Steven Saylor - A murder on the Appian way

"Do I?" I studied the empty stretch of road. "So, when the two parties met, did they simply begin fighting?"

"No, it wasn't like that."

"Did they exchange insults?"

"No, not at fust. Quite the opposite, in fact. As soon as the two parties caught sight of each other, everyone fell silent. They all stiffened a bit. I could see the reaction as it moved through the two groups, like twin ripples from the meeting point. Necks stiff) jaws clenched, eyes set straight ahead — posturing, the way men do around each other. There was a bit of confusion as they passed. The road is wide, but both parties had to draw in and stretch out a bit to make room. Clodius's men became more spread out than Milo's. There was some jostling even so, and some grumbling. There was a tension in the air that set my teeth on edge — how can I explain it? — like raking your fingernails across a slate tile. I remember gasping suddenly and realizing that I'd been holding my breath, watching and waiting for something dreadful to happen.

"While the two groups were still passing each other, Clodius and his friends on horseback drew away from the road, just in front of where I was sitting, letting their men go ahead of them. Milo and his wife proceeded up the hill in their carriage, getting farther and farther away. Finally the last of Milo's party and the last of Clodius's party passed one another, right in front of me. Clodius tugged at his reins and fell in behind his men. I drew a breath of relief. I whispered a prayer to the Good Goddess, thankful that nothing had happened after all. But Clodius couldn't leave well enough alone. Some demon must have poked at him. He looked back and shouted something over his shoulder at the two gladiators at the rear of Milo's train." "Two gladiators?"

"Yes, acting as a rearguard, I suppose. They're famous, or so my brother says…"

"Eudamus and Birria?" "Yes, those two."

"And what did Clodius say to them?"

She blinked. "If I were still a temple prostitute and not an attendant of the Good Goddess, I would quote his exact words." "A modest approximation, then?"

"It was something like, 'Why so glum-looking, Birria? Hasn't Eudamus been letting you clean his sword often enough?' " "I see. Then what happened?"

"The one called Birria spun around — lightning quick, like snapping your fingers — and threw his spear at Clodius. It happened so fast that I'd never have seen it if I hadn't been looking straight at him. Clodius was still looking back, laughing at his own joke. The spear struck him very hard."

"Where?"

She reached up to her shoulder. "Here, I think. I barely saw it strike — the spear flew faster than I could follow it, and struck so hard it knocked Clodius clear off his horse. Then there was a moment of total confusion — men shouting, taming about, bumping into each other. I got up from the steps and ran into the shrine, but I kept watching as best I could from the shadows. It all happened very quickly. I'd never seen a battle before. I suppose all battles must look like that — a bunch of men running around swinging their weapons at each other, shouting at the top of their lungs. It all looked rather ridiculous, to tell you the truth, and yet at the same time rather awesome. The only thing I could think of was when I was very young and I used to watch strangers copulating in the shadows of the Temple of Isis. It was hard not to laugh, but at the same time there was something frightening about it. Fascinating, revolting and absurd all at once."

"What happened to Clodius?"

"Someone pulled the spear from his shoulder and he managed to get to his feet. Some of Milo's men made a charge — " "Where was Milo?"

She thought for a moment. "Nowhere to be seen, at least not yet."

"Then from what you say, the battle began spontaneously and without Milo's knowledge, while he was away at the head of the entourage. The parties met by chance and passed each other in silence, without incident until Clodius hurled a parting insult and Birria hurled a spear back at him on an impulse."

Felicia nodded agreement, with the same imperturbable smile and the same glassy look in her eyes. Was that all there was to the incident?

"Still, Papa, a citizen is responsible for his slaves' behaviour," Eco reminded me. "Milo might not have countenanced Birria's crime, but he was to some degree legally culpable."

"And a man is also responsible for any raise tales he puts forwards," I said, thinking of the very different but no less vivid account of the same incident that Milo had delivered at Caelius's contio. So far, everything Felicia had told me agreed with Fulvia's version of the incident, gleaned from the survivors among Clodius's party, except that Fulvia had omitted Clodius's parting insult; without that detail, Birria's attack appeared entirely unprovoked, perhaps even premeditated. But the detail of the insult seemed genuine enough, and it was hard to imagine that Felicia was mistaken or lying. It was understandable that Fulvia might have omitted a fact that impugned her husband's memory. Her sources might have withheld it from her, or perhaps might not have heard the insult themselves. But Milo's elaborate tale of a cold-blooded ambush appeared to be a complete fabrication. "How did the battle proceed?"

"Badly, for Clodius and his men," said Felicia. "They were greatly outnumbered, of course. A few of them were killed right away. A number of them ran off into the woods, with Milo's men chasing after them. One of Clodius's friends on horseback shouted that he would go for help and headed up the hill, trying to gallop through Milo's ranks. Headed back to Clodius's villa, I suppose."

"Did he make it through?"

"I don't know. I didn't see."

"And Clodius's other friend on horseback?"

"I think he must have been knocked off his horse, because the next time I looked, all of Clodius's men — those who were still with him and standing — were on foot. The horses were gone."

"Which explains why Clodius made his retreat on foot."

"And why he headed down to Bovillae for safety," said Eco. "Milo's men blocked the way back to his villa. It was either retreat to the inn or make a stand in the road."

"And Clodius was already badly wounded," I said. "Your brother says he was stumbling and had to be helped. Yet he reached the inn well ahead of his pursuers. How did he get such a head start, I wonder?"

"Milo's men didn't chase after him right away," said Felicia. "They seemed uncertain whether or not to follow. They, looked like hounds, running back and forth, unable to pick up a scent. Until Milo arrived."

"And then?"

"Milo was furious. He stamped his feet, shook his fists, stood right in Birria's face and screamed at him — like some fool taunting a wild bear. I cringed to see it. But then Milo calmed down and held a sort of council, conferring with some of his men in a circle. They seemed to come to a decision, and Milo dispatched Birria and Eudamus and a large party of men in the direction of Bovillae. The rest closed ranks around Milo. He drew his sword and kept peering into the woods.

"I grew frightened myself. Some of Clodius's men had fled into the woods, with Milo's men after them; I worried that they might emerge in the glade behind the shrine, or try to take refuge in the shrine itself So I stayed quiet and hid among the shadows. No one noticed me."

"When did Senator Tedius pass by?" I said.

"That was the next thing that happened. A fancy litter came down the hill with a little retinue. I knew who it was, because Senator Tedius's daughter often stops here at the shrine."

"Unlike Fausta Cornelia?"

"Tedia is a very old-fashioned woman. Very pious, very virtuous. Not proud or vain, in the way that so many younger women of high birth are these days. But she didn't come into the shrine that day. When Milo's men stopped the litter, she stayed inside. Tedius got out and talked to Milo for a while. From the way he gestured, I assumed that Milo was trying to persuade him to turn back. But the senator is a stubborn man. He insisted on proceeding, got back into the litter and set off again down the hill towards Bovillae. More time passed, I don't know how long. Milo paced and fretted. Fausta Cornelia finally got out of the carriage and began to dog his steps. They had some sort of argument, but kept their voices low. Finally Eudamus and Birria came back, bringing the prisoners with them."