Titus almost felt pity for the man. Though it was his own fault for being so easily swayed. He shrugged.
Otho shook his head in defeat and began to move toward the door. “I will go supervise his packing, make sure he takes only what is his.”
Knowing Panther was watching over Abigail outside, Titus said, “I will join you, to make sure he takes nothing Abigail will not need him to have.” And to make sure Otho did not belatedly take his advice and give Phillip a parting whipping.
*
Titus tried to ignore the strange sensation that settled over him when he finally got an affirmative answer. He’d been asking the question every day for the past week, ever since Arminius had given the word that the estate would be settled without need of Abigail’s remaining in Rome.
“Just arrived an hour ago,” the man said, his accent crude to match his face. “Sails for Joppa again in four days, Lord.”
“Thank you.” Titus nodded and turned away, wondering why the news made his spirits plummet. Of course, he would miss Abigail. She had become his friend, his teacher. They had spent the last evenings together, praying and discussing the Law, and Titus had never felt such a peace in his soul as he had in those moments. And he would miss the babe, and Samuel. But that was surely not enough to cause this tightness in his chest.
“It is about time,” Caius said from beside him as they walked back to the house. “I swear to Jove, that girl is a curse, and if she stays in our house much longer, we will feel it.”
Titus rolled his eyes. His father was not one to prattle on about the gods, so he was not fooled for a moment. “Which is to say, she distracts you terribly, and since you cannot have her in your bed, you want her out from under your roof.”
Caius sent him a withering gaze. “I am a man, Titus, and if you are really as close to her as you say, surely you would understand her charms.”
An alarum sounded in Titus’s mind, echoing in his ears. “Why do you say ‘if,’ Father?” He tried to keep his tone casually belligerent, as it would usually be if someone insinuated he had not been able to conquer his latest prey.
Caius’s shrug was entirely too calculated to be meaningless. “It is a strange sort of intimacy I see between you. Not what you usually share with your lovers.”
“Abigail is not my typical lover.” He kept his tone cool. “Her emotions are more fragile after her loss, and as you yourself taught me, one must indulge the heart if one wants to keep the body.”
“I just wonder who is controlling whom. I see you tending her emotions, but I never see her tending your needs. Or do the Jews have a problem with displaying their loyalty in the form of kisses to be seen?”
It seemed a safe excuse. “They do, at that. I never once beheld Jason’s lips on Abigail, though there was proof enough they had been there. I know better than to expect her to share in public what she deems appropriate only in private.”
“Is it that, Titus? Or is it that she has been hiding behind her mourning and has not let you touch her at all?”
Titus forced himself to remain calm, knowing it was the only way to protect his friend. “I promise you, she has refused me nothing I have asked for.”
“But have you been too much of a coward to ask for what you want?”
Titus stopped to glare at his father. They were near home now, only a minute away, and Titus did not want to arrive during this conversation. “You sound like an adolescent boy telling his friend he will not believe he has a lover without proof. I thought you well past such immaturity.”
Caius smiled, but there was nothing pleasant in it. “The slave needs to learn her place, Titus, and if you have not shown her that she is nothing but a whore in spite of her son, I will. The babe is my guest. She is not.” That said, he moved forward again with long, quick strides. Titus had no choice but to follow. He walked up to the door, which opened before him. “Timothy, where is Abigail?”
“Resting in the courtyard.” The slave answered so quickly that Titus wondered if his father had someone watching her at every moment. The thought did little to calm his anxieties.
“Ah.” Caius nodded, smiled, and turned to his son. “I believe I will go the library for a while, my son. I will see you later.”
Titus narrowed his eyes as his father walked away. The library looked out into the courtyard, which meant in effect that Caius was going to keep an eye on Abigail himself. Which was to say, it was Titus’s opportunity to offer the proof Caius demanded. With a determined gait, Titus headed for the peristylium.
He breathed a little easier when he immediately spotted Phillip standing in the shade with his eyes on Abigail. She had chosen a chaise that was set up for the sole purpose of enjoying the sun’s rays.