‘You’re telling me! Look at Agrippa! The Emperor gave him half the plains of Katane after the war, and you’ve never seen more fertile soil.’
Claudia knew he wasn’t referring to the terrible civil wars which had racked the Empire, he meant the war for independence when Sextus, youngest son of Pompey the Great and commander of Augustus’s naval forces, rebelled and took control of the island.
As with most wars, of course, no one came out a winner. Although Sextus occupied Sicily for nigh on eight years before Augustus managed to recapture it, the cost to both sides was immense. Sextus cut off grain supplies to Rome, creating a famine and almost (but only almost) bringing the city to its knees, but as a result the wheat farmers had nobuyers for their harvests and the island lost much of its prosperity. Augustus retook Sicily around the time Claudia was born, but the province had never recovered. Augustus showed his mettle by finding additional sources for grain (his people would never go hungry again!), and by granting vast tracts of prime Sicilian land to his army veterans, thus keeping it in the family, as it were. Agrippa, his friend and general, fared particularly well.
A thought occurred to her. ‘Sabina went to Rome around the time Sextus took Sicily, didn’t she?’
He seemed surprised by the question, rather than ruffled by it. ‘She did,’ he replied, ‘and I can remember it like last week. That was the year after the Divine Julius was murdered. I was forty-seven years old and a prosperous wheat farmer, when along comes some snotty-nosed upstart ordering me not to ship my own grain to the motherland.’
‘So you sent your granddaughter instead.’
A glint of cunning crept into his eyes. ‘Took some palm-greasing, I can tell you, since they have a preference for patricians, but yes, I sent Sabina. Sextus and his ragbag followers were after the whole Empire, see, not just Sicily, and even scum like that understood the value of the Vestal Virgins.’
Crafty old sod! Torn between two masters, and Eugenius Collatinus managed to keep sweet with both. One thing was clear, though. He saw no reason to doubt Sabina’s authenticity.
There was a long pause, and Claudia did not fool herself into thinking his mind was wandering. Finally he said, ‘Fabius has been something of a disappointment to me.’
‘Really?’ Only Fabius?
‘His father never showed an aptitude for business I rather hoped the son would do better. Since he was always playing soldiers as a boy, I suppose I thought if I let him join up, he’d quickly tire of it as a man.’
‘Instead he took to it like a duck to water?’
It went a long way towards explaining why Eugenius kept such a tight control on the reins, but it was interesting what he’d said about Old Conky. Claudia had got the impression (admittedly from Aulus) that Aulus was practically running the show.
‘Twenty years I’ve waited for that boy to come home.’ The old man shook his head. ‘Twenty years—and most of them in this bed.’
‘And he’s not showing any aptitude for sheep rearing now he’s home, is that what you’re telling me?’
Eugenius looked up sharply. ‘Not unless you call route marches an interest.’ He tugged at his lower lip. ‘On the other hand, now he’s back in the fold, ha-ha, I feel that if he had a suitable wife it might be different.’
A faint flame of intuition began to glow. ‘Strangely enough, Eugenius, I am tempted to agree with you.’
She picked up the glass of alum water and walked over to the wall.
‘Don’t drink that,’ he said, ‘it’s vile.’
Claudia shot him a glance which said she believed it as she poured it straight out of the open window. With any luck, Orbilio would be sitting underneath eavesdropping.
‘It’s coming up to noon,’ she said gently. The slaves would be back any moment to convey him to the litter which would accompany Sabina’s funeral procession.
‘It’s funny,’ he said
Claudia knew he wasn’t referring to the terrible civil wars which had racked the Empire, he meant the war for independence when Sextus, youngest son of Pompey the Great and commander of Augustus’s naval forces, rebelled and took control of the island.
As with most wars, of course, no one came out a winner. Although Sextus occupied Sicily for nigh on eight years before Augustus managed to recapture it, the cost to both sides was immense. Sextus cut off grain supplies to Rome, creating a famine and almost (but only almost) bringing the city to its knees, but as a result the wheat farmers had nobuyers for their harvests and the island lost much of its prosperity. Augustus retook Sicily around the time Claudia was born, but the province had never recovered. Augustus showed his mettle by finding additional sources for grain (his people would never go hungry again!), and by granting vast tracts of prime Sicilian land to his army veterans, thus keeping it in the family, as it were. Agrippa, his friend and general, fared particularly well.
A thought occurred to her. ‘Sabina went to Rome around the time Sextus took Sicily, didn’t she?’
He seemed surprised by the question, rather than ruffled by it. ‘She did,’ he replied, ‘and I can remember it like last week. That was the year after the Divine Julius was murdered. I was forty-seven years old and a prosperous wheat farmer, when along comes some snotty-nosed upstart ordering me not to ship my own grain to the motherland.’
‘So you sent your granddaughter instead.’
A glint of cunning crept into his eyes. ‘Took some palm-greasing, I can tell you, since they have a preference for patricians, but yes, I sent Sabina. Sextus and his ragbag followers were after the whole Empire, see, not just Sicily, and even scum like that understood the value of the Vestal Virgins.’
Crafty old sod! Torn between two masters, and Eugenius Collatinus managed to keep sweet with both. One thing was clear, though. He saw no reason to doubt Sabina’s authenticity.
There was a long pause, and Claudia did not fool herself into thinking his mind was wandering. Finally he said, ‘Fabius has been something of a disappointment to me.’
‘Really?’ Only Fabius?
‘His father never showed an aptitude for business I rather hoped the son would do better. Since he was always playing soldiers as a boy, I suppose I thought if I let him join up, he’d quickly tire of it as a man.’
‘Instead he took to it like a duck to water?’
It went a long way towards explaining why Eugenius kept such a tight control on the reins, but it was interesting what he’d said about Old Conky. Claudia had got the impression (admittedly from Aulus) that Aulus was practically running the show.
‘Twenty years I’ve waited for that boy to come home.’ The old man shook his head. ‘Twenty years—and most of them in this bed.’
‘And he’s not showing any aptitude for sheep rearing now he’s home, is that what you’re telling me?’
Eugenius looked up sharply. ‘Not unless you call route marches an interest.’ He tugged at his lower lip. ‘On the other hand, now he’s back in the fold, ha-ha, I feel that if he had a suitable wife it might be different.’
A faint flame of intuition began to glow. ‘Strangely enough, Eugenius, I am tempted to agree with you.’
She picked up the glass of alum water and walked over to the wall.
‘Don’t drink that,’ he said, ‘it’s vile.’
Claudia shot him a glance which said she believed it as she poured it straight out of the open window. With any luck, Orbilio would be sitting underneath eavesdropping.
‘It’s coming up to noon,’ she said gently. The slaves would be back any moment to convey him to the litter which would accompany Sabina’s funeral procession.
‘It’s funny,’ he said
Similar Books
