Hosker, G [Sword of Cartimandua 11] Roman Treachery (31 page)

“And if they search for us we need to be free of Britannia, we need a boat.” They both looked around as though one would be waiting there for them.

“You must go to Eboracum and hire one. Here,” he handed her all the money he had. “You ride to Eboracum and I will continue to excavate the gold.” She threw him a doubt filled look. “You look nothing like the lovely Vibia but they will know me for the sentries have seen me many times. Take all the horses and sell them.  Leave the three saddle bags here and I will fill them with the gold or the treasure; whatever is in the box. You need a small boat with a crew of one or two.  When we are safe we will dispose of them.” Both children had inherited their father’s and their mother’s ruthless streak.

“Very well but stay safe brother.”

Rufius led the pursuing Romans, trusting none save his own instincts, honed over many years as an Explorate.  Had Felix been with them, Metellus or Marcus, he might have deferred but the experience of fifteen years serving the ala meant he could not afford mistakes.  He saw that they were heading for the river; it was almost inevitable that they would do so given the direction they had chosen.  The fact that they were well south of Eboracum disturbed him but there was something familiar about this land and he could not quite put his finger on it.  The trail occasionally deviated, as though they were trying to throw him off the scent and he had to follow the blind alleys for he did not want to lose them. Finally, as the afternoon drifted towards night, he smelled the river.  It was close. “Be alert.  I want two lines behind me.  Cover fifty paces each side of me and watch for the two of them or sign that horses have been before us.”

He reached the river and saw the hoof prints enter the water. Had they crossed the river?  It was not wide at this point and then he remembered why it was familiar.  The boats taking Decius Sallustius had left from this point. He spun around, much to the consternation of the troopers.  This was the place where the ship carrying the gold had closed with the shore.  The question was, why had the twins come there? Homage? Or something else?  There was nothing else for it, they would have to cross the river and explore the opposite bank.

“Turmae, we are going to cross the river. Stay close and head upstream, the current will take you downstream but trust to your horses.  They can swim, even if you cannot!”

They all managed to cross safely save Agrippa who floundered in the shallows and had to be plucked from the waters by his jeering comrades. “Examine the bank for two hundred paces in each direction.  Find hoof prints.  “He paused, “Not ours.”

Vibius stopped his work.  He had been busy emptying the gold from the box into the saddlebags.  Two were full and he was on the last one when he heard the noise in the water on the opposite bank.  He froze and lay in the water.  He could see the helmets of his ala; they had tracked them. How had they tracked him that was the question in his mind?  He had tried to throw them off, but there they were, a hundred paces from him. He was just grateful for the fact that his sister and the horses were not there.  He might be able to escape detection. He lay back and glanced up at the sky.  It was getting dark and his sister could not be here before morning.  He would be patient. He lay still and waited for the dark to engulf him and give him the protection of night.

Rufius hated to give up the chase but his men had found nothing.  He rode up the small ridge which made a effective levee and would be a dry place to camp.  “Make camp here.”

The troopers looked appalled. A lone voice called, “A proper camp with a ditch and everything?”

Flavius’ voice rapped out, “No you fucking moron.  With a stone wall five paces high and ditch deep enough to bury you in.  Get on with it!”

Rufius walked over to his chosen man. “Have we any fishermen amongst the men?”

“Lepidus is half Batavian; they say they are almost fish themselves.”

“See if he can catch some fish.  It may make up for the extra work.”

The men were a little happier when Lepidus proved to be a competent fisherman and they dined on fish roasted on an open fire. Rufius was not worried about attack; he just didn’t want anyone surprising him.

Flavius had observed the decurion’s reaction and was curious. “Sir? This place, the river and the bend.  You know it?”

“Yes Flavius.  A few years ago there was a rebellion and the prefect’s brother led it.  He stole a fortune in gold and this was the place he left this land with his treasure.”

Flavius’ jaw was visibly open.  “The prefect?” There was awe in his voice. “What happened?”

“The Prefect, the Decurion Princeps and me went to Gaul.  We recaptured the gold after the prefect killed his brother.”

There was a reflective silence as Flavius took that news in. “Then why has Vibius and come here with that girl?”

“I have no idea.  From what the optio told me, Gnaeus said something about twins.  They must be brother and sister. There must be a connection to the prefect’s brother but I can make neither head nor tail of it.  I have lost them Flavius.  Tomorrow we will head back to Eboracum.  At least Agrippa won’t have to swim this time.  We can use the road. It is over there.”

Vibia easily sold the horses for the Roman army was paying high prices for any beast and she made more than she had expected.  She made sure that her two daggers were handy for she was about to go to the wharfs; it would be a dangerous place but the resourceful woman was confident that she would be safe.  Her beguiling smile and elfin eyes made her look like an innocent abroad but, as Lucia and Gnaeus had discovered, she was a cold blooded killer who could wield a deadly blade as well as any assassin.

She wandered down the quays, ignoring the larger ships which were moored there.  Even the small ones had a crew of four and she needed something with a crew of one or two. In her mind she was already assessing how to dispose of them once she and her brother had the gold.  She reached the last boat and had identified four or five which might suit her purpose. She waited in the shadows of the warehouses which lined the river, watching both the boats and the people to find the ones she wanted. She watched, curiously as a youth, she took him to be approaching manhood, appeared to be furtively watching the boats too. He had not seen Vibia observing him.  He looked around and, assuming no-one was looking, darted into one boat and retrieved what looked like an amphora of wine.  Amused she stored that piece of information for future use. No crews had approached the boats and darkness was falling on the river.  Eventually she saw an older man come to the boat where the boy had stolen the amphora.  He descended into the boat and was looking around for something. When she heard a curse she knew what he sought.

She left her hiding place and headed back to the busier area closer to the vicus and fort.  The man’s boat looked to be ideal.  It had a small sail and was big enough to accommodate four people. The simple tiller and the narrow width indicated to Vibia that it be both nimble and easy to handle.  She would seek out the sailor away from the quay and, either engage his services, or his boat. When she neared the bustling end of the quay where merchants and sailors were completing last minute deals at the end of the day, she saw the youth who had stolen the amphora. The discarded, empty jug lay some distance from him and his ferrety eyes were scanning the crowds for his next victim.

The sailor wandered up and greeted another sailor as his eye spied the empty jug.  He strode up to it and grabbed it; looking around fiercely to find the culprit.  Vibia waited until he was satisfied that the perpetrator had left and approached him.  “Sir.  Do you have a boat?” She lowered the sound of her voice to perpetrate the illusion that she was a boy.

“Aye young man.  What is it to you?”

“I would like to hire it and you for a short voyage down the river to pick up my brother.” She had learned, with her lies, to keep them close to the truth and easy to remember.

“Hmn.  How far down the river?”

“Just five miles, perhaps six.”

“And why not walk down the road to meet your brother? It would cheaper and easier.” The sailor was, rightly suspicious and, although the youth appeared to be harmless he had learned through bitter experience that appearances could be deceptive.

“We have a box we wish to bring back to Eboracum.”

“How big is the box?”

“I can lift it.”

“And how much are you willing to pay?” She held out four denarii. “Ten.”

“Sir you are trying to rob me and take advantage of my youth.  Six.”

“Eight and that is my final offer.” She nodded as though she had been robbed when, in reality, she would end up robbing him.  “It is too late to leave this night.”

“I want to leave as early as possible.”

“There is a tide just before dawn.”

“I may also be bringing a servant.”

“You didn’t say that before.”

Her voice hardened.  “That was when the price was four, for double the price I assume I can have a servant.”

The man had already charged her far more than the going rate and he shrugged his shoulders. “When we get the box and your brother I will decide how many we bring back.  I am not overloading my boat for you, young man.  Not for eight denarii. I will meet you here before dawn and I want half now.” He held out his hand and she counted the coins.  She knew that would not get those back for he headed directly for the tavern to celebrate his business deal.

When he had gone she watched the furtive youth who was trying to get aboard one of the bigger ships.  She smiled at the effrontery of him.  He was persistent. She could see that he was hoping to take advantage of lax security with most of the crews drinking in the taverns but he was unlucky.  The men left on guard cuffed him and sent him on his way. She had to find somewhere safe to hide and she headed to the vicus.  She would wait in the stables where she had sold the horses. She was suddenly aware that she was being followed and she knew who it was. She slipped her hand beneath her cloak and slid the pugeo from its sheath. She saw the narrow alley between two small huts and darted between them.  She heard the slight footfall and tensed for the next movement. The furtive youth had obviously thought that Vibia was a smaller youth than he and he planted his hand on Vibia’s right shoulder.  She was expecting something like that and she reached over with her left hand as she dropped her right shoulder and the surprised youth flew into the air to land on the hard packed ground with a thump which winded him.  When he opened his eyes, there was a sharp pugeo pricking his neck.

“A little careless aren’t we?”

The youth’s eyes opened wide in terror.  As he looked into Vibia’s cold green eyes he saw real evil and he was afraid.  “Please don’t hurt me!”

She laughed and the coldness of it frightened him even more. “If I wanted to hurt you then you would be dead.  No, I may have some use for a thief. It all depends upon your answers to my next questions.”

He nodded, eager to please.  “I will do anything I swear!”

“Good. Can you sail a small boat?” He nodded eagerly. “How would you like to work for me?”

He nodded and then a frown appeared, “What for?  Why do you need me to help you?”

She pushed a little harder on the knife and a tiny tendril of blood trickled down his throat. “I am the one asking the questions and, if you want to live then you need to answer them quickly and to my satisfaction.  I will ask you again. Do you want to work for me?”

He squeaked a, “Yes.”

She stood and he put his hand to his throat looking, with fascination, at the blood. “The man you stole the jug from.” He looked up with shock on his face.  “Yes I watched you.  The man, do you know him?”

“Aye they call him the old one.  He used to captain larger ships but he was shipwrecked once and now just plies the river.”

“Is he honest?”

“As honest as any.” He was about to ask why but remembered, in time, about questions and he grabbed his neck to prevent another wound.

“I have hired him to take me down the river in the morning.  You will come with us as my servant. When the time is right I will ask you to do something for me.”

“What?” The knife was in her hand and pointed at his nose before he could blink.  She cocked her head to one side.  “It doesn’t matter.  I will do whatever you ask.”

“Good and what is your name?”

“Arden.”

“Good.  Well Arden, you may call me master. Now where do you normally sleep?” The shrug told her he was homeless which suited her. “We will sleep in the stable nearby and, before you get any ideas I am a light sleeper and if you run I will find you and kill you.  Do you understand?”

He smiled as he said, “Yes master.” He had no intention of running.  The lonely life of a quay rat was hard and this youth looked as though he could handle himself.  He would stay with him just to see if his lot could be improved; his pickings on the river were slim and there was something about the green eyed boy which suggested power.

They were both waiting at the boat when the Old One arrived before dawn. He looked suspiciously at Vibia.  “How did you know this was my boat?”

Arden came out of the shadows.  “I described you and my servant told me.”

“What that thief?  If he is your servant I should sleep with one eye open.  He’d take the coins off a corpse would that one.”

Vibia shrugged.  “That is my problem, not yours, is it not?”

“Your funeral.  Get aboard and sit in the middle.  Don’t move around.”

Vibia sat in the middle with Arden in front of her. The Old One was competent enough and he untied the boat from the metal ring and pushed them away.  Vibia noticed then his knotted arms.  This was a powerful man.  It would not do to underestimate him. She would watch and wait.  Once they had picked up her brother then they could decide what to do about the Old One.

Chapter 22

Vibius had spent a cold and uncomfortable night. He had seen the Romans build their camp eight hundred paces down stream on the opposite bank. Once he was sure that they were settled for the night he finished emptying the gold from the chest and packing it in the three saddle bags.  The three saddle bags were filled and the rest he had put in his satchel, now worn on his baldric. He saw the first glimmer of light on the horizon and he slowly made his way closer to the bank.  Once he saw Vibia he would waste no time getting aboard but he would avoid the icy waters for as long as possible. He saw a faint white movement on the river.  It was a boat.  He could make out the white faces but not who they were. He chewed his lip.  What should he do?  Then he deduced it was unlikely to be the Romans; it was either his sister or another innocent traveller on the river. He stood and raised his arm.  When he saw the arm raised in return he knew it was Vibia.  They were going to succeed; that had done half the task they had promised their other; they had their father’s gold!