The Gladiator Prince (36 page)

Picking up his sword, he touched his throat, knowing the bruise would be massive. Bahar struggled to her knees, holding her side, but lifted angry eyes at him as she wrapped her fingers about the trident.

“Get up!” he shouted at her, and she fumbled to her feet, using the trident as a crutch. “I have taught you better,” he hissed. “Now show me what you have.”

The fire burning in her eyes sparked him, and he charged her, his
gladius
in front of him. She parried it easily and slipped to the side in a rush. Bringing the trident down, she caught at his knees trying to bring him down. Thane side stepped it and grabbed the weapon, yanking back hard. Bahar lost her grip, and the trident went flying out of her hands. Thane threw it angrily behind him.

Pulling the net from around her chest, Bahar crouched in front of him, moving back and forth as if she were born to it. Twice the net snaked out and missed, but he could not get closer to her; her speed and strength were amazing.

Finally, with a third attempt she managed to get the net tangled in the grip of the sword, and whisked it out of Thane’s hand unexpectedly. She did not even pause, churning her legs as fast as they would go, she ran to get her trident before Thane could recover.

Thane was too quick. Mere feet from the weapon, he caught her by the knees and tackled her to the ground.

With a cry of pain, she went down and skidded to a stop an arm’s length from her trident. Thane wasted no time; grabbing her legs, he pulled her back and twisted her over, landing on her hips, but Bahar was ready.

How she got the knife out of her waistband Thane did not know, but she plunged it at him, and he barely caught her wrist before it buried into his chest. Twisting hard, the knife slipped out of her fingers onto the sand at her side. When she brought up the other hand to tear at his face, he caught it in the other wrist and twisted them together. Snatching the knife out of the sand, he instinctively brought it down to her chest. Bahar’s eyes stopped him.

“Yes,” she whispered. “Do it,
Doctores
! Do it!”

A great panicked scream went up at one end of the arena that spread through the crowd in a thunderous wave.

Fire!

When he looked up at the stands, his head spun. The crowd, only moments before screaming in harmonious syncopation for the girl’s blood, now howled in a tremulous chaos. It took him only a moment to find out why; at one side of the circular arena, smoke bellowed up in great black clouds. The crowd stampeded to get out of the structure, trampling each other, fighting more viciously than any gladiator had done in the sand at their feet. Survival had made them animals, and the elite of Rome scrambled to save their own lives.

He pulled Bahar to her feet and pushed her back to the gates. The other gladiators had disappeared. To his surprise, right in front of him, one of the gates was still gaping open. He pushed her toward it.

The corridors were deserted, and Thane rushed to find an outside door. Running around the periphery of the building, he finally saw one. He pushed Bahar through it and out into the street.

It was chaos. The crowd had spilled onto the street in the tens of thousands, pushing, shouting, running. Like a human tidal wave, they swept over them in one quick rush.

Bahar’s hand slipped out of his as the momentum gathered and pulled her away. He shouted and tried to fight his way through them, but it was too late. Bahar disappeared into the throng of people, and Thane could not follow.

Chapter XLIII

How they managed to get away from the soldiers, Phaedra did not know. Hasani had been quick and clever. When the Romans were nearly on them, he pushed her into one of the alcoves around the arena, grabbed her around the waist and pulled her into a kiss. The soldiers ran right past them.

When they were gone, he ran with her in the opposite direction until they found an overgrown garden on the other side of the road. Plunging into the scratchy mess, he made her get down and put a finger to her lips. In a few moments, the street was again deserted.

“Let me go,” she finally said, and Hasani took his hands from her waist.

“Sorry, princess. I was only trying to save our skins.”

“We have to try again. I know this will work.”

Sighing deeply, Hasani pulled the bag from his shoulder and looked inside. “One left. We need to find someplace that is already damaged.” He scanned the street. “Come on.”

Moving carefully along the perimeter of the building, Phaedra thought her heart would burst. She kept expecting to see Roman soldiers everywhere. What seemed like hours went by before Hasani stopped.

“Did you hear that?”

“No. What?”

“The crowd… They sound different.”

Phaedra’s heart almost stopped. “You do not think one of them is…”

Hasani shook his head and took her shoulders into his hands. “No,” he stated. “I think the crowd would sound more enthused. This is almost…” He stopped abruptly and moved along the wall.

In only a few more feet, he stopped again. Right in front of them was a portion of the wall that had been removed, apparently for construction. The wooden underpinnings were clear in the torchlight.

“Here.” Hasani pulled the last black ball from the bag and moved away from the wall. “I want you across the street, little bird. Give me the torch.”

“You are too close. It could…”

“Trust me. I know what I am doing.” He snagged the torch from her hand and turned her toward the street. “Go. Just think of it this way; if I am wrong, you are out one future husband. That should make you feel better.”

“Hasani, I…”

“Go,” he said firmly.

Phaedra huffed once but moved back away from him several hundred feet. When she stopped, she watched him light the wick and toss the ball as hard as he could.

It hit the scaffolding lining the wall, but nothing happened. He waited several seconds, but still nothing. There must have been something wrong with the wick.

She looked both ways to cross the road, but Hasani ran toward the building.

“Hasani, no!”

It was too late. In a massive explosion that shook the ground under her feet, the scaffolding blew into thousands of flaming pieces everywhere. One barely missed her face, and she fell to the ground. Smoke filled the air, and the flames grew so quickly it took her breath.

Crawling forward under the smoke she saw a mound lying on the ground in front of her. It was lying up against a cistern in the road. It took her forever to reach him.

She tugged on his tunic, and he flopped over. His face was black with soot, and parts of his hair smoldered, but otherwise, Hasani was whole. The blast must have thrown him away from the fire.

The roaring flames now scalded her face. She had to cover her eyes with her hand it burned so brightly. Mustering her strength, she grabbed Hasani under the arms and pulled him across the street, but even there was not safe. Sparks flew in an avalanche through the air, landing and igniting the night. Fires bloomed up all around her: houses, gardens, buildings. The wind carried it from rooftop to rooftop quickly, racing from one structure to the next in moments.

It was only then she realized what the shouts had been before. Throngs of people poured from every entrance of the arena like angry wasps deserting a poisoned hive. They ran from the building while poor helpless arena assistants tried to keep them calm and orderly. Most were trampled under terrified feet.

“Hasani!” she shouted trying to shake him awake. His breathing was easy, and his heart strong when she put her ear against his chest, but she soon lost the sound under the roar of the crowd that now swelled into the street.

“Please, wake up!” she screamed, but it was useless; he was out. Rising to her feet, she tried to find someone to help. “Please,” she cried to several passersby. “He’s hurt. I need help.” All of them, even the official ones completely ignored her.

At the side of the arena where flames engulfed one whole wall, she stood back in horror. What had she done? In a vicious wind, the flames rose to the heavens in snarling plumes as if the ground itself had opened up to let Hades free. It cast strangely undulating shadows of people and animals running everywhere. An unattended tiger burst growling from one door grabbing a woman’s hand as it leapt past. Dogs in groups of three and four charged through the masses whining as they snapped at the ankles of any who would get in their way. Women and even children, begged for help where they lay trampled on the ground. The world had fallen into chaos.

Bright red and silver uniforms of many Roman soldiers caught her attention to one side. They were forming a line to the river nearby, but their hands were empty. The buckets had not come out of the arena, as they should. Finally, one officer pulled off his golden helmet with a scarlet comb dancing on top. Without hesitation, he yanked off the beautiful red horsehair, threw it into the street then passed the helmet back. Many others followed suit and soon they had water passed from hand to hand to quench the fire.

When Hasani stirred, Phaedra was so relieved she hugged him, but it was fleeting. He went back under just as quickly. Standing, she had to find some help, even if it meant asking the soldiers across the street. Taking no more than two steps, she stopped abruptly. There before her, with his feet spread and his hands in fists, stood Abella.

“You did this!” he shouted pointing a finger at her. “By the gods I will set you ablaze myself.”

Phaedra turned and stumbled down the road, running as fast as her legs and the crowd would allow her, leaving Hasani behind her. As swift as she was, the fire followed her through the streets as if hunting her. Phaedra had never been so terrified. When she dared a look behind her, she saw Abella fighting the crowds to get to her. They closed behind him like wheat in the field. Something caught her eye behind him, but she could not see what it was, a flash of gold only. There was no time to explore it. The crowd thinned suddenly, and she found herself on open road. Despite the protest from her heart and lungs, she pushed herself to go faster. In front of her was Hasani’s warehouse. If she could make it there, she could fight him. If.

Chapter XLIV

Thane followed the crowd as far as he could, but even when they dispersed, there was no sign of Bahar.

“Bahar!” he called for the hundredth time. The spark of the fire and roar of the crowd were all that came back to him. He knew he would not find her by guessing and hoped when she was loose of the throng she would return, as dangerous as that might be now. Thane stopped and watched the flames leap from door to door and roof to roof, growing exponentially with every passing moment.

As he trotted past, something caught his eye off to the right, and he could not believe it. Dashing up to the bundle, he reached down and felt for a pulse. The heart beating beneath his fingers quickened, and Hasani sat up abruptly.

“Phaedra…” he cried thrashing about.

Thane caught his hands and pressed them to Hasani’s chest. “Where is she?”

“She was here…” He seemed stunned as he pointed to the ground. “She was right here… a moment ago. I swear…”

“Enough!” Thane threw up his hands then pointed to the arena. “Did you do this?”

Hasani frowned at the extent of the fire and nodded. “Aye, with her. She made these black balls of pitch and sulfur…”

“Never mind.” Thane helped Hasani to his feet and scanned the thinning crowd. “Where are my daughters?”

Brushing his hands Hasani gave Thane a sidelong look. “Safely on my ship, I should imagine. The senator took them.”

Thane took his first relieved breath. “Good,” he said, searching the streets. “We have to find Phaedra… and Bahar. She disappeared into the crowd at the arena. Come on, Egypt.”

As they moved methodically through the streets calling for the girls, they had to rush. The fire had taken on strength, and the brilliant flames lighted up the night like daylight. There were throngs of people everywhere on the streets, crowded into a mass clawing its way to safety, but when Thane looked up, he knew there would be no where safe; the blaze had grown into a monster that neither a blade or water could tame. It would feast until it was full.

Finally, in frustration, Thane grabbed Hasani and pushed him to the side of the road. “If you have done something to her…”

Hasani brushed the gladiator’s hands off his chest and took a step back. “We came here to rescue you, you son of a whore! If you had listened to me and not walked right into their trap…”

“Then where is she? Why did you not take her to the ship where she would be safe, Egypt?”

“Is it my fault she is stubborn? I should have known better than to make her promise to…” He stopped abruptly.

“Promise to what?” Thane growled at him tightening his grip on the hilt of his sword.

Hasani narrowed his eyes and looked down at Thane’s hand. “This is no time to start puffing out chests at one another. We need to find…”