Page 155 of Bend
I paused and sighed. I had no answer for my prefect, for my eyes could not see what the future held. I would be more inclined to acknowledge a son to continue my family line, but there were those in the Senate that would be displeased.
“I cannot predict where the gods will take us,” I finally said. “I shall endure what comes when the time is right. Dwelling will not change outcome.”
Antoniu
s nodded, completed his report of the battle, and started to take his leave.
“Antonius, pause a moment,” I said.
“Tribunus?”
“I beg a favor,” I stated as I looked at him pointedly.
He returned my gaze and nodded his head.
“Your will, Faustus.”
I glanced at Aia and swallowed a lump in my throat.
“Despite healed wound, I was nearly cut again,” I told him.
“I observed,” he said with a nod. “I was close at your side; I would not have allowed you to fall.”
I inclined my head in silent gratitude.
“Still, there is always risk, is there not?”
“There is.”
I looked back to Aia where she busied herself with the fresh bread, oblivious to my words. The smell made my mouth water.
“I have concern for my slave,” I admitted as I looked back to him, “and the child she carries if I were to fall. I want your word that you would ensure her safety and care.”
“Clarify your meaning,” Antonius said.
“I cannot will either her or the child my legacy,” I said. “If I die in battle, they will have no protection or funds to provide for them. She would become my father’s property.”
“You speak truth,” Antonius agreed.
“I would have you take her,” I said as I grasped his forearm, “and the child.”
Widening his eyes, he straightened his back and raised his eyebrows at me.
“You are my oldest friend,” I said. “I would trust no one else with their care.”
Antonius blinked a few times before resolve settled in his eyes.
“I will,” he said simply. “You are my commander and friend. I would treat them as my own family as long as they live.”
I gripped his arm slightly before releasing him.
“You have my gratitude,” I said. I nodded towards the large trunk near my sleeping area. “I have placed inside my trunk the necessary documents for the sale of her and her offspring to you, along with enough coin to provide for them. If I fall, retrieve this immediately—before my father learns of my death. Move Aia to your tent and speak nothing of her unless pressed. It would be better for others to assume she had been in your hands for some time.”
“Of course,” he said. We clasped arms once more before Antonius retired to his own tent.
As soon as the flap of the tent shielded us from those outside, Aia was quickly by my side and began to remove my armor. She laid it expertly aside before retrieving a bowl of water, warmed by the fire. I watched her in silence as she took a soft cloth, wet it, and began to wash me. She appraised my body with her eyes as she went about her work, and the deep devotion I saw in them brought a smile to my lips.
It had been like this since the day we arrived at camp. Aia adjusted quickly to her surroundings and took joy in caring for me as if she were my legal wife. The others did not notice her as anything more than a common slave in my eyes, which served us both well.
