The Emperor's Silver: Agent of Rome 5 (30 page)

On the other side of the street, a well-dressed gentleman, his wife and two young boys were huddled in a doorway. Each child was gripping one of their mother’s legs. She was a good deal younger than her husband; an overweight fellow, whose eyes were wide with fear and rage. Slumped against the wall close by was a tall man nursing a bleeding nose; presumably the bodyguard.

One of the more inebriated ‘actors’ bellowed something indecipherable at the new arrivals.

‘Oh, look, the young un’s back with some help,’ said another.

Cosmas walked straight up to the men. ‘City sergeant. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll disperse.’

‘I know what’s good for me, thanks, shorty,’ replied one of them, slurping down wine and earning a few laughs from his mates.

‘They are very, very drunk,’ said Simo.

‘I know,’ replied Cassius.

But not all of them. One man dropped his handful of stones and squared up to Cosmas. ‘Don’t tell me you’re going to protect this arsehole? He’s the most hated man in Berytus.’

Celer tried to move away from the doorway. A stone thrown by one of the men pinged off the plaster above him. One of the little boys squealed.

‘Animals!’ screeched the mother.

Celer retreated and pulled his family towards him.

The man who’d thrown the stone was still laughing when the end of Indavara’s stave tapped the nose of his mask. He turned to look at the bodyguard, eyes bloodshot and glassy.

‘Don’t do that again.’

The man backed away but another wasn’t so easily dissuaded. He held the handle of his sheathed dagger and moved in front of his friend.

‘Or what?’

‘Or I’ll give you such a beating you’ll need that mask to hide your tears.’

‘Easy,’ said Cassius quietly, walking past Indavara to stand by Cosmas. As Arpagius joined them, he noticed that quite a crowd was gathering to their right.

‘Fun’s over, lads,’ said Cosmas. ‘Disperse now and we’ll say no more about it. Don’t make it worse for yourselves.’

The leader pointed at Celer. ‘That greedy pig gets richer every day while our families starve. There’s no justice to be had in Berytus. The sergeants and the courts and the likes of him are all in it together.’

‘Starving, eh?’ said Cassius. ‘But clearly not thirsty.’

‘Who are you?’

‘A friend of the sergeant here. I suggest you move along or this matter will be in the hands of the magistrate before midday.’

‘Twelve actors causing trouble?’ said the leader. ‘Magistrate’s not going to get far with his investigation, is he?’

His compatriots chuckled.

‘Actually there are thirteen of you,’ said Cassius. ‘And when I describe this incident I will replace “actors” with “suspects” and include the following description.’

Cassius kept his eyes on the leader as he recited what he had observed of the men, starting with Indavara’s friend to the left. ‘Suspect number one: height five feet, six inches, stocky build, wearing a pale brown tunic with a spear-symbol belt-buckle. Suspect number two: height five feet, eight inches, slim build, red tunic, trident tattoo on right calf. Suspect number three’ – this was the leader himself – ‘height five feet, eleven inches, slim build, brass ring on right hand, pale blue tunic, iron belt-buckle, a trace of the Roman slums in his accent. Demeanour: unpleasant.’

Two of the men had already sloped away. ‘Come on, Ravilla.’

Cassius smiled. ‘And name: Ravilla.’

Indavara laughed.

The leader threw a glare at his indiscreet associate. All the others were now on the move.

‘Our day will come,’ he said, making sure his mask still covered his face as he left.

‘Not today,’ said Cassius.

‘Move along!’ shouted Arpagius at the crowd, which was already breaking up.

Cassius and Cosmas walked across the street to Norbanus Celer. His wife was wiping her eyes, still watching the ‘actors’. The younger of the two boys was snivelling; the older lad was offering his mother a handkerchief.

‘My thanks,’ said Celer, straightening up and trying to regain his composure.

Cosmas said, ‘Sir, with respect, I’m not sure you and your family should be out on the streets at the moment. Tensions are running rather high.’

‘So now I cannot visit the temple? I must skulk around as if
I
have done something wrong?’

‘Those men will be dealt with, sir.’

‘They damn well better be. I will be writing to Pomponianus immediately. The nerve of these gutter rats.’

‘Perhaps if you paid your workers a little more.’

Cassius hadn’t realised Indavara had joined them. When he caught his eye, the bodyguard simply shrugged.

Celer gritted his teeth. ‘And who in Hades are you to tell a councillor of Berytus his business?’

‘My bodyguard,’ explained Cassius hastily. ‘Please ignore him. Now, I suggest we escort you to a safe place immediately. Where is close?’

The young wife tugged on her husband’s toga and whispered something.

Celer nodded. ‘My uncle’s townhouse is nearby. Let me be clear – I want those ruffians in chains by the end of the day.’

‘We will do what we can, sir,’ said Cosmas. ‘Come now.’

Simo and Arpagius had helped the bodyguard to his feet and the wife had finally managed to prise the frightened boy off her leg. As they set off along the street, Cassius dropped back to walk alongside Indavara.

‘Was that really necessary?’

‘Is anyone else going to say it to him? Certainly not you.’

The lizard scampered ahead of the deputy magistrate and disappeared into a crack in the ground.

‘At this rate, Officer, I shall have to ask Pomponianus to offer you a job.’ Diadromes – arriving his customary half-hour late – strode up to Cassius and shook his forearm. The trio were waiting for him outside the sergeants’ headquarters; a quiet spot where Cosmas had assured them they would not be disturbed. The sergeant was currently off dealing with both the Celer incident and the Gorgos investigation.

‘Not an entirely unappealing prospect,’ said Cassius.

‘What about you, Indavara?’ said Diadromes. ‘I heard you helped your master put these thugs right.’

Again, the bodyguard shrugged.

‘Anyway,’ said Diadromes, joining Cassius in the shade. ‘Cosmas tells me you have an idea.’

‘Indeed. I can see no efficient way of searching premises that might be of interest to us without arousing suspicion and alerting this gang. But I may have a way of forcing them to break cover without knowing they are our real targets. That’s if they are here, of course.’

‘Go on.’

‘You will be aware that there’s been a lot of talk about Egyptian spies heading north to track the Emperor’s forces.’

Diadromes scratched his bald spot as Cassius continued.

‘What if you’d had word that one of these spies was masquerading as a metalworker here in Berytus? Might you not order your men to search the premises where such an individual could be working?’

‘I might. And while they are there, my sergeants could also have a nose around, perhaps make a few arrests too?’

‘Which might yield something of use; but the real aim is to flush out our quarry. If the raids could be carried out early and simultaneously, the gang might have no choice but to quickly shift the coins and equipment, possibly out of the city.’

‘Right.’

‘Which probably means the docks or one of the three gates. Cosmas tells me there is no other easy method for carts to come and go. With all the sergeants busy looking for this imaginary spy, the gates could be left guarded by only a token force, perhaps just a few legionaries. We could even leave one – let’s say the eastern gate because it provides access to most other routes – guarded by only two; neither of them in fact local soldiers.’ Cassius gestured to himself and Indavara.

‘Ah. Yes, I see. A lot of manpower would be needed for the inspections. And I would have to obtain clearance from the magistrate, of course.’

‘Of course.’

‘He may not allow it. His primary concern is public order – incidents like today’s cannot be allowed.’

‘You will talk to him on my behalf, though?’ Considering what he had done for Diadromes in the last few days, Cassius wasn’t about to accept no for an answer. ‘Forgive me, but it might also be worth mentioning that capturing these people is very much in the magistrate’s interest. Marshal Marcellinus, Minister Sabinus and indeed the Emperor himself will be extremely grateful if we can put a stop to this counterfeiting.’

‘Understood, but if I am yet to be convinced that the gang is really here, Magistrate Pomponianus is almost certain that it is not.’

‘If we find nothing and make no further progress, at least the investigation might move on – away from Berytus. This outcome would also appeal to the magistrate, I imagine.’

‘You make some forceful arguments, Officer Crispian.’

‘I am dependent on your help, Deputy Magistrate, and time is very much of the essence.’

‘If we are able to go ahead – what about the day after tomorrow?’

‘That sounds fine.’

‘Exactly which premises need to be inspected?’

‘Anything with ovens or a full foundry. Two sergeants will be sufficient to carry out each check. Cosmas could then question them about anything suspicious without giving away the true reason for the search; it would be inadvisable for so many of the men to know where our real interest lies.’

‘Agreed. What if the gang do clear out via the port? It’s July – we have vessels coming and going all day.’

‘We don’t have the manpower to watch the docks and all the ships but I think if they do move out, it would be temporary. The gates are our best bet.’

‘I shall consult with the magistrate and get an answer to you by tomorrow. Cosmas can handle the details.’

‘Excellent. I thank you for your help.’

Diadromes came a little closer. ‘If I am able to secure this assistance, it would seem clear that each of us will have fulfilled our debt to each other. Do you agree, Officer Crispian?’

‘I do.’

Diadromes summoned Cosmas for a brief discussion about the plan then left. The usually cool sergeant seemed rather flustered; apparently the Gorgos investigation was progressing swiftly and though there had been no sightings of Greyboy, more arrests were imminent.

The outraged Norbanus Celer, meanwhile, had already communicated with Magistrate Pomponianus and now sergeants and legionaries were out on the streets hunting Ravilla and his band of ‘actors’.

Cosmas escorted Cassius and the others to the rear of the headquarters and opened the gate.

‘You there!’ demanded a loud voice.

A tall grey horse was trotting up the street, ridden by a centurion in full uniform complete with scarlet cloak and crested helmet. Behind him were two legionaries on horses several hands shorter.

‘Chief Centurion Nemetorius,’ whispered Cosmas before hurrying over to the officer.

‘Good day, sir.’

‘This criminal who assaulted Master Celer – apparently some of your sergeants have found him. The magistrate has asked me to take personal charge.’

‘Yes, Centurion.’

‘They will bring him here, won’t they?’

‘They will, sir, yes.’

To Cassius, Nemetorius seemed like a man very keen to be regarded as a member of the city’s elite. He certainly looked the part, what with the circular gold clasp for his cloak and the sleek horse, but there was a rather coarse edge to him, detectable not only in his voice.

‘I shall wait,’ he announced.

The two legionaries dismounted. One of them passed his reins to the other and ran over to steady Nemetorius’ horse while his superior descended. Once on the pavement, the centurion removed his helmet. Though his face was craggy and lined, his hair was thick and (suspiciously) dark.

Without a single glance at Cassius or the other two, Nemetorius took a flask from the side of his saddle, removed the stopper and drank. ‘Hope they won’t be long.’

‘Not sure, sir,’ said Cosmas. ‘I wasn’t even aware he’d been apprehended.’

Nemetorius snorted, turned to his men and aimed a dismissive thumb over his shoulder. ‘This lot.’

Cassius walked over to Cosmas. ‘We’ll be going.’

Cosmas matched his hushed tone. ‘Sir, we will need the centurion’s cooperation for the operation at the gates – especially if you two are to masquerade as legionaries. Diadromes will be contacting him of course but it might be wise to introduce yourself.’