Page 102

I clutched at the edge of his thick cloak. “And the city needs an industry other than the pleasure houses if it’s going to withstand changing times. After all, it wasn’t always the way it is now. Someday, if I’m able, I would like to create a school for Corlivo women. If we ever do find Arcadius’s treasure, that’s what I would like to spend it on.”

He touched my cheek softly. “By the gods, that’s a marvelous idea. If you and Klaudia are any measure, imagine what a city of well-educated women could accomplish? We’d have more books and inventions, and twice as many discoveries.”

“At least twice as many,” I pointed out.

He laughed in agreement. “At least.”

“If we can do it, will you help me?”

“I would do anything for you, falcon.”

A quiet joy spread through me, but my happiness was tempered by the knowledge that it was mine alone. I had been lucky, but the other women of Corlivo were too often disposed of and forgotten. We were like the history of the city itself, unremembered, lost. There had once been an ancient shrine here to the great Goddess, and priestesses whose work brought pilgrims closer to her. That history had faded so far into the past that no one ever stopped to think: how did we come to be here? How did it all begin in the first place? We had forgotten our own story and with it, our own power and importance.

The wind had increased in intensity. It howled down the broad street, blowing leaves and twigs and whipping our cloaks around us. Fine, spacious houses lined the road, made of the same gray stone as the Schola Morum. From this vantage point, we could see all three of the elite pleasure houses. Casa Stella stood at the far end of the street, where the road began to narrow and climb higher into the mountains. It was an exquisite stone building stretching the length of the block, with pale arches and spires so delicate that it was hard to believe they were made of rock and not spun sugar. Casa Aeris was closer to the city gate. It cantilevered over the edge of the mountain, built so that guests could promenade on a walled terrace and look down upon nothing but air. And above the city, on the slopes of the mountain, the windows of Casa Caligine glinted in the sunshine. It presided over the city: the oldest, most elite pleasure house of all. I took in its magnificent terraces and thick stone walls, more than a thousand years old. It was practically a fortress.

Suddenly Sebastianus tensed and glanced quickly to the right. He turned and spun me with him, so his back was toward whatever he had seen, shielding me with his body. “A soldier,” he whispered, “moving down the cross street. Where there’s one, there will be more. We need to get inside.”

He grabbed my hand, and we set off hurriedly in the opposite direction. Soldiers. We needed to get to safety. I looked back over my shoulder. Casa Caligine. A fortress.

And suddenly, I believed. No matter that I couldn’t prove that a full moon had been in the sky at the time of Straba’s visit. No matter that all I had was a loose string of ideas and connections gleaned from ancient books and records. Every shred of intuition I possessed, every feeling in my heart told me beyond any doubt that this was where the treasure was. The lost cave city was hidden deep beneath the ancient, mighty citadel that had protected it and concealed it for almost a thousand years.

xxx

WHEN WE ARRIVED BACK AT THE DRESSMAKER’S SHOP and hurried up the narrow stairs, we heard several voices coming from the apartment. They all seemed to be talking at once. Sebastianus paused, listening, and then he continued up and pushed open the door.

Conversation halted as three heads turned toward us.

“Klaudia!” I ran to her and gave her a fierce hug. “When did you get here?”

She wore a gray toga tied casually at her narrow shoulders, blue silk leggings, and boots. Her clothing was rumpled. Loose strands of her hair had worked their way out of her braid. She had clearly ridden a long way without rest.

“Just this morning.” She gave me a squeeze. “Where have you two been?”

“Walking,” I said.

Pollux sat stiffly on the couch. Don leaned against the wall, arms crossed, a serious expression on his face. There was a brief silence where we all looked at one another.

“What?” Sebastianus asked.

“There are soldiers in the city,” Klaudia said. “I saw them on my way in.”

Sebastianus nodded. “We saw one just now.”

“Jovinian has sent them out far and wide, on every road, looking for you,” she said. “Fortunately, I think they’ve given up on me, but just to be safe, I’ve been sleeping out of doors since I left Panpirion.”

Pollux looked as though he could barely contain his distress. “We were just discussing that we should leave at once.”

Don said, “We can ride north, gather supplies, and then follow the shore of the inland sea until we reach the eastern border.”

“If I’m found by the Imperator,” Pollux said, “I will be fed to the lions.”

“I swear to you,” Don said, taking him by the shoulders, “you will not be found by Jovinian.”

The look that passed between the two men made me think they had momentarily forgotten the rest of us were there.

“We should go west,” Klaudia said. “Jovinian will expect us to cross the eastern border into Ohrid. Seb, he’ll know that you’ve had your own dealings with King Agrias. We could make for Vendel, and perhaps even cross the water to the islands beyond.”

“We have no support in that direction,” Don said. “We’d be unknown and friendless. In Ohrid, we know many people.”