rubbish. Lara was glad to see the last of it.

As the ship made its way across the short distance of the strait to Messana, Lara got working on their meal to break their fast. Their fare today was far less varied and tasty than usual. The fruit, which was obviously from Africa and several days old, was less than appealing. But it was sweet and juicy and took some of her dry mouth discomfort away.

When Vali joined her in their shelter she grimaced as she handed him the dark, heavy bread.

‘Not to your liking?’ he asked as he tore a section off and dunked it in the olive oil they still had from Palinurus. ‘At least we have enough so we won’t go hungry before Lillybaeum. See it as good preparation for the journey from Carthago to Gaulia.’

Lara groaned and lifted her eyes to the sky somewhere beyond their canvas. ‘This is the first day I’m not happy to be travelling. I’m so sore and tired after last night, all I want is a soak in a bath. I smell so bad.’

Vali leaned in and sniffed her in exaggerated fashion, and then pulled an offended face. She punched him in his hard, muscular upper arm. He laughed and kissed her on the forehead.

‘I like how you smell. Not the same as when you’re clean, but not bad. It makes me think of… well, other things I’d like to be doing to you right now.’ His voice had dropped several octaves, and the sound set her pulse racing with need.