Selene of Alexandria (41 page)

Selene gripped her father's hand until he winced. Did Arete truly believe Selene capable of such a horrendous act? Antonius stared at his in-laws in horror, the blood draining from his face.

"We'll give Lady Arete a few moments to compose herself." When the sobbing subsided, Orestes continued sympathetically. "I understand your loss, Lady, but I must ask you a few more questions. Do you think you can go on?"

Arete straightened, dabbing at her eyes with a linen cloth. "Yes, Prefect."

"Good. When did Antonius make his second appearance in the birthing room?"

Arete frowned in concentration. "I was praying in the chapel when I heard shouts. Melania appeared and said I should come at once. When I got to the birthing room, she was in the bed with my daughter, shaking her. Antonius ordered the servants and Melania out of the room. Melania argued, then stepped back when Antonius threatened her. That's when that woman took out a knife, cut open my daughter, and pulled the baby from her womb. When she found it stillborn, she performed an unholy ritual, compelling its innocent soul back into its body."

"I don't believe she acted alone." Ision paused for effect. "I believe she and my son-in-law, conspired to make Honoria's death appear as a natural consequence of the birth."

Selene closed her eyes. She couldn't breathe the air; it was so thick with malice.

"Why do you believe that?" Orestes asked.

"My daughter Honoria loved Antonius, but the boy was reluctant. To spare her feelings and make her happy I pledged a substantial dowry to Lysis to make the match, thinking the boy would settle down after marriage and do right by my daughter. But I kept a close watch on him. It soon came to my attention, through a trustworthy slave, that Antonius was unhappy with the union and had wished for another."

"How had this slave reached this conclusion?"

"He attended Antonius and his friend Nicaeus in the baths, and overheard a conversation touching on Antonius' affection for Nicaeus' sister Selene." Ision pointed at Antonius. "He proposed to abandon his wife and persuade Selene to run away with him. The girl is prone to wayward behavior and might have agreed."

Selene's chest constricted and hands trembled. How much was truth, how much did Ision fabricate for his own ends?

"I have no doubt Antonius would have followed through had not Honoria announced her pregnancy soon after." Ision turned back to Orestes. "The opportunity of staging a seemingly natural death in childbirth was too good to pass up. Antonius engaged the help of his lover and murdered my child!"

Her father started to rise. Selene tugged his hand, shaking her head. Calistus settled back, his dark expression boding ill for Ision. Over his shoulder she saw Antonius' stricken face and Lysis' barely contained fury.

"You offer nothing but your own suppositions, Ision. Refrain from using the term 'murder' until such time as wrongful death has been established." Orestes frowned. "I will not allow the testimony of slaves. Nicaeus is not available to give evidence. Have you or your wife observed anything directly?"

"Yes!" Ision threw back his shoulders. "On the night of my daughter's death, Antonius took that woman into his arms and comforted her under my own roof. He then accompanied her to her father's house. My suspicions aroused by my servant's reports and Urbib's words, I followed them. I couldn't hear what they said, but they held hands during the walk, and at her home they embraced." Ision's rotund form seemed to swell as he raised his voice. "Antonius kissed that woman, with my daughter not yet dead an hour!"

An angry murmur swept the room. Orestes' cool gaze quelled it. "So you believe Antonius and Selene conspired to kill your daughter for love of one another. Why would Selene try so hard to save the baby? Would not an infant be an impediment?"

Ision's voice rang with triumph. "They planned this not just for love, but for greed. If Honoria died without issue, her dowry would come back to me. Antonius needed that baby alive to keep control of Honoria's wealth!"

Chapter 32

Calistus and Lysis both rose, shouting. The red spots on her father's cheeks boded ill for his weak heart.

"Father, be seated." Selene rose to calm him. "For my sake, if not your own?"

"Enough!" It took Orestes a moment to bring the room under control. He stood, raking Ision, Calistus and Lysis with his gaze. "All of you conduct yourselves with the gravity this inquest merits. This is my last warning." Lysis, Calistus and Selene took their seats. Orestes waited for total silence, sat, then turned to Ision. "Conspiring to commit murder is a grave charge. Both Antonius and Selene come from old, well-established families. Why would they do such a horrible deed for money?"

The merchant turned a scornful gaze on his social betters. "Lysis and Calistus have suffered financially in recent years due to the shortfall in crops. Both children might look upon this as an opportunity to help their families."

"You've described considerable suspicious behavior." Orestes sat back, both hands on the table. "But I haven't heard proof that Honoria died in any way other than a tragic childbirth."

Urbib stood up. "Sir, that is why I am in attendance."

Orestes nodded to Ision and Arete. "You may sit down." He motioned for the physician to come forward. "Who are you, and what light can you shed on this dark story?"

"I am Urbib, physician to many of the most prominent citizens in Alexandria." He bowed. "I don't believe I've had the pleasure of attending you, Prefect."

"I've had the fortune of good health during my tenure." Orestes' mouth turned up at one corner. "Your reputation is known to me."

Urbib crossed his arms, hands to opposite shoulders, and gave a deep bow. "I am here to give my professional opinion about this unfortunate matter. I have no knowledge of motive, but I do have prior experience with the so-called medica Selene. She attended the odd class or two on philosophy, and apprenticed herself to a notorious Egyptian woman who claims to heal with herbs and charms. Selene isn't qualified to be a midwife, much less a surgeon. She had no business attending Lady Honoria."

"And yet she performed successful surgery, saving the baby's life."

"At the expense of the mother's. There was no need for such drastic measures. Had I been in attendance, I would have repositioned the fetus in utero, allowing the child to be born naturally. My examination of the body revealed significant blood loss. I believe Honoria was still alive when Selene cut her open to retrieve the child. The shock of the wound and loss of blood killed her."

"Were you present at the moment of Honoria's death?"

"No. I draw my conclusions from the condition of the body and profuse amount of blood on the bed." The physician curled his upper lip into a sneer and glanced at Selene. She met his gaze, eyes steady, but gut knotted. "A wound made after death does not bleed as a wound made in life. The bed was soaked in blood from the incision Selene inflicted on Lady Honoria, causing her death."

"I do not dispute most of the facts as laid out by Ision. I did agree to the match reluctantly, but Honoria was a good woman and I did my duty as a husband, forsaking all others. When she became pregnant, I was happy, and honored her before God as the mother of my children. I never conspired with Nicaeus to abandon my wife or persuade Selene to run away with me."

Antonius took a deep breath. "The night Honoria went into labor, she sent a servant to fetch me. Lady Arete did, indeed, try to keep me away, but I honored my wife's wishes. Honoria asked for Selene. She wished her friend to be present and trusted Selene's medical skills as well. I opposed the idea."

"You opposed Lady Selene attending your wife?" Orestes looked startled. "Why?"

"Selene and I have been friends since childhood. At one time I believed I was in love with her and proposed marriage. She refused me, and I felt the rejection deeply." Antonius lifted his chin. "My love for her passed, but the sight of her pricks my pride and reminds me of my failure. That night, Honoria insisted on Selene's presence. I finally acquiesced, leaving the room before she arrived."

A lump of unshed tears choked Selene's throat. Antonius' lies protected her, but they made it impossible to ever be together.

"The next evening, a slave came to me in frantic haste, saying I was to attend my wife immediately. When I arrived, Honoria was hemorrhaging. Blood soaked the bed. I held her hand as she breathed her last. After Melania closed my dead wife's eyes, Selene proposed saving the child. I agreed to let her try. The baby was delivered blue and still. Selene acted quickly and revived it. Afterwards, we comforted each other, but not in secret, behind closed doors as guilty lovers or conspirators. Selene was devastated by the loss of her friend. I mourned my wife. We openly showed our grief in the company of Honoria's family. I escorted Selene home and, in our mutual sorrow, we did embrace one final time. I kissed her on the cheek, as I would a sister, and went home to my son.

"Prefect, I swear to you before Almighty God that neither I nor Selene had any malice toward Honoria. Her death is a tragedy for us all. Out of that tragedy, Selene saved my son. I will be eternally grateful to her. Her courage and action should be the subject of praise, not condemnation."

Ision muttered to the monk and Arete hissed. Orestes directed sharp glances at them then returned to Antonius. "A pretty speech, my lad, but, as Ision pointed out, you have much to gain by my believing your story. What proof do you offer?"

"No more than Ision. My word should be as good as the testimony of slaves in my father-in-law's service," Antonius stated bitterly. "As he has accused me of greed, so could he be accused. By asking for my son, he gains back the considerable sum he bestowed on his daughter for her dowry."

Ision stood and ground out, in low tones, "I'm only protecting the sole male heir of my family from his treacherous father!"

"Sir, be seated!" Orestes snapped. Ision glared at the Prefect as he sat. Orestes turned back to Antonius. "Have you anything to add?" Antonius shook his head. "Then I believe Lady Selene is the only one who hasn't had an opportunity to speak. Please come forward."

Selene gathered her robes and approached the table, avoiding Antonius' gaze as he passed her. "I have little to add, sir. I did indeed attend Honoria, as did midwife Melania. We were unable to save her although, through the grace of God, I was able to safely deliver her son."

Orestes nodded. "The main point of disagreement is when Honoria actually died. Physician Urbib says that the profusion of blood could only have come from the wound of a living body. Antonius claims his wife died before your surgery."

"Urbib is correct; the dead do not bleed in the same way as the living." Selene took a deep breath. "I discovered after delivering the baby, the afterbirth partially blocked the birth canal. The birth process caused excessive bleeding. Honoria experienced a massive hemorrhage just before she died. The blood on the bed was from that, not the incision I made to deliver the baby."

"Why did you try to save the child?"

"As I held Honoria's body in my arms, I felt the baby move. I had no choice." Selene clasped her hands and lowered her head. "I had seen enough death."

"Lady Arete claims you refused to pray for Honoria, and used an unholy ritual to force the baby's soul back into its body."

Selene's head snapped up. "It's true I did not join the ladies in the chapel, but I prayed to God every minute to spare my friend and allow her child to be born healthy. The 'unholy ritual' referred to is a simple technique I learned in my apprenticeship. I have assisted in many births. In some few the babies are stillborn. The medica I study with has saved a handful by blowing into their mouths. It doesn't always work."

"What of you and young Antonius conspiring to wed after Honoria's death?"

"Antonius is a dear childhood friend. He has been like an older brother to me. Had my father proposed the match three years ago, I would have accepted. But I have chosen a different path, with my father's blessing." Selene lifted her chin. "I will never marry."

Orestes tapped his teeth with a fingernail. "I admit I'm in a bit of a quandary. Both stories have merit and no one here is without motive."

"There was one other person present at Honoria's death – Melania, the midwife," Selene offered. "She can attest to the truth in this matter. She is a penitent in the church and has nothing to gain in either material wealth or reputation."

"Why was she not included on the list of witnesses?" Orestes glared at Ision.

"I believed the word of a physician to carry more weight than that of a mere midwife," Ision said. "Urbib has nothing to gain in this matter."

"Is that so?" The merchant returned the Prefect's stern look, blandly. Orestes turned to Demetrius. "Summon the midwife."

The monk stood up. "Prefect, Penitent Melania has been sent to a cloister of holy women in the desert to serve God. She is not available to attest to these facts."