“I like to come up here,” Marcus says.“It gives me a sense of perspective, reminds me of the city I’m trying to help.”
“You seem determined to do that,” I say.“When the riots broke out, you were among the first there.Even Rowan wasn’t.”
“I’m sure the first senator found himself tangled up in so many of the duties of his role it was hard to get there quickly,” Marcus says.“And his guards probably wouldn’t have let him, anyway.I could go, and I wanted to help.”
He stands beside me, staring out at the city, the two of us standing there quietly.
“It feels strange, being in the palace,” I say.“And being a senator.I’m a former gladiator, from a small fishing village.”
“I was hardly born to rule over people,” Marcus points out.
“At least you’re from a wealthy merchant family,” I say.
Marcus nods.“But that’s only part of the story.My father made the mistake of upsetting the emperor.We lost everything under the empire.Our trading fleets couldn’t come to port here, or their goods were seized.My father died suddenly.”
“The emperor had him killed?”I guess.
“It’s hard to say for sure, but he was healthy, and worried that people were following him.I think he was poisoned.My mother…”
He hesitates, and I find myself reaching out to put a hand on his arm.
“She seemed to go mad,” Marcus says.“I’m sure part of it was grief, but it was as if something else was happening, too.She started to behave strangely, and no healer could help her.She would be lucid for long periods, but then she would do unexpected things.She started signing over my father’s assets to the empire.”
I frown at that.“You don’t think she was acting freely, do you?”
Marcus shakes his head.“She got a new servant shortly before my father’s death.One everyone seemed to like, but no one could really say why.My mother… once she’d given everything away, she threw herself from the roof, and the servant tried to seduce me.When she did… I felt her trying to influence my mind.”
I take a breath, understanding to my horror some of what happened to Marcus’ family.I’ve met those with the talents to influence people’s minds.It’s one of the most terrifying of all magical powers, because it means people can’t trust their own thoughts anymore.
“What happened?”I ask.
“I was able to resist long enough to hit her with lightning, but she got away,” Marcus says.“I was left with next to nothing.It’s taken me a lot to rebuild from that point, to take the few ships I had left and rebuild my fortunes.I saw what it was like to have nothing, which is why it matters so much to me to do something for the people of the city.”
“By giving them back the games?”I say.
“I think it’s the best way,” Marcus says.“And I’m grateful to you for trusting me enough to do this.I think, without your support, my proposal wouldn’t have passed.”
“And Alaric won’t forgive me for that support.”
“I’m sorry,” Marcus says, taking my hands.“I didn’t mean to bring you back to painful thoughts.”
“It’s all right,” I say.“I know the games matter to you.”
“To all of us, I think,” Marcus says.“We have the chance to give the city back its sense of pride, of honor.It wasn’t enough for us to just tear down the old empire.We need to put something positive in its place.I think the games have a role to play in that.I thinkyouhave a role to play.”
I can hear the passion in his voice for everything he’s trying to achieve, but now it’s combined with a sense of vulnerability after everything I’ve learned about him.I had assumed that he was this rich, powerful man from a family that meant he had never known suffering.Instead, he’s someone who’s had to rebuild his life from almost nothing.
I’m suddenly all too aware of how close he is to me.My hands are in his and now it’s easy to stare deep into his eyes.Almost without thinking about it, I move closer.
He does so in the same moment, and I’m not sure which of us initiates the kiss, but a second later, our lips are pressed to one another’s, our bodies so close that I can feel every muscle under Marcus’ toga, feel his strength as he holds me and his mouth explores mine.I sink into him, losing myself in the depths of the kiss for several seconds, so that by the time we pull apart, I’m breathless.
I’m still staring at him.A part of me wants to suggest heading down through the palace to my rooms, even as another part of me knows that it’s far too soon for that.Marcus seems to sense the same, pulling back from me, even though his touch lingers on my arm for a moment.
“I hope that wasn’t too much, too soon,” Marcus says.“I… I’ve felt something for you almost from the moment we met.I-”
I silence him with another kiss, this one shorter, but no less passionate.We pull apart again, and then stand there for several more seconds, looking out over the grounds and the city.
Somehow, my gaze is drawn down to a spot in the gardens below.I can see Alaric standing there, and he’s looking up at me, I’m sure of it.Marcus and I are on the edge of the roof, so it isn’t hard to see us.I have no doubt that he saw us kiss.
