Caligula (29 page)

'Execute him?' Rufus recognized that voice, but it was different, changed somehow. The muscles in his neck bunched as he waited for the sword to fall. 'Should we execute him?'

Seconds passed and he found he was still alive, so he looked up. Not Chaerea. Claudius. A taller, straighter Claudius who stood between Callistus, wearing a charitable smile his face was never intended for, and Narcissus, who contrived to look bored and conceited at one and the same time. They were surrounded by Praetorians, whom Rufus now recognized as Cupido's Wolves.

'Execute him?' the new Emperor of Rome repeated. 'No, I don't think so. Who would look after my elephant?'

Acknowledgements

Special thanks to my editor, Simon Thorogood, and the team at Transworld. Stan, my agent at Jenny Brown, guided me through the minefield of a first novel. I would also like to thank Edward and all at Youwriteon.com who helped turn a writer into a novelist, and Sara O'Keeffe for her encouragement and advice. And John Wyllie, who read it first and liked it, which was encouragement enough.