I tried to disagree. "It's a menace. Murder draws too much attention."

"But this way, there won't have to be an embarrassing corruption trial," Magnus pointed out.

"True."

Was avoiding political embarrassment enough to justify this murder in Anacrites' eyes? Yes, his wheeler-dealing, double-standards section at the Palace would certainly see it that way. And they would not like Magnus and me deducing what they had done.

Helena Justina came out to the courtyard to join us. She looked from me to Magnus. "What have you found?"

I indicated the mass of stored materials, then waved an arm at the house. "Marcellinus had a lovely home- kindly supplied to him at government expense."

Helena took it calmly. "So the man was somewhat unscrupulous?"

"Why avoid libel? He was utterly corrupt." Helena sighed. "This will be a hard blow for the wife," I said.

At that my own flared up angrily. "I doubt it! In the first place, Marcus, they lived together here for a long time. The stupid woman ought to have noticed what went on. If she didn't suspect, then she closed her eyes purposely." Helena was hard. "Oh she knew! She wanted her fine house. Even if you tell her now, she will deny any wrongdoing, insist that her husband was wonderful and refuse all responsibility."

Magnus looked startled by her virulence.

I put my arm round her. "Helena despises meek little women who claim they know nothing of the business world."

"Parasites who happily enjoy the proceeds!" Helena growled. "When she wakes up, that woman's first thought will be whether she can keep the house."

"If it's all hushed up," Magnus replied bitterly, 'then she probably can."

"Expect comprehensive hushing. The Emperor," I told him dryly, 'won't wish to be seen as a tyrant who harasses widows."

Helena Justina had had enough. She pointed out briskly that if we were going back to Novio that evening, we should set out now. Leave the corpse. Let that woman deal with his remains."

"You're brutal."

"I'm angry, Marcus! I hate corrupt men- and I hate women who let them get away with it."

"Settle down. The widow may in tact be shocked and apologetic when she learns her husband was a crook."

"Never. She'll never see it."

"She may turn everything over to the grateful Treasury."

"She won't." Helena had no doubt. "That wife will cling to this villa ferociously. She will give Marcellinus an elaborate funeral. Neighbours will flock to celebrate his life. There will be an over scale monument with fulsome carved tributes. This pilfering grandee's memory will be cherished for decades. And the worst of it is she will speak of you and Magnus as mundane interferers. Men of lesser vision, men who did not understand."

"My lady is upset," I told the surveyor. I sounded proud of her, I'm proud to say. I'll take her home."

"She's bloody right!" proclaimed Magnus.

"Oh I know that."

XLVII

there was no sign of Verovolcus and his men, and I had no great hopes of results from their search. I found our horse and set off back to Noviomagus with Helena myself. We were already tired. Anger made it worse. We travelled the long road almost in silence, yet being together apart from others was refreshment for us both.

At one point, Helena began dozing against my back so for safety I stopped and took charge of Favonia. Swapping a baby between two drowsy parents on horseback, when the baby is wide awake and wants to throw its weight about, takes time and courage.

"Maybe we should swaddle her, after all," I muttered. Helena had vetoed this for both our children. She believed in exposing the girls to exercise and danger; she called it training, so they could one day deal with men. On the other hand, she said if we had boys, she would keep them in straitjackets until they left home on marriage.

"Swaddling you wouldn't keep you out of mischief," she told me. "Have you got her?"

I had somehow tied Helena's stole around the baby and knotted it to hang around my neck.

"She's got me." My offspring was now gripping the front neck of my tunic hard. Half throttled, I rode on.

When we reached Noviomagus, I decided we would follow the King's example from yesterday: we would rest here and stay overnight at Helena's uncle's house. Another mile to the palace might not seem too much, but it was a mile along a road frequented by men from the site. I was exhausted and ill-placed to tackle trouble. Besides, I was in no mood to restrain myself with any fool who tried to take me on.

Helena wanted to see her brother Justinus too. Rather to my surprise, he was actually at home; I thought hard living must have paled. But I was wrong; his hard-living cronies had merely come to him. Once it was clear that Helena and I were not in transit but staying, Aelianus and Larius both sneakily emerged.

"It's been a long day, with some bloody episodes," I warned them.

i _ 245I was past even berating them for breaking the rules and leaving base. I could not face a noisy group discussion about recent developments. I had thought things through on the long ride here, but still had some pondering left to do- the kind I could accomplish best when fast asleep.

All three young men volunteered with great courtesy to go out for the evening. They might be home-loving types, but felt they could amuse themselves at some respectable venue so Helena and I might have some peace. The trio promised to return to the house with extreme care and quietness.

"And don't be late," ordered Helena. They solemnly nodded their heads. "Who is looking after Maia Favonia?" she then enquired. The lads assured her Maia Favonia was well able to look after herself.

We had to hope it was true.

XLVIII

No, we didn't. I caught the lads as they were skipping out the door. With Perella still on the loose, Maia needed guards. "Aelianus and Larius, you are to go back to the palace now. Make sure my sister is all right."

"Maia is perfectly safe-' Aelianus began stroppily. After his sojourn in the woods, he wanted a treat.

He might be right. Perella's sole target might have been Marcellinus. But he could be wrong.

"If anything happens to Maia while you have bunked off partying, I shall kill you, Aulus. That's as in disembowel you with a meat cleaver." He was still looking rebellious so I said curtly, "Marcellinus had his throat slit by that dancer we thought was tailing Maia."

He did reconsider. "And now the woman is on the loose again?"

"Stupenda?" Justinus joined in, with a quick glance at his crony Larius. "She won't have energy for Maia. She will be resting. She has a long night ahead of her tomorrow."

Larius explained: "Tomorrow night is billed as Stupenda's farewell appearance." As I stared at him, he added lamely, "Virginia tipped us off."

Tomorrow was nearly here. "You're done in, Falco," Justinus said quietly. "Aulus and Larius will certainly go back now and guard Maia. I'll try to find out from the management at the bar if they know where the dancer stays. If they don't know, we can all join the audience for her final show."

"What, and arrest her in front of a baying crowd?" I knew nothing works out that easily. But I was so tired I was powerless. "She won't appear."

"She had better,"Justinus replied grimly. "The men are all keyed up for it. If she fails to arrive there will be a riot."

I grinned wanly and said well, none of us would want to miss that.