Pello Island: Cassia (17 page)

“Go on,” Cassia said.

“My friend is Darius, Cassia,” she whispered.

Cassia’s eyes widened at the mention of Darius’ name.

“Has he sent you here?” she asked Amara.

“No, but he did tell me how in love with you he is.  Oh, Cassia, if you could have seen him weep over you.”

“He wept?” Cassia asked.

“Yes, he wept.  The tears rolled down his face.”  Amara indicated with her fingers, running one down each  of her eyes.  “He longs for you, Cassia.  I’ve come here to tell you where he is.”

Cassia studied Amara’s face.  She was unsure if she could trust her.

“I’ve thought about him often in the last few weeks, but I’ve also wondered why he hasn’t come to see me himself,” Cassia said.

Amara contemplated telling Cassia the truth, but then she remembered what it felt like to be a girl in love with the wrong man.  It had only happened to her once, and her heart still bore the scars.

“Cassia, I can’t speak for Darius.  I’ve known him for many years, and still there are things about him even I don’t understand.  Maybe this was a mistake.”  She stood to leave and Cassia took her hand.

“Please give me his address, Amara,” she said sadly.

“When I came here I wanted to help you two get together.  But now, seeing how young you are, I’m not so sure.”

Cassia stood in front of Amara and held her hands.

“Thank you for your kindness.  I really would like the address, Amara.”

Reluctantly, Amara told Cassia where Darius was staying.  Then she impulsively threw her arms around Cassia’s neck and pulled her close.

“I wish I could lock you up myself and keep you innocent,” she whispered.  Then she pulled away and looked at Cassia.  “He really has a good heart, but he is weak, Cassia.  He will always take the coward’s way out.”

Cassia smiled in response.  She took Amara’s arm and together they walked to the front of the shop.

“Please, don’t go there lightly, Cassia.  If you go, he will expect more from you than a kiss on the cheek.  Are you truly ready to give yourself that way?”

“I will ponder what you’ve told me, Amara.  Thank you so much for coming.”

Cassia watched Amara’s litter until it turned off the street.  She could see Flavius out of the corner of her eye, and she knew he had overheard their last words.

“I know where he is, Flavius.”

“Are you sure you want to do this, Cassia?  He may break your heart again.”

“I haven’t decided yet what to do with it, Flavius.  Amara told me some things, well, things I hadn’t thought of before, things about Darius.”  She looked at Flavius.  “I promise I won’t act in haste, Flavius.”

She left him and went inside the house, looking for Frida.  When she found her, she asked her to draw a bath.  She would also need a litter, so she ordered one of the freedmen to go to the stable.

After Cassia had bathed, Frida helped her dress and fix her hair.  Cassia wondered what she would need to take with her.  She wished Novia were here.  She turned to Frida and asked her if she knew how to keep from starting a baby.

Cassia waited for Frida to return from the herbalist.  When the little maid arrived, she gave the silphium to Cassia with instructions on its use.

“I want you to come with me, Frida.  If he sends me home, I will need you,” Cassia said as she held Frida’s hand.

Cassia and Frida walked into the shop.  Flavius looked up from his sweeping and noticed she was in her finest dress.  He knew where she was going, and he wasn’t going to stop her.

“You’re sure you want to do this, Cassia?” he asked.

“When is my father returning, Flavius?”

“In a week’s time, Cassia.  Do you want me to go with you?”

“No, Flavius, I’m taking Frida with me.  We’ll be fine.  I’ll be back…,” Cassia stopped.  Even though she knew Flavius was aware of what she was going to do, she couldn’t bring herself to say it aloud to him.  She smiled weakly and headed for the litter with Frida trailing close behind.

Flavius watched her climb into the litter from the door.  As soon as she was out of sight, he closed and locked the shop.

Cassia remembered the last time she had taken a ride in a litter.  It was bearing her to her new husband, the despicable Cicero Gaius.  She hoped this ride would take her to her true husband.  No matter what happened when she reached the townhouse, she was prepared.    She had believed in love, but the death of Novia and the meeting with Amara had changed her.  She no longer believed that love was enough.

Cassia wondered why she was going to him.  Then, as she thought about his blue eyes and his handsome face, her body reacted so intensely that she became embarrassed.  She wondered if Frida had felt it, too.  She dared not look at her maid, and kept her eyes on the street.

As the litter approached the townhouse, Cassia’s stomach began to tighten.  She hoped she wouldn’t get sick this time, and grabbed Frida’s hand.

“Breathe in and out of your mouth,” Frida said, and Cassia obeyed.  She began to feel better as the litter bearers stopped in front of the townhouse.

Cassia, with Frida following behind, hesitantly walked to the front door of the townhouse.  She rang the bell and a servant appeared.

“I would like to see Darius,” she said.

The servant asked her name and invited her into the atrium.  She sat down on one of the couches while Frida hovered near the entrance.  When the servant returned and said that Darius was not at home, Cassia’s heart fell.  She felt so foolish.  She thanked the man and headed toward the entrance.

As she approached Frida, the maid took her arm.

“I’ll bet he’s hiding in the back, miss.  You should go and see,” Frida said with a sparkle in her eye.  Cassia was torn between a desire to run away as fast as she could, and a desire to see if Darius was indeed hiding in the back.  Again her stomach began to tighten, and suddenly she fainted.

Cassia woke up in a softly lit bedroom.  Frida sat next to her, holding her hand on one side, and Darius stood at the end of the bed.

“I think I’ll get you some tea, miss,” Frida said as she stood and left the room.

Darius walked over and took her place next to Cassia.  He took her hand and gently kissed it.

“You had us all worried, Cassia.  How do you feel?”

“My head hurts a little.”

“Well, you stay here until she brings your tea.  When you feel better, we can eat.”

Darius went to leave, but Cassia wouldn’t let go of his hand. He smiled at her and sat.

“I’m sorry, Darius.  I didn’t mean to upset you, or faint like a fool.”

“It’s fine, Cassia.  I’m really glad to see you.”

Darius leaned down and kissed her gently on the lips.  She put her arms around his neck to keep him from pulling away, but Darius had no intention of leaving her.  As the kiss deepened, Darius took his hand and moved it over her body.  He pulled his tunic off and threw it aside.  Cassia ran her hands over his chest and her body quickened again.  Slowly, Darius opened the pin that held her dress in place and it fell away, revealing her body.

In the muted sunlight of Darius’ bedchamber, Cassia could see his face hovering over her.  The time passed as in a dream.  Feelings of happiness and terror intermingled, causing her thoughts to fly back and forth between resistance and surrender.  She finally abandoned herself to the physical sensations and was swept away.

Cassia had never been this close to another human being, physically or emotionally.  The physical closeness awakened an unfulfilled hunger for intimacy in her that she had been denied since childhood.  She had masked her craving for it by maintaining a demeanor of subservience.  As Darius touched her in places no other human being could, her façade began to crumble, leaving her vulnerable and shaken.

After their lovemaking reached its climax, Cassia watched Darius climb off her body.  As they separated, she felt sad.  The closeness had worked like a drug in her, and until they came together again, she would yearn for him.

As he lay beside her, she put her arm over his chest.  He kissed her head and then her lips, and silently thanked and cursed Amara for her interference.

Quintus arrived at the shop late that evening.  His latest paramour had kept him busy, and now he just wanted to get some sleep.  Flavius had been waiting for him and when he heard Quintus heading for the house, he came out of his room.

“Quintus,” he said, and Quintus turned.  

“Flavius, it’s awfully late for you to be awake.”

“I was waiting for you.  Something happened earlier today, and I wanted to talk to you.”

“Can’t it wait until tomorrow?  I’m very tired.”

“No, Quintus, it can’t wait.  Cassia left this afternoon and she hasn’t returned.”

“Where did she go?  Why did you let her go alone?”  Quintus face was growing red.

“She went to see Darius.”

“You fool, how could you let her go alone?  Where is she?  I’m going to get her and bring her back,” Quintus roared as he headed toward the street.  “You’re coming with me, Flavius.”

Flavius led the way as the two men walked to the townhouse.  Quintus was in such an uproar that he almost ran the distance.  When they reached the townhouse, Flavius grabbed Quintus’ arm.

“Why wake the servants, Quintus?  It will spread all over town that your daughter is a whore,” Flavius said.  “I know where they are.”

Quintus followed Flavius to the back of the house.  The rooms were dark, but Flavius had seen which one Darius had entered the night he followed him home.  As they peered inside, they could barely make out the forms sleeping in the bed.  Quintus shook with rage.  He began to yell, but Flavius knocked him down.

“Cassia’s cursed,” he whispered.  “Isn’t that enough?”

Quintus held himself and stood up.  

“Let’s just grab her and be gone,” Flavius whispered.  “We’ll come back and deal with him in the morning.” 

Quintus entered the room first.  He moved slowly across the floor until he reached the bed.  He felt Flavius come up behind him, and he almost cried out when he felt the dagger enter his back and pierce his heart, but Flavius was quick to cover Quintus mouth' with his hand.

A Rude Awakening

Darius opened his eyes and saw the guards at the door.  He sat up and felt something sticky on his hands.  He saw the dagger, but couldn’t comprehend its meaning.  He then saw Frida holding Cassia, who was sobbing into her chest.

“What’s going on?” he asked.  “What are you doing in my room?”

“Darius Corvinus, you are charged with the murder of Quintus the merchant.  We have been charged with your arrest.  Please get up and dress.”

“What murder?  I’ve been asleep.”

“And your hands are covered in blood and you hold the dagger that killed him.”

The guard pointed to the other side of the bed where the body of Quintus lay.  Darius got up and walked around the bed, mindless of his nakedness.  He looked at Quintus’ body and shook his head.

“It’s impossible, I was sleeping; Cassia, tell them.  You were with me all night!”

Cassia looked at Darius and she, too, shook her head.

“I…I don’t know.  I was asleep, too.”