Tribune, I managed to make Rhodope say something, while you were speaking to her father." If Rubella was riled, he forced himself to hide it. He needed the details. Helena reported coldly. The couple were staying in a room near the Temple of Isis. Men came suddenly last night and told them they would have to part. Theopompus was hit, to keep him quiet, then he was dragged out of the house, he must have known what lay in store for him. Rhodope was simply bundled up and returned, unharmed, to her father."

Well, that's what we thought," said Rubella, seeking to escape. Helena insisted on making him hear everything. This is what you don't know. Rhodope was insistent that Theopompus knew the men who took him."

So they were not her father's friends from Rome?"

You must decide that," Helena replied quietly. Even though Rhodope's statement put them in the clear, Rubella kept the Emporium cronies at the patrol house for a long time. They were brought in, grumbling and truculent. He himself grilled them individually. You could call it being thorough and unrushed, or wasting time. I was not allowed to attend any interviews, but I eavesdropped from outside. They all said the same. Men of my father's age and temperament know how to fix an alibi. According to Pa, who was the last to be interrogated, it was all innocent. We never tracked the bastard down, and that's a fact."

What would you have done to him, had you caught him?" Rubella asked sarcastically.

Explained that he should look elsewhere for love," smirked Pa.

Posidonius was planning to give him a big payoff, though we all thought that was a big mistake."

You should have known better. You could all have ended up battered to death at the saltpans!" Rubella stormed, at his most pompous.

Is that what happened to the lad?" Pa asked meekly. Not nice!" Then I heard my father harden his tone. We didn't do it, and this is what proves it. we wouldn't have left the body where a bunch of nosy passers-by would find him straight away!" That made some sense. Rubella kicked him out. As we trundled out of the patrol house, I heard Rubella commanding tetchily. Round up the usual suspects!"

Sir, we only just got here on the Ides," Fusculus protested. It was dusk now, and nobody who went to the saltpans had had lunch.

We're new boys and don't know who is who in Ostia."

The Cilicians," Rubella enlightened him. You'll find them all named on the Cilician pirates" watch list." So there was a list. And Rubella had just confirmed that the vigiles saw Cilicians as still involved in piracy.

I would have liked to see the round-up, but I had the next-best thing. Petronius would tell me later about it. I went to dinner at his house. By the time I arrived, having gathered up my family, Pa was there as well. He had decided to move in and lumber Maia and Petro with his presence. The other friends of Posidonius were going back to Rome, their task done, or at least, rendered unnecessary by Theopompus" attackers. Maia looked momentarily flustered by the sudden influx. She was embarrassed because Privatus, who owned the house, was making one of his visits. She could hardly object if he wanted to inspect his new statue installation, the weeing Dionysus, now positioned on a new plinth in a garden pond, but although Privatus always assured them that they were welcome to treat the place as their own, and urged them to entertain as much as they liked, Maia shared my reluctance to be under too much obligation.

We could all go out to eat."

No, we won't," decided Pa. Let the builder give us a treat!" He had still not recovered from having a new bath house built. I was only surprised he did not immediately invite all of Posidonius" other friends to call in for refreshments before they hit the road. He would have done it, if he had thought of it. Winking at Maia, I went to talk to the contractor myself, as a polite gesture. All I could think of was to mention that I had been impressed by the display put on by the booted ranks in the Forum yesterday.

Why thanks, Falco! Our lads always give a good show." The man with the strands of hair raked over his bald patch positively preened. I had found him adjusting the pressure in his wine god's outlet pipe. He was wearing a particularly obnoxious tunic with a bad shine on the nap, and was obviously sneering at the less impressive display by the Rome vigiles; I was sorry I had volunteered to make friendly over tures. How's your search?" he enquired of me. You were telling me last time about your missing scribe?"

Still missing."

How does this look?" He was still fiddling with the fountain waterworks.

His kidneys are in fine fettle, but I'm inclined to say, the effect is a bit diuretic."

Has something terrible happened to him?"

Your Dionysus?, Oh, my scribe. It seems likely."

But you're no closer to solving it?" Privatus seemed very keen to point that out. Gritting my teeth, I found myself retaliating. By the way, is it some of your boot ranks who set up that phoney vigiles patrol house by the Temple of Hercules?" Privatus looked startled. Better tell them the game's up," I said gently. Brunnus may have been relaxed about it, but Marcus Rubella is very hot on scams. It's not just time for your boys to move on, Privatus, it's time to close their bribery shop down."

I don't think I like what you're saying, Falco."

I don't like it either," I commiserated. One thing I have found out about Diocles is that his aunt died in a house fire, needlessly. Apparently Diocles had gone for help to your fake group. All the local people know better of course, but he was from Rome. He must have really believed that if an alarm was raised, they would come running." Privatus was listening now. He was like a wound-up automaton, moving slightly from one foot to the other, full of pent energy, ready to dart into action. But there was nothing he could do. I carried on with the torment. Of course now I've recognised them as your boot-boys, it could raise the whole issue of the builders" role in fire-fighting…" Privatus assumed the utterly reasonable gaze which contractors use to delude complaining clients. I expected him to talk about suppliers having let him down despite incredible efforts on his part. Or to blame the weather.

What evidence do you have that we were to blame, Falco?"

Enough," I assured him. It's been a year now, hasn't it? And as you see, the affair of the scribe's aunt simply will not go away." I slapped him on the shoulder. Of course your guild is extremely powerful; I'm sure you can survive a negligence claim, should it happen. Though with Diocles missing, who is there to claim? But the Emperor may hear about what happened. He will be sent reports on how your guild operates… Did you know that the scribe's aunt was an imperial freedwoman?" Vestina's time at the Palace would have predated the current Flavian dynasty, but I failed to mention that. Privatus knew he must keep smiling. I had him on the run; I left him to squirm.

By the way, Privatus, I don't like the look of that outflow. I think your wine god needs a good doctor to squeeze his prostate." Privatus did not join us for dinner. Petronius came in after we had finished. While Maia produced a foodbowl she had kept for him, he told me that every Cilician with a name known to the vigiles was now residing in custody. It was quite a large number. Rubella was in his element processing them; Fusculus, still on duty, was deeply unhappy; soon, they would have to call in caterers to supply gruel for the prisoners, but there was little hope of Fusculus himself getting a meal tonight. Petro's chubby deputy already had a rumbling stomach.

I can see the logistics are not easy," I smiled. I bet Rubella himself has a three-course snack with a red wine chaser hidden in his office .. Did the Cilicians come quietly?" With a wry smile back, Petro nodded. They are all farmers nowadays, Marcus, my boy. Farmers are model citizens. You should know that. You're half rural."