For a Roman's Heart by Denise A. Agnew

her into his side. She didn’t want to lean against his strength, but the fright she’d suffered turned her knees to water. She drew in a shuddering breath.
    “This young woman has a head injury,” Victor said. “A medicus must tend to it.”
    “Is there a medicus on the villa grounds?” Terentius asked.
    “No.” Adrenia closed her eyes.
    “A woman who knows herbs?” Victor asked.
    “That would be me.”
    “What can you do?” Victor asked as he gently lifted Pella in his arms.
    “I’ve healed before.”
    Victor’s eyes widened. “Well, then. Let’s get her to safety.”
    “I’ll take Adrenia on my horse, while you carry Pella,” Terentius said to Victor. “We’ll take Pella to her husband, then Victor will ride for a medicus .”
    As Terentius led her toward his horse, she said, “But Pella’s husband has little money. He cannot afford a medicus . He is a poor farmer.”
    Terentius’s gaze bored into her. “I’ll pay for the medicus .”
    As he loaded her onto his horse and Victor took care of Pella, Adrenia marveled at the day’s events. Her worry for Pella, though still strong, eased now that Terentius offered his help.
    Thank the gods he’d come when he did.
    “How did you know to find me out here in the woods? Why did you come looking for me?” she asked as he swung up behind her.
    His strong body snuggled close, his arms embracing her waist and hands reaching for the reins. “Apparently you are not the only one with visions.”

Chapter Six
     
    “Alea iacta est.”
    (The die has been cast.)
    Julius Caesar
    Roman General and Dictator (49 BC–44 BC), 100 BC–44 BC
     
     
    Terentius watched with fascination and admiration as Adrenia applied a warm paste to the cut on Pella’s forehead. Night had fallen and Victor hadn’t returned yet with a medicus . Once at the roundhouse that served as home for Pella and her husband Pontius, Adrenia had apparently lost her fear of showing her healing talents.
    “Help me wind this about her head,” Adrenia said to Pella’s husband. “This poultice will keep infection at bay.”
    Pontius assisted her without question. Though the man stood several inches shorter than Terentius, Pontius’s frame was wiry and strong. He obviously loved his wife to distraction. They’d met Pontius on the road from the villa. He’d gone looking for Pella since she was overdue to arrive home. At first Pontius had drawn a dagger from his belt, anger clear and alert on his thin, harshly hewn face. Adrenia had calmed him, explaining that Terentius and Victor were not the enemy. The man quickly understood that without their assistance, his wife would have frozen to death in the forest before Adrenia could have summoned help. Now, in this roundhouse with its few amenities, Terentius appreciated his larger quarters at Deva. His temporary home at the fort in Durovigutum couldn’t compete for size, and neither could this small abode.
    Still, a fire crackled in the hearth and oil lamps brought light to the modest room. All around the small place a woman’s attention showed. He wondered, in passing, how Adrenia would decorate a man’s home. The thought made his gut clench with unanswered feelings both mental and physical. Terentius watched Adrenia tend to her friend, worry etching her normally smooth brow. His admiration for her grew. She was brave and strong. He wanted to touch Adrenia, to comfort her, to say things he’d never contemplated declaring to a woman before. It frightened him more than any preparation for battle, and more than realizing that her visions came true. Even more, perhaps, than wondering how he’d known she needed his help in the Haunted Woods.
    Pontius and Adrenia pulled a heavy cover over Pella.
    Pontius sank down on his knees next to the bed, his large hand wrapping Pella’s much smaller one, his face marked with pronounced dread. “What if…”
    “No.” Adrenia’s voice came out soft with authority. “She’ll be fine.”
    “But she