The Chariots Slave (28 page)




 

meant a race to the death.

But he had the upper hand. Sellah had to compete on her
own, whereas he had a whole team dedicated to keeping the
blue chariot from finishing. The thought of Jiao’s advantage
caused a lump to form in Sellah’s throat.

The trumpets sounded, and Sellah’s heart began to pound
deep within her chest. Her time had come.
She closed her eyes and concentrated on Diana and the
team. She tried to steady her breathing and match their pace.
She was so focused that she had not realized the trumpets
ceased to play or that the crowd stilled. But a small sound, a
familiar sound met her ears. When she realized it was the
gate latch, she screamed for her team to spring forward.
“Hijah!”
Diana and the others took off down the track. As far as
Sellah could tell there were no obstacles. Seven laps, that was
all she had to get through. Green drivers flanked her sides
and tried to block her from advancing, but she did not fret.
This had happened last race as well, and Diana had somehow
found a way to press forward.
As she was nearing the first turn, the trumpets sounded.
She was tempted to look about to see what was happening,
but she did not want to lose focus.
A rain of arrows whizzed by her head. The chariot and
horses to her left had been hit and collapsed under the pain.
One chariot started to roll, crushing the driver and taking
out another green team.
“Hijah!” she screamed, pleading with the horses to speed
up around the bend.
Jiao was just in front of her now, and once more the
trumpets resounded. This time gates opened beside her and



herds of wild horses ran into the arena. Their presence
spooked some of the horses, and they started to pull away
from their drivers, trying to run with the herds. Others
collided with chariots, forcing the drivers off their course.

Somehow Diana managed to work with the herds and use
them as a means to plough the path before them. They
followed after the horses as they came up behind Jiao.
Diana kept this momentum for the next two laps, but despite
the protection of the herd, she had not been able to pass Jiao.

As they were coming into the turn for lap three, the
trumpets once again blasted their harsh call. Sellah could not
imagine what obstruction would come next.

Suddenly, doors around the arena flew open and large
tigers charged the horses. Their chains kept them at a safe
distance and the horses on the outside of the herd protected
Sellah and her team.

As they continued around the track, chasing after Jiao,
they managed to dodge the tigers and any rogue horses that
ran against the grain. Every second that passed without the
trumpets call made a knot grow larger in the pit of Sellah’s
stomach. She was worried about what would come, so much
so that she did not notice the way Diana began to breathe.

“Hijah!” she yelled, pushing them onwards.
She was now neck and neck with Jiao. The remnants of
the herd managed to keep him from advancing. No doubt he

had fresh, well rested horses, whereas she was using ones that
had raced the day before.

They were coming upon the sixth turn, and Jiao took the
corner tighter than needed, causing Sellah’s chariot to scrape
against the wall. The wheel wobbled as she struggled to
straighten out her cart, and some of the loose herd cut in




 

front, slowing her team.

“Damn!” She tried frantically to regain her team’s speed.
It was their final lap and she had to catch Jiao. She was so
close. The trumpets resounded once more, the gates opened
and with that came the releasing of ferocious felines, more
horses, and worst of all, more arrows.

She crouched down trying to avoid being struck. Beside
her a horse fell and caused a torrent of destruction behind as
it took down many other horses.

It was a straight stretch and Jiao was just a few feet ahead
of her.
“Hijah!” she called out once more.
Diana lowered her head and worked hard trying to take in
enough air to power her legs forward. They were coming
around the final turn, and Sellah knew this was her chance. If
she did what Thaddius had taught, she should be able to gain
ground on Jiao, just enough to pull ahead.
She bent her knees and found firm hand holds as the
horses pushed into the turn.
“Hijah!”
She leaned with them as they came up upon the red line.
Jiao right behind, only inches away.
“Hijah!” she screamed.
Diana struggled to power through her exhaustion as they
came up to the line. With her last ounce of strength the horse
tried to dig in once more, but her legs could not hold and she
collapsed under her weight and crumpled to the ground.
The momentum of her collapse caused the cart to tip and
flip over her. As Sellah flew through the air. She tried
desperately to catch a glimpse of her trusted horse.



***

 

When Sellah came to, she was confused as to where she

was. The last thing she remembered was watching Diana’s
collapse that knocked the other horses down. Now somehow,
she was in a soft bed.

Slowly she opened her swollen eyes. The room was not
too bright, so it did not take long for her to adjust her sight.
Once her vision came clear, what she looked at frightened her
more than watching Diana fall.

“Hello Sellah,” Barachius greeted.

Her eyes widened, and she looked around, hoping it was a
dream or that someone else was there to protect her. But she
was alone. Alone with the enemy.

“I have gone to great lengths to get you here,” he
continued. “But now that I have you, I will remind you what I
previously have warned you about. I will spend the rest of my
life making sure you know not to disrespect me again.”

Sweat dripped off his face and he stood over her.
Desperate to be free of him, she struggled against her bed
cover, but her body was still too weak to run. How could this
be? Barachius was supposed to lose, she was supposed to
have freed them.

“Do not fear, I will bring you pleasure before I bring you
pain,” Barachius taunted as his meaty hand stroked hair off
her face.

“Don’t touch me!” She desperately kicked at the blankets,

 




 

but his legs had them pinned down.

“Silence!” he hissed as he slapped his filthy hand over her
mouth and clamped down. “If you scream one more time, I
will kill you!” He released his hand but left a finger over her
lips in reminder of his threat.

“Then kill me, for life under your rule is not worth living!”


“G uards!” Thaddius yelled as he entered Sellah’s room.

“Barachius, I told you to never come near here. You will be
severely punished for this!” His chest rose and fell at a rapid
pace, and the arm that was free from a sling had its fist
clenched and ready for action.

“It’s a pity you didn’t arrive later or I would have had time
to decorate this room with red for you,” Barachius retorted as
he backed away from Sellah.

Two large men burst into the room, and Thaddius directed
them to Barachius. “Take him to the post and have him
lashed,” he ordered. The muscle in Thaddius’ jaw
prominently stood out and his eyes were hardened with
anger.

The whole scene confused Sellah. If she had lost, then
why would Barachius and the guards listen to Thaddius?
“Do not kill him, but come as close as possible,” Thaddius
called after the guards. He turned back to Sellah and limped
over to her side. She noticed his leg was in a splint. The skin
on his arms was still healing, but his face seemed to be
almost back to normal.
“It’s not that easy keeping him alive. Trust me, I have



debated killing him many times over.” Thaddius smiled as he
tried to find a comfortable way to sit next to Sellah.

When he found a position in which he could relax, he took
a moment to look at her face. It was obvious that she was
confused, so he took a moment to further explain.

“The Emperor, Caligula, has sent request that he will visit
my domus and discuss my wager with Barachius. I worry he
will make me retract the terms, for his fear of losing the green
team. But let’s not fret about that, I just got you back, and I
don’t want to waste time talking about such trivial things.
Sellah you saved me and my estate. How can I ever thank
you?”

“I saved you?” she repeated, afraid that what she heard
was not true.
“Yes, you and Diana had a horrible accident, but you will
both survive. And somehow you managed to win the race!”
he exclaimed.
“Diana is all right?” she whispered in relief.
“Yes, she will survive. But we do not think she will be
able to race again. This past week has really taken a toll on
her. She is not as young as she used to be.”
“I…I don’t understand. I thought I had failed you.”
“Don’t be stupid, Sellah. Even if you had lost, you would
not have failed me. I was furious when I found out they let
you race, but then I realized the sacrifice you were making
for everyone, and I am thankful. You saved me.” His eyes
were filled with an emotion she had had only seen him
possess for brief moments in the past. It was this side of him
that drew her in, enticed her.
“Here,” he said as he placed two sacks down next to her.
“You won this, and I want you to have it.”




She studied his face for a moment and then struggled to
prop herself up. What could possibly be in the bags? After a
few moments of struggling, Thaddius wrapped his good arm
around her and helped her get into a sitting position. The
close proximity of his body to hers caused a fire to build
within her and brought a blush to her cheeks.

Once he was certain that she was comfortable, he handed
her the sacks. As soon as they touched her hand, she knew
what they contained. It was the prize money from the race.

“This is a lot of money. What would a slave do with all
this?”
At her mention of the word slave, Thaddius flinched and
turned his gaze from her face.
“Buy your freedom,” Vettius suggested as he walked
through the door.
Thaddius choked and turned to face Vettius.
“I can do that?” she asked as she looked over the life
changing bags in her hands.
“Yes you can,” Vettius replied as he openly sent a look of
defiance to Thaddius.
“Can you please give me some privacy?” she asked as she
watched Thaddius closely.
“Of course, come Thaddius.” Vettius helped Thaddius to
his feet and directed him from the room.

*

They waited there for some time, while Thaddius limped
back and forth before her door. Every now and then stopping
to glare at Vettius.

“Why would you tell her something like that?”



“It is the truth.”
He opened his mouth to argue with the man but was cut

off by Sellah calling them back.
“Vettius can you please gather everyone to come here?”
Sellah instructed as she regarded the anger rising in
Thaddius’s face.
“I will not give my permission for your freedom. You
don’t know what you ask of me, Sellah.” Thaddius’s eyes
pleaded with her not to leave, but his pride sealed his tongue
from speaking these words.
Sellah struggled to free her legs from her bed cover and
shuffled over to the side of the bed. She then used Thaddius
for support while she attempted to stand. Her legs were weak
at first, but she was soon able to manage on her own.
“How long have I been sleeping?” she asked.
“A few days,” he replied. His eyes never left her face. If
she was going to leave him, he would spend every moment
absorbing her every expression.
Soon people began to crowd into the room. Accalia,
Simeon, Vettius, and several of the other attendants gathered
there to watch Sellah purchase her freedom.
“How much money am I worth?” she asked.
When Thaddius did not respond, she turned to Acestes, the
master of Thaddius’s slaves, for a response.
“If a slave wants to purchase his or her freedom, they must
pay the initial cost, plus room and board,” Acestes explained.
“Will sixty denarii suffice?” she asked as she threw a
pouch of coins at his feet.
He picked up the bag and quickly counted through the
coins. “Yes, I suppose that would.”