Ovid

'If she's come to any harm,' I said carefully, 'you're dead meat, understand? You and Chubby-Chops Asprenas both. I'm telling you that now.'

He laughed. 'Think you can do any better than last time? And what's Asprenas got to do with it?'

I made a sign to the Sunshine Boys who were hovering in the open doorway. They trooped inside grinning and nudging each other, cracking knuckles and flexing biceps. As a performance it was subtle as a Suburan mugging, but that suited me. This was one message I wanted spelt out in capitals.

Agron didn't even look round. 'Look, Corvinus. We may not particularly like each other but I don't need the hassle and I don't want to bait you, okay? I'm telling you now that I've no more idea where the girl is or who took her than you do. Nor has Asprenas and nor has the mistress. So call off your performing monkeys back there before you make yourself out to be a bigger fool than you are already.'

He could've been lying, but somehow I didn't think so. In any case like I said I admired his nerve.

'Okay boys.' I held up my hand. 'Change of plan. Scram. Go play with your toys next door.' The knuckle-cracking and biceps-flexing trailed off and the grins disappeared. I've seen kids look like that when someone stops them torturing the cat. 'And tell Bathyllus to bring us a jug of wine.'

'That's better.' Agron folded his arms and watched me as the last of the Gauls trooped out again and banged the door behind him. 'Now tell me what happened.'

'Hold on. First you tell me how you knew the lady was missing.'

'Not me. The mistress. And before you go jumping to any more half-baked conclusions, most of Rome knows. You can thank Daddy for that.'

Yeah. That made sense. My father wouldn't've had any reason to keep the news quiet, quite the reverse. I'd asked for his help and the first thing any self-respecting purple-striper would do under the circumstances was put the call out on the grapevine. The old patron-client relationship might be shakier now than it had been in the past but when it came to getting results it still left official channels nowhere. I was surprised that he'd gone to so much trouble. Grateful, too.

'Okay,' I said. 'For what it's worth, she went out visiting a couple of nights ago and didn't come home. The day we had our little chat about Varus.'

If he noticed the tone of the last sentence he didn't show it.

'Kidnapped?'

'It looks that way.'

'You had any ransom demands?'

'Not yet. But I doubt if whoever took her is interested in money.'

'What, then?'

'What do you think? They want me to stop asking questions, same as you do.'

'We didn't go beyond a pretty please, Corvinus. You think it's that important?'

'Yeah,' I said. 'I'd say it was important. Or wouldn't you agree?'

There was a knock on the door and Bathyllus came in with the tray. He gave the big guy his best disapproving stare, poured, and left.

'So what brings you here?' I sipped at the wine. 'Apart from curiosity.'

'Screw the curiosity. I told you, if you can't keep your women it's none of my business. The mistress sent me to ask if there's anything she can do.'

'I can manage. Thank her anyway.'

Agron frowned and set his cup down on the floor untasted. 'Look,’ he said. ‘This isn't my idea. Quinctilia feels responsible. She wants to help, right? Asprenas, too. Sure, they tried to shut you up, but they made a mistake. And don't blame the mistress for what happened that day in the Subura. That wasn't part of the orders.'

'Using your personal initiative?'

'Yeah, if you like. I was told to follow you, keep an eye on you, maybe scare you a little. But no violence. And I saved your life, remember.'

The guy had a point. And what he was saying came as close to an apology as I could see him ever making.

'Okay,' I said. 'So let's call it quits, then. For the moment.'

'You still think the general was your fourth man?' The question came straight out of the blue, without any signalling; but then that seemed to be the way Agron operated.

I hesitated. Just because the big guy had stopped threatening to belt the hell out of me didn't mean I had to confide in him. And if he was working for the opposition it'd be a real mistake.

'Come on, Corvinus! This is important.'

Sure it was. 'Who to?'

'To me.'

I nursed my wine while he waited in patient silence. If Asprenas was mixed up in this somehow then he could've sent his tame gorilla round to sound me out, maybe drop a few hints on how he wanted me to play things. All the same it didn't feel right. Agron might be a bastard, but I was willing to bet that he was an honest bastard.

'Okay,' I said finally. 'I don't know. I honestly don't know. Sure, Varus was involved. He must've been, the letter proves that. But there's a good chance that he was set up. Or at least used.'

He relaxed. 'That's what I hoped you'd say. Who by?'

'If I knew that I'd know the whole thing. What's it to you, anyway?'

'You know what I think of the general, Corvinus. He may've been greedy, he may've been taking bribes from the Germans, but like I told you when the time came he paid and paid hard. That bit of it's over. If Varus is your traitor I don't want to know about it and I sure as hell won't help you prove it. You get me?'

I thought I could see what he was driving at. 'I get you. So let's have the but.'

He nodded. 'Right. If it wasn't the general, if Varus was set up somehow, then I want the bastard who did it. I want him just as much as you do, maybe more. Not just for Varus but for fifteen thousand other poor sods and three golden eagles. So if that's the direction you're headed in then maybe — just maybe — we're on the same side after all.'

As a peace offer I'd heard better, but it had a genuine feel to it. An honest bastard, right enough.

'Everything so far points to Varus being guilty,' I said. 'You know that, don't you?'

He nodded. 'Yeah. But I'm like the mistress. I can't believe the general was that kind of traitor, and I'm gambling that I'm right.'

'And if you aren't?'

'I don't make wild bets, Corvinus. Varus was set up. I know he was.'

Maybe I was making one of the worst mistakes of my life, but my gut feeling told me the guy was on the level. I raised my winecup.

'Fair enough. Truce?'

Slowly he reached for his own cup. Then, his eyes on mine, he took the barest sip and put the cup back down.

'Truce.'

'Okay,' I said. 'So start helping. If Varus wasn't our man what about the other possibilities?'

'Such as?'

'Let's start with Numonius Vela.'

His brow furrowed. 'You got reasons for that, or are you just dropping names?'

'Reasons. If our traitor wasn't Varus he must've worked pretty closely with him and been pretty high in the hierarchy. Vela was the general's deputy, and you don't get better placed than a deputy to frame a boss.' I sipped my wine. 'So tell me about Vela. What sort of guy was he?'

'Not the conspiring type.'

Shit. That came out flat. Too flat. 'You sure?'

'Not unless he was a good actor. Vela was straight as a die but he'd no spunk and no imagination. A brainless nobody who turned out a coward in the bargain. Count him out, Corvinus. You won't see me shed any tears for Vela, but he isn't the man you want.'

'Hold on. You don't ditch the guy that easy. Vela was the one told Quinctilia her brother was a traitor. He gave her the letter that proved it. If Varus was set up I'd say that made his second a pretty strong candidate.'

Agron's brows came down. 'Sure he gave the mistress the letter. That's the point. If he'd been the one who framed the general he would've hung onto it, but he didn't. He sent it straight to Asprenas by special courier.'

Something cold touched the back of my neck.

'Run that past me again, will you? Slowly this time.'