The night air had cooled down the heat of the day and Cal relaxed in the back yard of the family villa. After a tiresome day of trailing behind her mother overseeing the household, she had finally found time to herself. A nice breeze blew through her hair and the dominant fragrance of lavender wafted through the garden which stretched over the majority of the area. Different herbs and plants, more than Cal were able to name, had bloomed in the last week and the breathtaking sight distracted her from her mother's demands. No wonder this was Lucretia's sanctuary and each day Cal observed her sister's passion nurture her flowers. At least Lucretia pursued her aspirations and wasn't restricted by her obligations to the family.

It wasn't the case of Cal envying her little sister's carefreeness, but the duty of the oldest daughter rested heavily on her shoulders and the burden was a necessary sacrifice Cal had accepted. She'd protect her from anything. Although, it seemed as if the troubles of the world had irrevocably caught up to Lucretia.

The family dinner earlier that night had confirmed Cal's doubts. Her father was usually late, delayed by his work at the Forum or meeting his tenants at the fields. Only her mother Calpurnia, Lucretia and Flaccus attended. As so often her mother commandeered the conversation about the latest gossip. Elektra, the wife of Lucius, a high-ranking senate member, had been caught in bed with her husband's scriba (private secretary) by a quaestor (a public official). Lucious, a poltroon, too ashamed to even question if his offspring was his, attempted to hinder any knowledge leaving the household. And because the quaestor despised Lucius he was extorting him for a proper sum.

Cal amazed by how her mother constantly obtaining such secretive information, acceded to her chatter. Usually, Lucretia would comment on the husband's idiocracy with a witty remark. Today Lucretia kept to herself and Flaccus, devoted to his meal, ignored most of the conversation. The exchange was warily wordless, absence of any value. To ask about Lucretia's apathy felt inopportune and after dinner, she immediately absconded.

Lucretia had avoided Cal ever since the beginning of the Luprical Festival and she wondered if her eventual betrothal to an influential patrician was the reason for the distance. She wanted to continue their conversation from last night and not only tell her about Arminius but discover why Lucretia evaded Cal's presence.

The hoot of an owl indicated the late hour and Cal longed for her bed. She stood up when Lucretia appeared at the entrance of the house. She hadn't spotted Cal on the bench yet and Cal took the time to study her sister. A blanket veiled Lucretia's face, shielding her from the coldness and obscuring her face. Yet, Cal recognized her sister anywhere. Although, an ineffable sentiment clouded Lucretia's demeanour. Was it worry?

Lucretia instantly froze when she realized Cal situated on the bench, eyeing her from afar, "Oh, I did not expect anyone at this late hour. I will leave you to your thoughts."

"No, please join me." Cal patted the place next to her. "Isn't this a beautiful night?"

"Too cold for my taste," Lucretia approached the bench and sat next to Cal.

"Let me be warm, too!" Cal brazenly grabbed a hold of the cover and nestled her head against her sister. "Do you remember the house in the countryside? Our old residence before we settled in Rome?"

"I barely remember the time when we were dwelling there," Lucretia starred into the distance.

"You were not older than three. Naturally, you can't remember. The house was far from perfect and it could never compare to the palace we reside in now. The walls were thinner than thread and during some nights the coldness crept into the rooms and left you with a horrible cold. And often it was so awful that you were incapable of sleeping. In those nights, I would take you to the stable, gather straw and put a blanket around us and we would fall asleep around the warmth of the animals." Cal narrated.

"I remember the horrendous stench. What was it? Donkey?" The memory slowly came back to Lucretia.

"Yes, indeed. The donkey father used to transport crops to the city. What was his name?"

"Hermes? Hades?"

"Hercules!"

"Yes!"

"Yes, and mother would find us in the morning huddled between all the animals. The fury in her eyes, how we stained our clothes."

" 'If you don't get up and wash your clothes immediately!' " Lucretia impersonated their mother.

"I miss those days," Cal reminisced.

"How can you miss those days? Aren't you glad you have somebody to scrub your clothes now? You could ruin them and nobody would utter a word."

"You are right," Cal looked at Lucretia. "But what I truly miss is us. I miss the time we spend together. Free from constraints and responsibilities. We were inseparable. We had no secrets."

"That is not true. We're are conversing just now!" Lucretia smiled at Cal.

She examed her little sister, "You barely said a word at supper." 

"Mother was in a rage. I didn't want to impose and twist her every word," Lucretia replied with a snicker but it was obvious to Cal that Lucretia was hiding behind her banter.

"You have avoided me," Cal searched for any indication of certainty, but Lucretia averted her eyes.

"I'm fine, Calpurnia!" she attested. She kissed her sister on the cheek and rose, but Cal interfered with Lucretia's escape by pulling her back on the bench.

"Since when do you call me by my birth name? Something is on your mind! You can tell me. I know you want to be independent and solve everything on your own but sometimes you can lean on others."

"It's nothing!" Lucretia lied.

"Since yesterday you have been behaving differently. Did something happen?" she places her arm around Lucretia's shoulder and pulled her closer as if this could eliminate any reservations. Just now she spotted red streaks around Lucretia's neck. In the moonlight, they were barely visible, but by tomorrow they'd darken. Like snakes, the imprint wrapped around her skin, as if somebody had tightly compressed the skin underneath.

"What is this?" Cal brushed along the marks, hoping they would disappear on her touch.

Like a deer, Lucretia evaded Cal's brush and covered her neck with the cover, "It's nothing, only a slight injury I obtained at the temple."

"This is not just a slight injury!"

"I told you, it's nothing!"

"You are going to tell me what happened!" Cal channelled her mother's fierceness to induce Lucretia to admit to a hidden secret, but Lucretia didn't budge.

Instead, she hastily stood up and proceeded back inside, "Why do you always want to replace mother?"

"I am worried for you, sister," Cal stated but Lucretia didn't respond.

"If you are not going to tell me," Cal followed. Not sure how else to proceed, she hissed, "I will tell Flaccus. He will make you talk."

"Wait!"

Lucretia took the bait, but Cal had already started rushing in the opposite direction. Therefore, Lucretia ran after her. With her headstart, Cal was far ahead, but Lucretia easily caught up to her.

"I will tell you," Lucretia tried to placate Cal. Both slowed down. They had reached inside and walked towards the living quarters.

Lucretia grabbed Cal's hand, "But you have to promise me to not tell anyone!"

"Of course!"

"Swear it!"

"I swear!"

Lucretia examined her with scrutinising eyes.

"I solemnly swear to get struck by Jupiter's thunder if a word ever escapes my lips," Cal crossed her fingers to declare her sincerity and a small grin flashed across Lucretia's face remembering their forgotten childhood swear.

After some hesitation, Lucretia asked, "Do you remember the two men from the sacrifice at the Palatine Hill ?"

"I do not recall," Cal thought frantically about last night's celebration but she had paid little attention to the offering.

"At the gathering later that night, an altercation took place between me and one of the man, but I was able to escape in time," Lucretia posture sank. "But today he found me again."

"What is it, Lu?" she urged Lucretia. "What happened?"

"I don't want to talk about it...," the words were barely leaving her mouth.

"Did he touch you?" Cal's blood started raging through her body and a bile taste manifested in the back of her throat. The idea of an assault on Lucretia made Cal sick to the stomach.

"No...not like that, but...he...At first, he merely wanted to scare me. I've been through worst than his strut, but something in him changed after I struck him...It was as if something evil took a hold of him and he was incapable of controlling himself or quitting."

"What did this filius canis (son of a bitch) do?" Cal was surprised by her cursing. A young woman of her standing wasn't supposed to articulate her outbursts in this capacity. She had descended to Flaccus' niveau. But it didn't matter. Nobody had the right to lay hands on her baby sister.

"It's fine, Cal. He won't do anything anymore. Titus will talk to him." Lucretia said.

"Who is Titus?" Cal was surprised by all the revelation of her sister. Cal dreaded the day she had to leave her sibling. Moreover, they were separated for a short period and she already ventured out alone into this scary world. The emerging effect of their separation showed its signs.

But before Lucretia replied, a voice pierced through the quietness.

"Publius..." an outcry sounded from a room. It was her mother Calpurnia's voice. Cal and Lucretia hadn't realized they stopped near their father's room.

"Calpurnia, I told you already..." her father's muffled voice answered.

"Father and Mother are talking," Lucretia changed the subject. "Let us listen!"

"Wait! What about this?" Cal gestured to Lucretia's neck. "We have to tell father and hold Titus accountable!"

Lucretia stopped her, "It wasn't Titus who ambushed me and telling another person about the incident isn't wise."

"Who attacked you and why can't we at least tell father?"

"His name is Gaius and he's not just any filius canis. I am positive he possesses great influence in Rome. Just the manner how he spoke. Only a patrician behaves in this way. It would be his word against mine. And who would they believe? Me, the daughter of a merchant or the son of a potential consul?"

"I don't care who he is. We have to do something about it, or he will do it a repeated time!"

"I told you, it's handled!" Lucretia's frustrated voice startled Cal.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes!" Lucretia, usually a vivacious girl, seemed nothing alike momentarily. Doubt overcame Cal but she didn't want to test her sister any further.

Lucretia pointed at the ajar door. Together, they stalked towards the opening. The crack was not large enough to descry the interior of the room, but big enough for the glow of a candle to illuminate the passage. Closer to the entrance the voices rang more clearly.

"Sabinus wants at least six additional fields added to the dowry," papers rustled, followed by the scratching of a pen.

"Sabinus, I have heard that name before," Lucretia whispered.

"He was a praetor (elected magistrate), now scheming his way to consulship," Cal said.

"I'm guessing mothers tattle is useful at points," Lucretia returned.

"That's almost half our property," her mother's voice bit back.

"I understand but we need Flaccus to be elected as a tribuni (military rank) and without the wedding to the Sabinus, Flaccus will not be eligible. And time is running out. We need him to become a questor (public office) as soon as possible. We cannot rely on the briberies any longer."

Calpurnia uttered with urgency, "But we will lose our annual proceeds."

"What will we do with all the grain if we don't have buyers?" her father asked. "We will sit on our investment and it will rot! Sabinus will make sure the grain will be bought for the military."

"I do not trust him!"

"I know, we cannot rely on him, but don't worry, woman! Sabinus has to accept to sine manu (marriage, where wife legally remains a member of her father's family). The fields will stay in our name in case he even contemplates cheating us."

"Marriage?" Lucretia asked.

"Sabinus' son doesn't seem to align with his demands..."

"Cal, they are discussing your wedding. I'm guessing, it wasn't too wrong for you to follow the Luperci (priest). Fortuna est momentum quo occasionem convenit talentum (Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity)."

Cal forced a smile on her face, but deep down she was terrified. All her life, her mother had groomed her into the ideal domina (mistress of the house), to charm men and twist their mind to carry out their family's biting. Yet, she felt like a sacrificial lamb, paraded among aged men. She acknowledged her doom, but she imagined her wedding day still far in the future.

"Aren't you pleased?" Lucretia murmured. Cal saw the mirth in Lucretia's eye for Cal's supposed happiness.

"Yes, of course!" she lied and pressed Lucretia's hand as affirmation.

Their father's voice brought them back, "We will have a supper at his residence in two days, to finalize the terms of the union and for Sabinus' son and Cal to meet."

"Two days? When will the wedding occur?" Lucretia whispered.

Calpurnia's footfalls quaked nearing the door.

"We should leave!" nervousness overcame Cal because of their possible discovery. She moved away from the occurrence behind the door, pulling Lucretia to the safety of the shadow. Cal ached to abandon the spot, not enthusiastic to learn more about her fate, but Lucretia remained. The shadows were dim enough to obscure her presence.

"Wait!" Lucretia hushed.

All of a sudden, with a ruff push, the door swung open and her mother's head peaked out. Her face twisted in both directions, searching for an eavesdropper.

Luckily, they had moved far behind. Strained, Cal remained in her spot, hoping not to be noticed. They waited for a moment until muffled steps walked back and a harsh bang indicated the past threat of her mother's wraith.

"See! No one will disturb us!" Lucretia gloated. She waived Cal back to the door.

"Publius..." unexpectedly, her mother's now muffled voice had changed to a provocative tone.

"Come back!" Lucretia commanded Cal to stay.

"I can't hear anything and it's late. We should return to our chambers!" Cal urged.

But instead of accompanying Cal, Lucretia pressed her ear against the door.

"Don't you crave to know more about your union?" Lucretia questioned.

Defeated Cal pressed her ear opposites Lucretia's.

"I don't have time, Calpurnia! These messages have to be delivered tomorrow," her father's voice echoed.

"What about the..?" a giggle escaped Calpurnia's throat.

"What are they talking about now?" Lucretia asked. Curiously, she pushed her ear harder against the door.

For a while, nothing was heard until a sensual moan filled the silence.

"Woman, you will be the death of me!" Publius grunted.

"What are they doing?" Lucretia asked.

Alarmed, Cal yanked her ear from the door, "I don't think, you want to know."

Cal pulled Lucretia from the door.

"With a woman like that!" A loud slap reverberated.

"Your wedding!" but before Lucretia realized what was happening on the other side, another loud groan escaped the room.

"We must retire for the night, now!" Lucretia changed her mind and both scurried to their rooms. Lucretia wished Cal a goodnight and abandoned her in the hall.

For some time, Cal contemplated if she should join her sister and continue her questioning, but she opposed the idea. She was lucky to have obtained any information from her sister.

Lucretia didn't seem to mind Cal's upcoming betrothal, she was rather glad, which came to Cal's surprise. But unfortunately, this wasn't the reason for Lucretia's anguish. A barbarian, named Gaius, waylaid her sister. Cal had to hinder him from ever bringing sorrow to her sister again. Frustrated, Cal proceeded to her room, pondering what Gaius' family name was. Only the gods knew how many Gaius resided in Rome alone. At least she could limit the search to a patrician, a patrician she might have to wed.