Vespasian’s eyes lit up; he had not been expecting to be able to further his career until Antonia had won her struggle with Sejanus. But now, if she thought that it was safe for him to return to Rome and take another step up the cursus honorum he would grab the chance. He would be closer to Caenis and would not have to have his brother’s happiness shoved down his throat all the time.
‘That’s excellent news.’
‘Well, yes and no, sir.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘It’s the least popular position.’
‘Not working for the aedile in charge of roads?’
‘No, I’m afraid not. You’re going to be one of the triumviri capitales.’
Vespasian groaned; he knew what that entailed.
‘I’m afraid so, sir,’ Magnus said sympathetically, ‘one of the three men in charge of book-burnings and executions.’
CHAPTER XV
‘My dear boy, you’re as white as your toga,’ Gaius boomed in alarm as an attractive new doorkeeper let Vespasian in through the front door of his house.
‘That’s because again today my service to Rome amounted to nothing more than cold-blooded murder,’ Vespasian replied, irritably brushing off the attentions of one of Gaius’ many new young German slave boys.
‘Aenor, bring some wine,’ Gaius ordered the young lad, who immediately scuttled off to do his master’s bidding. ‘Come and sit down, Vespasian.’
‘The irony of it all is that for the last three months I’ve been doing the dirty work for someone whom I’m meant to be helping Antonia try to destroy,’ Vespasian said, taking a seat next to the impluvium in Gaius’ spacious atrium. The fountain’s continuous tinkling helped to calm Vespasian as Gaius sat down opposite him and Aenor served them their wine.
‘So whom did Sejanus get today?’ Gaius asked once the boy had been dismissed with a hearty slap on the arse.
‘I forget his name,’ Vespasian replied, taking a long slug of wine and savouring its delicate taste with his eyes shut and shaking his head slowly. ‘He was an equestrian who had business connections in Egypt; apparently he had defrauded Sejanus’ father, Strabo, shortly before he died, whilst he was the prefect of that province.’
‘And sixteen years later Sejanus gets his family’s revenge.’
‘Exactly. On a trumped-up charge of treason. The man wasn’t even allowed the citizens’ right of decapitation. I’ve just had to watch the public executioner strangle an innocent Roman citizen. Then, to cap it all, his family weren’t allowed to take the body for burial and it’s now lying on the Gemonian Stairs for anybody to dishonour as they see fit. It’s an absolute disgrace.’
‘Calm, my dear boy, there’s nothing you can do about it at the moment. Just be thankful that Sejanus is concentrating his energies on the long list of people who’ve upset his family in the past; although not a day goes by when I don’t worry that some snotty-nosed little urban quaestor is going to appear at my door with a summons.’
‘I wouldn’t call Paetus “snotty-nosed”.’
‘Well, he’s younger than me. Anyway, what was the actual charge?’
‘That he’d entered Egypt without the Emperor’s permission with the express purpose of defrauding the Emperor’s personal representative in that province.’
‘Very neat. Had he obtained permission?’
‘He swore in court that he had and then the prosecution brought out the list, supplied by guess who, of every equestrian who had applied for permission to visit Egypt in the last twenty years and, would you believe it, his name turned up missing.’
‘And that was that?’
‘Yes, Uncle, that was that. I had to take him away for immediate execution, no right of appeal, and all his property was forfeited to be split between the crony of Sejanus who’d accused him and the emperor, leaving his family destitute.’
‘Try to remember his name, will you, because when the situation changes here it may be possible to redress some of Sejanus’ wrongs.’
‘How? Sejanus has evidently removed his name from the list.’
‘Ah, but that isn’t the only list, there’s a duplicate in Alexandria — there has to be otherwise the prefect wouldn’t know whom to allow in. When Sejanus is no more I’ll ask Antonia to write to her friend the alabarch to see-’
‘Alabarch?’ Vespasian interrupted. ‘That’s the second time that I’ve heard that word recently. What is an alabarch?’
‘The alabarch of Alexandria is the secular leader of the Jews of that city. He’s used by the Emperor to collect taxes, like import duties and such, from the Jewish population. They resent paying them to Rome but don’t seem to mind paying them to a fellow Jew, even though the money ends up in the same place.’
‘What’s Antonia’s relationship with him?’
‘Not surprisingly she has a massive amount of land in Egypt. The alabarch looks after her interests there and has done since before he was appointed. He’s the first alabarch to be a Roman citizen; his grandfather was granted citizenship by Caesar.’
‘Gaius Julius Alexander,’ Vespasian said slowly, dragging the name from his memory.
‘You know him then?’
‘No, but Sabinus and I need to find him,’ Vespasian replied. He then told his uncle about Ataphanes’ last request and the box that lay buried for safekeeping on his estate at Cosa.
‘Well, it sounds to me as if one of you boys is going to have to get permission to visit Egypt and take that box to the alabarch.’
‘Do you think that Antonia would be able to use her influence with the Emperor and write to him in order to get us that permission?’
‘I’m sure that when her mind is free to worry about more mundane things she would be only too pleased to write to him. Talking of letters, I had one from my sister this afternoon. It seems that your father is moving into banking; he’s bought Pomponius’ banking concession in the lands of the Helvetii off him at a decent price.’
Vespasian raised his eyebrows at the news. ‘So it sounds like he means to stay up there then. A Helvetian banker! Who’d have thought that he’d end up doing that?’
Their conversation was interrupted by a knock on the front door. The attractive new doorkeeper jumped up off his stool and peered through the viewing slot. A moment later he pulled the door open and in walked Pallas.
‘Good afternoon, masters,’ he said, bowing deferentially. He handed his cloak to Aenor who had padded across the room to be of service.
‘And greetings to you, Pallas.’ Gaius did not get up. However much he liked and respected Antonia’s steward, he was still a slave. ‘What brings you here?’
‘Two things, master: firstly the timing is finally right to take all the evidence that my mistress has collected to the Emperor. Messages have been sent to Sabinus and Corbulo to come to the Lady Antonia’s house immediately; she requests Vespasian to join them. Magnus is already there as she seems to like to keep him handy at the moment.’ He dipped his hand into a leather documents satchel slung around his neck, pulled out a thick scroll and handed it to Gaius. ‘My mistress sent this for your safe-keeping, senator. It’s a copy of the letter that she has written Tiberius detailing the conspiracy of Sejanus. She requests that should we be unsuccessful in our mission, and she herself is compromised, that you read it aloud in the Senate, even if it costs you your life.’
Gaius swallowed hard. ‘It will be an honour to serve the good lady in such an important way,’ he said, taking the scroll and then adding quickly, ‘should it become necessary.’
‘Master Vespasian, we should go at once. My mistress has made a quiet arrangement with one of your two colleagues to perform your duties whilst you are away; your absence won’t be noted.’
‘Thank you, Pallas,’ Vespasian replied, getting to his feet. ‘I’ll just lose my toga and get into some travel clothes. I won’t be long.’
‘But be sure to pack your toga, dear boy,’ Gaius called after him.