The Venus Throw (18 page)

“An admirable summing up,” I said. “I think we’ve managed to sort out a few truths from the slanders and come up with a few conclusions about Clodius’s character, though I’m not sure where it all leaves us. I haven’t changed my mind. In the past I’ve worked for men whose means and morals were at least as questionable as his. I see no point in refusing a commission from Clodius if it leads me to the truth of Dio’s murder.”

“What about Clodia, then?”

“What about her? All right, let’s take a look at Clodia. The same rules: truth only, except for gossip identified as gossip—though I think the rule will be even harder to observe with Clodia than with Clodius. I think we’ve probably
heard
more about her and
know
less. But I’ll begin. She was the first child of Appius Claudius, raised by a stepmother among younger half siblings—did this circumstance make her stronger, more responsible, more independent? Mere speculation. We do know that she married young, before her father died and left the family in financial straits, so she managed to bring a good dowry to her marriage with a cousin, Quintus Metellus Celer—which may help to explain her independence when it came to butting heads with her husband over family squabbles and political differences. In any dispute, even with Celer, she appears always to have sided with her siblings.”

“The Clodii against the world?” said Eco.

“It sounds admirably Roman when you put it like that. Could all those rumors of incest merely reflect the jealousy of less beautiful, less beloved outsiders? Why not give Clodia the benefit of the doubt, and put down the rumors of her adulteries and incest to malicious tongues?”

“You’re the one who spent the afternoon at her horti, Papa, watching her ogle naked men.”

“Yes, well, it’s true that she doesn’t do much to stamp out the lies about her, if they are lies. And there’s no doubt that her marriage to Celer was stonny. There are plenty of witnesses to that, including Cicero, who used to be their frequent houseguest back when he was on friendly terms with the Clodii. But it should count for something that despite their troubles, Clodia and Celer did stag married for twenty years—”

“Until Celer mysteriously died three years ago.”

“Yes, well, we’ve already talked about the rumor that she poisoned him. It’s worth noting that no one ever brought
charges against her, a someone in Celer’s family might well have done, had there been any evidence. Any time anybody notable in Rome dies of anything but an accident, there’s someone who’ll say it was poison. Just as there are those who will always whisper that any exceptionally beautiful woman—or man, for that matter—is a whore. While we’ve both heard plenty of rumors, when it comes down to it, we don’t really
know
very much at all about Clodia, do we?”

Eco leaned back and pressed his fingers together. “I think, Papa, that you are letting the transparent yellow gown cloud your better judgment.”

“Nonsense!”

“It covers your eyes like a veil.”

“Eco!”

“I’m serious, Papa. You told me to be honest with you, so I will be. I think that Clodia is probably a very dangerous woman, and I don’t like it that you’re working for her. If you must do so, for Dio’s sake, then I hope you’ll see as little of her as possible.”

“I’ve already seen quite a bit of her.”

“I mean what I say, Papa.” There was no levity in his voice. “I don’t like it.”

“Nor do I. But some paths a man must walk, taking whatever ways are opened to him by the gods.”

“Well,” said Eco with an edge in his voice, “I suppose a religious argument can put an end to any discussion.”

And if it didn’t, then what happened next did, for at that moment two tiny human missiles came hurtling through the room like fireballs hurled from a catapult. One chased the other at such a speed that I couldn’t tell which was the pursuer and which the pursued; I often found it hard to tell the twins apart even when they were standing still. At the age of four there was not much to distinguish them. Gordiana (whom Meto had called Titania from birth, because she was so big) was perhaps slightly larger than her brother Titus, but the two of them were dressed for bed in identical, long-sleeved
tunics that went down to their ankles, and they had the same long, golden locks—a legacy from their mother’s side of the family, which was perhaps why Menenia had so far refused to clip a single curl.

Never slowing down, the two of them tore across the study and disappeared into the next room. A moment later their mother followed after them. She seemed quite calm and was even smiling.

“Are you men finally finished with your serious discussion?” she asked. Menenia comes from a very old plebeian family, as respectable as it is obscure. Some of her ancestors managed to obtain the consulship hundreds of years ago; that win always count for something, but it hardly puts food on the table. Still, Eco was lucky to make the match, considering his adopted father’s far less distinguished ancestry, and Menenia herself is above reproach in every way, the model of a Roman matron. She even knows how to handle her mother-in-law with effortless tact; I only wish that I could do as well at staying on Bethesda’s good side.

“Yes, wife,” said Eco, “I believe we’re done with discussing life and death and justice and the gods, and other such trivial matters.”

“Good. Then perhaps you both have a moment to spare for your offspring. The only reason the twins have been flying about in such a frenzy is because they refuse to go to bed without a last chance to say goodnight to their grandfather.”

“Well, then, make them wait no longer,” I said, laughing, and before I had a chance to brace myself, out of nowhere two fair-haired, fireballs came hurtling straight toward my lap.

The hour had grown late; Bethesda would be expecting me home. I said a quick farewell to Eco and Menenia and finally extricated myself from the surprisingly strong grips of Titus and Titania—no easy task, for each took hold of one of my
hands and refused to let go. When I yelled for Belbo to come help me, I was hardly joking.

Belbo and I made our way down the Esquiline Hill beneath the light of the waxing moon, back through the Subura, where the streets were busy even at this hour, and across the Forum, where the temples were quiet and the broad, moonlit squares almost deserted. Above our heads the cold sky was full of stars. As we passed the House of the Vestals I shivered and pulled my cloak more tightly about my throat, thinking it was the night air seeping into my bones.

Just beyond the House of the Vestals, near the steps of the Temple of Castor, we turned sharply to the north, onto the broad footpath called the Ramp, the best shortcut from the Forum up the steep face of the Palatine Hill to the residential district. The Ramp is well traveled, but even in daylight it can seem secluded and secretive, hemmed in at its lower portion by the stony base of the Palatine and the high rear walls of the House of the Vestals, and shielded along both sides of its upper course by close-set rows of cypress trees. At night the Ramp is a place of deep shadows, even when the moon is full. “The perfect place for a murder,” Bethesda had once exclaimed before turning around in mid-course and refusing ever to take the path again.

I felt another sudden chili and knew that it had nothing to do with the night air. We were being followed on the path, and not by chance but stealthily, for when I signaled Belbo to stop, I heard behind us the faint sound of footsteps that stopped a moment later. I turned and peered down the mostly straight path but could make out no movement among the dense shadows.

“One man or two?” I whispered to Belbo.

He wrinkled his brow. “One, I think, Master.”

“I agree. The footsteps stop all at once, without any shuffling or whispering. Do you suppose the two of us have anything to fear from one man, Belbo?”

Belbo peered at me thoughtfully. A bit of moonlight illuminated
his furrowed brow. “Not unless he has a friend waiting at the top of the path, Master. That would make it even odds.”

“And what if he has more than one friend up there?”

“Do you want to turn around, Master?”

I peered into the darkness below, then into the shadows ahead. “No. We’re almost home.”

Belbo shrugged. “Some men have to go all the way to Gaul to die. Others can do it on their own doorstep.”

“Just keep your hand on the dagger inside your tunic, and I’ll do the same. Keep to a steady pace.”

As we neared the top of the path I realized what a perfect place of ambush it would provide. Once upon a time I could take the steep path without missing a breath, but not any longer; a winded man makes an easy target. Even Belbo was breathing harder. I listened for the steps behind us, or for any sound from ahead, but I heard only the beating of my heart and the rush of air in my nostrils.

As we neared the top of the Ramp the cypress trees thinned on either side and the way opened up, dispersing the shadows with moonlight and allowing glimpses of the houses up ahead. I could even see a bit of the roof of my own house, which made me feel at once reassured and uneasy. Reassured to be so close to safety, uneasy because the gods sometimes resort to the most appalling ironies in discharging the fates of mortals. We were almost clear of the path but there were stilt plenty of shadows where any number of assassins could be concealed. I steeled myself and peered into the pockets of darkness.

At last we stepped from the Ramp onto the paved street, only a few doors from my house. The way was clear on either side. The street was deserted and quiet. From an upper story nearby I heard the quiet singing of a woman crooning a lullaby. All was tranquil.

“Perhaps
we
should play ambushers,” I whispered to Belbo after I caught my breath, for now I could hear the
sound of our follower’s footsteps approaching. “If someone is after us, I should like to have a look at him.”

We drew back into the shadows and waited.

The footsteps grew nearer, until at any moment the man would catch up with us and emerge into the moonlight.

Beside me Belbo gasped. I stiffened, wondering what was the matter.

Then Belbo sneezed.

It was only a partial sneeze, for he did his best to stifle it, but in the stillness it might as well have been a thunderclap. The footsteps stopped. I peered into the darkness and was able to discern the man’s vague outline, a silhouette among mottled shadows. From his posture he seemed to be peering back at me, trying to make out where the sneeze had come from. An instant later he vanished, and I heard footsteps running down the Ramp.

Belbo gave a jerk. “Shall we go after him, Master?”

“No. He’s younger than us—probably a lot faster.”

“How do you know?”

“Did you hear him breathing hard?”

“No.”

“Exactly. Neither did I, and he was close enough that we would have heard, had he been winded. He has wrong lungs.”

Belbo hung his head, chagrined. “Master, I’m sorry I sneezed.”

“Some things even the gods can’t stop. Perhaps it was for the best.”

“Do you really think he was following us?”

“I don’t know. But he gave us a scare, didn’t he?”

“And we gave him a scare!”

“So perhaps we’re even, and that’s the end of it,” I said, but I felt uneasy.

We walked hurriedly up the street to my house. Belbo rapped on the door. While we waited for the slave to open it I pulled him aside. “Belbo, whether we were followed or
not—don’t mention this to your mistress. No need asking for trouble. Do you understand?”

“Of course, Master,” he said gravely.

I thought for a moment. “And don’t tell Diana, either.”

“That goes without saying, Master.” Belbo smiled. Then his jaw suddenly began to quiver and his face contorted. I gripped his shoulder, alarmed.

Belbo threw back his head and sneezed again.

T
he next morning I rose early, ate a frugal breakfast of honey and bread, offered my beard to Belbo for a trim (I trust no one else to use anything sharp near my neck), donned my toga, since I intended to pay some formal visits, and stepped out of the house. The fresh, dewy air was bracing; the lingering chili of the night was tempered by the morning’s warm sunshine. I filled my lungs with a deep breath and headed up the street with Belbo beside me.

The Palatine seemed to me particularly lovely that morning. Of late, whenever I left the immediate vicinity of my house, I had been struck by how dirty and grubby so much of Rome had begun to seem, especially the Subura with its brothels and taverns and foul-smelling little side streets, and the Forum with its toga-clad hordes of politicians and financiers going about their frenzied business. How much more pleasant the Palatine was, with its shaded, well-paved streets, its quaint little shops, orderly apartments and handsome houses. One could breathe in such a neighborhood, and walk even in the busiest part of the day without knocking elbows with a hundred rode, shoving strangers.

I had gotten used to living in a rich man’s neighborhood, I realized, and the adjustment had not been difficult at all. What would my father say, who had lived all his life in the
Subura? Probably, I thought, he would be proud of his son’s material success, however unconventionally I had acquired it. He would also probably remind me that I should keep my wits about me and never be deceived by appearances. The rare and beautiful things that wealth and power can buy are often only decorations to conceal the way that such wealth and power were attained. Yes, a man can breathe freely on the airy, spacious Palatine—and a man can also stop breathing. Something more awful than knocking elbows with strangers had happened to Dio. The quality of a man’s bedsheets counts for nothing if his sleep is forever.