Double Trouble by Judi Curtin

Author:Judi Curtin [Curtin, Judi]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780141966861
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Published: 2011-09-09T16:00:00+00:00

16

We walked for ages and ages. All the streets looked the same and I had a horrible feeling that we were walking round in circles. We had no idea where we were going, or what we were going to do. I had left Tilly’s schoolbag in the caravan, so we didn’t have her history book with us to check the facts. It didn’t matter, though. I didn’t need a book to tell me that people in Roman times probably weren’t very nice to runaway slaves.

‘Poor Prima,’ I said after a while.

Tilly gave a grim laugh. ‘Poor Prima? She knows the way home. And her dad can buy her two more slaves tomorrow. After a few days, we could be slaving in a salt mine or something, and Prima will have forgotten we ever existed. We’re nothing to her.’

‘That’s not true,’ I protested. ‘We do mean something to her. She’s been really kind. She bought us presents and shared her clothes with us. And now she’ll think we’re ungrateful little pigs who just ran off on her.’

Tilly sighed. ‘You’re right. Prima has been extra nice to us – and she might even be worried about us. But given a choice, I’d rather be her than us right now.’

And I couldn’t argue with that.

Much later, we were still lost. We were also tired, and hungry and thirsty. We heard a crowd cheering and I realized that we were walking past a huge amphitheatre.

‘Was there a colosseum in Campania?’ asked Tilly. ‘And do you think that might be it?’

‘You’re supposed to be the history expert,’ I said. ‘But there’s definitely something happening in there. Pity there’s not a sign and a board in lights to tell us what’s on today.’

‘Should we go in for a look?’

I shook my head. ‘No! We’re runaway slaves.’

‘Technically, I’m the only runaway. You’re just lost.’

‘Do you fancy trying to explain the difference to a sword-wielding Roman who doesn’t speak our language and thinks we should be gladiators?’

‘Er, maybe not.’

Tilly allowed me to pull her away and we walked on for another while.

Soon we were so tired we couldn’t walk any more and I was very close to tears. Even though Tilly was trying to be brave, I was fairly sure she felt exactly the same as I did.

‘I wish Saturn was with us,’ I said for the hundredth time. ‘This would be a really good time to ask him to take us back home.’

‘What happens if we never go back home?’ wailed Tilly.

‘I’ve been wondering that too,’ I said. ‘But time travel is kind of complicated, and I’m not exactly an expert.’

‘So what are we going to do?’

‘I was hoping you had an idea.’

She shook her head. ‘I’m all out of ideas. I –’

‘Tilly!’ I screeched.

She grabbed my arm.

‘What is it? Who is it? Is it the ogre? Where is he?’

She followed my gaze and then gave a big, happy sigh.

Felix was walking towards us with a huge smile on his face. I’m not sure what the etiquette about hugging slaves is, but right then I didn’t care.

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