She winced to hear one dead and a threat to civilisation described in that way, putting the mobile on speakerphone. She let the producer continue talking while she summarised what had happened for Myles. ‘So, you were right about a man with a bomb. You just got the wrong city.’
Myles was absorbing the report as the TV producer cut to the chase. ‘Helen, you’re in Rome, right? With that historian boyfriend of yours? The Brit, right?’
Both Helen and Myles smiled at the notion of Myles being a ‘boyfriend’.
‘I am, yes.’
‘Well, we need to interview him now — on air, to talk about the Roman Empire and the USA.’
Helen was about to say no, to shield her partner. But Myles refused the protection. He nodded.
‘OK, he’s here with me now. Shall I put him on?
‘Yes, thanks Helen.’
Helen passed the phone to Myles.
Myles tried to stand straight, immediately made nervous by the prospect of a live television interview. He tried to listen down the phone, but it was silent. ‘Er, hello. Myles Munro here,’ he offered. More silence. He was beginning to think they’d changed their minds — no interview after all.
Finally the machine clicked back to life again. Then a very professional-sounding voice spoke from the other end. ‘Myles Munro, thank you for talking live on CNN.’
‘Er, thank you.’ Myles could tell his voice sounded amateurish. He was no natural TV pundit.
‘Mr Munro, you’re a historian from Oxford University, currently in Rome, Italy. Tell me, could the USA really be brought down like the Roman Empire?’
Myles tried to do the question justice, which meant there was no simple answer. ‘Well, yes, I suppose it could, if we actually knew how the Roman Empire was brought down.’
Silence, while the anonymous interviewer in a faraway studio tried to come up with the next question. ‘And what do you think brought down the Roman Empire? What should people prepare for?’
‘I’m afraid there are over two hundred theories on why Rome fell. Some historians reckon it was lead poisoning.’
‘Lead poisoning?’
‘Yeah, the Romans used lead in a sauce for their food. Other people reckon it was the plague. Several epidemics struck the empire, including things like smallpox. But bubonic plague was the most deadly.’
‘And what’s your favourite theory, Mr Munro?’
Favourite? A favourite reason for the collapse of a whole civilisation? Myles tried to remain polite. ‘Well, there are three leading theories,’ he explained. ‘First, Rome suffered a series of attacks — from Persia and from lots of tribes in the East.’
‘Persia — that’s modern Iran, right?’
‘Yes, and they fought over where Syria and Iraq are today. The theory goes that there were simply too many attacks for the Roman army to cope with. The Empire was overwhelmed.’
‘So, multiple attacks from the Middle East, huh? What’s the second theory, Mr Munro?’
‘Well that has to do with migration. For centuries, when it was on the rise, Rome welcomed new tribes into the Empire — including people they’d conquered. But when thousands of refugees, who’d been forced from their lands by war in the East, tried to settle in Europe, Rome treated them very differently. It was cruel to them. The refugees became enemies, and it was a migrant tribe, the Vandals, who eventually broke into Rome and destroyed the city.’
‘And that’s where we get the word “vandalise” from?’
‘That’s right. Rome’s last big military operation was against the Vandals, and their new base in Libya. It was a disaster, and it left the Empire bankrupt.’
‘A refugee crisis. Very interesting. OK, so the third theory…’ There was a pause on the other end of the line. Then, ‘Sorry, Mr Munro, we’re going to have to wait on that third theory on why the Roman Empire fell. We’re about to go live to a press conference with Dick Roosevelt, son of Senator Sam Roosevelt, who drove the bomb away in those live television pictures we saw earlier and thwarted a major terrorist attack that would have ripped through the heart of New York and claimed thousands of lives…’
Seven
The phone line went dead. Myles gave the handset back to Helen.
Helen was still curious. ‘Why do you think a bomber in New York cited the Roman Empire?’
Myles turned his head to one side — he was trying to make an educated guess. ‘Could be because the US was founded with the Roman Empire in mind. Your Senate, Capitol Hill, the eagle as a national symbol, even the rule of law — they all came from ancient Rome.’
‘But America doesn’t have an empire?’
‘Not a normal empire, no. But, like Rome, you dominate the known world. Some people resent you for it.’
Helen nodded, accepting Myles had a point.
The phone rang again. Helen looked at the screen and frowned: an unknown number from Washington DC. ‘Hello, Helen Bridle speaking.’
‘Sam Roosevelt, Senator. I understand you’re with that British historian, Myles something.’
Helen was shocked. As a television journalist she often met powerful people. But a call from Senator Sam Roosevelt was quite a surprise, even to her. ‘Er, yes, Senator.’
‘Well, I want to speak to him,’ growled the voice. ‘Put him on.’
The Senator’s voice gave commands naturally. Something about his tone made them hard to disobey. Helen handed the phone over to Myles again, who raised his eyebrows in surprise.
‘Myles Munro speaking.’
‘Mr Munro, its Senator Sam Roosevelt here. You may have heard of me.’
‘Yes, I’ve heard of you. I think most people have heard of you, Senator.’
‘You know about this “Roman Empire” thing?’
Myles paused, and scratched his head. ‘The threat, Senator?’
‘Yes, and it is a threat. It’s a threat to the whole United States…’
The Senator raised his voice to emphasise points and spat out the important words. Myles could tell he wouldn’t like to spend much time with the man.
‘Mr Munro, we’ve got intelligence which says this threat is blackmail.’
‘Blackmail, Senator?’
‘Yes. Someone is trying to hold the whole USA to ransom.’
Myles paused before he asked the obvious question. ‘Do you know who it is?’
‘Yes we do,’ came the reply, confident and instant.
‘Well, can you tell me?’
‘No I can’t, Munro.’
Myles was more bemused than angry. ‘So, how do you want me to help you?’
‘Mr Munro, I need you to come with me to sort this out.’
To Myles, the request seemed absurd. He thought, then answered carefully. ‘Why me, Senator?’
‘Because I’ve just heard you on TV, Myles, and you know the Roman Empire.’
Myles let out a frustrated wheeze of breath. Whatever the Senator was planning, it had the makings of a fiasco. ‘Senator, I don’t know the Roman Empire. I don’t know who’s blackmailing you, and I’m not American. You’ll be able to find someone much better.’
There was the sound of shock at the other end of the line: the Senator was not used to people saying ‘no’ to him. Myles could hear the Senator exhaling very deliberately. ‘Munro, there is also another reason.’
‘Well, what is it?’
‘It’s a reason I can’t explain over an open phone line. Few people get a chance to serve their country like this.’
Myles refused the bait. ‘Senator, I’ve just served my country, in Afghanistan. I’ve got nothing against Americans — I’m even dating one…’ He saw Helen smile. ‘And there will be lots of Americans far better than me for what you have in mind.’