Radulf motioned the branding iron away, then stood again and smiled down at me. “When did you know?”

“That night we fought at the baths. You spoke my father’s name. At first I thought Livia must’ve told it to you, but I’m certain she’s never known his name.”

“I know it now,” Livia said. “I’ve learned so much about both him and Mother. Pater taught me.”

“I told you not to call him that! He’s an enemy to us.”

She straightened her back. “Don’t talk to me like I’m a child! He’s been good to me. And to you too.”

I snorted. Maybe he hadn’t told her about trying to kill me on more than one occasion. Of course, I’d hardly been an ideal grandson to him either.

“You don’t have to love me as a grandfather,” Radulf said. “But the blood that runs through my veins also runs in yours, and you cannot deny who you are forever.”

“Yeah?” I snarled. “Watch me.”

“Our family has the ability to do more than rule Rome. Don’t you see, Nic, we can rule the gods! With your help, we can defeat the Praetors, and from their knowledge, succeed where your father failed. We will create a Jupiter Stone, which will make me immortal.”

“It will make you insane.” I cleared my dry throat. “Or, more insane, if that’s possible.”

Radulf shook his head. “Insanity would be living under the iron boot of this empire when it’s within my reach to control it. We can achieve this immortality together!”

“Why should I believe that? After you tried to kill me?”

“I was teaching you, and testing you.” He smiled. “And only occasionally actually trying to kill you. But we will work together now.” His hand slipped to the mark on my back, which felt like dead space now. “I pulled the magic out, but I could have done more. If I’d wanted to take the rest of you, I would’ve succeeded.”

“And what good do you suppose that mark does me now?” I asked.

“You are still my grandson, Nic.” I gritted my teeth and turned away from him, but he continued speaking as if I had just pledged him eternal loyalty. “How did you create that storm in the arena? You must have the key.”

I knew for a fact that Horatio hadn’t given me anything, nor did I understand what he meant when he said he had given the key to me, and kept it for himself. But to Radulf, I only said, “The bulla must’ve given me the power to call that storm. Though on you, it looks rather childish.”

“Yes. Well, don’t worry, Nic, I still have plenty of use for you.”

“I’d rather eat cow dung.” Or better yet, feed it to Radulf.

“Then Valerius wins the Praetor War. Eventually, he will beat us to the Malice of Mars, and find a way to obtain a Jupiter Stone. With them, he will bring the entire world to its knees. There will be nothing beyond Rome, for Rome will be everything.”

I wanted to accuse him of lying, to spit the truth back in his face. More so, I wished everything he said could be a lie. But in my heart, I knew it wasn’t. I was caught in the middle of a war between two sides I could not support. If I joined Radulf, a city I had come to love would be destroyed. But if I joined Valerius, there would be nothing left in the world but an empire that had kept me and so many others in chains.

Radulf leaned in to me. “I will train you to become as powerful as I am now, and as powerful as your father once was. He was a great man, Nic. It does not honor his memory for you to live in chains. Or die in them.”

“Then let me go.” I held my chained hands out to Radulf. “In the name of my father, release me. Now.”

Radulf requested the key, which was set into his palm. He stuck the key into the lock and released my hands first and then my legs. I scrambled to my feet as quickly as possible, to get away from the chains.

I held out my hand to Livia. “Let’s go.”

She only stared back at me as tears welled in her eyes. “Let’s stay, please, Nic. Our home is with Radulf now.”

“Not every chain is made of metal,” I told her. “The worst are made of comfort and false promises. You’re no more free here than you were in the mines.” But she would not budge, so with my heart heavy and torn, I started to walk away.

Except that with a nod of his head, Radulf had his guards raise their swords to block my path. I stopped short of them but refused to look his way. Speaking to my back, he said, “I admire your courage to leave — truly, you are your father’s son. But you must know that I can’t allow it. If you try to leave, ever, there will be consequences for those you love.” Radulf’s hand went onto Livia’s shoulder.

Livia’s eyes widened when she understood Radulf’s threat. And only then, too late, did she understand that our family ties weren’t nearly as strong as his desire to control an empire. And to control me.

“I will win the Praetor War,” Radulf said. “At any price.”

He drew his own sword, but it was still in the air before I raised a hand and yelled, “Stop!” Radulf locked eyes with me, and I hated the glint of triumph in his. But there was nothing more I could do. I would not test Radulf against my sister.

“We will join your house,” I muttered.

“We will join your house …” He raised an eyebrow, waiting for me to finish the phrase.

My hands curled into fists. “We will join your house, Grandfather.”

“And you will become part of the Praetor War, as you always were meant to do.”

With that, he thrust Livia toward me and replaced his sword. I wrapped my arms around her as she cried on my shoulder.

“We had better leave before Valerius arrives with his victory celebration,” Radulf told his men. “I must gather a few things, and by then, you will have my grandchildren in the wagon ready to travel back to my home.”

As soon as he left, Livia whispered, “That threat — he couldn’t have meant it.”

“He did mean it, Livia. You have to accept what kind of a person he really is. That’s the only way we’ll ever escape him.”

“How? We have nothing. Without him, we are nothing.”

I shook my head. “That’s not true.”

The soldier who had spoken before motioned us to walk forward. “You two follow me. Any tricks and I’ll poke the person walking beside you.”

Livia took my arm where I had received the burn in the arena. “What happened to you?”

I looked at the wound. It had started to heal, but not entirely. And the pain was so minimal that I had almost forgotten about it. It was still healing, despite Radulf having pulled so much magic from my shoulder. Despite Radulf having taken the bulla. It was healing anyway.

“I know about the bulla,” Livia said. “Radulf told me the jewels in it come from the gods.”

I couldn’t suppress a grin. “There are jewels in it, yes. But not from the gods.” The ones with the glow were sitting inside Aurelia’s crepundia. While still on the lift to enter the arena, I had switched them. There was nothing in the bulla but Aurelia’s cheap imitation stones and a fading scent of magic.

“Radulf is making a mistake by bringing us into his home,” I told her. “Before I leave, I will know exactly how to defeat both him and Valerius. And I will get that bulla back.”

With that thought, my smile widened. The bulla was only part of my magic. The rest was in the Divine Star. And even now, as my strength began to recover, I felt a prickle in my shoulder. Caesar’s power had awoken within me once again.

My battle had only just begun.