Interregnum Read online

  Sabian leaned forward. His dark countenance had gone replaced by one of concern. “Are you sure of that Favio?”

  The doctor nodded. “Absolutely. If you’ll let me examine him properly, I’ll tell you how he died too; my instruments are all in my clinic.”

  Sabian gestured back at Cialo and Iasus without even turning to look at them. “Take Ursus,” he ordered the pair. ”Follow the doctor and let him do whatever the hell it is he needs to do. Iasus, you stay with him while he does it. Cialo, meet us at the bath house. You and I and young Darius here are going to check something out.” He added as an afterthought “and try not to be seen carrying Ursus. No one says anything about this.”

  The room burst into life as the two sergeants and the doctor collected the body of the soldier and carried him from the room. Darius was making for the door when Sabian called out to him and he turned.

  “Darius, I want you to go find the doctor from Velutio. You and I and Cialo are going to have a little talk with him. Bring him down to the bath house. I don’t really care what excuse you use.”

  With a nasty smile, young Darius carried out an elaborate sweeping bow and left the room. Sabian cracked his knuckles and then shuddered. It was a habit he thought he managed to break, that. Whatever was going on here, if the Favio was right, then Velutio’s doctor had something to do with it. However Favio might talk or treat people, he really did seem to be an excellent doctor. He suddenly realised that Darius had said Favio was looking for him. Still, that could wait until later.

  With a hard smile that closely matched Darius’, Sabian left the room and made his way down the stairs. If the doctor was involved in any underhanded business, the commander would deal with it and do it his way and as soon as possible. He trotted along the hallways and across the courtyards until he reached the soft, springy turf of the gardens and strode down the hill and through the Water Gate. The bath house was surrounded by wooden scaffolding and ropes and buckets and myriad tools lay strewn about. Cialo had been busy already it seemed. As he neared the entrance to the baths he almost smiled to note that the unpleasant smell of musty decay had died away a little. Cialo would have drained the baths first no doubt. A long plank of wood led down into the baths themselves, covering the various places where the floor had given way to the dark tunnels between the supporting pillars of the underfloor heating. At the doorway to the changing room, still close enough to the entrance to admit the low light of a sunset now all but over, two oil lamps stood in niches by the arch. Smiling, Sabian lit the lamps and moved into the room. The wide space was covered with tools and clothing and the various bric-a-brac of workmen. The niches for storing the bathers’ clothing was filled with unidentifiable items, along with sawn planks and scribbled plans and notes. Cialo really was taking his work seriously. The commander wandered across to one of the less occupied niches and carefully moved its contents into the next one before taking a seat. Mere moments later, Cialo strode into the room and nodded.

  “Sir. Got some news from the quack”. He rolled his eyes upwards as though repeating a list he’d been made to memorize. “He said to tell you that Ursus’ tongue was all swollen up and a right funny colour. He reckons he drank something poisonous, but he’s not sure what yet. He’ll let you know what he finds.”

  Sabian’s face took on an even threatening look. There could be little doubt about the doctor’s guilt now.

  “What’re we up to?” Cialo asked curiously.

  Sabian smiled. “Sergeant, you are a soldier of the old school, yes?”

  The sergeant nodded. “I would say so, sir.”

  “What,” the commander enquired, “would you have done with a traitor in the ranks when you served in the Imperial army?”

  Cialo’s face darkened. “He wouldn’t turn up at roll call the next morning sir.”

  Sabian nodded. “I’ve always thought of myself as old school you know? I was only a lad when you were out serving with the great generals, but I always thought that the Imperial army was the most organised and efficient force the world has ever seen and I’ve tried to emulate that in my time at Velutio.” He sighed. “But when you think you’re doing it right, and you still have to worry about loyalty, something’s got to be wrong.”

  Cialo smiled and leaned back against the wall.

  “Sir…” the sergeant began and then changed his mind. “Gaius… “

  Sabian blinked. No one called him by his given name. Apart from the fact that a ranker addressing an officer like that was something that just wasn’t done, he wasn’t aware that any of the men even knew that name. He was so surprised he realised he hadn’t even interrupted and the sergeant had gone on.

  “You are Gaius Vibius Sabianus of a noble house and commander of the most powerful army to be found in the Empire. I don’t like to speak out of turn, but I’m not a great believer in any of the causes for war these days and I’m not really sure why people even join the armies now, apart from the fact that it’s better to live well and die young than to starve into old age. You have loyalty among your men because you’re a good man and a good commander and you look after your own. If you’d been twenty years older you’d have been an Imperial officer of some standing in the old army I reckon.”

  Sabian smiled. Cialo was the quintessential sergeant and he realised he was coming to rely more and more on the man over the days here. He cleared his throat.

  “Well, it looks like not everyone shares your opinion. Something’s going on here. Someone’s been secretly signalling the mainland from the room we were in earlier. I don’t believe it was Ursus though. One of the guilty ones has to be Velutio’s own physician, though he may have friends among the men. You and I and young Darius are going to have a word with the doctor and see just what he’s been up to. Darius is bringing him now.”

  The commander was gratified to note the vicious look that flashed across the sergeant’s face. The veteran growled “I’ll rip his balls off!”

  Sabian smiled and shook his head. “I want to make sure it was him and see if he has accomplices, then I’ll decide what we’re going to do with him. I’m not going to torture the man; that’s his Lordship’s way not mine, but I’m not particularly inclined to be lenient either.”

  The sergeant sat up straight. “You’re not going to let him off?”

  Again the commander smiled. “I doubt it, but I want to see what he has to say first.”

  The two sat in silence for a long time until they heard footsteps in the entry corridor. The doctor’s head emerged around the pillar of the arch, peering with difficulty into the gloom of a large room lit only be two small oil lamps.

  “Commander?”

  The man edged into the room and Sabian spotted Darius standing behind him. The commander rose, aware instantly that Cialo was right beside him.

  “Doctor, come in.” Reaching out, Sabian lit another lamp he’d noted in the next alcove when he arrived. The light in the room increased to an easier level though the doctor hesitated, Sabian noted, before moving into the room. Darius, right behind him with a hand on his sword hilt, had a face like thunder. The doctor smiled uneasily but his voice betrayed no fear.

  “You wanted to talk to me commander?”

  Sabian’s teeth flashed in the lamp light. His hand made two small, subtle gestures that only Cialo would understand and with quiet speed the man sidestepped the doctor and joined Darius in cutting off the exit. The sergeant folded his arms for a moment but then smiled broadly and picked up a heavy bladed shovel-axe from the corridor.

  The commander stepped forward and grasped Velutio’s physician by the tunic, gripping a handful of linen and twisting, bringing the man close to his face and lifting him onto his toes. If only the doctor could have seen the predatory smiles on the two men behind him blocking the exit.

  “Doctor,” he growled, “you will begin by telling me who you have been signalling from that room. You will then tell me exactly what you have said. I want to know who else on the island knows about you
or is in league with you and how and why you found it necessary to poison one of my men. If you answer me readily and I think you’re telling the truth, you may even leave this building with all your limbs. If you lie to me even once, I will give you to the sergeant, who knows how to deal with traitors.”

  The doctor swallowed nervously. Behind him, Cialo muttered something to Darius and they both grinned. The word ‘gut’ was the only one that Sabian caught and, but from the doctor’s expression he’d heard also. The man spluttered; his face had gone red.

  Sabian smiled and bunched the tunic a little tighter. “You can talk now, doctor. It’s your turn.”

  The man shook his head as best he could in the tight clinch. “I really don’t know what you mean commander. I’m just a doctor here with a pa…”

  Sabian tightened the knot, almost cutting off the man’s breath, but after a moment he let go of the tunic and the doctor dropped back to the floor. A wave of relief broke on him but too soon for when he looked up, Sabian was drawing a sword from the scabbard at his side.

  “You can’t do this,” the doctor demanded. “His lordship will have you crucified!”

  The commander smiled, looking up at the doctor with his head still bowed. The flash of his cruel eyes matched by the twinkling of the blade in the lamp light were truly menacing and Darius had to give the doctor some credit; some people would be weeping for mercy by now under that gaze. Sabian realised that the doctor truly believed he would abide by whatever the man said just because of their joint allegiance to Lord Velutio.

  “Is that your last word on the subject?” he enquired. The next sentence would seal it so he waited, his eyes and blade still glittering unpleasantly in the guttering light.

  “I’ll see you pay for this” the doctor declared haughtily.

  Behind the doctor, the sergeant’s deeper voice said “I doubt it!”

  Sabian saw Cialo raising the shovel blade in the light of the tunnel. The sergeant was clearly incensed and meant to bury the shovel in the doctor’s head. Darius’ sword was also out. The commander sighed. “Put your weapons down gentlemen. Neither of you’re going to harm him.”

  He saw Cialo blink as the shovel faltered. Darius’ sword dipped toward the floor and Sabian turned his back on the man with deliberate slowness, noting as he turned the sleazy victorious smile on the doctor’s face. The smile was still there as Sabian picked up speed in his turn and the sword flicked out. The smile was still there as the blade cut through muscle and sinew and cleaved the bone. The smile was still there as the head bearing it rolled across the floor and into the gutter leading to the main drain.

  He let the blade drop toward the floor and smiled coldly over the slowly collapsing body at the two in the archway.

  “That’s my job.”

  The rest of the corpse slumped against the wall, leaking out onto the floor. A torrent of red pumped from the neck and pooled behind dams of broken plaster and tile before running in rivulets into the drainage system. The commander stepped back toward the doorway, kicking the head gently and knocking it back toward the body.

  Sabian cleared his throat. “Cialo, I’m going to have a little word with the men in the morning. I want to make sure that this piece of shit had no friends among our companies. Darius, you might as well head back and get something to eat. We’re going to be quite busy tonight I think.”

  The young man shook his head. “I’ll help you get rid of this first and anyway I think that whatever you’re in now, I’m in too. You can probably rule out any conspiracy among my island kin. None of the prisoners would be reporting to Velutio, I can assure you.

  Sabian stood still for a moment and then nodded. He wasn’t so sure.

  “Ok. Let’s throw him in the sea and then go get something to eat while we talk.”

  A short while later the remains of the highest paid doctor in the greatest city in the world disappeared into the sea with two splashes unheard by any but those responsible and the few bats flitting around the trees. Out across the bay amid the twinkling lights of Velutio, one flashed repeatedly, invisible to the unaware and completely unanswered.

  Chapter XI.

  Sabian was in his full kit when he strode into the square, his armour gleaming in the bright sunlight and his sword swinging idly by his side. Darius stood, as seemed his automatic place these days, behind the commander’s shoulder. He wore the standard kit he used for sword practice or hunting; brown and grey leathers. Cialo and Iasus snapped to attention and the six companies of men behind them followed suit with an ear-splitting crash.

  The commander stood for long minutes, his countenance cold and dark. Behind him his new ally shared the commander’s visage, as did the two sergeants. Sabian let them sweat at attention for a few minutes before he spoke.

  “I’ve called this parade to give you some news and an ultimatum.”

  The companies didn’t move but he had no intention of letting them stand at ease. A few cast curious glances in the direction of Darius without moving their heads. It hadn’t escaped anyone how much time the young man was spending in the commander’s company. Sabian paused a moment and then continued.

  “The doctor from the city will no longer be treating you for any minor abrasions or construction injuries during your tenure here. He went for a swim last night without his head.”

  He emphasised the last words to increase their shock value and had the desired effect on more than a few soldiers. Without the commander having to utter a word, Iasus bellowed “Stay at attention!” Those who’d slumped a little came rail straight again instantly.

  Sabian cast his eyes around the Ibis courtyard windows. No one. Good. He’d sent the elders to examine the bath house and the rest of the population had duties assigned elsewhere. This sort of meeting had to be conducted in some privacy.

  He rounded his shoulders and began to pace slowly backwards and forwards along the line of men as he went on.

  “The doctor betrayed both myself and the loyal troops of the army to someone back in the city. He murdered Ursus yesterday which is why you may have wondered where he was today. In the end the doctor paid the price traitors always pay!”

  Again he fell silent, still stalking up and down the line.

  “There is also some suggestion that one or more men in these six companies may be involved in this treachery.”

  A murmur of denial spread throughout the lines until Cialo bellowed “Quiet!” at the top of his voice. The commander paused again in the centre of the line and faced them, his hands clasped behind his back.

  “I will not allow treachery and mutiny within the ranks. I’ve always been a good commander to my men and you’ve all benefited from my leniency. I don’t want to have to stamp down on any freedoms we’ve granted, but enough is enough.”

  He glared at the men. “Rest assured I will find out about anyone who is involved. Anyone who comes to my attention will be summarily punished. If you admit your guilt, I may be lenient. If not, I will make damn sure that you suffer beyond the limit of your wits. Is that clear?”

  Silence greeted his last words.

  “Is that clear?” he bellowed.

  The companies saluted in unison with an affirmative. The commander nodded and continued. “If I find out that anyone has been keeping any information from me, they will suffer the same fate. Am I understood?”

  No hesitation in the response this time.

  Sabian nodded again. “All work parties are suspended for two hours while the elders tour the bath house works. At noon, we’ll be holding a service for Ursus in the graveyard and I expect everyone to attend. I had Minister Sarios informed of events first thing this morning and he will be performing the service for us. After that, work will begin again and you should report to your officers as normal. If any of you feels the pressing need to get anything off your chest in the meantime, you can approach either Iasus or Cialo or find me. I will be somewhere in the complex.

  He nodded once at the sergeants before he turned and m
arched out in the direction of the gate with Darius at his shoulder. Behind him he heard the sergeants give the order to fall out and the men went their various ways. He stalked along angrily into the trees. The doctor had annoyed him so much last night that he’d dealt with the man without getting any real information or confirmation from him and now he had to threaten his own men which irked him all the more. He stopped beneath a tree with perfect lilac flowers and shrugged his armour back into position. Scanning the horizon, he lifted his cloak out of the way and sat with his back to the tree. Darius wandered across to a tree opposite and seated himself. Neither spoke for a long time. Sabian rubbed his hands and stared at them while the young man watched him intently before becoming the first to break the silence.

  “Do you think anyone will come to you?”

  The commander shook his head. “I really don’t know. This whole thing is irritating me beyond fucking reason. I came here to do a twice yearly head-count and now I’m a prison guard and I can’t trust most of the men around me. I don’t even know why I trust you. I think the time’s coming when we’ll all need to take some oaths of loyalty again.”

  Darius nodded. “You can have my word that I have no involvement in any plot against you and that I’ll do my damndest to help you sort this out.”

  Sabian smiled. “If only you were a free man Darius. I’d have had Cialo fit you for a uniform before you could draw breath.”

  The young man returned the smile and then spoke, tapping his fingers on the hilt of his sword. “What enemies do you have?”

  The commander shrugged. “Enough that I know of, let alone those I don’t. His lordship isn’t altogether happy with me right now; I have an ambitious captain back in the city that I should have brought with me theoretically, since he’s Cialo and Iasus’s direct superior. Then there’s three or four noble families whose noses I’ve put out of joint in the last few years, my previous lord who tried to have me killed to stop me taking a position with his opponent… the list goes on. You have no idea how irritating it is to live in a city like Velutio and to have to deal with all the conspiracies that go on there on a weekly basis. No one’s really safe in that city but his lordship. There’s no proof as yet, but I have absolutely no doubt in my mind who’s at the bottom of this: Crosus. The one who commanded the bodyguard, when his lordship was here if you remember. Got to be him, the weaselly bastard.”