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not offer him a seat. ‘What can I do for you, Agarpetus?’
    ‘It’s more about what I can do for you, Consul.’ The Greek spoke with a measured tone, his dark eyes never leaving Vespasian’s nor showing a hint of feeling.
    ‘What can a freedman do for me? I assume that you are Narcissus’ freedman since you bear his names that he took from Claudius when he freed him in turn.’
    ‘That is correct, Consul. Narcissus freed me two years ago and since then I have worked for him on a variety of delicate tasks involving the gathering of information.’
    ‘I see. So you spy for him?’
    ‘Not as such; I gather information from his agents in the eastern provinces and make assessments as to its veracity and importance so my patron only sees what he needs to see.’
    ‘Ah, so you’re a saver of time?’
    ‘Indeed.’
    ‘And a possessor of knowledge.’
    ‘Yes, Consul; I am a saver of time and a possessor of knowledge.’
    Vespasian could see where this was leading. ‘Knowledge that could be of value to me?’
    ‘Very much so.’
    ‘At what price?’
    ‘A meeting: you and your uncle with my patron.’
    Vespasian frowned and ran a hand over his almost-bald crown. ‘Why didn’t Narcissus just ask us himself? He may be outof favour with Claudius but he’s still the imperial secretary and retains the power to summon a consul and a senator.’
    ‘That is so, but he wants the meeting to be secret; so therefore it has to be away from the palace, away from the eyes and ears of the Empress and her lover.’
    ‘Pallas?’
    ‘As you know, my patron and Pallas are not on the best of terms …’
    ‘And as you know, my loyalty is to Pallas and I won’t be a part of Narcissus’ schemes against him.’
    ‘Not even if Pallas would knowingly allow the Empress to block your career?’
    Vespasian scoffed. ‘Block my career? Does it look like it’s blocked? I’m Consul.’
    ‘But you will go no further; there’ll be no province to govern, no military command, nothing, just political oblivion. My patron asks you to consider this: why were you made consul for only the last two months of this year?’
    ‘Because my forty-second birthday was in November and so it wasn’t until then that I was eligible. It was a great honour to be the Emperor’s colleague in the office.’
    ‘No doubt that non-entity Calventius Vetus Carminius thought exactly the same thing when he was Claudius’ colleague for September and October; in fact I would suspect that he thought it even more of an honour than you did, seeing as he’d done nothing to merit the position.’
    Vespasian opened his mouth to refute the claim and then closed it immediately, his mind racing.
    Agarpetus pressed his argument. ‘But surely it would have been a greater honour for the victorious legate of the Second Augusta to have been made consul in January next year? In only a few days’ time you could have been the Junior Consul for a full six months, perhaps even with the Emperor as your colleague, and the year would have been named after you both. But no, you were given a crumb after all your loyal service in Britannia, just a crumb, a two-month consulship, just like the man you succeeded whom nobody had ever heard of; and do you know why?’
    Vespasian did not answer; his mind was too busy.
    ‘The Empress hates you because of your son’s friendship with Britannicus; and Pallas is powerless to help you against such an enemy. It was she who persuaded her gullible husband that it would be a singular honour for you to be made consul in the very month that you were first eligible and it will be her who’ll block any appointment that may be mooted for you when you step down on the first day of January, three days hence. Your only hope for advancement is her demise, and loyalty to Pallas won’t bring that about. Narcissus, on the other hand …’ Agarpetus trailed off leaving the last thought dangling.
    Vespasian still said nothing as his mind worked and the truth of