The Town Mouse and the Spartan House (2 page)
We thought there was nothing worse than the savage Spartans. Then the second curse arrived. The plagueâ¦
My father was a doctor and he told me how sickness was spreading through the crowded temples.
“The victims say their heads ache and their eyes go sore,” he explained. “They spit blood and vomit. Their bodies are burning and covered in sores. The wretches cannot sleep. In a week they are dead.
“I try to help, but I have no medicines for
this
. All I can do is try to keep the sick away from the ones who are well.”
The plague spread from the temples and on through the city. Screaming victims threw themselves down wells to try to cool their fevered bodies.
No one wanted to nurse the sick, and they died in the streets. The bodies were piled high and left to rot. People stole wood, and lit fires to burn their loved ones.
“This is hell,” my father said and rubbed his aching head. His eyes grew sore and his body grew fever-hot. He died within a week.
Everyone in Athens had lost a loved one and the streets were filled with weeping. Now we joined them. I cried for my father and I cried for myself. I waited for the plague to take me next. We paid some slaves to take his body to the plague pit.
And then my mother fell ill. Her face glowed with sweat and her fine, dark hair hung tangled and matted on her pillow. Her voice was thin and breathless. “Darius,” she said. “Leave the city ... save yourself.”
“Where shall I go?” I cried. “The Spartans will capture me!”
“You
are
a Spartan,” she whispered. “My brother is a general with the Spartan army. Find him. Find your uncle Alcmaeon.”
“But the Spartans are the cruellest people on Earth!”
“Better a live Spartan than a dead Athenian,” she told me.
The next day, she died. Our oldest servant, Syme, told me not to cry. “Your mother has joined the gods in the fields of Elysium,” he said.
“She's dead!” I sobbed.
“No, she is asleep,” he said softly. “When she wakes she will be on the islands of the blessed. Everyone is happy there. She will meet your father again and they will live in peace for ever more.”
“And me?” I asked.
“If you live a good life, then one day you will join them there.” He smiled. “But for now you must save yourself. Be brave. Remember, your mother's wish was for you to join your Spartan family.”
“And you?”
“I'll take my chance in Athens,” Syme shrugged. “I am old. The gods will take me if they want, or spare me. I will see your mother has a good funeral. But you must go. And soon.”
I didn't wait to be told twice.
I made my plans to run away.
I wrapped some beans and bacon in a cloth. Food was hard to come by in Athens. Beans and bacon were the best we could do. I looked around the house for something to take with me. Something to remind me of my mother and father. I chose an opal ring that had been my mother's favourite, and a small scroll of my father's, which contained some of his cures for sickness. I tucked it into my belt. I packed a few clothes and left the house by the first light of morning.
The guards at the walls were leaning wearily on their spears.
“Will you let me out?” I asked.
“The Spartans will get you,” one with a sour face sneered. “They will probably use you as target practice for their spears!”
“It's better than dying slowly from the plague,” I replied.
The guard shrugged and swung open a small gate in the wall. “May the gods be with you,” he said.
But everyone in Athens knew that the gods were with the Spartans.
The Spartan camp was guarded by wide-eyed boys. They were only my age but their eyes were as sharp and hard as spear tips. They grabbed me roughly and tied my hands. They tore open my bundle, ate my food and stole my mother's ring. Then they dragged me into the camp.
