“How dare you?” Valerius raised his voice, both angry and offended. “Nic is condemned by the emperor himself. Do you know what could happen to me if he’s discovered here? Why would I risk myself and my family if I wanted him dead?”

She shrank against the force of his anger, then gathered her courage enough to say, “You don’t understand —”

“And you do?” Valerius asked. “Who are you? A girl of the streets, of the sewers even? You have no education, no family name, and yet you question my plans to save the empire? All you have is that crepundia, proof that you were unacceptable to the family who gave you life!”

Tears welled in Aurelia’s eyes, then she pulled the crepundia over her head and threw it on the table. She gave me one last look before getting to her feet and running from the room.

“Father, you shouldn’t have said all that,” Crispus whispered.

“I know. That was cruel of me.” Valerius sighed, then he looked at me. “It’s not a perfect plan, and I know it doesn’t avoid a fight with Radulf, but I sincerely believe it’s our only hope. More important, I am certain it is the only chance you and your sister have.”

I nodded absently, but my attention was on the crepundia. Crispus still stood right behind it, holding up the banner with the sickle and the knife. Similar images were on the crepundia. I picked it up and felt a stab of realization. No, the images were identical.

Aurelia’s father was Senator Horatio.

I grabbed the crepundia and ran after her. She was in the atrium, arms tightly wrapped around herself, and staring at the rainwater falling into the pool. When she heard my footsteps, she turned to me. “What was I thinking, to yell at someone with his station in life? I know he’s shown us so much kindness, even saved our lives, and I’m grateful for that. But I don’t like his plan for you, Nic. I just don’t.”

I ignored that and instead held the crepundia out to her. I was so angry that it shook in my hand. “How long have you known Horatio is your father?”

Her mouth fell open and she seemed to be struggling for words. “How did you —”

“How long, Aurelia? Did you know at the beginning, when you threatened to bring me to him? Have you known all this time?”

She nodded, slowly. “That’s why it was so important to go to him. Once I proved who I was, I figured I could protect you.”

“You figured? But you didn’t know, did you. You weren’t trying to help me, or even to help Rome. I was only your ticket to getting close to him.”

Tears filled her eyes. “Yes, I did need you. How else could a sewer girl get the attention of the Senate’s presiding magistrate? But I wasn’t doing it only for me. Horatio can’t be as bad as Valerius says, and maybe he’d even help you. The best chance you have is if we face him together.”

“You’re wrong!” I spat the words back at her. “Valerius might have a dangerous plan, but it’s my only chance at freedom. The best I’d get from Horatio is a return to the mines, and probably something much worse. You know that, Aurelia!”

The tears overflowed onto her cheeks, painting wet lines wherever they fell. “I should’ve told you who my father was. I almost did, but each time I started to, I grew afraid of what you’d think.”

“Here’s what I think,” I said. “I think you lied to me. I think you used me. And I think you should leave. You have your reward money from Valerius. That will buy you enough status to get your audience with Horatio. Go and beg him to bring you home again. Because you won’t find a home anywhere near me!”

“Nic, I’m your friend!”

That was oil to the fire I already felt inside, and I nearly exploded. “A friend would’ve done what was best for me, not used me for her own purposes. A friend would’ve told me the truth!”

“Nic, please —”

“You would have sacrificed my life to get what you most want. So from now on, I fight for me. Not for your father’s sake, or Rome’s, and especially not for yours. Good-bye, Aurelia.” I bowed low to her. “Or shall I call you Aurelia, of the house of Quintus Horatio?” When I rose up again, I dropped the crepundia at her feet.

I started to walk away, but immediately there came a pounding at the entry. “Senator Valerius!” a voice announced. “Open up for the presiding magistrate of the Roman Senate. We have information that you are harboring a fugitive of the empire. We want the escaped slave, Nicolas Calva.”

Aurelia breathed my name, but I wouldn’t look at her. “Nic,” she said again. “That’s Horatio. We can talk to him together.”

There was more pounding on the door, and Valerius and Crispus hurried into the atrium. Crispus’s face was tense with worry, but I couldn’t read Valerius as well. Either he was terrified, or else his heart had stopped working. Possibly both.

“You turned Nic in to him?” Crispus asked Aurelia. “How dare you?”

Her eyes pled with me to believe her. “I didn’t, Nic. I swear —”

“Don’t!” I shook my head. “Don’t say anything else.”

“Run out the back,” Valerius said.

I wasn’t going to run, and it would’ve been futile if I’d tried. The door opened and in poured Horatio’s personal guard, looking similar to Roman soldiers except for Horatio’s banner worn on their uniforms. They pushed Aurelia aside, and walked directly toward me.

My hand curled around the bulla, which was currently beneath my tunic. The heat in it worried me. Magic flowed in through my fingers, and up my arm. It wanted a fight.

Horatio glared down at me and no doubt was weighing the odds of how many of his men I could take out before one of them got the bulla. The correct answer: all of them. And I would’ve released the magic already except I wouldn’t put Crispus or Valerius at risk. Or even Aurelia, who stood off to the side with her eyes wide and still full of tears.

Horatio’s face twisted as he prepared to speak. “Nicolas Calva, Emperor Tacitus has ordered your execution. I am here to arrest you.”

“No,” I said.

“No?” He arched an eyebrow. “I’m not asking your permission, slave.”

“And I’m not giving it. The emperor and I made an agreement. Once I fulfill it, I will go to him. On my own.”

Valerius pushed past me. “Senator Horatio, Nic’s magic is stronger than you can imagine. He plans to take the key to the Malice of Mars. If you want to live, you will give it to him.”

“Stop this!” Aurelia darted forward. “Nic has not threatened his life, not once.” Then she turned to Horatio. “And you will not threaten Nic’s life either. He’s my friend.”

Horatio laughed. “And why should I take orders from a street girl?”

Aurelia bit down on her lip, then held up the crepundia, still in her hand. Visibly trembling, Horatio took it from her and examined the miniatures. When he looked back at Aurelia, there were tears in his eyes.

“Where did you get this?” he asked.

“From you. On the day you exposed me.”

He made a sound in his throat and stepped closer to her. “My daughter,” he whispered. “I had no idea you were still alive.”

“We have much to discuss,” Aurelia said. “But first, you must not arrest Nic. He’s done nothing wrong.”

“Hasn’t he?” Any of the sentimentality he’d felt toward Aurelia vanished by the time he remembered me. “Tell me, slave, how did you get the bulla?”

“It doesn’t matter how I got it.” The magic flared in me again, and I clenched my fists to contain it. “What matters is how I use it.”

Horatio nodded his head at Aurelia. “Wait outside, daughter. I wish to bring you home, so we can talk.” Aurelia tried to say something to me, but one of his soldiers was already escorting her outside, and I still wouldn’t look at her. When she had left, Horatio waved a hand forward for his men. “Burn this house, so other senators may know what happens when they ignore the orders of the emperor. Then arrest anyone who survives.”