Jupiter Myth

LVI

He had not answered because he could not do so. Every ounce of his being was under stress. At the limit of his endurance, even our arrival almost caused him to waver. Hope was the last distraction he needed.

Florius had left him absolutely stuck. He had taken his time to set this up. Petronius was tied by the waist with several long ropes lashed in a star-shaped pattern so he could not change position. Arms above his head, he was desperately holding on to a ring at the end of a long chain. It went up and over a pulley on a loading arm. To the other end Florius had attached a great crate of ballast. You know what ballast is-rocks, big enough to hold an empty ship steady in a storm. I could see the rocks piled high on top. It was perilously balanced immediately above Petro, jutting out over the edge of a walkway. An iron bar supported it halfway along. If Petro let go of the chain-or even loosed it a few inches-the crate would tip off its supports and crash straight down on him. The game was, Petronius had to last as long as possible, knowing that when his strength gave out, he would be crushed to death.

Sinews were standing out in his forehead. Beads of sweat shone on his face. His mouth was a tight line, his eyes were squeezed shut; he was close to the limit.

Helena and I flung ourselves beside him and dragged on the chain. I got one hand through the ring; there was no room for more. It was almost impossible to grip the cold slippery metal of the chain itself. Petronius breathed, but dared not give up. I carried less weight than him, though I did know how to use it; Helena was no feather, but she had never been the type of tomboy who did training at a gym. We all three clung on. The soldiers behind us must have been distracted by the chests of loot. I yelled for help, but we couldn't wait.

"Helena, fetch that coil of rope-" She obeyed, though when she loosed her grip on the chain, I felt it nearly jerk free. I could hardly talk to give instructions; luckily she was sharp. At my strained nod, she forced the rope through the ring we were holding, then ran to secure it. The upper walkway was supported on huge timber posts. Helena was able to wind the rope around the nearest. She had the sense to turn both ends several times, then tried to knot them.

Men were now up on the walkway, running. A soldier appeared alongside us. Those above were seeking ways to take the strain on the balanced crate. Petro and I still clung on, scared to believe we were safe. We were not, yet. The nearest soldier desperately slashed his sword through the ropes holding Petronius. More men arrived. Nervously, Petro and I let go of the chain. Despite our alarm, Helena's rope held. Arms caught Petro as he staggered. A soldier and I dragged him sideways as half his ties were released. Almost fainting, Petronius sank to the ground. Then the timber post creaked ominously. Suddenly the rope gave way.

The crate crashed down in a hail of dust and rock. Amid tremendous noise, huge chunks of debris missed us all by inches. Petronius lay groaning open-mouthed, as the blood returned to his arms and hands. Coughing, Helena and I held him, massaging his stricken limbs and aching spine. His tunic was soaked, his brown hair plastered to his head with sweat.

"Dear gods. That was too close, my lad." I waited for him to say, What kept you? but he was too shocked to speak. He leaned his head against my arm, eyes closed but gradually breathing more easily. A soldier brought a water bottle. We got some into him.

Above his head, my eyes met Helena's. She reached over and touched

my cheek. I turned and kissed her palm as she withdrew it. Petronius forced himself to revive enough to smile at her.

He looked at me searchingly. I reported the best and worst. "We caught most of the gang. We've got Norbanus, but Florius was somehow missed. How in Hades did you and he get out?"

"Uniforms," croaked Petro. He waved his arm and I saw familiar crimson material lying discarded by a bale. "Red tunics."

"Crixus!" The bad centurion had supplied the one disguise that would take Florius unnoticed almost anywhere if there was enough chaos going on around him.

"He's taking a boat." Petro was still mithering. "He had one hidden upriver. They've loaded more loot-" "Don't talk," murmured Helena. "Never mind me-where's Maia?"

"We still don't know. But not here."

Petronius squirmed into a more upright position. He held his head in his hands, elbows on his knees. He moaned with frustration and misery. "I don't think they ever had her."

"They said they did," I reminded him.

"They said a lot of things."

Long before he should have done, he was dragging himself upright. I gave him a shoulder to lean on. Once we brought him outside, Helena tried to wrap him in Maia's cloak; he would have none of it, but when she told him whose it was, he took the garment and kept it over one shoulder, nuzzling his cheek against the woolen folds.

We walked up the quay back to the prisoners at the customs house. Petronius took note of all of them. He knew some of them from Rome. Silvanus was organizing search parties for Florius and any other missed gang members. The wharf was still sealed, on the off chance we would roust them out. Men were searching all the warehouses. A bunch of the troops had huddled around one of the abandoned full-size ballistae, exclaiming over its sophisticated design. "It's a damned automatic repeater-look, you can fill this barrel and it fires off a whole load of bolts without having to reload-" I was amused to see Frontinus among them.

Eventually the governor tore himself away and arranged to remove the prisoners to safe custody, all except Norbanus. Petro wanted him.

As soon as the customs house was cleared for use, we took Norbanus in there. Petro picked up his sword as we went in. He first kicked aside but then gathered up another weapon, one of the vicious handheld crossbows. "I've always wanted one of these!"

"Look, it's got a top-speed ratchet and a perfect trigger-and some kind person has primed it. That must have been helpful to Florius. Let's try it out," I said, menacing our charge with a snarl. We had not even tied him up. Why bother? Norbanus seemed to accept his fate, and the wharf outside was still full of legionaries. Some had remained inside here, but Petronius dismissed them; clearing away witnesses is always ominous for a prisoner.

"I'll have you here in the dark, out of public view," Petronius told Norbanus pleasantly. "Just in case I forget my manners." The vigiles were known for their harsh inquiry methods.

"You could truss him up under some ballast," I suggested. "Like Florius did to you-or is that too good?" I kicked Norbanus unexpectedly. I kicked him very hard. "Where's Maia?"

"I've no idea." The businessman still sounded the same. Learning he was a master criminal should have altered our perception. Now we knew that the slick tongue and amiable smile were treacherous, yet he remained in character. It was real. That's how some gang leaders succeed in holding authority: apart from occasional lapses into murder, they have winning ways.

"Did you ever hold her?" Petronius demanded. He was the professional; I let him take the lead.

"A small deception." Norbanus was rubbing his leg where I had lashed out. I don't normally resort to brutality, but my sister was still missing and I felt no regret.

"Did she come to your villa?"

"I wouldn't know."

"Florius was there. Did he see her?"

"I believe not."

"Where is he now?"

"You will have to find him for yourself."

"You admit you were partners?"

"I admit nothing."

Petronius caught my eye. This was going to be a long business. We might never extract any useful information.

Helena appeared in a doorway. Petronius paused, unwilling to let her watch the dark actions afoot.

"Marcus-" She seemed unwilling to be in the vicinity of Norbanus, or else unwilling to see how we dealt with him.

"Unless it's urgent, I can't come."

I had told her to go back to the residence along with the governor, but she was always clingy after I had been in danger. "Never mind," Helena said quickly "No, wait. What is it?"

"A boat."

"Leaving?"

"No, arriving. Limping up with a broken mast." It seemed irrelevant. "So long as it's not Florius fleeing."

"No, don't worry," Helena assured me, and she withdrew.

I thought I heard excitable voices outside, but the heavy doors blocked out most sound. Petronius and I resumed our interrogation.

"Jupiter was a nice touch," I said to Norbanus admiringly. "The patron of wine, women, and weather. Symbol of power too… But now you find out, Norbanus-thinking you had any power was the myth."

Petronius laid down the crossbow and with the flat of his palm pushed Norbanus across the office where we were holding him. It was soft, encouraging movement; there was no need yet for drama.

"I want to know-" Petro's voice was quiet. That made it worse. "I want to know everything about your sordid empire-here, and back in Ostia, and Rome. Norbanus, you are going to tell me every fiddle, every threat backed up with violence, every wretched, dirty scam. I'll have the endless property portfolio, the seamy foodshop takeovers, the obscene child brothels, the pitiless beating up of innocents, and the deaths."

A draft caused the torches to flicker. I felt cold air momentarily. I did not look around.

"I have nothing to say," smiled Norbanus, still the handsome, urbane man of affairs. "Your accusations won't hold up in court once my lawyers get involved. You don't have any evidence against me-"

"I will," said Petronius. I had seen him in action on plenty of occasions, but never so impressive as this. "Tell me about Maia Favonia."

"What for? You know her well enough."

"Enough to care if she falls into the hands of men like you." Petronius was utterly controlled. "But let's hear about your interest, Norbanus. Or was it all a ploy to help Florius get at me? You were simpering at Maia's feet, regaling her with music and offering trips to your country bower-but did you really give a damn for her?"

The man shrugged and smiled. Then he stopped smiling.

"He's a bachelor, a loner who reveres his mother," I jeered. "No other woman interests him. The pressing seduction attempt was all false."

I had heard someone come into the room behind me. Light increased, as Helena Justina rejoined us, holding high a tar-soaked brand. At her side, when I turned to see who it was, stood my sister Maia.

She looked fine. A little tired, but vibrant. With her spirits up, she was glorious. Her crimson gown was bedraggled, as if she had worn it for days, yet it glowed with a richness the red rag on the prostitute decoy had lacked. Her dark curls tumbled freely. Her eyes blazed.

Her eyes went straight to Petronius. "What happened to you?"

"A small adventure. Where," asked Petro, enunciating carefully, "have you been, Maia?"

Maia glanced at Norbanus briefly. "I took my children sailing on the river. We borrowed the procurator's boat. We went downstream and that terrible storm struck; lightning hit the mast. The children thought it was wonderful. We spent a day patching up the damage, then when we struggled back, we were not allowed to land here for ages because of some secret exercise. That's you and Marcus playing about, I gather?"

"Where are the children?"

"Gone home with the governor." Maia, with unaccustomed delicacy, paused. "I seem to have missed something." Some of us were dumbstruck.

Helena took charge. "Listen, Maia! Norbanus is a leader of the criminals Petronius is pursuing. The other is called Florius, and he lived at the villa to which they were trying to lure you. The point was to use you, Maia darling, as a hostage, to get to Petro. They claimed they had you- and Lucius thought it was true. So he surrendered himself in your place and was nearly killed horribly-"

Maia gasped. "You gave yourself up?"

"It's an old army trick," Petronius said defensively. "The maneuver that is so stupid, you hope you'll get away with it."

"You were nearly killed?"

"Ah, Maia, you think me a hero!"

"You are an idiot," said Maia.

"She means that fondly," Helena mediated, wincing.

"No, she means it," returned Petronius. He sounded cheerful. It was as if my fractious sister's presence had lifted his spirits.

Norbanus made the mistake of laughing to himself.

"You!" Maia stabbed her finger in his direction furiously. "You can answer to me!" She pushed past Helena to get to him. "Is it true, then? What I heard my brother say? You lied to them? You threatened them? You tried to kill Petronius? All the time you were hanging around, you were just using me?"

I tried to hold her back: no use. Petro just stood aside with his admiring look.

"I am sick of men like you!" Maia beat Norbanus on his chest with her fists. They were real blows, swinging from the shoulder with both fists locked together, as if she was chopping at a dusty carpet hung on a line. She was a sturdy woman, used to physical toil around the house. If she had had a stick, she would have broken his ribs.

Norbanus was taken completely by surprise. Well, nice men who put their old mothers on mental pedestals don't know about real women. The closest they get are dolled-up glamour-hungry floozies who pretend such men are wonderful. "I am sick of being used-" A beat from left to right.

"Sick of being played with-" A beat from right to left. "Sick of evil, manipulating swine ruining my life-"

"Leave it, Maia," I protested uselessly.

Norbanus was taking the punishment now for all the men in her previous life-for her husband even, and certainly for Anacrites, whose harassment had driven her here to Britain. As he staggered under the rain of blows, I stepped in, pulling my sister backwards away from him. Petronius made no attempt to calm her down. I think he was laughing.

"He's getting away!" shrieked Helena, as Norbanus seized his moment.

Petro and I let go of Maia. Norbanus made a lunge at Helena. She brandished the torch at him. He sent the fiery brand flying. In trying to save it, Helena cursed uncharacteristically, then wailed again, "He'll get away!"

"Not from me!" Maia had found and raised the ready-primed crossbow. Then she lifted the safety claw, snapped up the trigger pin, and shot Norbanus in the back.