The ship itself was not in much better condition. All of the stores were depleted, which was certainly not surprising, and the goods they should have had after their last voyage were gone. That was not surprising either, given the many months of time they were missing. No one knew what kind of situations they encountered or what they had to do to get out of them, and the men were not speaking. In fact, most were tossing around in delirium.
Titus and Caius stayed several hours, supervising the transfer of the men into clean quarters and fetching physicians to look at their conditions. They stayed while they unloaded everything on the craft and went over it from bow to stern, trying to find a clue as to where it had been. Again, not much information was forthcoming. At noon, they both turned the reins back to the steward and headed home to eat.
Titus was informed upon his return that Abigail and Samuel had just finished their meal, so he went ahead and dined with his father before going in search of her. They took the time to continue mulling over the mysterious reappearance of their ship. In spite of anything and everything they found or could not find, it was an unexpected turn of good fortune to have it back; even if it returned empty, it was still one more ship that they could repair and send back out.
“I am headed to the Forum in about half an hour’s time,” Caius said as Titus stood once he was finished eating. “Will you be joining me?”
“Probably.” He wanted to talk to a few other men of his acquaintance who owned similar companies and see if they could offer any insights into what most likely happened to his ship. “I will meet you down here then.” At his father’s nod, Titus headed for his room.
At the peristylium, he saw Caelia. She was simply standing there where courtyard met hallway, not moving. When she spotted him, a feline smile curved her lips. Titus sighed and braced himself for whatever she might have to say.
“Good afternoon, Titus.” She ran her eyes over him with the same appreciation they had always held.
Titus waited a moment to see if she would say more, but she did not. When he drew even with her, he stopped. “What are you doing here, Caelia?”
Her smile became even more smug. “Just watching, my love.”
He made an arrow of his gaze. “Watching?”
She hummed her agreement. “And now that you are back, I will simply wait.”
Titus clenched his jaw. “And what is it you will be waiting for?”
She shook her head.
Not in the mood to deal with her, Titus turned away and walked to his door.
“She is not in there.”
Titus turned back around to face her. He was not surprised to learn that Caelia knew where Abigail was. He would not have been surprised if she always kept tabs on her, as a matter of fact. “Very well. Where is she?”
Caelia lifted an elegant, tapered finger and pointed a door down, to the room Miriam and Phillip had moved into. She said nothing, and Titus did not try to get her to. He simply moved the extra steps, knocked, then opened the portal.
He stopped abruptly just a step inside, his eyes hard and all-seeing. He noticed, for instance, that there were far too many possessions taking up residence in there to be only the property of the slaves. He noticed that in addition to the bed, there were three pallets on the floor. He noticed that the basket that was Benjamin’s bed was in the corner. And he noticed that the three people who turned to face him at his entrance looked like warriors ready to do battle until the death.
“What is going on in here?” His voice was calm, deadly calm, coldly calm, familiarly calm. He knew his face reflected the same stolidity, and he did not care. Could not care.
Abigail moved a hand, and Miriam and Phillip both moved quickly past him and out the door, closing it behind them. Titus did not so much as glance at them. His full attention was on Abigail.
“If I had spoken to you first, I knew you would have talked me out of it. But I cannot do it anymore, Titus, it is killing me inside.”
He did not have to ask what “it” was. Though he had to wonder how she could destroy him so peacefully. “If I could have talked you out of it, it is because you do not really want to do it. You are letting your emotions get caught up in details, Abigail. Being with the man you love should not kill you inside.”
Abigail clenched her eyes shut for a long moment, and Titus had the uncomfortable impression that she was holding back a storm of tears. He was relieved when she opened them again steadily. “The man I love is not my husband. He never will be, because there are more important things to him than me, and I understand that. But knowing a man that is not my husband is a sin I will never commit again.”