plenty of slaves in the household to help him out if necessary. We had made love that morning without the risk of a nosy little witness appearing at the bedside.
“Lightly stained with woad!” Helena giggled. “She and Papa were rather well tattooed.”
I put my arms around her, still yearning with intimate affection. “You know how laundries bleach things-maybe somebody should have peed on them.”
“Papa preempted you with that joke.”
We were facing east, squinting into the pale morning sun. Behind us was the temple; to our left, the vista across the Field of Mars and gray-silver hints of the river; more to the right, the augurs’ long scan towards the distant misty hills.
“You don’t seem a happy gooseboy,” said Helena.
“I’m happy.” I nuzzled her neck lasciviously.
“I think you are planning to make trouble.”
“I’ll be the most efficient procurator Rome has ever had.”
“That’s exactly what I meant-they don’t know what they have done appointing you!”
“Should be fun, then.” I leaned back, turned her around to look at me, and grinned. “Do you want me to be respectable but useless, like all the rest?”
Helena Justina grinned back wickedly. I could handle becoming pious, so long as she was prepared to stick it out with me.
The city was stirring. We could hear beasts bellowing below, in the Cattle Market Forum. I caught a faint whiff from a tannery that must offend the refined nostrils of the gods-or at least their snooty antiquated priests. It reminded me of the ex-Flamen Dialis, who had complained about the goslings. That reminded me of his troubled granddaughter.
“What are you planning to do about Gaia Laelia and her family?”
Helena pulled a face at the suggestion that it was her responsibility, but she was ready: “Invite Maia to lunch-I have not seen her yet, in any case-and ask her about that royal reception.”
“Am I supposed to come home for lunch too?”
“It’s not necessary.” She knew I was dying to be in on what Maia said. “So,” she retaliated, “what are you intending to do about that body Aelianus found and lost?”
“Not my problem.”
“Oh, I see.” Appearing to accept it (I should have known better), Helena mused slowly, “I don’t know that I approved of my brother being set up for the Arval Brethren. I can see why he thought it would do him good socially, but the appointment is for life. He may enjoy feasting and dancing in a corn wreath for a few years, but he can be rather staid and serious. He won’t endure it forever.”
“You know what I think.”
“That all the colleges of priests are elite cliques, where power is traditionally wielded by nonelected, jobs-for- life patricians, all dressing up in silly clothes for reasons no better than witchcraft and carrying out dubious, secretive manipulation of the state?”
“You old cynic.”
“I am quoting you,” said Helena.
“What a misery!”
“No.” Helena pulled a dour face. “You are an astute observer of the political truth, Marcus Didius.” Then she changed tack: “In my opinion, unless it is already known who killed the man Aelianus found, then my brother should make it his business-with your technical helpto discover the murderer.”
“Why’s this? So that he can inform the rest of the Arval Brothers and in gratitude they will elect dear Aulus to fill the vacancy?”
“No again,” scoffed Helena. “I told you he is better off without them. So that when those snobs gratefully offer him membership he can make himself feel better by crying ‘No thank you!’ and marching out on them.”
Sometimes people suggested that I was the hot-headed one.
“So you will be investigating this with him?” she grilled me.
“I have no time for unpaid private commissions. Helena, my darling, I am very busy making recommendations for the care of things that honk and cluck.”
“What have you suggested to Aulus?”
“That he trots back to the Sacred Grove this morning and pretends to be making official enquiries.”
“So you are helping him!”
Well, I had said he could use my name as a cover, if it persuaded people to take him seriously. “It’s up to him. If he wants to know the truth about his mysterious corpse, he has plenty of free time and a good reason to be asking questions. He’ll have to find all the attendants who were working at the pavilion yesterday, and speak to the priests at the various temples; that will take him all day and prove whether he’s serious. I bet he discovers nothing. The experience will douse his ardor and perhaps be the end of it.”
“My brother can be very stubborn,” warned Helena in a dark voice.
As far as I was concerned, Aelianus could play with this curiosity as long as he liked. I might even give him a steer or two. But the swift removal of the body and the secrecy with which it had happened looked ominous. If the Arval Brothers had decided to hush up the incident, now that I was loosely attached to the state religion myself, I had to hold back. Once I had been a fearless, interfering informer; now the damned Establishment had bought me off. I had held this post for just two days, and already I was cursing it.
“What can he do then?” insisted my darling, being stubborn herself.
“Aelianus ought to present himself at the house of the Arval Master when the Brothers start assembling for today’s feast. He should declare what he saw, making his involvement known at least to their chief, and if possible to the whole group. While he is there, he must keep his eyes open. If he notices any particular Brother is missing, he can deduce the identity of the corpse.”
Helena Justina seemed satisfied. In fact, she seemed to believe I was helping her brother rather more than I had agreed to do.
“That’s wonderful, Marcus. So while Justinus is away in Spain, you have somebody to work as your partner after all!”
I shook my head, but she just laughed at me. Before we left the Arx, we shared a moment surveying the city. This was Rome. We were home again.
If anyone has heard that a procurator attached to the cult of Juno once kissed a girl on the sacred ground of the Auguraculum, it’s just winged rumor flitting around with her usual distaste for truth. Anyway, legate, that girl was my wife.
XI
MAIA WAS BEING far too careful to look normal. She shrank from being hugged as if it seemed an unnecessary display. She was pale but neatly dressed as always, with her dark curls combed back from her face. She wore a dress that I knew was her favorite. She had taken trouble to reassure us; she was certainly making an effort. But her mouth was tight.
With her came all her four children, and when I took them into the other room to show them my goslings, Maia’s eyes followed her little ones overprotectively. Always well behaved, they were even quieter than before, all intelligent enough to know their father’s death would have drastic consequences, the elder ones secretly shouldering responsibility for bringing everyone through the tragedy.
“They make a lot of mess,” said Ancus, now six, as he carefully handled one of the fledglings. He looked very worried. “What are you supposed to do about clearing up?”
“I have to find them somewhere else to live, Ancus. I made arrangements this morning for them to go to Lenia’s laundry over the road. They can waddle around the yard and forage in the back lane.”
