Duro quickly moves up the stairs with one intention as his mind tortuously replays the scene from this morning, Varro kissing Cassia goodbye as she left his cell. Duro's heart would shatter into smaller pieces every time he thought about the two of them. His only recourse now was to find Varro. As he rounds a corner, he spots Varro and Spartacus sitting down in the mess hall slumped over their bowls. Duro casually walks in, purposely bumping into the seated man before swiping his hand out and knocking Varro's bowl to the floor with a crash. Varro looks up in confusion at Duro who is walking backwards out the door with a smug satisfied look. Varro is noticeably pissed that his food lies on the floor as he continues to stare at it.
"What is your fucking problem?" Varro yells as he stands up to face the taunting man outside.
"I'm tired of you getting everything while I sit here with nothing." Duro spits as Varro closes in the gap between them.
Varro's face contorts at Duro's words before uttering, "You're mad."
Duro lunges, wrapping his arm around Varro's throat. Varro's fist connects to Duro's side causing him to release Varro, stumbling back. Duro slowly circles Varro, contemplating his next attack. He watches Varro roll his shoulders, and Duro takes it as his opportunity, kicking up sand before charging again. As Varro shields his eyes from the debris, Duro darts around him and drives his elbow between his shoulder blades.
Varro arches his back in pain and grinds his teeth to keep from crying out as Duro tackles him to the ground. He lands face first, and Varro uses his weight to roll them over and trap Duro beneath him, smashing his elbow into his chin. Duro yelps, intensely aware of the heavily muscled forearm pressed against his throat, until Varro straddles him and unleashes punch after punch to his head and face. Spartacus hooks his arms under Varro and pulls him off the other gladiator. Varro manages to send a kick to Duro's chest which momentarily knocks the wind out of the man. He stands up, hunching over, attempting to catch his breath.
"You good?" Spartacus asks Varro. He nods in affirmation, but Duro dashes forward and Spartacus releases Varro who delivers a clean uppercut to Duro.
Duro latches onto Varro's arm to save his balance, causing the larger gladiator to drop to his knees. He attempts to kick Varro in the face, but he successfully dodges it, and Duro spins from the force and releases his arm in the process.
Varro responds with a kick to the back of Duro's knees, which sends him sprawling face down in the sand. Stalking over to the downed man, Varro reaches down to grab a fistful of his hair, but a booming voice breaks through the gathered crowd.
"Enough!" Doctore yells with the crack of the whip before moving to the center of the crowd between the two men. Agron has placed himself to stand before his enraged brother, with palms open on his chest and calmly whispering to him. Duro's eyes are still fixated on the other gladiator.
Doctore points to the gladiators, "Take Duro to Medicus and then his cell for the remainder of the day and both of you will starve until sunrise."
Cassia's heart is thumping loudly in her chest as she watches Agron and Hamilcar drag Duro. Medicus steps up next to a bewildered Cassia, "I'm going to need an extra hand." She simply nods in response and follows the old man down to the room where Duro is shrugging off Agron's attempt to calm him down. Seeing Cassia walk in only sends him into another fit of rage.
"No! Get out!" Cassia's eyes well at the coldness and resentment in Duro's voice.
Medicus shakes his head, "Go help the pretty one." Pointing Cassia out the door, she deeply inhales before grabbing a few supplies and hurrying to Varro.
Leaning against the wall in a seated position with his feet stretched before him, Varro raises his head at the sound of Cassia's footsteps. She quickly assesses his injuries which appear minimal compared to Duro's. Afraid to say anything, Cassia quietly cleans the cut above his brow and occasionally looks down but he remains stoic. By the time she finishes, Varro is clenching his jaw. Twisting to stand up, Varro's hand darts out to grab her wrist and pulls her forward. His actions knock her off balance and she clutches his thigh to steady herself.
Varro's normally blue eyes have green flecks; despite the beautiful hue there is no warmth to be found. Cassia is overcome with unease as they continue to stare but the intensity becomes too much and she eventually glances sideways.
"Why?" Varro asks in a flat tone.
Cassia knows exactly what he's asking but she doesn't know the answer herself so she simply shakes her head.
"ANSWER ME!" She jumps at the unexpected roughness.
"I…I don't know…" Cassia replies, barely above a whisper.
"You don't know? Oh, Cassia you are unbelievable." Varro laughs and continues, "I am such a fool."
No longer willing to listen to him berate her, Cassia speaks up, "I don't owe you an explanation."
His brows skyrocket as he scoots closer, "You don't? I'm failing to see your reasoning here, not after all the times you've pushed me away only to lure me back in like some siren."
At this point Cassia's insides are churning as she attempts to steady her nerves and remain or at least appear collected.
"Who I spend my time with isn't your concern." She spits back. Varro's grip on her wrist tightens and he jerks her forward, his mouth to her ear and Cassia squeezes her eyes shut.
"Deny us all you want but it's very real. I won't tolerate being lied to." Before Cassia can respond, Doctore interrupts and Varro drops her hand.
"Are you the woman responsible for this?" Cassia sheepishly looks up at the man unable to respond.
"Your expression gives you away. I don't want to see you in the ludus unless it is required for medical attention. Are we clear?" Cassia nods in response, and Doctore turns to Varro. "You have training. Go!"
"Do you mind telling me what that was all about?" Spartacus asks while making his way into Varro's room. He had been hoping to avoid his friend, thinking that since he was without food for the remainder of the day he would spend meals in a quiet space.
"I'd rather not." Varro huffs in response. It had already been a long morning and being interrogated by his friend was the last thing he wished for.
"We have nothing but time," Spartacus presses but Varro remains silent. Spartacus didn't need Varro to confirm his relationship with Cassia. He had already seen enough to put the pieces together but he felt Varro's circumvention of the matter only manipulated and contorted emotions.
He certainly didn't agree with the dalliance.
Determined to get Varro to speak, Spartacus forces the topic by asking, "And your wife?"
Varro sends Spartacus a deadly stare.
"Just a few weeks ago she was missing and you were beside yourself. What's changed your mind?"
"Nothing."
"That's hard to believe when you've been sneaking around the ludus with another woman."
Varro's eyes squeeze shut as he rakes his face, carefully choosing his words. "I never intended for any of this to happen," He quietly replies.
"Temptation is accompanied by idleness." Spartacus offers.
Becoming irritated with his friend, Varro hastily reacts, "When have I been idle? I bust my ass here."
Spartacus steps toward his friend and grabs ahold of his head to look him in the eyes. "Physically, yes but you allowed your mind to become idle when Aurelia was missing."
"Aurelia and our family is my future but I've gotten caught up in this reality and now." Varro confesses.
"Then you must end it."
"It's not that simple. I care for the woman."
"This will not end well." Spartacus warns.
"So I've been told." Varro retorts, recounting all the times Cassia said those exact words.
The evening air feels good against her hot skin. After finally calming down, Marina offered to go get food for the two but Cassia insisted she was fine. Insisting that she just needed to let a few things go but she wasn't ready to talk. Marina smiled but Cassia could tell she was hurt. Truthfully, Cassia wasn't sure if she could confess to Marina about the mess she had created between herself and the two men.
The gentle breeze rustled the trees, the sky was cloudless allowing the stars to twinkle with a crescent moon cascading a dull light, and crickets chirping all painting a relaxing evening as Cassia gingerly strolling along the ledge; lost in nature. Considering whether she wanted to park herself in her favorite spot or keep moving, muffled voices and giggles stirred through the quiet air and piqued her curiosity. Peeking around the storage, Cassia sees Duro pressing against a woman and whispering in her ear. When the woman laughs again, Cassia feels her pulse increase at the realization of who Duro was with. Shock threatens to overtake her but Cassia quickly shakes off the feeling in an attempt to rationalize. Through no fault of her own, Marina was unaware of her relationship with Duro. He was acting out because of Cassia, the blame lies with her.
Cassia moves away from the building and pretends that she is searching for her friend, "Marina?"
"Duro!" Marina giggles again before slapping the man's shoulder as he nibbles at her ear. Gently pushing Duro away, Marina calls out "Cassia! I'm over here."
Duro stares at Cassia as he brushes a stray hair from Marina's face. In return, Marina offers a sheepish smile and Cassia feels the bile rising before clearing her throat.
"Antonia has been searching for you." Cassia forces the lie out.
"Oh, yes. I completely forgot." Marina nods and smiles at Duro before turning with a wave. As she passes Cassia, Marina has a look of awe and Cassia feels even worse. Marina deserves to be happy and perhaps this moment would provide that, even if Duro was just using her as revenge.
Waiting until Marina is out of earshot, Cassia turns to Duro who looks as if he's eaten a canary.
"I thought you were sent to your cell?"
Duro shrugs, "I have my means."
"Look Duro...," Before she can finish the statement Duro has cut her off.
"Cassia I'm hardly interested in your excuses."
"I understand why you are upset but it wasn't what it appeared to be." Cassia begins and Duro immediately releases a humorless laugh.
"What was it then because it looked like a rat crawling from the toilet?"
Taking a step closer, Duro tenses at Cassia's proximity as she looks him directly in eye before speaking. "I was summoned to his cell."
Duro's face twists at her confession, knowing if it were true she wouldn't have a choice in the matter.
"I'm an ass," Duro quickly replies as he tugs on his hair.
Cassia reaches up to grab his hand while shaking her head no. "Please, let me finish." Duro's brows knit together as he waits for her to continue.
With a slight hesitation, "I was summoned to his cell but it wasn't the first time."
"He forces you to lie with him?" Duro's voice full of anger, looking into Cassia's eyes for confirmation as his mind races with the thought.
Cassia once again shakes her head no. Duro takes a moment to process before squeezing his eyes shut.
"Why are you telling me this?" He asks.
"I owe you the truth. You deserve better than this."
Duro looks away and clenches his jaw.
"I'm sorry, Duro." Cassia says before tears fall.
His hardened expression softens when he sees Cassia crying but his urge to know the truth persuades him from comforting the woman.
"Tell me, Cassia. Did you feel anything for me?" A cold hardness returning to his voice as he questions her.
"Yes."
"But not as much as Varro?"
Cassia covers her mouth to suppress the sobs that are threatening to escape.
"At least you're finally honest." Duro bites before stalking off.
Cassia sits upright as the events of the day jar her from a light slumber. Looking around the room, she is unsure of how she got back to her quarters with exhausting and numbness fighting for dominance.
Pinching the bridge of her nose, Cassia can feel the sting in her eyes as tears trickle down her face. A movement in the hallway pulls her eyes upwards in time to see Varro enter her quarters. He simply nods to the guard as if signaling and the other man scurries out of sight.
Varro barely a few feet from the door eyes the woman, noting her tear stained cheeks.
"I was harsh this morning." Her lip quivers at the recollection. Varro pauses, nervously biting his cheek before deciding to continue, "I am sorry for that."
Cassia reacts with a shaky, "Okay." By some miracle she's still managed to keep herself together as she watches Varro cautiously step closer. She tucks her legs underneath as he kneels before her and places a hand over hers.
"Can we talk and be honest?" Varro queries with a hopeful expression plastered on his face.
Cassia's thumb gently strokes upward at his large palm covering her hand. Her eyes following the movement, knowing a conversation is needed but still scared of the potential outcome but mostly scared of her feelings for the man.
"Cassia?" Varro whispers her name, trying to gain her attention.
"Yes, Varro we should talk."
"There's really no better way to say this but the fact is I've lost sight of what is important, the reason I'm here in this ludus, to correct my past mistakes. I need to focus on Aurelia and our family, and being the man I should be for them."
Cassia blankly stares at the man, his words stinging as they resonate. She quickly withdraws her hand from underneath his, quickly slapping his face as she jumps up to her feet.
"How thoughtful of you, waiting until I have nothing left before deciding to do the right thing." Cassia bitterly retorts.
Standing with a spin to face her, Varro asks, "What good shall come from holding a wolf by its ears?"
"How many times did I say that very thing?!" Cassia shouts back, her lip quivering in frustration.
With a deep exhale, Varro steadies his voice, "It was foolish and selfish of me to think you'd ever reciprocate my feelings."
"Varro that's not true." Cassia says in a low voice. Varro pauses, wondering if he heard her correctly. Seeing the bewilderment on his face, Cassia deeply inhales before continuing, "I realize I have been pushing you away but it's out of fear. The only man I've ever cared for, the man that was supposed to protect me betrayed me. Out of self-preservation I decided to never allow someone to cast me away again. Then you came along and admitting feelings for you meant I could once again be disposable."
Holding Cassia's head, Varro places his forehead to hers before leaning down to kiss her. Cassia's arms instinctively wrap around Varro, trailing fingers down his back as their lips move in unison. Suddenly Varro stiffens before parting, gently placing his hands on her shoulders to establish distance.
"No." He shakes his head to make a point. Cassia pinches her brows in confusion.
"I meant everything I said about my family." Cassia shakes her head as tears well up. "I don't expect you to believe me but I do care about you. I'm sorry for misleading you, for all of this."