The King's Gambit(66)

“No man is my patron where treason is concerned.”

Cicero’s face registered shock. “Treason! You use the strongest word in the legal vocabulary, my friend. Were you Metellans not noted for moderation in political matters, I would say that you speak most rashly.”

“The rest of what I have to say is stronger than this, so let us use no more names for a while. It is law we need to speak about, not personalities. I have seen certain evidence which indicates that a conspiracy exists to suborn the authority of a Roman general in the field and to attack his shipping, a plan involving collusion with the Eastern pirate fleet.”

"I will not ask the name of this general, although it is easy to guess. Such an attack could be lawful only if the general in question were to be declared an enemy of the state by the Senate, as was the case with Sertorius.”

“There is to be no Senate vote on the matter. It is to remain a clandestine operation known only to the conspirators involved.”

“This is an evil business, but so far you have not given me enough cause to bring forth a charge of treason, which is defined by constitutional law as engaging in or conspiring toward the armed overthrow of the government.”

I had been afraid of that. “There is more involved: The conspiracy includes a foreign prince. His reward is to be the throne of his father, a monarch with whom we are not at war, and perhaps the throne of another with whom we currently are fighting. He promises for his part to rule both as a Roman puppet.”

“Once again there is little guesswork here as to identities. If the monarch in question had been granted the title of ‘Friend of Rome’ by the Senate, as was the case with, say, Nicomedes of Bithynia, then conspiring to take his throne and grant it to another would be a grave instance of criminal corruption. But even then it would not be treason. Is there more:

“Thus far, I know of three murders committed for the purpose of keeping this conspiracy secret: two citizens and a resident alien. The last murder involved an arson as well.”

He pondered for a moment. “Murder of citizens and arson are both capital offenses. However, both are extremely difficult to prove in court. Do you believe that any of the highly placed conspirators personally committed these acts?”

I shook my head. “One was committed by a freedman, a manumitted gladiator. He himself was the second victim, probably to remove him from the chain of conspiracy as a worthless player. His murderer also committed the third homicide. All the evidence I have indicates that the killer is an Asiatic burglar and assassin in the employ of the foreign prince I mentioned.”

“Then you will almost certainly not secure a conviction against any of the plotters. Plus, unless I miss my guess, your third victim was a very rich freedman, not so?”

“That is true.”

“So we have as victims two freedmen and a foreigner. One of the freedmen was himself a murderer. A Roman jury will laugh at you if you try to lay such charges at the feet of high officials. What is your chief evidence? Do you have anything in writing?”

“Not in my possession. My surest proof of conspiracy lies in documents placed in the Temple of Vesta.”

“Hmm. I won’t ask how you got a look at them, but let us pretend that you read them before they were placed there. Documents entrusted to the Temple of Vesta may be subpoenaed by vote of the Senate where imminent danger to the state is involved and with the concurrence of the Pontifex Maximus. Since you need the documents to prove danger to the state, I see very little chance for that.”

“You are saying, in essence, that I have nothing with which to bring charges against these people?”

“It is, of course, the right of every Roman citizen to bring suit in court against any other citizen. However, no serving Roman magistrate may be charged while in office, although as soon as he leaves office he may be charged with malfeasance. From what you have been saying, I take it that at least one of these conspirators is a serving magistrate?”

“Two, actually,” I said.

“And the office they hold?”

“Consul. Both of them.”

He paused. “Well. That does remove a bit of the guesswork, doesn’t it? Tiro, I can tell you want to say something.”

Tiro’s waiting for Cicero’s permission to speak was the only slavelike behavior I ever detected in him.

“Sir,” he said to me, “the Consuls for this year have only a bit more than a month left in office. If you can gather more solid evidence against them, you may bring charges as soon as they step down. Neither has his army with him, and the proconsular command of the greater has not yet been chosen. It would be a good time, if the evidence can be produced.”