she stepped into the palanquin, she said to Niklos, 'If there are questions from the Guard, you are to make this as official as you can. I came here with Belisarius' sponsorship, and now that my goods have been seized, I am requesting his aid in reclaiming them. They won't question that.'
'As you say,' Niklos concurred.
The streets were still busy and it took some little time to go from one hill to the next. The noise was particularly loud near the places where the streets were being widened and old buildings were being torn down to make way for them.
'This is worse than Traianus,' Olivia complained from inside the palanquin. 'What is it with men in power that they have sudden impulses to remake the world?'
'It's not a bad idea,' Niklos said. 'These streets are far too narrow for all the traffic and the stalls and shops as well.'
'And so for the next year or two, no one can move along them at all,' Olivia declared, then said a bit more contritely, 'If I weren't already irritated, it would not annoy me as much. Bear with me.' She continued to speak in Latin.
Niklos patted the drawn curtains. 'How long have I served you? Wasn't the beginning the same year that Commodus was murdered?' He had taken a more playful tone with her, and now he chuckled. 'Roma was not yet a thousand years old.'
'It wasn't, was it?' Olivia asked, her voice less harsh than before. 'It was the last thing Sanct' Germain did before he went—' She stopped. 'If he were here, he'd deal with this and there would be no reason for us to be out here on the street going to Belisarius' house. And if we were in Roma, I could take care of the whole thing myself.' A little of the gruff ness had returned, and she cleared her throat in a conscious effort to be rid of the sound. 'But he is not here, and we are not in Roma but in… Konstantinoupolis, and so we must proceed as the laws require us to proceed.'
'Philosophy becomes you,' Niklos teased gently.
'Oh, Niklos,' she said, permitting herself a rare moment of despair, 'what has become of us?'
'We're almost to Belisarius' house,' Niklos warned, continuing in Greek. 'There are five Guards at the front of the house.'
'Speak to the one who is highest in rank,' said Olivia, also in Greek. 'And be very respectful. They put great store by subservience here.'
'It's their way,' Niklos agreed, and adopted a more humble manner than he usually had. 'Good Captain,' he said when he had come near enough to be heard clearly, 'my mistress seeks a word with Belisarius.'
The Captain, a lanky young man with a narrow face and haughty attitude, regarded Niklos contemptuously. 'And who is your mistress that she comes here?'
'The Roman widow, Atta Olivia Clemens. General Belisarius was her sponsor when she left Italy, and it is in that regard that she wishes to speak to him now.' Niklos motioned to the chairmen to put the palanquin down. 'It is a matter of some urgency, good Guardsman, and one that requires the General's attention.'
The Captain laughed. 'What could that be?'
'It concerns theft,' Niklos said baldly. 'The losses are considerable and my mistress is in need of aid and advice.' He knew that this was in accord with Byzantine propriety but he disliked the unnecessary complexity of fulfilling a simple request.
'The General might not be able to do much for your mistress,' warned the Captain.
'Then he will have to direct her to those who can,' Niklos said, becoming impatient. 'Good Captain, if you are going to refuse my mistress admittance here, then tell me at once so that we may seek out a pope at Hagia Sophia or Hagia Irene to give us the benefit of his counsel.'
The Captain moved aside from the door. 'What is the widow's name again?'
'Atta Olivia Clemens, widow of Cornelius Justus Silius,' Niklos said accurately. He did not add that her husband had been executed during the reign of the elder Titus Flavius Vespasianus, almost five hundred years ago.
'Clemens, Clemens,' mused the Captain. 'Is that the one who lives alone in the house with two gardens?'
'That is she,' Niklos acknowledged, somewhat surprised that the Captain of the Guard would know of her.
'And she wishes to see Belisarius about a theft?'
'Yes; I have said so already.' Niklos covered his sharpness by adding, 'She is very angry and has been taking out her feelings on the backs of her household.'
The Captain grinned. 'Romans are excessive.' He indicated the door. 'You and your mistress may enter, and Belisarius will be informed that you have come. If he says he wishes to see your mistress, then she will be given the chance to speak with him. Otherwise, you must leave at once. Is that understood?'
'It's understood,' said Niklos, bending to assist Olivia out of the palanquin.
Simones was waiting for them just inside the door and he regarded Olivia speculatively as she came into the house behind Niklos. 'Great lady, I am surprised to see you here.'
'I am a little surprised to be here,' said Olivia loudly enough to have her words reach the Guard outside. 'But circumstances require that I speak with your master.'
Simones made a belated reverence to Olivia and ignored Niklos. 'I will inform him of your arrival. May I tell him why you have come?'
'It concerns my villa near Roma. He stayed there some of the time during his campaign.' She gave a direct, hard stare to the eunuch slave. 'That ought to be sufficient, Simones.'
After a second reverence, Simones hastened away, only to return promptly with word that Belisarius would wait upon Olivia in the larger reception room. 'I will claim the honor of escorting you there,' he added when he had delivered the information.
'It is just down the hall on the left,' Olivia said. 'I am able to find it. Niklos will come with me.' She did not give Simones a chance to argue, but went quickly to the room she had indicated.
Belisarius looked exhausted when he joined Olivia there a little later. 'I've missed you,' he said. 'But with Antonina in poor health, and my condition being what it is, we do not often see anyone these days.'
'Antonina is in poor health?' Olivia repeated, startled at the news. 'When I saw her last, she was thriving.'
'It has only been recently that she has suffered. Her pope tells her that it is the result of the continuing disfavor of Heaven, but I cannot believe it. I have brought so much misfortune on her, and if—' He stopped abruptly. 'That isn't why you're here, is it?'
'No,' she admitted, her concern not forgotten. 'Niklos was in the market today and saw goods from my Roman villa offered for sale.' She had not intended to state the problem so directly, but knowing now that Belisarius had many other troubles to plague him, she decided that speaking to the point was best.
Belisarius looked at Niklos. 'You're certain?'
'If you had served Olivia as long as I have, you would know these things as if they were your own,' he said. 'I am certain.'
'He would not have spoken to me unless he was sure,' Olivia added.
'What specifically did you see?' Belisarius asked.
'Two chests, antiques, with brass fittings. They're most unusual.' He paused. 'I didn't look further. However, the stall in the market was filled with Roman goods.'
'And so you assume that if the chests are there, other things may also be. You suspect that there has been some sort of a raid on the villa.' Belisarius nodded heavily. 'And doubtless you have good reason to think so. My officers have brought me tales that do not bode well.'
'You mean that Totila—' Olivia began.
'Not only our enemies. There are Byzantines who want to pick the carcass before the Ostrogoths get there.' His bitterness was ferocious and it was a moment before he could speak safely. 'I'm sorry, Olivia. When I left Italy, I was told that my obligations would be honored by Narses and his officers, but… it appears otherwise.'
'You've heard of other complaints?' It was not truly a question. She could read Belisarius' expression and knew that there had been others.
'Unfortunately.' He lowered his head and rubbed his eyes. 'I am profoundly sorry to learn of this. I'll start an
