Wrath of Rome (Book Two of the Dominium Dei Trilogy) Read Free Page A

corpse.”
    Helena thought she was going to die. Please, Jupiter, make it end.
    “Upon removal of the armor, one of the propmasters noticed a tattoo on the shoulder of the corpse.”
    Helena stopped breathing. Athanasius had no tattoo that she knew of, unless they had cruelly branded him for show.
    “This tattoo was of the third cohort of the Praetorian. One of our own, sir.”
    Domitian’s eyes seemed to pop as the truth began to sink in. “What are you telling me, Secundus?”
    “It appears that the man executed was not, in fact, Athanasius of Athens but the imperial interrogator sent to torture him in prison. Somehow the villain overcame him and cut out his tongue.”
    Domitian stood up, shaking. “You mean to tell me that Chiron has escaped and I have been feasting on the tongue of one of my own officials?”
    Helena was elated inside. Athanasius alive? Escaped?
    “No, sir,” Secundus said quickly, and she became subdued again. “I am only the messenger here, Your Excellency, and would never even consider bringing what I am about to tell you unless I knew for certain other parties were aware and that it will not remain a secret for long.”
    Domitian spoke in as low and cruel a voice now as Helena had ever heard him. “The Prefect of my Praetorian will tell me this secret immediately or die.”
    “Caesar’s personal physicians, who know so clearly your love for the imperial Pharaoh Hound, examined him carefully in hopes of determining what sort of beast could kill such a divine animal, in order that Caesar could hunt the beast himself. It was my hope to have the beast ready for you before having to present this tragedy.” Secundus swallowed hard. “Upon close examination, Your Excellency, your physicians found a half-digested tongue inside the animal’s stomach, and its own cut off cleanly.”
    Domitian looked confused. “You are telling me that the monster who cut off my hound’s tongue then forced him to eat it?”
    “No, Your Excellency. Based on the eyewitness account of your servant Julius, your sharp-eyed Sirius spotted and detained a man dressed as a Tribune outside the Senate late last night. By the time Julius ran after him, chasing the yelps, he found only the Tribune, who said the dog had run off. In hindsight, it appears this Tribune was none other than Athanasius, and that he used the tongue of your interrogator to lure the dog and then kill him. He then passed along the dog’s tongue to your servant Julius as that of Athanasius’s, and the kitchen prepared it for you tonight.
    Helena was in a daze. The Empress Domitia’s mouth was open, desperately trying to keep its corners from turning up in a smirk.
    Domitian suddenly fell over and began to wretch on the floor, sinking to his knees in the puddle and crying out, “Sirius! My Sirius! What have they done to you! Minerva, save me!”
    Helena quickly got up and hoped to excuse herself from this scene. But Caesar pointed an accusing finger at her that made her freeze in terror.
    “You!” he screamed at her. “And you, Secundus! Rest assured that this clown Athanasius, this amusement, this half-wit who calls himself Chiron, will suffer more than he ever imagined. Secundus, I want you to fetch me the Master of the Games. Ludlumus will answer for this. And round up the generals. The armies of Rome will search the far corners of the empire to hunt down Athanasius and bring his head to me on a silver platter.”
    “At your orders, Your Excellency,” said Secundus, who vanished quickly.
    Slowly Domitian rose to his feet, the bottom of his toga stained with the bits of vomit and tongue, and walked over to her and looked her in the eye. “Your beloved Athanasius couldn’t die with honor in the arena, could he? Couldn’t take the status that Ludlumus gave him as Chiron—a far better station than any playwright deserved—and thank the gods for making him more immortal than his forgettable comedies? No, he had to poke us in the eye and shake