'It's a great deal of money,' I told her. She snorted. 'If he tells the truth.'

'I think he does. A man doesn't survive in a city like Rome for as long as I have without gaining a grain of judgment. Marcus Mummius is honest, insofar as he can be. Not very forthcoming, I'll admit-'

'But he won't even tell you who sent him!'

'Indeed, he won't tell me, but he openly admits that he won't. In other words, he tells the truth.'

Bethesda made a rude noise with her lips. 'You sound like one of those orators you're always working for, like that ridiculous Cicero, saying truth is a he and a lie is the truth, however it happens to suit you.'

I bit my tongue and took a deep breath. 'Trust me, Bethesda. I've stayed alive until now, haven't I?' I looked into her eyes and thought I saw a slight warmth amid the cold fire. I laid my hand on her shoulder. She shrugged it off and turned away. So it always goes.

I stepped closer and put my hands on the back of her neck, sliding them under the cascades of her hair. She had no right to refuse me, and did not draw away, but she stiffened at my touch and held her head high, even when I bent to kiss her ear. 'I will come back,' I said. 'After five days I return. So the man promises.'

I saw her cheeks tighten and her jaw tremble. She blinked rapidly, and I noticed the fan of wrinkles that time had gathered at the outer corner of her eye. She stared at the blank wall before her. 'It would be different if I knew where you were going.'

I smiled. Bethesda had known only two cities in her life, Alexandria and Rome, and except for the voyage between has never ventured a mile outside either one. What could it matter to her whether I was going to Cumae or Carthage?