Beloved

you can arouse me without even seeming to try to arouse me?'

'You imagine it, Roman,' was her cold reply.

He laughed low, and his laugh was intimate and insinuating, implying things she didn't even want to think about or consider. 'You are the most intriguing captive I have ever taken,' he said. 'Fight me all you wish, goddess. I know how to defeat you.'

Zenobia laughed scornfully. 'You know how to overcome me physically, Roman, which is not surprising considering your height and girth.'

Aurelian pressed his lips together, making his face appear even more severe. She had stung him successfully.

The royal residence came into view, and Aurelian had to admit to himself that the beautiful marble buildings easily rivaled his own official palace on the Palatine Hill in Rome. The entry stood open, and the emperor's chariot swept through into the courtyard, the men of his own legion positioning themselves about the palace in prearranged order. Not all of the army had entered the city, although part of each of the four legions had come; and as they had marched through me city toward the palace, centurias, maniples, and even full cohorts had dropped from each legion, taking control of government buildings, the great merchant houses, the university. Rome was quickly in control.

In the courtyard of the palace the first signs of life were visible as slaves rushed forward to catch the heads of the emperor's horses. Then upon the portico of the palace the Council of Ten appeared, surrounding the young king almost protectively. Cassius Longinus leapt from the rear of the chariot as soon as it had stopped, and reached up to lift Zenobia down. Without so much as a backward glance at Aurelian she walked swiftly toward her son.

The Council of Ten, the attending soldiers, and the slaves all bowed before the queen, parting to allow her a path to the king. Mother and son looked at each other, and then Vaba said with honest emotion, 'Praise be to the gods that you are safe, Mother!'

For a moment Zenobia closed her eyes, and then a deep sigh rent her slender frame. 'I would have given my life for the city, Vaba,' she said quietly.

'It would have been a needless sacrifice, Mother. We both know that, don't we?'

How can I be angry with him? she wondered quickly. He has done his duty toward Palmyra as he has seen it, and I was the one who gave him the king's power. It is not my way, but he is as steadfast as I am.

Zenobia held out her arms to her son, and he quickly stepped into her embrace. 'I know that you are angry with me,' he whispered, 'but they would have had the city no matter the cost. I could not let you die, Mother. I could not!'

Without warning the tears appeared and spilled down her cheeks. 'Perhaps they will let you rule still,' she whispered back, hugging him tightly. 'I shall take all the blame, Vaba. I will not allow you to be punished for me, and I will have no more gallantry from you!' She stepped back from him, her beautiful face serious in her intent.

Gently Vaballathus brushed the stray tears from his mother's cheeks. 'For my father's sake?' he gently teased her.

'Yes,' she smiled at him, and then suspiciously, 'Why are you suddenly so amenable. Flavia has indeed wrought a miracle if she has matured you in six short months of marriage.'

'I am beginning to realize what it is not only to be a king, but a parent as well, Mother,' was the quiet answer. 'Flavia is with child.'

'Then she really was indisposed?' Zenobia was pleased, but at the same time a tiny voice said that she was too young, too beautiful, too sensual to be a grandmother. She was but thirty-four!

Then a sharp voice destroyed her reverie. 'If this is your son, goddess, I should like to be presented.' Aurelian was at her side.

Zenobia looked up, faintly annoyed. 'Vaballathus, my son, here is the mighty Roman conqueror, Aurelian.' Her gaze flicked insolently to the emperor. 'My son, the King of Palmyra,' she said.

The two men stared coldly at each other, and men Aurelian said mockingly, 'Will you not bid me welcome to Palmyra, Va-ballathus?'

'I did not think it necessary,' was the quick reply. 'You Romans seem not to mind if a city welcomes you or not.'

Aurelian looked carefully at the young man. 'There is a lot of your mother in you, boy,' he replied.

'Thank you, sir.' Vaba was totally unruffled, and Zenobia was quite proud of him.

'We will talk inside,' the emperor snapped. 'All of you,' he continued, including the nervously waiting Council of Ten with a wave of his hand. 'Cassius Longinus, lead the way. Gaius Cicero, attend me!'

At the door of the main council chamber, Aurelian stopped and said to Zenobia, 'Not you, goddess. This is men's work.'

Longinus saw the furious retort rising to her lips, but before he might intervene the king spoke. 'The queen is a member of the council, Caesar. Without her we cannot legally meet.'

'And we will not,' put in the white-haired, elderly Marius Gracchus.

'If you would treat with us,' Antonius Porcius contributed, 'then the queen must be with us, Caesar. We mean you no disrespect, but these are our ways. We know that, understanding them, you will be fair.'

Aurelian looked at the council and, seeing that they were adamant, relented. He had hoped to humiliate her with the government, but, by the gods!, she certainly commanded loyalty. He felt almost envious of such devotion.

'If it is your custom,' he said casually, 'then the queen may partake of this meeting.' He entered into the council chamber and seated himself at one end of the long table.

'You sit at the other end, Mother,' Vaba said softly, and Zenobia knew that her son was giving his permission for her to take a leading role in the negotiations to come.

Regally she settled herself, nodding as she did so to Vaba and the council to sit down.

Aurelian noted all of this. It seemed almost a shame to break her, but as much as he admired her, she was a dangerous enemy; an enemy Rome could not afford. She wanted the entire Eastern Empire, and she had taken it. Left in Palmyra, she would rise again. He looked down the table at the faces turned to his, and said, 'Palmyra is no longer a client kingdom. It will return to province status effective immediately.'

Then the emperor sat back, expecting the uproar that followed. The Council of Ten was speaking all at once, their voices raised in strong protest against what seemed to them an arbitrary decision. They had expected negotiations, the removal of Zenobia, even trade sanctions and heavy fines; but not this. They had opened their gates allowing the Roman emperor inside their city and this is the way he responded.

'Be silent!' Zenobia's voice stilled the cacophony. She looked down the table at the emperor. 'You are overly harsh, Caesar.' He noted with amusement that it was the first time she had used his proper title, and without sarcasm. 'It is I who am at fault, not Palmyra. Do not punish the city, nor my son; rather, punish me. Vaballathus will serve you well. He is his father's son before he is mine, and my husband was always loyal to Rome. It was he who kept the eastern boundaries secure for the empire against the Persians. Surely you will bear this in mind before you make a final decision.'

It was as close to begging as she was going to come, and Aurelian knew it. 'Why should I heed your words, Queen of Palmyra? Your son has not proven himself, as did his father, and he is young besides. Give me one good reason why I should listen to you?'

Zenobia stood up and gave the emperor a long, slow look. 'Because I am Palmyra,' she said quietly.

He was frankly astounded by her words, but a quick look at the others confirmed that she had spoken from truth not vanity. 'I will think on it,' he said. This was a far more dangerous woman than he had realized. Better he spend a little time assessing the situation before making a final decision. 'The council is dismissed,' Aurelian concluded. Then he rose and walked from the room.

'Go with him, Antonius Porcius,' Zenobia begged. 'You were the last imperial governor before we were freed of Roman control. Plead for my son! For your daughter, the young queen, for our unborn grandchild who will be Palmyra's rightful heir!'