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crucify those who had fought against us. The Empire did, in all good faith, conclude treaties with the barbarian kings, and see how our generosity is repaid! We are mocked, ridiculed. The temple dedicated to the Divine Emperor Claudius, he who dealt so faithfully with the Britons, falls into disrepair at Camulodunum because the barbarians will not part with a single coin to do honor to his memory!" Outraged murmurs went up from the Romans at this, and Catus allowed them time to whip up their indignation.
    "He lies!" From their place at the courtyard wall, well behind the true Roman legionaries, Heall made the accusation through clenched teeth.
    Caddaric nodded imperceptibly, filled with the longing to bury his sword into the back of the Roman Procurator, the only target available from their position. "Men have been beggared for that temple," he replied in an equally hushed voice. "This we know, but the Romans do not care for truth. Catus does but justify his actions."
    "We are not helpless," Heall ground out. "We have seen royal guards slain and we do naught. Are we cowards?"
    "Nay, but we are only two!' Caddaric subdued his terrible wrath with an effort. "Our deaths now would serve no purpose, but our time will come to repay tenfold what we have seen. Be silent now, draw no attention to us."
    The grumbles of the Roman citizens had grown to a low roar and now Catus Decianus raised his hands for silence. "My countrymen, hear now Caesar's will and see how the Empire deals with traitors. The land of the Iceni is no longer an ally but shall henceforth be only a province of the Empire. The chieftains of the Iceni are hereby stripped of all lands and possessions. All relatives of King Prasutagus will be gathered up and sold into slavery, including the woman Boadicea and her two daughters, and their ancestral holdings will revert to our Divine Emperor Nero. But first, the Empire will show all of Britannia how it deals with miscreants and troublemakers. The woman who calls herself queen will be scourged so that she may carry Caesar's mark with her into slavery!" At Catus' signal, the squad of Roman soldiers shouldered a battering ram and attacked the wood of the palace door.
    The thunderous sound of wood hitting wood flayed Jilana's nerves and she bit her bottom lip to keep from crying out. About her people were laughing, cheering the efforts of the legionaries, and a feeling of deep shame coursed through Jilana. She had believed, in her ignorance, that Roman soldiers fought only other soldiers, that an unarmed populace had nothing to fear. So this is how slaves are made, Jilana thought dully. While their friends owned slaves, her father employed only freemen, but until this moment Jilana had never spared a thought toward the source of those slaves.
    "Father?" Claudia's voice drew Jilana's attention and she watched as Claudia went to Marcus and laid an imploring hand on his arm. "Father, will you purchase an Iceni for me so that I might have a maid to attend only myself?"
    Marcus shook his head. "You and your sister have an attendant, Claudia."
    "One that we must share," Claudia replied emphatically. "Father I am fully grown, far past the age when I should be allowed my own maid. In Rome, Aunt Cyrilla insisted I have a woman of my own."
    "This is not Rome," Marcus said, exchanging a look with Augusta. "Your mother's sister lives differently than we."
    "But how shall I face my friends when I return to Rome," Claudia wailed. "They will have heard of the upstart Iceni and will want to know why the house of Basilius would not buy so much as a maid!"
    Marcus started to answer, but the crack of the palace door giving way stopped his words. Claudia gleefully clapped her hands and started forward, taking up the cry of: "Bring forth the harlot queen! Let the Iceni taste Roman justice."
    The massed citizenry surged forward and Jilana found herself separated from her parents and unwillingly pushed to the very fore of the spectators. Her heart