The Secrets of Samos
Chapter one
The arrival
Flavia rested her head into her ex slave girl Nubia's lap. Nubia who she had set free in the house of the patron Publius Polius Felix who, in her early years Flavia had fallen in love with. They were travelling by yacht to the Greek isle of Samos which, according to her friend Polla Pulcra it is very beautiful at this time of year.
Flavia got up and walked over to Jonathan who was sitting in the corner of the yacht reading a letter with Pulcra's seal on it. She knew this because she and Pulcra had been writing each other letters for the pats years since they had met at the villa Limona when Vesuvius had erupted. He had been getting a lot of letters with this seal on it in the past few weeks. Being a detective Flavia could see that he had been reading this one a lot. He was reading it quite vigorously, banging his head on the side of the yacht.
Lupus was lying asleep on one of the oak benches with a wax tablet and a stylus clutched tightly in his hand. Flavia carefully crept over to lupus checking that Nubia and Jonathan weren't looking. Nubia was or at least seemed to be asleep and Jonathan was to engrossed in his letter to notice. Flavia took the wax tablet and read it. Written on the wax tablet was I think that Jonathan loves Pulcra and Pulcra loves Jonathan! Flavia picked up the stylus and wrote on the wax tablet not a chance Lupus not a chance.
Flavia slowly walked back. As she did so Jonathan spotted her and hastily stuffed the letter into his bag.
"What were you reading Jonathan?" enquired Flavia.
"Just a poem by Lucas, Polla Argenteria's ex husband who Nero made slit there veins as a form of dignified execution" Jonathan lied. "Anyway I should be getting to sleep" Jonathan said eager to change the subject.
"Night Jonathan" said Flavia.
"Night Flavia" Jonathan replied.
He closed his eyes but Flavia could knew he wasn't actually trying to get to sleep. He was just waiting until she fell asleep so he could take out his precious letters and start reading them again.
Flavia sank down on to the bench next to where Nubia was curled up in a ball just like the three dogs Nipur, Scuto and Tigris she closed her eyes and fell asleep almost instantly. Flavia was standing in a beautiful pearly white wedding dress with her husband Gaius Valarius Flaccus linking her arm and standing next to her. It was there wedding day.
The priest taking the ceremony spoke and said "if anyone knows why these two lovely people cannot get married here today speak now or forever hold their tongue."
"No Flavia you can't!" It was Tranquillis. "I love you" he shouted.
He shoved Flaccus out the way then licked Flavia on the cheek. Flavia woke up. The three dogs were licking her face, they had arrived at the Greek isle of Samos. Flavia knew the dream couldn't be true because she was already happily married to floppy (Flaccus). The others were already up, staring out of the window at the port as the yacht studded to a halt. Pulcra was waiting for them on the harbour. She was starring at Jonathan with a beaming look on her face. Jonathan was staring back at her with an odd kind of expression on his face. It was a cross between a smile a look of surprise and a look of shock.
Jonathan was first of the yacht closely followed by Lupus then came Nubia then finally, clambering off the yacht came Flavia. Jonathan ran straight off the yacht down the ramp, onto the port then to the harbour straight to Pulcra without even panting of coughing from his asthma, looked straight into her beautiful blue eyes and shouted at the top of his voice "yes"!
Pulcra screamed with delight. They hugged, burst out laughing then kissed. Lupus and Flavia stood there with looks of shock edged upon their faces. But Nubia didn't seem to be shocked.
"Am I missing something?" asked Flavia who was still overcome by shock.
"You know those scrolls of poetry I was reading? "Jonathan said.
" Yes go on" encouraged Flavia.
" They weren't actually poetry they were letters from the beautiful and amazing Polla Pulcra."
"Yes get to the point" said Flavia.
"okay" Jonathan said. "Pulcra asked me to marry her and I said yes." Jonathan and Pulcra giggled.
Flavia and Lupus stood there rooted to the spot with their mouths hang open in a perfect 0 shape. Again Nubia wasn't surprised in fact she looked quite calm about this hectic situation.
"Nubia you don't look surprised?" said Pulcra Jonathan's newly betrothed. "did you know?" she enquired.
"It's the way you've been looking at each other", said Nubia "giving each other honey looks."
Trust Nubia to figure out everyone's secrets Lupus wrote on his wax tablet. They all laughed. I'd better tell Pater Pulcra said.
"WHAT" exclaimed Flavia "Felix is here" she could feel her cheeks growing hot.
"Oh yes" said Pulcra skipping dreamily in the distance.
"Jonathan this is being great news" said Nubia "now all of use are married or at least getting married."
"All except Lupus" said Jonathan.
"I bet lupus wants to marry Clio" said Flavia cheekily.
Lupus ,who had started to turn read shook his head, pretended to be sick and then hid his face behind his wax tablet. Pulcra came striding back though the masses of people her face beaming with happiness and excitement. She put her hand in jonathans and walked off beckoning for the others to follow.
She called out to them "when we get back to the villa I'll tell you what the mystery I want you to solve is."
Felix was waiting for them at them at the white pristine marble villa Dolfento. The villa is called this because three minuets walk away is a beach where dolphins have regularly swam with and spotted. "Hello Flavia" said Felix whose surprisingly grey hair floated in the wind.
"Hello" said his beautiful wife Polla Argenteria who they had saved the life of when she was trying to commit suicide. Felix smiled at Flavia. She looked down trying to avoid looking in to the blue eyes of the person she use to love. Felix showed them to their rooms. Flavia and Nubia sat down on Nubia's bed and looked, on the walls the story of odious was painted on the walls in bright colours. Flavia noticed something on the wall next to her bed. She uttered a blood curdling scream. Engraved into the wall was sleep here tonight and you will never wake up. Lupus and Jonathan ran in.
"We heard screaming lots of screaming" said Jonathan.
"Flavia was very screamy" said Nubia who had not yet mastered the full Latin vocabulary.
Flavia pointed to the words engraved into the wall.
"Sleep here tonight and you will never wake up Jonathan read aloud."
It's just empty words Lupus wrote on his wax tablet.
"Yes but it's still frightening, who would do such a thing?" enquired Flavia.
"I is not liking it too" whispered Nubia.
"Come on you depressed bunch" said Pulcra cheerily.
Nubia, Lupus, Jonathan and Flavia followed Pulcra into the bath house. The girls went into one with pink walls and the boys into the other. The male section of the baths had a cold plunge and a sauna and a standard warm central pool. All of the rooms in this section had been painted in green and orange stripes which made Jonathan feel slightly queasy. Meanwhile Nubia, Pulcra and Flavia were enjoying massages with lemon scented oils.
"Pulcra when exactly are you going to tell us about this mystery?" asked Flavia.
"I'll tell you in a little while" said Pulcra twirling her luscious curls.
Nubia was staring mindlessly out of the window softly humming the slave song to herself. She was missing her husband Flavia's Greek tutor Aristo. She longed to hear his sweet lyre accompanying her flute.
"Behold!" Said Nubia "a thrush the bird if given means love."
When they had got changed they all went into Nubia's and Flavia's room to hear the mystery. "Okay" said Pulcra "here we go you know about seven months ago when you told me Flaccus was you husband. Three days later my husband tried to kill me and now I think he is trying to kill other freeborn children as well" Pulcra said quickly.
"What" exclaimed Flavia.
"Leida bring in our surprise" said Pulcra.
"Aristo," Nubia screamed as she ran into his outstretched arms.
He kissed her on the forehead. He sat down and reclined in-between Nubia and Flavia. Pulcra's slave Leida bought in some honey glazed dormice, some olives and some grapes. Then Parthanope brought in some lemon snow. As Flavia tasted it she remembered of the summer when Vesuvius had erupted the day she had kissed Tranquillis in the secret den behind the villa Limona. She felt lonely now she, apart from lupus who wasn't married . She was the only one in the house without their husband or wife or betrothed. She opened her eyes. Pulcra and Jonathan had snuck off somewhere so she and Nubia went up to bed it had been a long journey from their villa in Hereclalanius. Meanwhile Jonathan and Pulcra had snuck off to Pulcra's room. Jonathan sat on Pulcra's bed Pulcra sat in front of him leaning against his legs.
"Jonathan" she said as he ran this fingers through her luscious blonde curls "do you want to do something ?"
"Okay" he replied slightly nervously.
Without further ado she pressed her lips to his and kissed him like he had never been kissed before, their arms slowly wrapped around each other in a passionate embrace.
A/N - Please tell me what you think of this story and if you have any queries please do not hesitate to ask them. Thanks for reading :)
