Page 63 of Agrippa

– Nobody. Except you.

He took me out onto the terrace, where we could not be overheard, and ordered food and drink to be brought. He instructed the slave who fetched it to taste each dish and sip the wine. Only when the man had suffered no ill effects did he dismiss him, and even then, when he picked up a piece of fruit, he sniffed it and put it down again.

He noticed my surprise.

– I have learned to be careful. I saw Marcellus, sitting just where you are, only two days before he died. He seemed fit and healthy enough to me.

– I thought he died from the pestilence.

– So they say.

– You think he was poisoned?

– It is possible. He was taken so quickly. His doctors were appalled.

– But who would have done such a thing?

– Someone who was determined at all costs to prevent him becoming my successor. And we both know who that might be.

I replaced my own food on its plate.

– Livia?

– That is Maecenas’s theory. I sent him packing and haven’t seen him since, for other reasons I’ll tell you in a moment. But he planted the seed and now I can’t rid my mind of the thought. She’s capable of it, you know.

– But surely, even if she poisoned Marcellus, she wouldn’t want to poison you. That would destroy the source of her power.

– True enough. Maybe not Livia, then. But there are plenty of others who would be happy to get rid of me. Do you remember Aulus Murena, Maecenas’s brother-in-law, whom you persuaded to resign as consul elect in favour of Piso?

– I thought he was dead.

– He is. But his younger brother, Lucius, has returned from his legateship in Syria, and is determined on revenge. And I fear he has found the perfect way to exact it. My enemies in the Senate are prosecuting the former governor of Macedonia, Marcus Primus, for waging an illegal war against the Odrysians. Murena has joined forces with that ambitious schemer Fannius Caepio, and is to undertake Primus’s defence.

– And what is his defence?

– He has yet to testify, but I’m told he plans to claim that I ordered him to invade Odrysia.

– And did you?

– No, of course not! I’m only too aware of how sensitive the Senate is about any interference in their provinces.

– Then you are in the clear.

– Unfortunately, it seems to have been some scheme of Marcellus’s, to seize the treasure of the Odrysians, split the proceeds with Primus and pay off his debts. And apparently he used my name to persuade Primus to go along with it. So you see I’m bound to be dragged in. I had such hopes for that boy, but I fear he was not as clever as I thought he was. Anyway, Maecenas is also the brother-in-law of this Murena, and although he swears his loyalty is to me alone, I don’t entirely believe him. What a mess it all is!

There was no apology to me for his misjudgement in putting so much faith in Marcellus. Nor did I expect one. Contrition was not in his nature. In all our years together, I never once heard him say sorry. But here he was, facing a political crisis – suspicious of everyone, even his wife and the man who had been his closest political adviser. For all his power, he was alone.

Of course, I said I would help him.

I was hungry after my journey, so I started to eat. And after watching me for a while, and seeing I was unharmed, Augustus did the same.

At Augustus’s request, I remained with him in the Alban Hills as the trial of Primus opened in the Forum. Each evening, a messenger would arrive from Rome bearing a transcript of the day’s proceedings.

It was a spectacle that by all accounts was drawing huge crowds – senators prosecuting one of their own for treason, before a jury of their peers, and washing all their dirty linen in public. Officials and soldiers testified to their roles in the military expedition. The outraged Odrysians gave evidence detailing the statues, artworks, and precious metals that had been stolen, and the taxes levied on their occupied towns. Primus’s steward was called; he produced his master’s accounts and revealed where the money had gone. By the time the prosecution had finished laying out its case, Primus’s reputation was in ruins, and there was a general expectation he would flee the city to avoid the verdict.

But then Murena began his defence. He did not bother to cross-examine any of the prosecution’s witnesses. He simply called Primus to the stand and asked him to explain what had led him to start a war against a Roman ally.

Primus replied that he was obeying orders.