John Roberts - Temple Of Muses

"Your Majesty, my kinsman Decius is a rash and foolish young man, but I hardly think him capable of coldblooded murder. Be that as it may, the embassy is by ancient custom Roman territory, and by rights it is a Roman court which should try him."

"Your Majesty," cried Achillas, "this cannot be set aside so easily. Another embassy is involved. The woman Hypatia, murdered by the younger Metellus, was the bound concubine of my good friend, his Excellency Orodes, Ambassador of King Phraates III of Parthia."

Ptolemy looked at the head of the Parthian delegation, "Is this true?"

The man came forward. "It is, your Majesty." He unrolled a scroll and held it before the king's eyes. "This is her contract of concubinage. You will note that it had more than a year to run, and that man"-he pointed a long finger at me-"owes me for the balance of her contract!"

"I see," Ptolemy said. "In this case, Ambassador Metellus, since it involves another foreign embassy, I must have a further inquiry. Does Decius insist upon protesting his innocence?"

"I do, sir," I said, not waiting for Creticus to step in.

"Your Majesty," Achillas said, "not only was the woman's body in his bed, but nearby were a mask and garlands of the sort peddled at the Daphne. If you wish, I will produce witnesses to testify that the murderer and the woman were seen cavorting there last night."

Creticus turned scarlet and began to swell like a bull-frog. Now his anger was directed at Achillas rather than at me.

"May I ask your business in all this, sir? And how is it that you know what was in Decius's room? That is Roman territory!"

"As for my business, I am a loyal servant of King Ptolemy and I want no violent foreigners anywhere near him. As for my knowing what was found this morning, everybody in the Palace knows by now. Your staff is a talkative lot."

"Paid spies is more like it!" Creticus said.

At that moment a door opened and Rufus came in, closely followed by Amphytrion and Asklepiodes. I could have fainted with relief. Asklepiodes gave me a smile as he passed. Save me, old friend, I thought. Rufus joined the Roman party and leaned toward me.

"I no longer owe you five hundred denarii," he whispered.

"With all my heart," I said fervently. I knew I would get it back. The man was a miserable judge of horses and charioteers.

"And what might you gentlemen be doing here?" Ptolemy asked.

"Your Majesty," Amphytrion said with a bow, "this is the physician Asklepiodes, a visiting lecturer attached to the School of Medicine of the Museum."

"I remember him," Ptolemy said.

"Sir, Asklepiodes is acknowledged to be the world's foremost expert on the subject of wounds violently inflicted by weapons. We have just come from examining the murdered woman, and he has information of interest to these proceedings."

"Your Majesty!" Achillas yelled. "Must we endure the mumbling sophistry of these philosophers?"

"Majesty," Creticus said, "noble Amphytrion speaks truly. Asklepiodes is a recognized authority in this field and has testified before Roman courts many times in the past."

"Speak, then, learned Asklepiodes," said Ptolemy.

Asklepiodes took the center of the room and did a bit of actor's business with his robe, then began.

"Your Majesty, your Excellencies of the embassies, noble gentlemen and ladies of the court, what I am about to say I swear by Apollo Silverbow, by Hermes Thrice Great and by Hippocrates, founder of my art."

"Got great style, doesn't he?" Rufus whispered.

"Shhh!" I said.

"The woman identified as Hypatia, hetaira of Athens, died sometime in the very early hours of this morning. A knife was found thrust between her ribs just below the left mammary, but this blow was delivered postmortem. The death-wound was a small cut to the carotid just beneath the left ear." Everyone leaned forward to hear his words, delivered with a sonorousness of voice and a subtlety of gesture that is difficult to describe.

"The body was nearly devoid of blood, as is frequently the case after such a wound. Yet there was no blood in the room or on the bed, save for some on the gown which lay on the floor, and some soaked into the woman's hair, neither in sufficient quantity to account for the condition of the body."

"This meaning?" Ptolemy said.

"The woman was killed elsewhere, and then brought to the embassy and deposited in the bed of the accused." A prolonged sigh went through the room.

Achillas shrugged. "So he killed her somewhere else and then took her to bed. Romans are necrophiles. I've always said so."

"And this," Asklepiodes said, "is the knife thrust into the body of the unfortunate woman." He held up a bone-handled weapon, its blade about eight inches long, somewhat curved and single-edged. Now there was a gasp from the Roman party.

"Is this significant?" Ptolemy asked.

"Your Majesty," Creticus said, "this changes things! I am now far more inclined to support my troublesome young relative's assertion of his innocence."

Ptolemy examined the knife with bloodshot orbs. "It looks ordinary enough to me."

"Perhaps in Alexandria," Creticus said, his lawyer's blood up, "but not in Rome! Sir, in Rome such a weapon is called a sica. You see that it is curved and has but a single edge. Under Roman law it is defined as an infamous weapon. It is the favored weapon of common cutthroats and of Thracian gladiators. The honorable weapons are the straight, double-edged pugio and gladius. These are the honest weapons of free men!"

"You mean," Ptolemy said, "that mere shape of blade makes one weapon honest and the other infamous?"

"Exactly," Creticus affirmed. "I am reluctant to believe that a kinsman of mine would commit cowardly murder. But if he did, he might use a pugio or a gladius, or even his bare hands, but he would never stoop to killing with a sica!"

"Hear, hear!" shouted the Roman contingent, myself included.

"Your Majesty," Achillas said, "are we not only to lend credence to sophists but to consider the impenetrable nonsense of Roman law? This man has brought dishonor on the whole court of Egypt, and has shown likewise the contempt in which Rome holds our nation!"

"Lord Achillas," Ptolemy said, "you are making a great deal of fuss about a dead whore. You are to cease this instant." It was good to see the old sot show a little iron. Churlishly, Achillas nodded. Ptolemy turned toward us.

"Your Excellency, I am now inclined to credit your kinsman's claim of innocence, although this is mystifying. Your legal customs are strange to us, but I have no doubt that they are perfectly sensible to you. Lord Orodes"-he turned to the Parthian-"if it will help to settle things, I will buy up the remainder of the dead woman's contract myself. Since her body is in my house, even though she may not have died there, I will even see to her funeral. Is that satisfactory?"

Orodes glowered. "Perfectly, your Majesty."

Now Ptolemy turned back toward us. "Tell me, young Decius, how did you happen to be in this woman's company, romping about in the Daphne?"

"Actually, sir," I said, feeling that I was all but clear, "we met in the Necropolis." At this the whole court roared with laughter.

"Your Majesty," Creticus said, "what is the meaning of this unseemly mirth?"

Ptolemy wiped tears from his eyes. "Excellency, the Necropolis is the resting place for our honored dead, but it is also the most popular fornicating-place in Alexandria. Why, in my younger days: well, never mind. Go on, young Decius. This was worth getting up early for."

"Sir, I was engaged in that investigation for which you yourself commissioned me."

"I have not forgotten."

"The woman set the assignation to tell me something of great importance. I thought the opportunity was worth the effort and I met her as directed. She wanted to make her home in Rome but needed a patron there to give her legal support. I agreed to this if her evidence proved to be of sufficient importance."