Laco picked at his manicured nails and Icelus drew a wax tablet and a stylus from his sleeve. Vinius exchanged glances with Galba before speaking again. ‘You have pledged your oath to Servius Galba Caesar Augustus?’
Valerius looked up at Galba in confusion. ‘I gave the Emperor my oath in Carthago Nova.’
‘He requires you to give it again.’
‘Is my loyalty in question, Caesar?’
Galba waved a weary hand. A pained expression crossed his lined face – and something else. Valerius was astonished to realize that the Emperor of Rome was a frightened man.
‘We require certainty,’ Vinius insisted.
Valerius restrained the urge to snarl in defence of his impugned honour. Once? Twice? What difference did it make? He straightened to his full height and said the words in the powerful voice he had once used on the parade ground. ‘In fulfilment of my vow, I gladly pledge my loyalty to Servius Galba Caesar Augustus, Emperor of Rome.’
Galba slumped forward and his voice was barely audible. ‘Gaius Valerius Verrens, your service for the Empire is well documented. Now your Emperor requires your service once more. This information must go no further than this room – on pain of death. On the kalends of Januarius the legions of Germania Superior refused to take the oath of loyalty to their Emperor. They have mutinied.’ Valerius closed his eyes. Mutiny. But in Germania Superior, not in Vitellius’s province. ‘There has been no insurrection yet and there must not be. You will carry dispatches to Aulus Vitellius at Colonia Agrippinensis, with the Emperor’s greetings, and certain other instructions the wording of which has yet to be decided. You will also carry an oral message from his Emperor, who requires his faithful servant to crush this mutiny with all speed and any means necessary. That is why it is vital the message is carried by someone he knows and trusts. You will be followed in time by a delegation from the Senate, but it is crucial that in the meantime Vitellius ensures the legions of Germania Superior stay in their barracks and make no threatening moves towards Rome or Gaul.’ Anger turned the pale features a bright pink. ‘This has been coming since they tried to put Verginius in this chair, but they have no leader now. Flaccus is a weakling to have allowed it to come to this, but if Vitellius holds his nerve they will realize they have no alternative but to submit to their Emperor’s will.’
This time the spinning in Valerius’s head had nothing to do with the perfumed smoke. Why him? There were other men in Rome who knew Vitellius better, men of higher rank whose word would carry more force. But he knew why. Galba would certainly have been informed about his part in Nero’s downfall. Furthermore, the details of Valerius’s mission to track down the man Petrus would be in the Imperial vaults, and his escape from Alexandria a step ahead of Nero’s assassins had marked him as a man of resource. He had no choice; that had always been clear. And what about the practicalities? Colonia was almost a month’s travel from Rome by the most direct route, which was over the western Alps to the head of the Rhenus. He would have to travel through country controlled by the mutinous legions. There would undoubtedly be checkpoints and patrols. The one thing in his favour was that the weather had been unusually mild. Traders had been turning up in Rome for weeks marvelling at their ability to get through the mountain passes at this time of year.
He made his decision. ‘I cannot travel officially. I will take one good man and letters confirming me as a merchant with authority to travel through Italia and Germania. We will also need a warrant to use Imperial remounts, and papers allowing us to pass through Helvetia.’ This last to Laco, who sighed as if being asked to perform some enormous labour. Valerius turned back to the Emperor. ‘I should begin immediately, Caesar. Even managing thirty miles a day, it will take us more than three weeks if all goes well.’
The Emperor frowned. ‘The wording of my dispatch to Aulus Vitellius requires delicate drafting. It cannot be hurried. Three weeks, you say? Then a day or two is of no matter when balanced against the importance of the message. Report to Prefect Laco tomorrow morning and we will see what we can do.’
Valerius bowed and backed away towards the door. As he left the room he was surprised to find Vinius at his shoulder.
‘You are right to urge speed, Verrens, but he will not be moved on this. I will be surprised if it is complete even in two days. He has other priorities.’ He glanced at the younger man’s wooden fist. ‘I was with the Eighth when we invaded Britannia. Late to the games and little more than an escort to Divine Claudius, true, but I know how tough the Celts can be. You are your Emperor’s hope, young man, but I know he can count on you.’