TW11 The Cleopatra Crisis NEW (20 page)

"I stand for the republic," said Delaney.

"Then you are with us?" Casca asked.

"If I am to be asked to risk my life," Delaney said, "then I would be a fool to undertake that risk for nothing."

Brutus frowned. "Is it payment that you seek?"

"I am not some assassin who works for hire, Brutus," said Delaney with an affronted tone. "I believe in the republic and I have come to Rome to build a life. But if I am to be instrumental in saving the republic, then I would like to have a hand in restoring it, as well."

"And so you shall," said Cassius. "We will need men of ability when the time comes, to prevent Rome from falling into chaos. Never fear, Quintullus, you shall not fall by the wayside. At the very least, a tribuneship could be arranged. What say you to that?"

"I think that I would like being a tribune," Delaney said with a smile.

"Then it is settled," said Cassius. "We shall meet again at my home an hour before sunset. And we shall drink to the future of Rome!"

"This will do," said Steiger, looking around at the small apartment in the tenement block that Marshall owned.

"Are you sure about this. Creed?" Marshall asked. "You don't have to stay here, you know. You're perfectly welcome to remain at my place."

"Am I?” Steiger said, giving him a hard look. His pale, blue-gray eyes were like cracked ice.

"Look, Creed, if it's about last night—"

"Yeah that's what it's about," said Steiger, an edge in his voice. “Why didn't you kill me last night, John? What's the matter, lose your nerve?"

Marshall hesitated only a fraction of a second. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Come on, John, you think I can't tell when I've been drugged? You must've slipped me a Mickey in the wine. You had your chance. Why didn't you take it?"

Marshall looked as if he were going to protest again, but then his shoulders sagged and he exhaled heavily. "All right. Look . . . I admit I thought about it, but when push came to shove, I—I simply couldn't do it. I just couldn't. You gotta understand. Creed, it wasn't because I
wanted
to, it's . . . I was just afraid."

"I must be slowing down," said Steiger flatly. "I suppose I should've seen it coming. I just never expected it from you."

There was an awkward pause. Marshall felt fear knotting his stomach. He wanted to run, but he was afraid that if he did, he'd never make it to the door. Sweat stood out on his forehead.

"What are you going to do'?" he asked anxiously.

"Nothing, John," said Steiger, turning away from him. He stood at the window, looking out into the street. He sounded suddenly weary. "You caught me with my guard down and you had me, but you didn't do it. I guess that counts for something.”

“Creed! . . Hell, I wish . . ." His voice trailed off."I simply don't know what to say."

"There's nothing to be said," Steiger replied in the same flat tone. He shook his head. "You've changed, John. You used to be one of the best. Now you've become a frightened little man."

"Creed . . . try to understand. I didn't want to do it. And when it came right down to it. I—"

"Spare me, John, all right? Look, I appreciate the help you've given me, but I don't really need you anymore. Go back to your house and your teenaged female slaves. Go live your fantasy. Don't worry, I won't turn you in. I don't really give a damn about the Underground. Besides, you're just not worth the trouble."

Marshall looked down at the floor. "Creed, look . . I was just scared, that's all. I didn't know if you were going to--"

"I don't really want to hear it, John, all right'?"

Marshall sighed. "Okay. Look . . . you can stay here as long as you like. Do what you have to do, I won't come around and bother you. But if there's anything you need, money or—"

"Get out, John," said Steiger, without looking at him. “Just go away. I don't want to see you anymore. The minute you walk out that door. I'm going to forget that you exist."

Marshall moistened his lips nervously and nodded. "All right." He felt enormously relieved. "For whatever it's worth, Creed, I'm Indy sorry things had to turn out this way."

"So am I, John. So am I."

"We're making good progress," Travers said, coming into the room. "That was a messenger from Caesar. We've been invited to dine with him and Cleopatra at her house tomorrow night." He glanced at Andre and grinned. "Cleopatra must have told him about how you managed to gain entry to her house. He said to be sure my brother brings his clever and audacious wife."

"Great," said Lucas. "I've been wanting to have a look inside that house. Good work, Andre. You got us in."

"The invitation did not include you, I'm afraid," Travers told Delaney.

"That's just as well," Delaney said. "I'm supposed to meet with the conspirators again tomorrow night.”

"So then you're in?" asked Travers.

"For what it's worth, I guess I am," Delaney replied. "But if I didn't know that these guys actually pulled it off, I'd say they were a pretty sorry bunch of assassins. They seem to be all talk and no action. Less than two weeks to go before the Ides of March and they still haven't really got a plan."

"Disorganized?" asked Lucas.

"You'd have to see it to believe it," said Delaney with a derisive snort. "They're like a damn sorority trying to decide what decorations to put up for the dance. The leaders get together during the day, usually at the baths, where they huddle in a corner in a little group and whisper, then at night, they meet at Cassius' house for a long, leisurely dinner and gallons of mulsum. I don't know how they stomach the damn stuff. They just sit around drinking and trying to psych one another up. They say they have a plan and they're refining it, but there isn't any plan that I can see. It's just a bunch of guys tossing around wild ideas. And all during the night, other conspirators keep drifting in and wandering out, as if they were dropping into some lodge meeting. I can believe that there were about sixty people in on this thing. It's like a damned convention. These people are rank amateurs. They haven't got any security to speak of, just a couple of guards at the door who pass people in and out. The way they're going about it, if Caesar hasn't heard about this so-called conspiracy by now, he must be off in some other world."

"Well, according to history, there were many rumors of conspiracies against his life." said Travers, but Caesar simply discounted them. There have always been conspiracies in Rome of one sort or another, but few of them ever came to anything. Caesar was even involved in several aborted conspiracies himself, such as the one with Crassus. He knows there's opposition against him, but the people support him and he's got the Senate cowed. If word has reached him about this conspiracy, maybe he feels the same way about it as you do. That they're all talk and no action.”

"But would he just ignore them like that?" Andre asked with surprise.

"If he were anybody else, he probably wouldn't," Travers replied. “But he's Caesar. He's survived more bloody wars than any other general in Rome. The man simply has no fear. Maybe he really believes that he's invulnerable."

"According to your report, he didn't seem to believe it the night he heard the oracle's prophecy," said Lucas.

"A lot's happened since that night," Travers replied. “The Caesar who was about to cross the Rubicon was full of doubt and indecision. He'd always bucked the odds before, but for the first time in his life, he really wasn't sure. No Roman general had ever marched on Rome before. Even for Caesar, it seemed like going much too far. But he pulled it off. And he hasn't looked back since. After he defeated the great Pompey, he didn't think that there was anything he couldn't do." Travers paused. "After his death, Caesar was deified, but in his own mind, he's halfway there already.”

“You mean he actually thinks of himself as a god?" asked Andre.

"No, I doubt that. I'm sure he doesn't, not in the literal sense. But with all he's managed to accomplish, it's clearly gone to his head. You know the old saying. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Caesar hasn't really been corrupted, at least not in the same sense as Tiberius, Caligula, and Nero were, but be really does believe that he's infallible. Besides, his mind isn't really on what's happening in Rome. Being emperor doesn't seem to interest him anymore. He's bored."

"Bored'?" said Lucas, raising his eyebrows.

“He's run out of challenges. Since he became emperor, Rome has been at peace. And peace is not Caesar's milieu. He's a soldier. He’s not really alive unless he's in the field with his troops. It's what he does best. He can't wait to leave on that campaign. The old war dog wants one last taste of battle. He's not a young man anymore. This is his last chance to go down in history as the greatest general who ever lived, the man who surpassed even Hannibal and Alexander. There's a world to conquer out there." Travers shook his head. "He's not going to concern himself about a few malcontented senators."

"I wonder what would have happened if he wasn't murdered." Lucas said, musing out loud. “You think there's a chance he would have pulled it off?"

"I don't think there's much chance he wouldn't have," said Travers.

"Jesus, wouldn't that be something? Rome's empire would have extended all the way from western Europe to the Far East. Caesar would have become the most powerful ruler who ever lived. History would have taken a very different course. Who knows how things would have turned out!"

"Let's hope we don't have to find out." Delaney said.

Travers glanced at him, as if suddenly remembering what they were here to do. "Yes," he said quietly. He sighed. "What's our next move'?"

“Well, tomorrow we'll have a good chance to take stock of the situation at Cleopatra's house." said Lucas "I'd like to look around and see if there's, a good place I can drop in unexpected sometime."

"Probably the gardens." Andre said. “It looked like there were a few places where you could clock in unobserved. But I still can't believe that Cleopatra could be a ringer. She just seems so . . . genuine. It's Apollodorus I have my doubts about."

"You know how long he's been with her?" asked Delaney.

"Since she was sent into exile," Andre said. "She says he's served her loyally ever since. He was the one who smuggled her in to see Caesar." She looked at Travers. "You were there, you must remember him."

"Yes, I do," said Travers, "and I've seen him a number of times since then, but I've never really spoken with him."

"What's their relationship like?" asked Lucas.

"He seems to be a bit more than just a servant or a slave," said Andre. "He defers to her, of course, but I noticed that he does try to manipulate her, though that can't be easy. He's clearly in charge of the household. Cleopatra said something that I found very interesting. She's concerned about Caesar's safety, but she said it was Apollodorus who suggested she present him with a bodyguard. And he picked the men himself."

"That is interesting," said Lucas. "We'll have to keep a careful watch on him."

"We've got Castelli and Corwin watching Marcian and Sabinus." Delaney said. "That leaves Andell and Drummond free. We could assign them to work shifts on Apollodorus. Watch the house while he's inside, follow him when he leaves."

"Hell. I almost forgot to tell you," Travers said. "When Corwin relieved Castelli early this morning and Castelli came in to get some sleep, he reported that Sabinus has apparently moved out of Marcian's house and into a small apartment in the Argiletum."

"Isn't that sort of a working-class district?" Lucas asked, frowning.

"It's not one of Rome's best neighborhoods." Travers replied.

"Odd place to live for a man who just won a bundle at the races," said Delaney.

"That's exactly what I was thinking," Lucas said.

"I can't shake the feeling that there's something very familiar about Sabinus," Andre said. "I don't know what it is. I don't forget faces and I'm sure I've never seen his before, but there's still something. . . . I don't know. It's just a feeling."

Lucas glanced at Delaney. "Finn?"

Delaney shook his head. "He rang no bells with me, but then I didn't get a chance to talk to him. I was concentrating on Cassius and the others."

Andre shrugged. "Maybe I'm wrong. I don't know, it's just sort of a hunch. . . ."

"I've learned to respect your hunches." Lucas said. "We'll leave Corwin on Marcian and have Castelli stay on Sabinus. We'll need to bring in some more people to relieve them."

"I'll go wake up Castelli," Travers said.

"No, let him sleep." said Lucas. "There's time. When he wakes up, tell him we'll need a couple more T.O.'s transferred in."

"Just two?" asked Travers.

"For now," Lucas replied. "I'd like to keep the numbers manageable. The more people we bring in, the more chances we're taking of disrupting the timestream. We're taking enough chances as it is, interacting with the most pivotal characters in this temporal scenario. Let's walk softly, okay?"

Travers nodded. "That makes good sense to me."

"All right," said Lucas. "In the meantime, there are several things we'll need to do. First, we need to set up safe transition points for each of us somewhere in this house. Someplace where well be able to clock in or out, any time of day or night, without alarming any of the household slaves and with no chance of two people clocking in at the same time."

"I've already anticipated you," said Travers. "I keep only a few slaves and they've all got strict instructions not to enter my private rooms unless they're told to." He grimaced. "I would have liked to dispense with slaves altogether, but I have to keep at least a few to maintain appearances. I've got a personal transition point with coordinates in my bedroom in case of emergency, and you can set up your transition points either in there or in the library. Those would probably be the best places."

"Good. We'll get those programmed in right away? said Lucas. "What about outside the house?"

“You want to set up transition points outside the house?" asked Travers, puzzled.