24
Closing the doors carefully behind me, I returned to the ground floor. Had this been anybody else, I would have tackled him about it without a second thought. Since Sextus was such friends with the aedile, I had to consider what Faustus would want to do. He would be circumspect. I knew that without asking.
Marcella Vibia came through the colonnade while I was still staring at the courtyard, perplexed. ‘Albia! Still here?’
‘I am leaving now. I had a rest, I hope you don’t mind.’
‘Of course not!’
She walked me towards the exit, as a politeness. I said casually, ‘Marcella Vibia, I do believe I have never seen your grandchildren.’
Did I detect hesitation? But Vibia answered calmly, ‘They go to a little school close to the Capena Gate. Our baby girl is only five; the boy is six, almost seven. Their father will be bringing them home any time soon. Of course they have a pedagogue who escorts them, carrying their tiny satchels and keeping them from harm along the route, but Sextus likes to pick them up himself and spend time with them.’
‘That’s wonderful.’ Actually, it was quite unusual.
‘He takes good care of them.’
There was no mention of their mother. I reflected sadly on little old ladies. Even this warm, civilised woman would lie, by omission at least, if it suited her.
However, she had told the truth in some respects: while we were talking, Sextus Vibius did come home, preceded into the house by two tousled children, full of pent-up energy after their release from lessons. They hurled themselves on their grandmother with joyous hugs, then charged off to a room in her apartment from which they produced toys.
They lived down here. Their grandmother was looking after them. Nothing was said about that.
Marcella Vibia went to fetch drinks for the children and a damson in honey each – ‘One! Lucius, just the one or you’ll spoil your supper.’ The pair sat quietly side by side on a low colonnade wall to drink from beakers under her supervision. They were well behaved. Lively. Cheery. Not visibly upset by their mother’s absence; I compared this to how disturbed we all used to be if Helena Justina was away from home even for a day. Maybe when it came to bedtime they would whimper and miss Julia, but until then they managed well enough.
I wondered what they had been told. Of course, no ethical informer would ever try to get such small children on their own and question them …
They finished eating and rushed off to play. I delayed my departure, keen to see what happened in this family. While we stood and watched the boy and girl, I explained to Sextus why Faustus had left earlier, saying only that I had stayed to attend to ‘notes’. Sextus was intent on his children, clearly a good father. He was popular and natural with them, constantly catching balls they lobbed at him or warning them to be careful when they clambered on balustrades.
Suddenly he turned to me, all smiles. ‘This is the first chance I have had to pry − Tiberius certainly kept you quiet!’
I did not trouble to answer. I preferred it when he was sniffy about my profession.
‘Own up!’ urged Vibius. ‘How long has this affair been going on?’
People were bound to misinterpret our odd friendship; I was none too clear how to interpret it myself. ‘Nothing is going on. We work together sometimes.’
‘Oh, so he has not made his move yet!’ his friend exclaimed, now grinning broadly. I found his attitude annoying. He was so sure Tiberius was my lover; there was no way to persuade him otherwise.
I gathered myself together as I prepared to go home, smoothing my skirts and tidying my jewellery, tucking in a wayward wisp of hair. ‘You have two delightful children, Sextus Vibius. Such a pleasure to see them. I would really like to meet your wife also.’
He was a good politician. He smiled as if this was the most natural thing to ask. ‘Of course!’ he replied, as smooth as almond custard. ‘We shall have to arrange it very soon.’
‘I look forward to that,’ I replied lightly.
If he wondered what I had found out about his wife, Vibius gave no sign. His mother had listened in from nearby without appearing to do so; it was impossible to judge what she was thinking.
Vibius had the cheek to wink at me as I left. ‘Remember, I want to be the first to know! Tiberius!’ he spelled out, as I looked blank. Apparently this had become a joke between us. ‘You make sure to tell me when he makes his move.’
25
Vibius disconcerted me, though I would not complain to his friend.
It felt urgent to see the fabled Tiberius, that refined man who never in fact made his move, in order to discuss his candidate’s missing wife. Whatever had happened, any separation affected Vibius’s electoral claims to be a happily married man, with the right to take precedence over the unmarried in the voting order. Judging by pointed remarks people had already made (including that missile Laia Gratiana had launched), he was close to being exposed. Any rival who caught wind of this could make a complaint to the Senate: Vibius Marinus was faking his marital status.
Even if it was not his fault his wife had left him, he could only lose. In the minds of the public he had tried to mislead them, while senators would love to denounce a man of such unsound background.
My brain throbbed as I rode Patchy at his leisurely pace back towards the Aventine. I should myself have challenged Vibius straight away, but I wanted Faustus to take up the matter. Let him ask the precious Sextus what he was playing at.
I was assuming Faustus was unaware of the situation. I hated the thought that maybe he knew, maybe he had known all along, but had not told me. Would his relationship with his close childhood friend matter more to him than being honest with me? The hard truth was, I wanted to be his confidante. I had fooled myself I was.
If he did not know, Faustus would want to be told immediately.
Since he was working, he could be anywhere. Faustus never stayed in the magistrates’ office placidly signing documents. He interviewed wrongdoers personally and if there were none waiting to be dressed down when he arrived, he would go out and try to catch some. I went to the office, by the Temple of Ceres, but he had been and gone. Staff thought he was expected back, but they could not be certain and they would soon be closing up for the day. I left a message anyway that I needed to speak to him.
I could have walked around looking for him, but he moved surreptitiously when patrolling his patch. In the crowded Aventine alleys I could easily miss him. Anyway, by now he had probably gone to the baths, then on somewhere to dinner.
In the street outside, while I was pondering what to do, the tricksy goddess of fortune placed a chance in my way. Up in the Greek-style portico of the temple, the temple where she had made herself a prominent member of the élite matrons’ cult of Ceres, I spotted Laia Gratiana. Normally I would have headed off fast in another direction. But I had heard Laia seeming to hint that she knew the missing wife had gone away. When shall we be seeing your wife, Sextus Vibius? … Darling Julia!
She knew. The nasty piece of work knew his wife was never going to appear.
I called out to her and marched up the temple steps. At first, Laia had the advantage, able in the most literal way to look down on me. She had been standing between the heavy columns, enjoying a survey of her realm, the Aventine. Meanwhile the Hill went about its business untroubled by her scrutiny.
‘Why! Here is Manlius Faustus’s latest bit of rough!’
She must have spoken in this insulting way about the woman with whom Tiberius had had an affair. That had been a rich man’s wife, very beautiful, and I guessed that whatever her morals, she had actually been cultured. Still, low-minded people were always snobbish about me.