Gaditicus was at the back, trying not to think about the archers waiting for just this moment. He heard the crackle and whoosh of fire as they lit the sticky fluid and arrows whined past him, taking a legionary in the lower back. The soldier staggered on for a moment before collapsing. Gaditicus stopped to help him, but as he turned his head he saw flames racing towards them. He drew his sword quickly through the soldier’s throat, knowing it was better than burning. He could feel the heat on his back and panic filled him as he rose from the body. His sandals were wet with the stuff and he knew the fire could not be quenched. He ran blindly after his men.
At full pounding sprint, the group of soldiers rounded a corner and charged on, straight at a group of three crouched archers. All three panicked and only one took the shot, sending an arrow above their heads. The archers were cut down and trampled almost without slowing.
On sheets of flame, the fort became visible. Gaditicus and the others roared in anger and relief at being alive, the sound fuelling their strength and frightening the enemy.
The path ended in a courtyard and this time the waiting archers fired smoothly, destroying the front four men and sending the second row sprawling over their dead companions. The yard was full of the rebels and with a baying cry to answer the Romans in ferocity they came on, howling.
Julius froze as he saw the flames explode along a row of squat buildings to his left. The sheltering darkness became flickering gold and shadow and three men in an alcove were suddenly visible a few paces ahead. They were cut down and behind them an open doorway was revealed, leading into the bowels of the fort. It was the decision of a second and Julius ran straight through it, ripping his sword through the guts of a man waiting inside before he could strike. His followers never hesitated. Without knowing the fort, they could spend fruitless minutes searching for ways to reach their comrades with Gaditicus. The most important thing was to keep moving and kill anyone they came across.
After the light of the fire, it was frighteningly dark inside the fortress. Steps led down to a row of empty rooms and at the end was another set, with a single oil lamp on the wall. Julius grabbed it, swearing as the hot liquid spattered onto his skin. His men clattered behind him and at the bottom Julius threw himself down as arrows hit stone around him and shattered, sending stinging fragments into their midst.
The long, low room they entered had three men in it. Two looked terrified at the dirty, blood-covered soldiers and the third was tied to a chair, a prisoner. Julius saw by his robe that he was a Roman. His face and body were battered and swollen, but his eyes were alive with sudden hope.
Julius raced across the room, swaying to avoid another shaft fired poorly and in haste. Almost with contempt, he reached the two men and cut the archer across the throat. The other tried to stab him, but the chestplate took the blow easily and his backhand cut sent the man crashing to the floor.
Julius rested the point of his gladius on the stones and leaned on it, suddenly tired. His breathing came in great gasps and he noticed how silent the place was, how far below the main fort they were.
‘That was well done,’ said the man in the chair.
Julius glanced at him. Up close, he saw the man had been brutally tortured. His face was swollen and twisted and his fingers had been broken, jutting at obscene angles. Trembling shook the man’s body and Julius guessed he was trying not to lose what little control he had left.
‘Cut his bonds,’ he ordered and helped the prisoner to his feet as he came free, noting how unsteady he was. One of the man’s hands touched the arm of the chair and he gave out a moan of agony, his eyes rolling up in his head for a second before he steadied under Julius’ grip.
‘Who are you?’ Julius said, wondering what they were going to do with the man.
‘Governor Paulus. You might say … this is my fort.’ The man closed his eyes as he spoke, overwhelmed by exhaustion and relief. Julius saw his courage and felt a touch of respect.
‘Not yet it isn’t, sir,’ Julius replied. ‘There’s a lot of fighting above and we have to get back to it. I suggest we find you somewhere safe to wait it out. You don’t look quite up to joining in.’
In fact the man looked bloodless, his skin slack and grey. He was about fifty years old with heavy shoulders and a sagging stomach. He might once have been a warrior, Julius judged, but time and soft living had taken his strength, at least of the body.
The governor stood straighter, the effort of will obvious.
‘I’ll go with you as far as I can. My hands are smashed, so I can’t fight, but I want to get out of this stinking pest-hole, at least.’
Julius nodded quickly, signalling to two of the men.
‘Take his arms, gently, carry him if you have to. We must get back to help Gaditicus.’
With that, Julius was clattering up the steps, his mind already on the battle above.
‘Come on, sir. Lean on my shoulder,’ said one of the last pair as he took the weight. The governor cried out as his broken hands moved, then gritted his teeth against the pain.
‘Get me out quickly,’ he ordered curtly. ‘Who was the officer who freed me?’
‘That was Caesar, sir,’ the soldier replied as they began the slow trip. By the end of the first flight of stairs, the pain had forced the governor into unconsciousness and they were able to go much faster.
Sulla smiled and drank deeply from a silver goblet. His cheeks were flushed with the effects of the wine and his eyes frightened Cornelia as she sat on the couch he had provided.
His men had collected her in the heat of the afternoon, when she felt the heaviness of her pregnancy most painfully. She tried to hide her discomfort and fear of the Dictator of Rome, but her hands shook slightly on the lip of the cup of cool white wine he had offered her. She sipped sparingly to please him, wanting nothing more than to be out of his gilded chambers and back in the safety of her own home.
His eyes watched her every move and she could not hold the gaze as the silence stretched between them.
‘Are you comfortable?’ he asked, and there was a slurred edge to his words that sent a thrill of panic coursing through her.
Be calm, she told herself. The child will feel your fear. Think of Julius. He would want you to be strong.
When she spoke, her voice was almost steady.
‘Your men have thought of everything. They were very courteous to me, though they did not say why you desired my presence.’
‘Desired? What a strange choice of word,’ he replied softly. ‘Most men would never use the word for a woman, what, weeks from giving birth?’
Cornelia looked at him blankly and he emptied his cup, smacking his lips together with pleasure. He rose from his seat without warning, turning his back to her as he refilled his cup from an amphora, letting the stopper fall and roll on the marble floor unheeded.
She watched it spiral and come to rest, as if hypnotised. As it became still, he spoke again, his voice languid and intimate.
‘I have heard that a woman is never more beautiful than when she is pregnant, but that is not always true, is it?’
He stepped closer to her, gesturing with the cup as he spoke, slopping drops over the rim.
‘I … do not know, sir, it …’
‘Oh, I have seen them. Rat-haired heifers that amble and bellow, their skin blotched and sweating. Common women, of common stock, whereas the true Roman lady, well …’
He pressed even closer to her and it was all she could do not to pull away from him. There