The Lydian Baker

'Indeed. Before or after you tried to dive for the statue?'

'I didn't…' I started coughing again. Pain stabbed the back of my head. 'Ah, forget it. Where's Tiny?'

Felix hesitated. 'I'm afraid I haven't seen him. Not since he went overboard.'

'Oh.' I stared at him. 'Oh, bugger.'

'Quite, sir. But then again we're lucky to be alive ourselves.'

'Yeah.' That was true enough, especially since I couldn't swim a stroke. I was sorry for Tiny, though. 'By the way, Felix. How did I get ashore?'

'I pulled you, sir. Draped very artistically over an oar.'

'Is that so, now?' Hell’s teeth! That was all I needed: my life saved by Felix. It was mortifying. 'In that case…uh…maybe I should say thanks. I'm very grateful.'

'Don't mention it, sir. A pleasure. Certainly undeserving of such effusiveness.'

'Right. Right.' I had another look round. 'You know where we are?'

'Somewhere near the point of Eetioneia, I'd imagine. Not far from civilisation. If you can call the Piraeus civilised.'

'Uh, yeah.' Well, that was something. We could follow the coast and pick up a carriage or a chair at the Aphrodisian Gate. If they weren't all taken in this rain. I felt empty, and not because I'd tossed up the contents of my stomach, either. 'The Baker's gone for good, isn't it?'

Felix was quiet for a long time. 'Yes,' he said finally. 'I'm afraid so. Even if we knew exactly where she was when she went down, the water's too deep. And a statue that heavy would have buried itself in the mud.'

Some you win, some you lose. Evidently, we were into the second category here. Fuck. 'So. We may as well go home.'

'There's always the treasure in the cave.'

I nodded. It wouldn't be the same, though. Not without the Baker. She'd been some lady. I stood up.

'Okay, pal,' I said. 'Game over. At least we're alive. Let's walk.'

It took us two sodden, mud-sucking hours. Neither of us felt particularly like conversation.

40

We picked up some spiced wine and dry clothes at a cookshop near the harbour and found a coach to take us back to Athens. I dropped Felix off in Colonus and went straight home. Bathyllus took one horrified look at what the wineshop owner had thought the well-dressed Roman noble should be wearing that year, paid off the carriage and hustled me into the baths.

I sat there for an hour sweating what I'd brought back with me of the Saronic Gulf out of my pores and thinking about things. Gods, what a mess! Another death and the Baker gone for good, too deep even for a gang of Arabian pearl-divers to reach. Nice going, Corvinus!

Ah, well, maybe it was for the best: Gaius would've got the statue for sure, one way or the other. We still had the rest of the treasure, and if I managed to get him the little Artemis figurine then Priscus needn't be too disappointed. Besides, Harpalus had been right about one thing; the golden lady had caused too many deaths to be chancy. First Argaius's, then Smaragdus, Harpalus himself, Melanthus, and now Tiny. Not to mention the nameless crew who'd brought her to the Piraeus in the first place and the gods knew how many more prior to that. I wasn't superstitious, or no more than the next man, but just the thought of seeing that lovely bland face smiling at me across Priscus's dining-room gave me goose-bumps. When you reckoned it all up then maybe she was better off staying where she'd cause no more trouble ever again.

Which brought me to Hermippe. That was none of my concern, but I'd hate to see the bitch escape scot-free. Sure, I'd no worries about Callippus: when he got my message he'd've put two and two together and come up with five. However, we were back to the original problem: simply knowing that Hermippe had been ultimately responsible for the killings might not be enough, especially since she was a woman. Callippus would have his work cut out to screw even a majority verdict from an all-male Athenian jury, and I'd bet a mouldy sprat against a barrel of Baian oysters that she'd only have to bat her beautiful eyes at the jurors and blame it all on Glycus to have them bring in a not-guilty verdict nem. con. And Glycus was already dead.

Hell, the whole thing had turned into a pig's breakfast. Yet again. Once, just once, I'd like to come out of an investigation knowing that it had done some good and the world was a better place as a result, with virtue rewarded and evil sent down the tube. It didn't look like that was going to happen this time, either. Maybe there was some mean-minded god up there who had it in for interfering smartasses. If so then he was really working his butt off.

I sighed and nodded to the slave with the oil and scraper. Bath over, time to face my public. Life might seem more cheerful once I had a good dinner and a pint or two of wine inside me, but I doubted it.

In the atrium, waiting for me, I found Callippus. 'Corvinus.' He was looking grave. 'I thought it best to come straight round and tell you the news myself.'

'Yeah?' I filled a winecup from the jug on the table. 'What news might that be?'

'I've just been at the Scallop. Hermippe's dead.'

I stared at him, the cup half way to my lips. 'What?'

'An accident.' His face was unreadable. 'Seemingly she fell downstairs and broke her neck.'

'Is that so, now?' Carefully, I filled another cup and handed it to him, waving him onto the guest couch. 'When did this happen, do you know?'

'Early this afternoon. Not long before I arrived, as a matter of fact.' He studied his wine. 'I'd received your message regarding…Glycus, was it?' — I nodded — 'from my Piraeus colleagues, and I thought a visit was in order. Demetriacus had just had her body carried to her room.'

'Demetriacus was there?'

'Yes. We had quite an interesting talk.'

'How about Antaeus?'

Callippus's eyes came up to meet mine. They were calm and level. 'Yes, Antaeus was there too. Freshly back from your Zea boat shed, I understand. He witnessed the accident, as did Demetriacus. There was nothing they could do.'

'Uh-huh.' I drank my wine. 'Convenient, right?'

'There will be no investigation.'

'That wasn't what I meant.'

'No, I do realise that.' He frowned and twisted the stem of the winecup in his hand. 'Hermippe died from natural causes. If you can call falling down a flight of stairs natural. Personally I'm willing to leave the matter there.'

'She died easy.'

'Perhaps. Let's be charitable and hope so. More easily than Glycus, and certainly much more easily than Argaius. Anyway, as of today the case is officially closed.' He set the wine down untasted. 'Now. Did you find the Baker?'

'Yes and no.' I told him what had happened. 'We'll take up the rest of the treasure in a day or so. By land, this time. No more risks.'

'Very wise.' He nodded. 'There's the question of legal ownership, of course, but I'm sure the authorities will take an enlightened view. Especially since you're willing to bid for the goods at public auction and give the city their percentage. And especially since your friend Felix is so…well-connected.'

'Yeah.' I downed a swallow of Setinian. 'Mind you, I'd hate to be in that bastard's shoes when he tells his boss. When Gaius gets the news he is not going to be a happy little Caesar.'

The front door banged. 'Marcus!' Perilla's voice.

'In here,' I shouted.

She came straight across the room, ignoring Callippus, and hugged me tightly. 'Marcus, I've been so worried!'

'It's okay, lady. It's finished. We won, sort of. If you can call it winning.' I kissed her.

'You found the statue?'

'Yeah. For what it's worth.'

'Marcus…'

I put a finger to her lips. 'I'll tell you later. You know Callippus?'

'Yes, of course.' She smiled at him. 'How is Damoclea?' Damoclea was Callippus's wife.

'She's well, Lady Perilla.' Callippus was on his feet. 'Corvinus, I'm sorry to rush off but I must be going. We'll meet again soon. For dinner, perhaps?'