As the Romans were walking home, Flaminia turned to her husband with a sweet smile, "Impressive and inflaming display, was it not, dear husband?", she asked in a sugary voice. "Indeed it was, my wife", he agreed. "I think we should celebrate this victory and those responsible for it: even if he is my own property, champion was still trained in Quintus' superb ludus", she added, sharing a brief look with Batiatus, who bit back a shrewd smile.
"Celebrating sounds good", the senator commented, though from the lascivious grin on his lips it was clear what kind of 'celebration' he really had in mind, "Good Batiatus, why don't you come to our home with your lovely wife, so that we may properly express gratitude to you for all the honor that was brought to our family this day?". "I am humbled by your offer, senator and I accept with joy", the lanista bowed his head with outward politeness, but inside he was rejoicing: their plan seemed to be working.
"Good, good. Janus, you agree with this, don't you?", Albinius then asked his (much younger than him) father-in-law and Janus was quick to give his assent. "Of course! It will be pleasure to have such dear friends once again at our home, just like old times. Oh and Quintus, my sympathies for the passing of Titus: he was good man and close friend and my heart aches at the loss".
Batiatus flinched slightly, "Gratitude for words, Janus. It is not easy to get over such pain, but Flaminia's presence and unwavering friendship have been great comfort", he said. "She has been source of strength for us at every turn", Lucretia added with a fond look at the younger woman, "I do not know what we would do without her support".
Flaminia chuckled, "Oh, come now, I am but simple woman, not goddess", she replied, her mind drifting to Ashur and her heartbeat increased its pace as she remembered his voice purring 'my Goddess' in her ear during their lovemaking. She was brusquely and unpleasantly snapped out of it by a hand on her butt and she whipped her head around only to meet her husband's eyes. "Yet, your beauty rivals that of a goddess", he said in what was supposed to be a sultry tone of voice, but she felt only disgust and hatred.
"This is dangerously close to blasphemy", she replied in a forcibly neutral tone, grabbing his wrist and removing the offending hand from her person, "And it is not appropriate for senator to indulge in such familiar behavior in public: if any of the good citizens of Capua should see you doing this, your reputation would suffer hard blow".
He blinked, surprised, but then smiled, "You speak truth, dear wife. It warms heart to see that you have such strong grasp on property and modesty…As is proven by choice of clothing", he added, gesturing towards her long-sleeved ankle-length dress, "Your dress covers more than normal". "I do not want anyone other than man who holds my heart to enjoy sight of my naked flesh", she answered with fake shyness.
The old lecher beamed, for he had no idea the man she was referring to was definitely NOT him, "And enjoy it he will", he whispered to her. "So he will", she agreed and there was a dangerous glint in her eyes as she said that.
When they reached the house of the Lutatius family, Janus led the guests to the main room, where they comfortably lounged on triclinia covered with impossibly soft pillows and enjoyed plenty of fine wine, all save Flaminia, because her husband forbade her to. Not that she cared, quite the contrary, she needed to keep her head clear to better manipulate the old bastard.
After the fifth cup of wine, she decided to begin her game, "You know, dear husband, what you saw this night was only a small taste of what the titans of the House of Batiatus can do. This ludus has given the republic some of the greatest champions of our history, did it not, Quintus?
Magnitius, Adrianus, Dolor, Acerbitas, Zenios, Plotium…And in more recent times, Oenomaus, Gannicus and obviously Ashur", she listed, her voice taking on a slight note of pride as she said the last name, "I think that it would bring great prestige to our family if you, dear husband, were to officially patronize his ludus.
When all the republic will know the name of Quintus Lentulus Batiatus as that of the greatest lanista of our time, it will be to our advantage to be associated with his name, do you not agree?", she concluded, battling her eyelashes at the senator with a flirty smile as the left strap of her dress 'accidentally' slipped down to reveal her naked shoulder.
"Well, having the favor of the citizens would no doubt be useful: too often someone in position of power falls from grace because of lack of support from the crowd", he mused, worried about the recent clashes he had had with other senators who were more popular than him among the people, "And it is clear, from what I saw during the opening games, that good Batiatus knows how to properly lead a ludus. Yet, a senator of the republic consorting with someone of such inferior status as a lanista…".
A flash of fury passed in her dark eyes, but she just kept on smiling, "Oh, if that is the only thing that stops you from accepting, I have solution to this vexing problem: you could grant Quintus a political position, nothing too high of course, but minor one, like…Like aedilis, perhaps. Yes, that would be perfect!", she exclaimed, enthusiastically clapping her hands, "Then he would not be common lanista anymore and it would be no shame for us to patronize ludus".
Both Quintus and Lucretia had to forcibly keep their mouths shut to avoid gaping like landed fishes at her words and the shameless way she was trying to elevate their position, yet the senator was too busy drooling over the tantalizing bits of flesh his wife was showing him to realize he was being played like a cheap lute.
"That is excellent idea, my beautiful wife! And of course it would bring more coin into our purse, which is always good". "Of course, dear husband", she purred, stroking his face despite her revulsion, "Heart swells with joy at knowing I have married such wise and clever man". That was what sealed Albinius' decision and he shot Batiatus a wide smile, "Well, good Batiatus, enjoy this night, for it is your last night as common lanista: tomorrow, you and I will leave for Rome, where I will officially grant you position of aedilis and…".
"Why delay?", the young woman intervened, "You can write down necessary documents right now, without need to leave Capua…And me", she added, fearing that he could change his mind once the effect of the wine had worn off. "Your words have merit. So be it! Bring me parchment, quill and wax, so that I may seal deal".
While one of their house slaves rushed to retrieve the requested items, Batiatus cleared his throat, "My gratitude for granting me this honor, senator Albinius", he said in a fake humble tone, "I will prove myself worthy of it". "I hope so", the older man replied, "But if my wife puts such trust in you and your abilities, I see no reason to doubt them: she has proven to be wise and capable woman, taking care of her family business for years, am I correct, Janus?", he asked his father in law, who nodded.
"Indeed she has", he confirmed with a proud smile, "Gods have blessed us with clever and wise daughter, we could not have asked for better heir", he said, though he could not help shooting a brief apologetic look at Kerovas, who sat on a small bench on the left side of the room along with Nasir. Nobody else knew, but Kerovas was Janus' son: his mother had been bought when she was still a girl and after many secret encounters, she had gotten pregnant of her dominus.
Janus had, of course, not recognized the boy as his own blood, but he had still kept both him and the mother in his house and had the lad trained so that he could one day become his half-sister's guardian. Kerovas did not mind being virtually fatherless, though: his little sister loved him, cherished him and respected him even without knowing of their blood bond and he led a comfortable and safe life within the walls of the House of Lutatius. All in all, he was content with his situation.
When the house slave came back from the study, senator Albinius wrote down the formal document to grant Batiatus the (minor but still important) position of aedilis and signed it, then he let three drops of hot wax drip onto the parchment and pressed his signet ring on it to make it official. "Congratulations, Quintus Lentulus Batiatus: from this moment on, you are an aedilis of the Roman Republic!", he announced solemnly.
Quintus took the parchment with trembling hands, he could barely believe his eyes and ears, "Gratitude, senator Albinius", was all he managed to say, his throat closed in a tight knot with emotion as Lucretia beamed at his side. After that, they celebrated with more wine, until the Moon moved past the zenith and they decided it was time to go to sleep.
"Father, I ask for permission to escort Quintus and Lucretia to their home, along with Kerovas and Nasir: the hour is late and I would not rest easily, knowing that they walk the streets alone in the darkness". Janus hesitated, shooting a quick glance at the senator, but then nodded, "Permission granted, but only if you bring Celadus with you as well", he said, referring to his own satelles, who stepped into the room with a slight bow. "As you wish, father", she nodded and the three Romans, along with the three slaves, left the house.