Page 7 of Scorched Earth (Dark Shores #4)
TERIANA
The sun was high in the sky and scorching hot when Teriana and Valerius set out to meet Cassius.
The narrow paths were shaded by ancient trees growing to either side, the air thick with the scent of stone pine and cypress, yet within minutes, Lydia’s father was breathing hard, sweat dripping down his golden skin.
“Are you well?” she asked. “Should I send a servant for water?”
“Well as I ever will be.” He wiped sweat from his brow.
It had been his fear of his own mortality that had driven Appius Valerius to betroth Lydia to Cassius. Fear that his nephew and heir, Vibius, would mistreat her. The thought drove Teriana to ask, “Where is Vibius?”
Valerius was silent for a long moment, then he shrugged. “He’s been confined to an institution, I’m afraid. He requires daily care and it is not expected that he’ll recover.”
Teriana blinked.
“After I discovered he was conspiring with Cassius, I exiled him from my home. Lo and behold, no sooner was he absent from my life did my health improve.”
“He was poisoning you?”
Valerius nodded. “So it would seem. I disinherited him after I found out, and all that I have will go to a distant cousin when death finally claims me. But as I continued to search for Lydia and became more convinced that she’d met a dark end, I had one of the retired legionnaires in my service track him down and put him to question.
During the removal of his testicles, Vibius confessed that he’d been dosing my wine. ”
Teriana felt the blood drain from her face, because this was not the confession she’d anticipated.
“He unfortunately fouled himself during the conversation with my guard,” Valerius continued.
“That’s not the sort of filth you want in an open wound, and he succumbed to infection that went untreated for a shocking length of time before he was brought to the physicians collegium for treatment.
They did what they could, however the infection seemed to have gotten into his head and eaten away at his mind, so now all he does is jabber and drool.
My sister, of course, was devastated, so I spared no expense for his ongoing care. Tragic, of course.”
“My sympathies.” What else could she say? Though Appius Valerius was educated, cultured, and considered one of the more altruistic senators on the hill, the Cel were the cruelest people on all of Reath. Some of them just hid it better than others.
They carried on past ancient walls covered with ivy and eventually approached Cassius’s estate.
Legionnaires stood at the gate, but at their approach, a lean servant with a pinched mouth met them.
“Greetings, Senator. With regret, you must be searched before I may allow you to enter. I’m afraid that there are many who conspire against our gracious consul, and caution must overrule manners. ”
Teriana said nothing as one of the legionnaires stepped toward her.
His armor was stamped with a 29 and she clenched her teeth in preparation for the worst, but he only performed the task with dead-eyed efficiency before nodding at the servant.
Another legionnaire did the same to Valerius, scowling as he extracted three separate knives from the folds of the senator’s clothes.
“One can never be too careful,” Lydia’s father said with a bland smile. “There are many unsavory individuals in Celendrial’s streets these days, I’m afraid.”
“The Twenty-Ninth is making short work of those who step out of line,” replied the legionnaire searching Valerius.
“Yes, well, sometimes the cure is worse than the disease.” Valerius motioned at Teriana. “Come along, dear. We do not wish to keep the consul waiting.”
They moved onto the property, Teriana taking it in lest she need to make a quick escape.
Where all the other patrician villas were full of old-growth trees and lush gardens that had been tended for generations, Cassius’s grounds were barren of life.
It was all stone pathways, marble statuary, and elaborate fountains.
Cold and devoid of history. A fitting location for the villa that had been erected at the center, which looked more like a political building dedicated to the administration of taxes than a home.
Valerius’s lip curled as though he smelled something foul, and he muttered, “Garish eyesore,” along with a few other choice insults toward Cassius’s taste, though he fell silent as they reached the entrance.
The door was plated with gold, the metal gleaming in the sunlight, but under the hand of the servant leading them, it swung open on silent hinges.
A rush of icy cold surged out, dragging gooseflesh to Teriana’s skin as she’d not felt since her trek across Sibern.
She gritted her teeth and stepped into the dimly lit building.
Valerius moved to follow, but the servant blocked his path.
“The consul has requested that you remain outside while he meets with Teriana, Senator. Refreshments will be brought to you.”
“The audacity—”
Teriana lifted a calming hand. “It will be fine. I’ll be fine.”
Valerius grimaced but only clasped his arms behind his back as the door swung shut behind her, the dull thud echoing through the cavernous space.
Much like the exterior grounds, Cassius’s home was barren of life and color, though there was no doubt that he’d spent a small fortune on the construction.
Carved busts graced every alcove, the sconces held oil lamps made of the highest quality glass, and the tiles underfoot were an elaborate mosaic of greys depicting the Cel dragon.
Her footfalls echoed no matter how softly she trod, and Teriana found herself rubbing her arms against the growing chill.
“Did he build his house out of solid ice?” she muttered. “It’s bloody freezing in here.”
The servant glanced at her as though she were mad, then said, “Quality construction keeps out the heat. The consul employs only the finest.”
In truth, the temperature seemed not to touch the man, nary a goose bump on his bare arms while Teriana was shocked that she couldn’t see her breath.
They pressed deeper into the villa, each step causing dread to pool deeper in her stomach. You can do this, Teriana reminded herself. You know what he wants. Know how he thinks. And you have a plan.
None of which prevented her heart from stuttering as the thin servant stopped before a heavy door. He knocked once, and at a muffled acknowledgment from within, swung it open.
Teriana took a deep breath and stepped inside. Her fear rose to a dizzying frenzy, but she drew in a deep breath and focused on the man before her.
Cassius lounged on a divan before a table of lacquer and gold, a delicate glass of wine held in one hand.
The consul of Celendor was of perhaps fifty years of age, his short brown hair combed forward, and his blue eyes small and closely set.
He wore the clothes of his office, a tunic and toga, with leather sandals strapped to feet that were strangely smooth.
As though some poor servant had spent hours scrubbing and polishing his soles until they were as devoid of calluses as a newborn babe’s.
Teriana found herself staring at them, not realizing that Cassius had risen until his feet started moving.
“Teriana, you are a vision.” He circled the furniture, and she held her breath as he gripped her shoulders with overly warm hands, then kissed both her cheeks.
His lips were moist, and she fought the urge to scrub her sleeve over her face as he pulled back, eyes raking over her.
“It is easy to see why Marcus has thrown caution to the wind. You are a rare beauty indeed, although not to my particular taste.”
“Too young?” She lifted one eyebrow even as every instinct told her to run .
“Too defiant.” He chucked her gently under the chin, leaving a smear of what she fervently hoped was masseur’s oil. “But in an ally, I admire your sort of spirit.”
“Oh, we’re allies now, are we?”
“That’s why you’re here, isn’t it?”
Teriana rubbed her hands up and down her arms, knowing she was out of her league. Knowing that he was probably ten steps ahead of her. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t get what she wanted from him. “I’m here to make a deal with you.”
“We already have a deal.”
“I have a deal with Marcus and with the Senate.” She lifted her chin and met his eyes. “I want to make a deal with you .”
“I’m intrigued.” Circling back around to his divan, Cassius perched on the edge. He picked up a bottle of wine and filled two glasses. “Sit. Drink.”
Teriana sat on the chair on the opposite side of the table but didn’t pick up the glass.
Cassius chuckled. “Don’t worry, my dear. I learned many years ago not to, pardon my crassness, shit where I eat.” Picking up her glass, he took a sip and then smiled. “See? Perfectly safe.”
The last thing she wanted to do was drink anything he served, but Teriana also understood this game.
She had watched her mother negotiate difficult deals all her life, and one always needed to be gracious right up to the point one was not.
Picking up the glass, she took a sip from the side that didn’t have his mouth print, then set it back down. “You have good taste in wine.”
Cassius drank from his own cup, then pressed a finger to the side of his nose.
“Would you like to know a secret?” Without waiting for her to answer, he said, “I have no palate for wine. Whether the bottle is swill or the costliest vintage, it makes little difference to my tongue. One of my failings, I’m afraid. ”
Picking up the glass again, Teriana swirled a mouthful across her tongue. “The Lastura vineyards in Atlia. You could feed ten families for a year on the cost of one bottle that you don’t appreciate.”
Cassius smiled. “Shameful, isn’t it?”