The October Horse by Colleen McCullough Page A

that flesh has to be religiously prepared and that wine has to be properly Judaic,” he said to Simeon, the chief elder of the Jews. “All has been done as your laws stipulate, so after we've spoken, don't hesitate to eat. Similarly,” he said to Darius, ethnarch of the Metics, “the food and wine on the second table has been prepared for you.”
    “Your kindness is appreciated, Caesar,” said Simeon, “but so much hospitality can't alter the fact that your fortified corridor has cut us off from the rest of the city—our ultimate source of food, our livelihoods, and the raw materials for our trades. We note that you've finished demolishing the houses at the rear of Royal Avenue's west side, so we must presume that you are about to demolish our houses on the east side.”
    “Don't worry, Simeon,” Caesar said in Hebrew, “hear me out.”
    Cleopatra's eyes looked startled; Simeon jumped.
    “You speak Hebrew?” he asked.
    “A little. I grew up in a very polyglot quarter of Rome, the Subura, where my mother was the landlady of an insula. We always had a number of Jews among our tenants, and I had the run of the place when I was a child. So I picked up languages. Our resident elder was a goldsmith, Shimon. I know the nature of your god, your customs, your traditions, your foods, your songs, and the history of your people.” He turned to Cibyrus. “I can even speak a little Pisidian,” he said in that tongue. “Alas, Darius, I cannot speak Persian,” he said in Greek, “so for the sake of convenience, let us have our talk in Greek.”
    Within a quarter of an hour he had explained the situation without apology; a war in Alexandria was inevitable.
    “However,” he said, “for my own protection I would prefer to fight the war on one side of my corridor only—the western side. Do nothing to oppose me and I'll guarantee that my soldiers don't invade you, that the war won't spread east of Royal Avenue, and that you'll continue to eat. As for the raw materials you need for your trades and the wages those of you who work on the west side will lose, I am not in a position to help. But there may be compensations for the hardships you're bound to suffer until I beat Achillas and subdue the Alexandrians. Don't hinder Caesar and Caesar will be in your debt. And Caesar pays his debts.”
    He rose from his ivory curule chair and approached the throne. “I imagine, great Pharaoh, that it is in your power to pay all who help you keep your throne?”
    “It is.”
    “Then are you willing to compensate the Jews and Metics for the financial losses they will sustain?”
    “I am, provided they do nothing to hinder you, Caesar.”
    Simeon stood, bowed deeply. “Great Queen,” he said, “in return for our co-operation, there is one other thing we ask of you, as do the Metics.”
    “Ask, Simeon.”
    “Give us the Alexandrian citizenship.”
    A long pause ensued. Cleopatra sat hidden behind her exotic mask, her eyes veiled by coppery green lids, the crook and flail crossed on her breast rising and falling slightly as she breathed. Finally the shiny red lips parted. “I agree, Simeon, Darius. The Alexandrian citizenship for all Jews and Metics who have lived in the city for more than three years. Plus financial restitution for what this war will cost you, and a bonus for every Jewish or Metic man who actively fights for Caesar.”
    Simeon sagged in relief; the other five stared at one another incredulously. What had been withheld for generations was theirs!
    “And I,” said Caesar, “will add the Roman citizenship.”
    “The price is more than fair, we have a deal.” Simeon beamed. “Furthermore, to prove our loyalty, we will hold the coast between Cape Lochias and the hippodrome. It isn't suitable for mass landings, but Achillas could get plenty of men ashore in small boats. Beyond the hippodrome,” he explained for Caesar's benefit, “the swamps of the Delta begin, which is God's Will. God is our best