The moment the last of the slaves had staggered away under armloads of equipment, Antistia slid off her trunk and went to stand in front of her husband. "Before you go, Magnus, I must speak to you," she said. Clearly this he regarded as a waste of his precious time, but he did pause. "Well, what is it?" "How long are you going to be away?" "Haven't the slightest idea," he said cheerfully. "Months? A year?" "Months, probably. Sulla will eat Carbo." "Then I would like to return to Rome and live in my father's house while you're gone." But he shook his head, clearly astonished at her proposal. "Not a chance!" he said. "I'm not having my wife running round Carbo's Rome while I'm with Sulla in the field against the selfsame Carbo. You'll stay here." "Your servants and other people don't like me. If you're not here, it will go hard for me." "Rubbish!" he said, turning away. She detained him by stepping in front of him once more. "Oh, please, husband, spare me just a few moments of your time! I know it's a valuable commodity, but I am your wife." He sighed. "All right, all right! But quickly, Antistia!" "I can't stay here!" "You can and you will." He moved from one foot to the other. "When you're absent, Magnus even for a few hours your people are not kind to me. I have never complained because you are always kind to me, and you've been here except for the time you went to Ancona to see Cinna. But now there is no other woman in your house, I will be utterly alone. It would be better if I returned to my father's house until the war is over, truly." "Out of the question. Your father is Carbo's man." "No, he is not. He is his own man." Never before had she opposed him, or even stood up to him; Pompey's patience began to fray. "Look, Antistia, I have better things to do than stay here arguing with you. You're my wife, and that means you'll stay in my house." "Where your steward sneers at me and leaves me in the dark, where I have no servants of my own and no one to keep me company," she said, trying to appear calm and reasonable, but beginning to panic underneath.