favor and lock her away somewhere.”
“
You
are suggesting that an innocent girl like your sister-in-law stay in a gladiator school? Something foul is in the air for certain. I’m surprised you’re not more concerned about public opinion. What of her reputation?”
“She has none to protect,” the senator answered bluntly. “If it were otherwise, I might view the whole matter in a different light. Given the situation as it is, I see no better place for her than here. Tiberius isn’t foolish enough to think he can storm a gladiator school and win.”
“You are her family. What of your home? You have the power to ensure her safety, or are you unwilling to?”
“Frankly, I don’t think I do.” Antonius moved to stand behind a chair. “My father-in-law visits often. It’s unlikely that he wouldn’t find her there. Tibi is his to command and he is beyond reason and rage at the moment. I believe his antipathy toward his daughters is unnatural. He views them as a curse from the gods since he has no sons of his own and his adopted heir died years ago. He has no love for either girl, buthe at least tolerates my wife because her marriage to me strengthened his social standing. Tibi, on the other hand, is a misfit with a long history of ruining his plans. He gives her no quarter and chooses to see her as rebellious rather than strong. Usually, my wife or I can soothe his feathers when she ruffles them. This time is different. He’s vowed to see her punished once and for all. I believe him.”
Alexius moved to the window, needing the night air to cool his own hot temper. How
dare
Tiberius threaten Tibi when, as her father, he should
cherish
her. What pleasure he’d feel if he broke the old bull’s neck. “I think I
will
kill him.”
“I can think of no one who’d miss him, but he’s not worth the price you’ll pay when they toss you in prison.”
Alexius turned and leaned against the windowsill. He crossed his arms over his chest and eyed the senator with suspicion. “What do you gain by coming here?”
“I hope to ensure Tibi’s safety, of course.”
The senator maintained eye contact, but Alexius noted the clench of his hands and tightening around his thin mouth. He’d gambled too often not to notice when a man was hiding something. “Admirable, but there’s more. I want to know the truth.
Why
are you here? Tell me or get out and we’ll let the Fates decide the best course of action.”
Antonius frowned, but eventually admitted, “I can’t afford another scandal. My candidacy for consul is precarious at best. I care deeply for my wife, but her sister’s questionable behavior and volatile father are…a liability to a man in my position. Most would never question Tiberius’s right to chastise his daughter, even to the point of death, but there are moralists who mightseek to overplay the situation and sway public favor to one of my opponents’ camps.”
“A true politician with the heart of a weevil, are you not, Tacitus? A sweet girl’s life is in danger, but you are more concerned with the loss of respect her death may cost you than with saving her from harm in the first place.”
The senator gripped the back of a chair until his knuckles glowed white in the lantern light. “Scoff all you like,
lanista
, but I bear no ill will toward the girl. I’m here because I
do
want Tibi protected. If she’s out of sight, the gossip will die. She’ll be safe from Tiberius and my wife will be spared from suffering the loss of her sister—”
“As if that shrew would miss her.”
Tacitus stiffened. “My wife is no shrew. She cares much for Tibi, but years of acting as a buffer between her relatives have gained her more than her fair share of bruises.”
Satisfied with the senator’s explanation and fairly certain there were no surprises waiting to pop up and bite him, Alexius returned to his desk. “
If
Tibi comes here, how long should I plan to shelter her?”
“The election is in a few
“
You
are suggesting that an innocent girl like your sister-in-law stay in a gladiator school? Something foul is in the air for certain. I’m surprised you’re not more concerned about public opinion. What of her reputation?”
“She has none to protect,” the senator answered bluntly. “If it were otherwise, I might view the whole matter in a different light. Given the situation as it is, I see no better place for her than here. Tiberius isn’t foolish enough to think he can storm a gladiator school and win.”
“You are her family. What of your home? You have the power to ensure her safety, or are you unwilling to?”
“Frankly, I don’t think I do.” Antonius moved to stand behind a chair. “My father-in-law visits often. It’s unlikely that he wouldn’t find her there. Tibi is his to command and he is beyond reason and rage at the moment. I believe his antipathy toward his daughters is unnatural. He views them as a curse from the gods since he has no sons of his own and his adopted heir died years ago. He has no love for either girl, buthe at least tolerates my wife because her marriage to me strengthened his social standing. Tibi, on the other hand, is a misfit with a long history of ruining his plans. He gives her no quarter and chooses to see her as rebellious rather than strong. Usually, my wife or I can soothe his feathers when she ruffles them. This time is different. He’s vowed to see her punished once and for all. I believe him.”
Alexius moved to the window, needing the night air to cool his own hot temper. How
dare
Tiberius threaten Tibi when, as her father, he should
cherish
her. What pleasure he’d feel if he broke the old bull’s neck. “I think I
will
kill him.”
“I can think of no one who’d miss him, but he’s not worth the price you’ll pay when they toss you in prison.”
Alexius turned and leaned against the windowsill. He crossed his arms over his chest and eyed the senator with suspicion. “What do you gain by coming here?”
“I hope to ensure Tibi’s safety, of course.”
The senator maintained eye contact, but Alexius noted the clench of his hands and tightening around his thin mouth. He’d gambled too often not to notice when a man was hiding something. “Admirable, but there’s more. I want to know the truth.
Why
are you here? Tell me or get out and we’ll let the Fates decide the best course of action.”
Antonius frowned, but eventually admitted, “I can’t afford another scandal. My candidacy for consul is precarious at best. I care deeply for my wife, but her sister’s questionable behavior and volatile father are…a liability to a man in my position. Most would never question Tiberius’s right to chastise his daughter, even to the point of death, but there are moralists who mightseek to overplay the situation and sway public favor to one of my opponents’ camps.”
“A true politician with the heart of a weevil, are you not, Tacitus? A sweet girl’s life is in danger, but you are more concerned with the loss of respect her death may cost you than with saving her from harm in the first place.”
The senator gripped the back of a chair until his knuckles glowed white in the lantern light. “Scoff all you like,
lanista
, but I bear no ill will toward the girl. I’m here because I
do
want Tibi protected. If she’s out of sight, the gossip will die. She’ll be safe from Tiberius and my wife will be spared from suffering the loss of her sister—”
“As if that shrew would miss her.”
Tacitus stiffened. “My wife is no shrew. She cares much for Tibi, but years of acting as a buffer between her relatives have gained her more than her fair share of bruises.”
Satisfied with the senator’s explanation and fairly certain there were no surprises waiting to pop up and bite him, Alexius returned to his desk. “
If
Tibi comes here, how long should I plan to shelter her?”
“The election is in a few
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