Jupiter Myth

XXX

The Norbanus harpist joined them. His twanging would have drowned out their conversation anyway, but they both stopped the gossip. They would certainly not discuss Norbanus Murena; anyone else male was also off-limits. If the tunesmith was meant to carry back news to his master, this shrewd pair had his measure. He was spoiling their fun too.

Helena arrived soon afterward. I heard her dump a chair amid the garden party. Annoyance could be detected in the angry scratch of its legs.

"Where's our boy?" scoffed Maia immediately "I thought you were guarding my brother all day!"

"He found a friend."

"Anyone we know?"

Helena made no answer.

I waited awhile, then stood up. The others had their backs to me, but Helena looked up and saw me as I yawned and waved, making it plain I had been there on the balcony for hours. Perhaps she would feel guilty for doubting me. Perhaps not.

I went to our room and she joined me almost instantly. Nothing uncomfortable was said, and I quickly narrated all that Chloris had told me.

"I've acquired a witness, but one I can't use. Still, if she will make a formal statement, Frontinus may be prodded to make arrests. Maybe if word leaks out that the culprits are in custody, other people will feel safe enough to come forward."

"King Togidubnus will want to know what that quarrel in the bar was about."

"I need to know that myself. If Pyro and Splice just pretend they had an argument about a wine bill, that's not enough. I want to tie the Verovolcus killing to extortion. Then Frontinus can stamp on the racket."

Helena frowned. "Frontinus will support you, won't he?"

"Yes, though don't forget his initial reaction was to gloss over the problem. I have to prove beyond doubt what is going on."

"And Petronius is working on the same lines?"

"He is-but Frontinus must not know. If he finds out, Petro will be in hot water."

"You two!" she scoffed. "Why can neither of you ever do anything the easy way?"

I grinned. "Come here."

"Don't mess about, Falco." She sounded like me, coping with Chloris.

"No, come here." I got hold of her. She was too interested in the Verovolcus story to resist. I held her nose to nose. We were peaceful with each other now. "I love you very much, you know."

"Don't change the subject," said Helena Justina sternly, but by then I was kissing her.

I took my time. O reader, go and peruse a very long philosophical scroll for an hour. You damn well don't need to know about this.

Actually, you can come back now. What happened was fairly satisfactory to a man who had been fighting off jealousy all night and morning-but what might have happened never did. Instead, we were interrupted by a wary slave of the procurator's, who knocked on the bedroom door extremely shyly, looking for me. It was unclear whether he expected to find a vicious marital tempest or widescale pornography.

"Can I help you?" I asked sweetly. I was fully clad and hardly blushed at all. I had of course spent my youth being caught almost in the act by my mother. I could look innocent in no time. Chloris could vouch for that.

Forget Chloris. (I was now seriously trying to.)

"Message." The slave chucked the tablet at me and fled.

It was from the customs officer, Firmus. He wanted me to come down to the ferry urgently. Somebody, the message said obliquely, had suggested that I would want to know they had found another corpse.