He laughed. ‘Of course. But I think Mother might have realised what we were up to. Give me a few days. I’ll take them up here on my own one evening, when she’s taking her bath.’
Quintus began to teach Aurelia how to thrust the gladius forward. ‘Keep your feet close together as you move. It’s important not to over-extend yourself.’
After a while, Hanno began to grow bored. He would have loved to take Aurelia’s place, but that wasn’t going to happen. He glanced at his nearly empty basket, and coughed to get the young Romans’ attention.
Quintus turned, a frown creasing his brow. ‘What?’
‘We didn’t find many mushrooms on the way here. Should I go and pick some more?’
Quintus nodded in surprise. ‘Very well. You’re not to go far. And don’t get any ideas about running away.’
Aurelia looked more grateful. ‘Thank you.’
Hanno left them to it. He cast about the edge of the clearing, but found no mushrooms. Unnoticed by Quintus and Aurelia, he moved off into the undergrowth. The sounds of their voices became muffled and then were lost. Sunlight pierced the dense canopy above, lighting up irregular patches of the forest floor. Nonetheless, the air felt heavy. Hanno’s presence made birds flit from branch to branch, sounding their alarm calls. Soon he felt as if he was the only person in the world. He felt free. Right on cue, the manacles around his ankles clanked, and reality struck. Hanno cursed. Even if he tried to run, he wouldn’t get far. The moment Agesandros was alerted, he’d get out the hunting dogs. They’d track him down in no time. And of course there was the debt he owed Quintus. Sighing, Hanno got back to his task.
His luck was in. A quarter of an hour later, he returned to the clearing with a full basket.
Aurelia saw him first. ‘Well done!’ she cried, rushing over. ‘Those slender mushrooms with the flat caps are delicious when fried. You’ll have to try some later.’
Hanno’s lips turned up. ‘Thank you.’
Quintus glanced at the basket, but didn’t comment. ‘Race you to the stream,’ he said to Aurelia. ‘We can cool off before going back.’
With a giggle, she took off towards the far side of the clearing, from where the babble of running water could be heard.
‘Hey!’ Quintus shouted. ‘That’s cheating!’ Aurelia didn’t reply, and he sprinted after her.
Hanno looked after them wistfully, remembering similar good times with Suniaton. An instant later, though, his gaze fell on the two wooden swords, which had been left on the ground nearby. Quintus’ bow and quiver lay alongside. Without thinking, Hanno walked over and picked up a gladius. As Aurelia had said, it was awkward to hold, but Hanno didn’t care. Gripping the hilt tightly, he thrust it to and fro. It was the most natural thing to imagine sticking it in Agesandros’ belly.
‘What are you doing?’
Hanno almost jumped out of his skin. He turned to find a dripping wet Quintus regarding him with extreme suspicion. ‘Nothing,’ he muttered.
‘Slaves aren’t allowed to use bladed weapons. Drop it!’
With great reluctance, Hanno let the gladius fall.
Quintus picked it up. ‘No doubt you were thinking about murdering us all in our beds,’ he said in a hard voice.
‘I’d never do that,’ Hanno protested. Agesandros is a different matter of course, he thought. ‘I owe you my life twice over. That’s something I will never forget.’
Quintus was nonplussed. ‘I only bought you in the first place because Agesandros didn’t want me to. As for when he was beating you, well, injuring a slave badly is a waste of money.’
‘That’s as maybe,’ Hanno muttered. ‘But if it weren’t for you, I’d surely be dead by now.’
Quintus shrugged. ‘Don’t pin your hopes on paying me back. There aren’t too many dangers around here!’ He pointed at his sack. ‘Pick that up. I’ve spotted a good place on the bank to set a snare.’
Stooping so that Quintus didn’t see his scowl, Hanno obeyed. Curse him and his arrogance, he thought. I should just run away. But his pride wouldn’t let him. A debt was a debt.
Quintus and Aurelia managed to fit in three more trips to the clearing before Fabricius’ return a week later. Atia had been so pleased by the basket of mushrooms that Quintus insisted Hanno accompany him and his sister each time. Hanno was glad to obey. Aurelia was friendly, and Quintus’ manner towards him had changed fractionally. He wasn’t exactly warm, but his high-handed manner, which Hanno despised, was no longer so evident. Whether it was because he had revealed the debt that he owed to Quintus, Hanno could not tell.
Although Fabricius’ homecoming meant that the secret trips stopped, Hanno was pleased to learn that his master was soon to return to Rome. Eavesdropping as he served food to the family, Hanno heard how the debates in the Senate about Hannibal were constant now, with some factions favouring negotiations with Carthage and others demanding an immediate declaration of war. ‘There’s far more interest in that than the eligible daughter of a country noble,’ Fabricius revealed to Atia.
Aurelia was barely able to conceal her delight, but her mother pursed her lips. ‘Have you found no one suitable?’
‘I’ve found plenty,’ Fabricius replied reassuringly. ‘I just need more time, that’s all.’
‘I want to know the best candidates,’ said Atia. ‘I can write to those of their mothers who are living. Arrange a meeting.’
Fabricius nodded. ‘Good idea.’
Let it take for ever, Aurelia prayed. In the meantime, I can practise with Quintus. It had been a joy to discover that handling a sword came naturally to her. She burned to train further, while she still could.
Her brother’s reaction, however, was the opposite to hers. ‘How long will you be gone?’ he asked glumly.
‘I’m not sure. It could be weeks. I’ll definitely be back for Saturnalia.’
Quintus looked horrified. ‘That’s months away!’
‘It’s not the end of the world,’ said Fabricius, clapping him on the shoulder. ‘You’ll be starting your military training next spring anyway.’
Quintus was about to protest further but Atia intervened. ‘Your father’s business is far more important than your desire to train with a gladius. Be content that he is here now.’
Reluctantly, Quintus held his silence.
Bending their heads together, their parents fell into a private conversation.
It was probably about her prospective husbands, thought Aurelia furiously. She kicked Quintus under the table and framed the words ‘We can go to the clearing more often’ at him. When he raised his eyebrows, she repeated them and thrust an imaginary sword at him.
At last Quintus understood, and a happier expression replaced the sullen one.
Hanno hoped that Quintus and Aurelia would take him along too. Agesandros could not do a thing to him while he was with them. Moreover, he had come to enjoy the outings.
‘Do you still think this is a good idea?’ asked Atia when the children were gone.
Fabricius grimaced. ‘What do you mean?’
‘You said yourself that no one suitable is interested in finding a bride at the moment.’
‘So?’
‘Maybe we should leave it for six months or a year?’
His frown deepened. ‘Where’s the benefit in that? Don’t tell me that you’re having second thoughts?’
‘I-’
‘You are!’
‘Do you remember our reason for getting married, Fabricius?’ she asked gently.
A guilty look stole on to his face. ‘Of course I do.’
‘Is it so surprising, then, that it’s hard for me to think of forcing Aurelia into an arrangement against her will?’
‘It’s difficult for me too,’ he objected. ‘But you know why I’m doing it.’
Atia sighed.
‘I’m trying to better our family. I can’t do that with a huge debt hanging over my head.’
‘You could always ask Martialis for help.’
‘I might owe thousands of didrachms to a moneylender in Capua, but I’ve still got my pride!’ he retorted.
‘Martialis wouldn’t think any less of you.’
‘I don’t care! I wouldn’t ever be able to look him in the eye again.’