Ovid (Marcus Corvinus Book 1) by Wishart David

Author:Wishart, David [Wishart, David]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub
Published: 2015-03-15T16:00:00+00:00

23.

When Harpale had gone I sent the wine slave for another jug. After what she'd told us I needed it.

'You didn't know that Fabius had killed himself?' I asked Perilla. 'You never even suspected?'

'No.' She still looked grey. Shit, she'd had enough shocks that day to floor anyone with twice her guts. 'Aunt Marcia never even hinted at it. I thought that Uncle was found dead in his study, which would have been true enough I suppose. I don't think even mother knew the death wasn't natural.'

'You think Marcia would confirm the story if you asked her straight out?'

'I doubt it. And don't ask me to try, Marcus, because I won't. It would be terribly painful for her. If she's kept the secret for so long she must have a good reason.'

'Oh, yeah,' I said. 'She's got a good reason all right. If what Harpale says is true the Wart has at least two deaths on his conscience that he wouldn't want made public. Sure, Postumus had to go. As Augustus's last male relative he'd be about as welcome politically as a flea in a barber's shop, and if he was the bastard they say he was then nobody would shed many tears to see him chopped. But Fabius is different. He wasn't guilty of anything. And if the news had got out that Augustus had talked to his grandson just a few months before he died then as far as the Wart was concerned it'd be embarrassing as hell.'

'Why should it be embarrassing? After all, if Augustus gave the order himself for Postumus's death then...'

'Oh, come on, Perilla! Act your age! It would've shown that he didn't give the order, that killing Postumus was Tiberius's own idea. Why do you think the old guy went to Planasia anyway? Just to make faces at his grandson through the bars?'

'You tell me.'

'Okay. We'll take it slowly. Augustus was old and sick yet he took the trouble to visit Postumus in person. So why should he do that?

'Because what he had to say was too secret to trust to a messenger?'

'Right. And possibly too personal. Say he wanted to apologise. To admit that he'd made a mistake, a bad mistake.'

'But he'd exiled Postumus himself! Why should he change his mind?'

'I don't know, but one gets you five I'm right. He went to patch up the quarrel and give his grandson his personal assurance that he'd put things right as soon as he could.'

'You mentioned a mistake. What kind of mistake?'

'Maybe Postumus wasn't the bastard he was made out to be. Maybe Augustus found out that someone had been bad-mouthing him all along and wanted to make amends.'

Perilla looked at me, appalled. 'Tiberius?'

'Sure. It makes sense. The Wart got rid of Postumus pretty smartly as soon as he got the chance. And your Uncle Fabius had to die too because he was the only one still alive who knew the truth. The secrecy angle's pretty obvious, too. As Augustus's heir Tiberius'd be chewing bricks if he thought Granddad intended bringing little Postumus home.

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