As it turned out, the temple had very fine guest quarters indeed; and when I’d rousted the slaves from their rest and threatened them with Cornelia’s wrath, they led us there and saw to our comfort.
“Oh, yes sir!” twittered the head eunuch as he proudly displayed the suite that lay behind the splendid nave. “We often entertain the high priestesses and chamberlains of the great temples in Greece and Magna Graecia, where Ceres is worshipped as Demeter.”
I studied the sumptuous rooms. “Kept this all to themselves, eh? While we poor aediles sweated away in tiny little offices downstairs! Well, no more of that! Bring us whatever food you have handy and some decent wine. No! Make that the best!”
The half man bowed obsequiously. “At once, Aedile!”
Within minutes we were tearing into some of the best cold food to be had in Rome that night. We had dined earlier that evening, but we ate like starving men anyway. A soldier knows that he has to fill up when he has the chance because the next meal may be days away and plenty of fighting to be had in the meantime. I had a strong feeling that things were going to be moving very fast, very soon, and I had better be fortified for it.
I took the time to wonder if what we were eating was the remains of a dinner prepared for the incongruous couple and almost choked on my wine at the thought.
Soon I was replete, and Hermes looked like a calf stunned by the slaughterman’s hammer, reeling where he sat. The hour was late, but I did not feel ready to sleep on the heavily cushioned couch.
“Come, Hermes,” I said, rising. “Let’s get a little air before we turn in.”
“If you say so,” he said, rising. We walked out through the nave, past the statue of the stately, seated goddess. A single slave tended the lamps that burned before the goddess and along the walls, all the rest of the staff having gone back to their beds. We walked out onto the porch and looked out over the City. The sight was breathtaking in the bright moonlight, with water glimmering where ordinarily there would be only murky gloom. On the hills, there burned far more torches than usual, where people had gathered in open places and on rooftops. Looking to the west, the river seemed impossibly wide.
“You think you can get out of this?” Hermes asked as we sat on the top step. He set a pitcher and a pair of cups between us.
“I have to,” I told him. “It’s not only desirable to stay alive, but I have to get this business out of the way quickly. I have far too much work to do, and this is absorbing all of my attention. As soon as it’s light in the morning, I want you to dash to the house with a message for Julia.”
“I’m sure she must be worried about you.”
“Yes, yes, but this is urgent. I want that statue boxed up and out of the City immediately. She’ll have to hire a cart and get it sent to the country estate. It’ll have to be hidden there until all this blows over.”
“Hidden?” he said. “The Venus? Why?”
“Because it’s a bribe.”
“And a handsome one, too. What were you bribed to do?”
“Nothing, Idiot! I’ve never taken a bribe in my life! No large ones, anyway. Not for anything important, at any rate.”
He looked into the bottom of his cup. “The wine must be making me slow. What are you talking about?”
“I should have seen it immediately, but this business of the insula has kept me too distracted. Look, Hermes, I’ve taught you how officeholding works: I can’t be sued or charged with a crime while I hold office, right?”
“I understand that much.”
“But the minute I step down, I can be charged. It’s practically customary. A political opponent, personal enemy, or young lawyer will accuse you of something, and you’ll have to defend yourself. The charges are usually bribery or extortion, but it can be anything. When Caesar was starting out, he charged old Rubirius with a murder committed twenty-?ve years before!” I held out my cup, and Hermes refilled it. “The important thing is, the charge can be completely false. It all depends on how clever and forceful the lawyers are. Evidence is secondary.
“But consider this: Suddenly, I am in possession of a great masterpiece, an original Venus by whatever-his-nameis. This is a treasure I could never afford by myself, even throwing in Julia’s dowry. Where did this thing come from? I would bet on Messala or Scaurus. They’re both rich, and they’ve governed provinces where such items are to be squeezed from the locals.”
“Why a statue?” Hermes wanted to know. “Why not money?”
“Money is easy to hide; it can be explained away; it’s anonymous. But you saw the fuss Julia and Fausta—no, you were on the roof, weren’t you? Well, they were cooing over the thing as if it were a team of first-rank chariot horses. Whoever sent it knew that we’d be showing it off to everyone we know. If it weren’t for this fiood, Julia would already be inviting everyone who counts for anything in Rome to a big party so they could all gawk at it! I’ll be charged with selling out my office, and it will look credible. I know I’d have trouble explaining it.”