Nobilissima (12 page)

In the distance, the sea sparkled in the sunlight and I longed to run into the waves to get clean and feel free of the prison of the carriage. But the soldiers kept everyone moving along, always south towards Alaric’s destination. No attack ever came.

One evening, as the sun was setting, Septimus rode up to the carriage. His horse was breathing hard, its mouth white with foam.

“Good news, ladies,” he called out. “I heard that Marcus is alive!”

Aurelia began to cry. “Thank God,” she sobbed. “It was becoming harder every day to believe that he wasn’t dead.”

I moved over to hug her, my own heart pounding with joy. The thought of losing Marcus had been unbearable. I’d tried hard not to think about him at all during the long days and nights since leaving Rome, preferring an absence of emotion to the pain of conjecturing about his fate.

“I think he was badly injured, which is why we didn’t hear from him before,” added Septimus, obviously reluctant to give any bad news.

Aurelia looked up, swallowing back her tears. “Is he all right? How badly injured?”

“A leg wound from a sword but it has healed well and he is safe. That’s what the messenger said.”

Aurelia cried even more and Septimus directed his words to me. “Marcus has sent a letter saying he will pay the lady’s ransom money. Alaric told me to let her know that she is free to go. Another group of hostages will leave tomorrow and head north.”

“This is the most wonderful news,” I said. “Thank you, Septimus.”

He smiled and turned his horse back the way he had come.

“Aurelia, please stop crying,” I said. “Marcus is alive and you will see him very soon. I can’t think of a greater joy.”

“Placidia, I can’t leave you,”Aurelia answered. “Marcus will understand that I have to stay with you. When you leave, so will I, but not before.”

I held her tightly, and tried to find the right words to convince her to leave, but to everything I said, Aurelia just replied. “I won’t leave you.”

“I’ll have no choice but to have Alaric take you back under armed guard,” I said jokingly, but nothing would change Aurelia’s mind. Finally, I told her to get some rest and that we would talk about it again when she was calmer. I climbed down out of the carriage, walking at a gentle pace to keep up with the caravan. Goths milled around me, seeming not to know who I was, or not caring. I looked like one of them now, with my filthy clothes and tangled hair. I probably smelled as badly as they did too, but it was too hot for me to care much.

From behind, I heard someone calling out to me and turned to see the priest Alanus hurrying forward to catch up. Reluctantly, I slowed down enough for him to reach me, and then picked up the pace again to stay level with the carriage.

“Nobilissima, I’m so happy to see you,” he panted, out of breath from his brief exertion. “Were you able to speak on my behalf to the Goth king? I am desperate to return to Rome.”

“We all are,” I said tersely, stepping out a little faster.

“Yes, indeed,” he said, his head drooping. We walked in silence for a few minutes and then he spoke again. “I saw you talking with the Arian priest the other day. To be truthful, I was surprised that you would mix with someone not of the Christian faith.”

I turned my head to look at him. “You speak of Paulinus? I met him briefly, yes. You are surprisingly well informed.”

“I’ve been keeping my eye on him,” puffed Alanus. “I worry that he will try to convert the hostages to his way of thinking.”

I laughed. “I would think that the hostages have more on their minds than religious debate, Alanus. Besides, you know perfectly well that Arians are Christians, just as we are. They have different beliefs on some fundamental issues, it’s true, but they worship the same God as we do.”

“Nobilissima, I am well aware of the differences and I think the Bishop of Rome would be appalled to hear your words. You know that the differences between our faiths are irreconcilable.”

“That attitude has been the cause of countless deaths,” I retorted. “A little more tolerance on both sides would be a better course. And our Bishop understands that, and is moving very slowly and carefully to bring more Romans into the Catholic fold.”

“How can you defend the faith of the Goths?” he asked, “given what they have done to Rome?”

“It is also the faith of many Roman aristocrats, Alanus, as you yourself pointed out. There are some very influential Arians in the Senate and in the highest ranks of the Army. They will not change their minds overnight.”

“Then we shall have to differ. The orthodox church will prevail.”

“I pray that you are right,” I said. “I just feel that patience is needed, especially now, when Rome is hardly in a position to impose its religion on the Goths or anyone else.”

Alanus gave the closest thing to a snort that I had heard coming from a cleric, and sped up, striding several paces ahead of me until he tripped on the pot-holed road and fell to his knees.

I choked back a laugh, and offered him my hand. “Come along, Alanus. We have more immediate concerns than the religious health of the Goth nation. Walk with me for a while and we’ll hope to see Alaric or his brother and see if we can’t persuade them to return you to the Bishop.”

Apparently unaware of my mocking tone, Alanus took his place beside me, placing his feet carefully, high-stepping as though walking through puddles of water and smiling widely at everyone we passed. I took a breath and watched the sun sinking lower in the sky, streaking the horizon with pink and gold. Very soon, the soldiers would call a halt for the night and I would try to snatch a few hours of sleep before the endless journey resumed.

Chapter 13

Each day, I asked Aurelia if she regretted her decision not to return to Rome, but my friend only smiled and said that everything would work out in the end. She had written to Marcus to explain and had received a letter from him, applauding her courage and loyalty and freeing her of any guilt by assuring her that the chaos following the Goth attack required his attention day and night. He was regrouping his troops and reinforcing garrisons in the north. He urged Aurelia to stay safe and to look forward to their reunion, and promised that he was working on a ransom settlement for me.

We had traveled far south of Naples when the procession of carts and carriages slowed. The road ahead climbed to a vertiginous height, following the spine of a ridge, with the sea on one side and a wide valley on the other. I kept my eyes on the open water, watching for any sign of Roman ships, but the cavalcade soon began a long descent into the valley, down steep slopes forested with spindly pines and ancient figs. A thick undergrowth of brambles and weeds supported rotting limbs that had fallen long ago, leaving behind pale scars on the tree trunks.

“I hate the countryside,” I said to Aurelia and Sylvia. “It’s so untidy.”

Sylvia looked at me with a smile on her face. “No, it’s not.”

“It is,” I insisted. “It’s unkempt and disorganized. I prefer cities with straight roads that are lined with buildings, or a marketplace ringed by temples and majestic edifices of government. That…” I waved my hand towards the forest. “I just don’t like it.”

Sylvia shook her head, and Aurelia patted me on the knee. “Don’t take any notice of Sylvia. I know what you mean.”

I wrapped my arms around myself. We were approaching the valley floor, and hills rose on both sides of us, casting deep shadows. I felt cut off from the rest of the world.

A persistent rushing sound caught my attention and I leaned out of the carriage to see what it might be. In the distance, a wide ribbon of silver glittered in what was left of the sunlight. A river, I realized, broad and fast enough to make so much noise.

Within minutes of the carriage coming to a stop, the Goths had begun to unload their cooking pots and blankets. Soon, smoke from cooking fires spiraled upwards, reminding me of how hungry I was. As dusk filled the valley, a horse rider galloped towards the carriage and I was surprised to see that it was Ataulf himself. He barely slowed to a halt to tell us that two guards were to escort us to a nearby house.

“I’ll see you there,” he said, before cantering away.

The guards arrived soon afterwards and took us to a large villa, nestled comfortably in the shade of a grove of chestnut trees. We passed through the atrium and into a spacious reception room well lit with candles. Taiga was there and clapped her hands together.

“I am so happy to see you all. I have a wonderful surprise for you. Come with me.”

I glanced at Aurelia, who shrugged her shoulders but we obediently followed Taiga through a maze of corridors until we reached a bath house. The water in the tiled pool was clear and clean.

“See, we can bathe,” said Taiga in excitement. “ I found linens and oils too, over there, and several clean gowns, although they are not of the highest quality.”

Sylvia rushed forward to collect the basket of luxuries from the corner of the room, and placed them by the side of the pool.

“Even Alaric will smell of roses this evening,” Taiga laughed and I couldn’t help but smile.

We shed our clothes and I could hardly bear to look at my skin, which was grey with an accumulation of dust and sweat. I sank under the water, feeling the precious liquid surround me, bathing me in warmth. After a while, Taiga climbed out of the pool and Sylvia rubbed scented oils into her body. She slipped into a clean, white tunic and pulled her gold pendant over her neck. Then she took a seat on a couch nearby and brushed her straight yellow hair, watching us luxuriate in the water.

“Your beauty surpasses even its reputation, Nobilissima,” she said. “Alaric admires your bravery, you know, almost as much as he despises your brother’s cowardice. Your father was a great soldier and a good ruler. He had the vision to see how our nations could be united and help each other.”

I felt too lazy to answer but managed an affirmative nod.

“Alaric was devoted to your father and to Stilicho. It was very hard for him to mount an attack against the Empire.”

“Really,” I said.

“Yes, but he was destined to enter Rome,” continued Taiga. She spoke liltingly, as though relating a story. “He heard a voice telling him that it was his destiny.”

“He heard a voice?” I echoed.

“A divine voice,” she confirmed, “urging him to take Rome. The voice said ‘Do not delay, you must penetrate the city.’ And so he listened and advanced.”

I was shocked, but said nothing.

“His fate has led him here,” Taiga said, with a hint of sadness in her voice. “He will fight in Africa and take control of the grain supply. That will give him the power to negotiate with the Emperor, and we shall have the titles and lands that are due to us.”

Knowing that anything I said would probably be unsympathetic, I remained silent but Sylvia was less diplomatic. “A divine voice indeed,” she whispered. “Whatever next?”

After a while, Taiga began to look bored so, reluctantly, Aurelia and I climbed out of the water. Sylvia attended to both of us and helped us each choose a gown that was most likely to fit.

“I don’t care in the least what it looks like,” I said. “As long as it has no blood, wine or sweat on it and doesn’t smell of smoke.”

Taiga finished her hair and left, saying that she looked forward to seeing us again later. In spite of her strange announcement, it was hard not to like her. She had an ethereal quality that was very calming, in contrast to the strong, emphatic natures of the Goth men in her family.

That night over dinner, Alaric and Ataulf talked only of the plans for the journey to Africa. The first stop was Sicilia, where Alaric already had arranged for boats and weapons to be ready. He intended to leave the women and children here in the valley, taking most the soldiers with him. He told us we were on the outskirts of a town called Cosentia. From there it was a day’s ride to the port of Regghium, where a contingent of Goth soldiers had already made camp, awaiting the arrival of the their king. Ships were ready for the sea voyage to Messina in Sicilia.

Taiga was quiet, and kept her eyes on her husband. Occasionally, his hand strayed towards hers and clasped it for a few moments before returning to the serious business of eating. He and Ataulf counted ships and troops and I decided that the only way to stay awake was to engage Taiga in conversation.

“How have you coped with the discomfort and hazards of so much travel and so much time in camps?” I asked, and Taiga shrugged.

“We are always together; my husband, my brother Ataulf and all my uncles, cousins and aunts. Everyone looks out for the others. And if we are hungry sometimes, well, that is how our life has been since the arrival of the barbarians from the East. We have had no choice but to move on, away from our homeland, in search of something new. Desperation breeds strength, I believe.”

For that evening, at least, hunger was not a problem. There was roast meat, with bread and fruit and cheese. The wine was good and I felt completely renewed with food in my stomach. The candles burned low and the plates were taken empty from the table. The servants poured more wine.

“At what time do you depart?” Taiga asked Alaric, her brow creased in a frown.

“Tomorrow at dawn,” he replied. “We will take two hundred men with us. As soon as we reach Sicilia, we’ll send for more men, for you and for Placidia and her ladies. You’ll like it there. It will be a good place to spend time until we return from our conquest of the grain fields across the sea.”