Hostage to Fortuna

word; what did it meanultimately? Was Ubiorum really my home? My Cohort was there, theLegion was there, but what did that mean? For the first time,standing on the deck of the Salacia, as we rowed downstream from the Parisiitown of Petuar, I understood, I mean I truly understood the melancholy tone of the lastpart of my great-grandfather’s account. The first and the greatestTitus Pullus had achieved all that he had set out to do, and in theprocess, he accrued a massive fortune for his descendants, but at aterrible cost to himself of all the things that a man shoulddesire, a woman’s love and a family to carry on your name. Now,between the actions of one of his grandsons and the actions of hisone and only great-grandson, all that he had achieved had been, ifnot ruined completely, seriously damaged. I walked to the bow ofthe ship; without a word, Alex followed me, and we silently stoodtogether as the ship moved swiftly downriver, although no matterhow fast it was, it would not have been enough for me. Wisely, hedid not say anything, and I was content to just watch the landscapeslipping past, as flat and relatively barren as it is this close tothe coast. I smelled the sea before I saw it, as both banks of theriver seemed to move away from the ship as it widened until,finally, there was no green on either side, and as I looked down atthe water, I was reminded by its brown color how we had managed tofind it in the first place. Perhaps it was this that brought theonrush of fatigue, but whatever the cause, suddenly, all thatmattered was getting some sleep. When I mentioned this to Alex, Idid not notice the sudden glint in his eye, and since he turned andimmediately headed for the ladder down to the main deck, I followedhim. We walked towards the stern and descended the ladder. Thecabin door was closed, but when I indicated that Alex follow me insince I had some things I wanted to discuss, he refused.

When I pressed him, he only said, “You needyour rest.”

Then, before I could say anything, hescrambled up the ladder, and my fatigue was such that I did noteven attempt to stop him. I pulled off my helmet, then opened thedoor to the master’s cabin.

When I saw the figure standing there, Icannot even estimate how long I stood motionless as my mind triedto comprehend what I was seeing. If anything, she was morebeautiful than I remembered; a foolish thing to say, I know, sinceI had seen her a matter of a couple of watches earlier. She wasstill wearing the gown she had been wearing the night before, andwe stood there, gaping at each other, but it was Bronwen who brokethe silence.

“I decided to come.”

Chapter Nine

I had to enlist Marcellus to block Squillusfrom descending to his own cabin, muttering about how he had beenroused from sleep, and how a man needs his sleep. However, while hegrumbled a bit, there was also a grin on his face, although I didnot ask why since I was certain I knew. In fact, both Squillus andhis crew stood on deck, grinning like fools, but I could hardlychastise them since the four former Legionaries were behaving inthe exact same manner.

All I said was, “When Pilus Prior Pulluscomes out on deck, if any of you look at him like you’re looking atme, I hope you know how to swim. And,” I added, “after last night,I’d count myself on being blessed by Fortuna that’s all hedid.”

I was pleased to see how quickly theyassured me that he would have absolutely no cause for complaintwhen he came up on deck. When I returned to the ship the nightbefore, I had told the men what I had seen Gnaeus do to Berdic, notfor any other purpose than I needed to talk about it because I wasstill having trouble understanding it. Now that we were out intothe channel, the wind naturally picked up, but it was almostdirectly in our face, which meant we were under oar power only, andI settled down on the deck with Marcellus and the other three men.Now that there was nothing to guard, they were at loose ends, andvery quickly, Hemina, Celer, and Trio were rolling the dice,leaving Marcellus and me to talk.

“When are you going totell the Centurion?” he asked me, not having to define the subject,if only because that was all that was on my mind.

“I don’t know,” I answeredmiserably, and the truth was that I did not. “I suppose I shouldtell him as soon as he comes up on deck…”

“Are youmad?” Marcellus gasped, but while Isaw he was sincere, I had no idea why.

“I’d like to think I’mnot,” I replied, “but apparently, you think that’s a badidea.”

Marcellus stared at me, giving me the strongimpression he was waiting for me to see his point, so rather thanasking him to explain, I thought for a long moment…then, it came tome, or at least I thought it had.

“Oh,” I finally spoke.“You’re thinking that he’s down there with Bronwen, and…” I did notfinish.

“I doubt there’s a lot oftalking going on down there,” Marcellus finished for me. “And,” headded, “I don’t know about you, but just after I’ve been with awoman, especially a woman like that?” He shook his head. “Iwouldn’t be happy with whoever came to give me bad news. Not,” hefinished wistfully, “that I’ve ever been with a woman likeher.”

It was, I thought ruefully, a good point,and I said as much. Then, with that settled, we both lapsed intosilence, and fairly quickly, I started dozing, with the sounds ofthe oars slapping the water to the beat of the drum lulling me tosleep.

Gnaeus did not appear until just beforesundown, and despite the tension I was feeling, I had to smother mysmile at the sight of the men of both Squillus’ crew and the formerLegionaries suddenly turning about to look anywhere but at him.

Unfortunately, Gnaeus noticed this, and whenhe walked up to stand