The Warrior's Bride Prize. Jenni Fletcher
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straightened his spine at the reminder. That was true. He’d been about to suggest that he escort her back to Lindum and speak with her brother himself, but Nerva was right. It was none of his business. Just as the way Scaevola spoke to her was none of his business. Now that he’d delivered her safely to Coria, she had nothing to do with him, no matter how attractive he found her or how much he didn’t dislike her. He was a soldier first and foremost and he had more important concerns than one woman.
‘Have there been any signs of activity over the wall, sir?’
Nerva arched an eyebrow. ‘Still worrying?’
‘The local tribes are certain that trouble’s brewing. I spoke to some Carvetti farmers on the march this morning. They said they haven’t had sight or sound of anyone from north of the wall for weeks. It’s too quiet.’
‘Quiet is good.’
‘With respect, sir, not if it’s the calm before the storm. With your permission, I’d like to take a patrol north tomorrow.’
‘No.’ Nerva shook his head firmly. ‘Give your men a chance to rest. They work harder than any other century in the legion.’
‘Then let me go, sir.’
‘On your own? It’s far too dangerous.’
‘I could ride to some of the other forts to see if they’ve noticed anything suspicious.’
That was a reasonable request surely. Then he’d be doing his duty and putting some distance between him and Livia at the same time—something which seemed of vital importance suddenly. If he couldn’t keep her out of his mind, then he could keep her out of sight instead.
‘All right.’ Nerva sounded exasperated. ‘I don’t suppose you’ll let the matter drop otherwise, though I very much doubt that the northern tribes will rebel again now we’re back up to fighting strength.’
Marius sighed inwardly. For all his many good points, Nerva was still a Roman through and through. That anyone would dare to challenge Rome’s authority was still a mystery to him. Now that the Legion was back to full force, albeit with half of it still based in Eboracum, he simply assumed that the rebellions of the past few years were over.
‘Believe me, sir, nothing would make me happier than being proved wrong, but I still think we need to investigate.’
‘As long as you’re not looking for problems that don’t exist.’ Nerva gave him a meaningful look. ‘I know you still feel the need to prove yourself.’
He tensed immediately. ‘That has nothing to do with it, sir.’
‘I’m glad to hear it. Now go and get some rest.’
‘Yes, sir.’ He paused. ‘What about my punishment, sir?’
‘I think a reprimand ought to be sufficient for now, but don’t let it happen again. Scaevola’s a fool, but he has powerful connections. They might not lend him any money, but they have influence and they enjoy using it.’
Marius didn’t doubt the last part. Powerful men always did—and they’d enjoy nothing more than destroying the son of a disgraced mutineer.
‘I’ll keep away from Scaevola, sir.’
‘Good. Because if you want to be a senior centurion some day then it would be wise not to make an enemy of him.’
‘Yes, sir.’
Marius turned and strode out of the office, unable to shake the feeling that he already had.
Livia descended the villa steps, inhaling deep gulps of morning air to help clear her head. It was her favourite time of the day, when the air still felt clean and fresh and the sky was a hazy mixture of rainbow colours: yellow and orange and even green in the east where the sun was just rising, pink and purple and pastel blue in the south where the night and dawn met. The north and west were still grey. She knew that she oughtn’t to be outside on her own, but she wanted to get a sense of her new surroundings, to feel in control of one part of her life at least, even if she felt completely lost in the rest of it.
She draped a shawl over her hair and kept her head down as she made her way past the camp headquarters and hospital, heading towards the northern rim of the fort. Despite the emotional turmoil of the previous day, she felt surprisingly well-rested. After tucking Julia into bed in the evening, she’d lain down for a few moments beside her, intending simply to nestle, then fallen fast asleep in her clothes.
At least that had stopped her from brooding, though it hadn’t taken long for all her anxieties to come rushing back again once she woke. Her meeting with Scaevola had been nothing short of disastrous. He’d looked at her as if she were some kind of monster, so that now she had no idea if their marriage was even still going ahead.
She didn’t know which was worse, the thought of marrying a man like him or of being sent back to her half-brother, but neither alternative was in her control—a thought which only made her more despondent than ever. If Scaevola refused to go through with the marriage, however, then she had no doubt that Tarquinius would find a way to blame her. She was stuck between a rock and a very hard place, but whichever way her future was decided, there was one thing she desperately wanted to do first.
She wanted to see the wall. Marius had said that the landscape was too hilly, but on such a clear morning, surely there was a chance... In any case, if this was her only opportunity, then she had to try.
Fortunately the camp was quiet. It was early enough that most soldiers were either still inside their barrack blocks or eating breakfast on the steps. Those who were outside looked at her curiously as she passed, but she kept going, making her way determinedly towards some steps that led to a walkway around the top of the palisade.
She climbed to the top, looking out over the ditch defences to the landscape beyond. There was something strangely familiar about it, as if part of her had always known what it would look like, though her imagination had failed to do it full justice. It was even more beautiful than her mother had described, with rolling hills and a sky that seemed to stretch on for ever. It gave her an unexpected sense of freedom, ironically, given her current circumstances. Of yearning, too, as if the land itself were calling to her. She tipped her head back, letting her shawl fall around her shoulders as she breathed in the feeling, though to her intense disappointment there was no sign of the wall, no matter how hard she screwed up her eyes.
It was only two miles away, Marius had told her with his customary stern expression. Only two miles. It might as well have been the far ends of the earth.
‘Lady?’
A sentry approached her and then halted mid-step, his gaze slipping past her shoulder before he turned and marched away again. Perplexed, she turned around, wondering what had changed his mind, only to find herself face-to-face with Marius Varro.
She gave a small, surprised yelp. She hadn’t expected to see him again, but now his unexpected arrival, coming so soon after she’d just been thinking about him, seemed to be doing alarming things to her breathing, not to mention the rest of her.
What was he doing there? There had been no one else with her a moment ago, no sound of anyone behind her either. He seemed to have appeared out of thin air, looking just as she remembered, even wearing the stern expression she’d just been thinking about! Unlike most of the other men in the camp, he was fully dressed, too, looking every inch the imposing Roman soldier. She doubted he ever looked anything else. He seemed like the kind of man who might sleep in his uniform.
‘Are you following me?’ She felt heat flare in her cheeks, though whether from anger or some other emotion she hardly knew. She seemed to be feeling so many emotions at once.
‘Yes.’ He made an impatient gesture, as if the