For a Roman's Heart Read online

  Table of Contents

  Dedication

  Author’s Note

  Glossary

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  Look for these titles by Denise A. Agnew

  Trapped between cruel parents and the need to hide her gift of second sight from suspicious villagers, Adrenia Tertia Brigomalla walks a line as thin as the threads she weaves. The need for independence burns fierce in her heart, but not as hot as her unexpected attraction to a Roman soldier who comes to the village in search of a deserter.

  Though hardened by war, Centurion Terentius Marius Atellus defies any man to harm an innocent. Nothing shakes his relentless determination to track down a murderous legionnaire with a taste for young women. Yet Adrenia’s spirit and vulnerability spark a protective instinct stronger than duty…and temptation that could be his downfall.

  Fragile trust built on stolen kisses and a premonition saves his life and drives his offer of the ultimate protection—marriage. While she revels in the feral passion he awakens within her, Adrenia would sooner brave the fires of Hades than trade one yoke for another.

  It’s a decision that could leave them both dangling above a precipice they may not survive…

  Warning: Searing passion meets gritty reality of Roman life. Trespass only if you dare...

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  They cannot be sold, shared or given away as it is an infringement on the copyright of this work.

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  Samhain Publishing, Ltd.

  577 Mulberry Street, Suite 1520

  Macon GA 31201

  For a Roman’s Heart

  Copyright © 2011 by Denise A. Agnew

  ISBN: 978-1-60928-326-1

  Edited by Bethany Morgan

  Cover by Kanaxa

  All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  First Samhain Publishing, Ltd. electronic publication: January 2011

  www.samhainpublishing.com

  For A Roman’s Heart

  Denise A. Agnew

  Dedication

  To the real Terentius, my husband, Terrance Brennan Agnew.

  Author’s Note

  Roman history is a complex and fascinating subject. Long before I started writing For A Roman’s Heart, I had an interest in all things Roman, but I hadn’t researched it in any great depth. In the 1990s I was fortunate to live in England for three years, and yet I didn’t take nearly as much time to learn about the archaeology of Roman Britain as I could have. Because I lived near the areas described in this book, I knew the setting for my story would center primarily near those locations. Once I decided to write For A Roman’s Heart, I knew the research would take significant time and energy. Researching Roman Britain, though, became a joy. It’s been a wonderful journey, and I’ve learned so much.

  Integrity requires that I research the history for my historical novels to the fullest extent, yet I know I’m writing fiction, not a history book. Because of that, I have taken literary license in many places. The fort described at Godmanchester, England—Durovigutum—is loosely based on a fort that has been excavated. Because the fort was long gone by AD 167, this is an area where I’ve altered history. The villa property owned by the character Decimus Caelius Cordus is also a conglomeration of many villas that once existed in England.

  From my research on the Roman system of tria nomina—three names, I realized that my heroine’s family’s names would confuse the reader. Further research showed me that a variety of naming conventions came and went from Republic times to the time of the Principate, especially with regards to female names. Girls were often named after their father in the feminine form. If there was more than one girl in the family they might be called, for example, Adrenia Major—first born, Adrenia Minor—second born. Because there are several girls in my heroine’s family, she is named as three or Tertia as the third girl born. Since I loved the idea of the hero and heroine eventually calling each other by the first name in an intimate fashion, I also took liberties with history when they call each other Adrenia and Terentius.

  I thought it important to mention that women in ancient Rome were considered marriageable by age fourteen. It would not be unusual, therefore, for a woman of fourteen to marry a man far older than her. Married life and sexual relations were very different in those times from ours, although if we had a time capsule there might be more things we’d have in common now with our Roman ancestors than we ever imagined. In researching this history, I was amazed at how much of our modern lives are molded based on many centuries of Roman rule over a large percentage of our Earth.

  Fictional Battle vs. Fact

  While Legio II Italica was formed by Marcus Aurelius in AD 165, the battle depicted in my book featuring Legio II Italica is pure fiction. The Marcomannic Wars, called bellum Germanicum or expeditio Germanica, were a series of wars lasting from AD 166 until AD 180. The Roman Empire fought against the Marcomanni, Quadi and other Germanic people along both sides of the upper and middle Danube. According to some sources, Legio II Italica and Legio III Italica crossed the Alps into Pannonia in AD 168. While the Marcomanni and Victuali Vandals had crossed the Danube into the province, according to Historia Augusta, the imperial army’s approach persuaded the tribes to withdraw.

  Glossary

  Aedes: Repository and shrine of legion standards

  Ala or Alae: Calvary unit

  Ballista or ballistae: Artillery engine firing either stones or arrows

  Beneficiarius: Legionaries stationed at various places that may have undertaken police work and perhaps gathered intelligence

  Caledonia: Scotland

  Caligae: Type of military sandal/footwear

  Caldarium: Hot steam room in bath

  Catapultae: Catapult

  Carroballistae: Type of ballistic weapon

  Catuvellauni: Tribe of ancient Britain based in the area now known as East Anglia

  Centurion or Centurio: Officer rank in command of a century

  Cohort: A unit of four hundred to eight hundred men

  Cuirass: Body armor

  Deva: Chester, England

  Deva Victrix Castra Legionis: The Fortress at Deva, home to the Twentieth Legion

  Dominus or Domina: Master, Mistress, Sir, Madam

  Durobrivae: Water Newton, Cambridgeshire, England

  Durovigutum: Godmanchester, Cambridgeshire, England

  Duroliponte: Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England

  Eboracum: York, England

  First Spear: Nickname for the Primus Pilus, the top centurion of the first cohort

  Frigidarium: Cold room in bath

  Germania: Germany

  Gladius: Short spear worn by soldiers

  Iceni: Ancient tribe of Britain in what is now known as East Anglia

 
Impluvium: Rectangular section in an atrium floor or courtyard that collects water

  Italia: Italy

  Laconicum: Hot room in bath

  Lancea: A type of javelin

  Lararium: Altar in the home where offerings and prayers are made, usually set in the atrium.

  Lares: Roman household deity

  Legio: Legion

  Legion XX Valeria Victrix: The Twentieth Legion Valorous and Victorious

  Legatus Legionis: Legion commander

  Londinium: London

  Mansio: Public area with accommodations for travelers

  Neapolis: Naples

  Noviomagus: Noviomagus Reginorum is now called Chichester, situated in the modern English county of West Sussex.

  Optio: Second in command to a centurion

  Palla: Garment for women

  Paterfamilias: Highest-ranking male in a Roman household

  Praetorium: Commanding officers house in fortress

  Praenomin: Essentially, a first name

  Primus Hastatus Posterior: Centurion fifth in command of the first cohort—Terentius’s rank

  Primi ordines: Centurions of the first cohort in a legion

  Principia: Headquarters of a Roman fort/administrative offices

  Quaestionarius: Interrogator

  Signum: Standard

  Spatha: Long sword

  Stola: Garment for women

  Strophium: Bands of cloth tied around the bust

  Tepidarium: Warm steam room

  Thermae: Bath complex

  Tunica: Female version of a tunic

  Tribunus Laticlavius: Senatorial tribune and second in command of the legion

  Via Devana: Roman road leading from Deva and terminating in Durovigutum— Godmanchester—and connecting to an Iron-Age track way called Ridgeway that eventually led to Camulodunum—Colchester

  Via Praetoria or Pratoria: Road leading from the most important gate to the porta praetoria up to the headquarters building—principia—which lay behind the Via Principia

  Via Principalis: Road running between the gateway in each of the longer sides of a fort.

  Vitis: Stick carried by a centurion used to inflict beatings

  Chapter One

  “Every instant of time is a pinprick of eternity.”

  Marcus Aurelius

  Roman Emperor (AD 161–180), AD 121–AD 180

  AD 167

  Deva Victrix Castra Legionis

  Home to Legio XX Valeria Victrix

  Britannia

  Late-September rain drizzled on Centurion Terentius Marius Atellus as he marched into the principia of the fortress, his full rank and name announced in loud tones by the soldier standing at the open door.

  “Primus Hastatus Posterior Terentius Marius Atellus.”

  If he screwed this up, it might be the last rank he achieved.

  A lofty title he’d aspired to for so long, and now that he’d owned the rank for a week, Terentius’s heartbeat raced and sweat beaded on his brow.

  His skin itched under the tunic, weighed down by scale armor. A small annoyance. He thought long and hard, in the few seconds that passed, about what he’d done to displease his superiors. When the first spear of his cohort had called him forth and told him the legion commander demanded his presence at the principia, Terentius had experienced a sensation he thought he’d shoved to the background for fifteen long years in the army. Stark fear.

  As if crucifixion was coming, or maybe the slice of cold, brutal blade across his throat.

  Terentius stopped at the doorway, awaiting permission to enter from the legion commander, Gaius Rufius Cilo.

  “Come!” Cilo’s voice rang out solid and cold.

  Goddess Disciplina and Mars, god of war, give me strength.

  Terentius strode into the room, his left hand on his gladius, his gaze landing on Cilo, and the senatorial tribune and second in command of the legion, Titus Julius Lurco. Terentius took a deep breath and met their gaze head on. For both of them to be here, he must have committed a tremendous sin against the gods. He straightened his stance. He towered over Cilo and Lurco. Both men sat—Cilo behind an opulent desk, Lurco in an extravagant chair nearby.

  “Terentius Marius Atellus at your command.” Terentius signaled his allegiance as he pumped his fist against one shoulder of his armor, then sliced outward with open hand in a standard salute.

  Cilo stood, his tunic and armor across a broad chest and war-hardened body. The man looked like a pale frog with blond hair and piercing grey eyes.

  “Atellus, step forward.” Cilo’s voice was sonorous and as authoritative as his station. “We have work for you to do.”

  Lurco stood as well. “Important work.”

  Terentius’s gaze bounced from man to man. “What would you have me do?”

  “We understand that a legionnaire has deserted.”

  Now Terentius understood. Moisture from his soaked hair trickled down the back of his neck. “Yes. A man under my command. Publius Sergius Sulla.”

  “You reported it this morning.” Cilo walked toward Terentius. His gaze went hard and angry. “Did he leave this morning?”

  Terentius wanted to shift on his feet, but he didn’t dare move. “My optio interrogated two other soldiers in the same tent as the deserter, and they say he left this morning. Sulla has talked of deserting before.”

  Lurco snorted, his face contorting in disgust. He jammed a hand through his thick dark hair. “They didn’t turn him in?”

  Terentius shook his head and gripped his gladius a little harder. Feeling the cold metal under his fingers gave him strength for whatever punishment would come. “No. They’ve been punished.”

  Lucro sneered. “By death, I hope?”

  Terentius stiffened. “By whipping. I thought the punishment should fit the crime. Sulla will find crucifixion when he’s located.”

  Cilo cleared his throat and walked closer. He stood sharp, his eyes clear and not accusing as Terentius expected. “There is penalty for a centurion who allows one of his men…more than one…to go astray.”

  Terentius swallowed, his mouth and throat dry as dirt on a twenty-mile march. “More than one man?”

  Lurco approached Terentius with full-scale dislike in his eyes and his mouth a tight line. “The men who didn’t stop Sulla and Sulla himself.”

  As compliance to superior officers had been drilled into him since age sixteen, Terentius said, “I’ll take whatever penalty I deserve.”

  Cilo placed his hands on his hips and paced. “We can’t have undisciplined, rogue soldiers within the legion, and we can’t have those same soldiers leaving Deva to create havoc beyond. Do you agree, Atellus?”

  Terentius nodded. “Yes, sir.”

  “You are a valued soldier. The command you respect with the first cohort and your superiors is extraordinary. How old are you?” Cilo asked.

  “Twenty-eight.”

  Cilo’s thick eyebrows rose high. “Young for a centurion.”

  “Two years shy of the average, sir.”

  Cilo nodded. “Still. Extraordinary. What is your final goal in the twentieth?”

  Terentius didn’t have to lie. “To lead my men with strength and honor.”

  Cilo barked a hearty laugh and slapped a hand on Terentius’s shoulder, then released him. Terentius’s armor clinked. “A natural goal, of course. Maybe if you have letters of recommendation from people such as myself. If you take your punishment like a true Roman citizen, you might well receive a letter from me and a faster promotion to the next rank.”

  Terentius’s gut clenched. “I understand that is the way of it, sir. But I have reached my rank on discipline and hard work, and loyalty to Rome. My father—”

  Lurco shoved a tankard across the desk, and it made a harsh squeaking sound. “Who was your father?”

  Terentius loosened his grip on his gladius and transferred the tension to the hilt of the sword on his right hip. “Lucius Fabius Atellus.”

  “A fine man. He own
ed a villa here in Deva, did he not?” Cilo asked.

  Harsh memories attempted to surface, but Terentius kept them shoved deep in his psyche where they belonged. “He did. He taught me that my word is my honor, sir. A man is worth nothing if he has no integrity.”

  “And with that honor you understand that you could receive severe rebuke and punishment for your inability to keep the proper discipline in your ranks?” Cilo asked.

  Terentius gained his fortitude. His heart no longer beat fast, his pulse no longer throbbed hard in his veins. Whatever fate willed, he would face it without flinching. “I do, sir.”

  With a wide sweep of his hand Cilo asked, “If you were me, Centurion, what punishment would you levy upon yourself in this situation?”

  Stunned by the question, Terentius dared to gaze straight into the commander’s eyes. He found his voice. “I would ask him to do what it takes, however long it takes, to find Sulla. I would ask that he do this alone…alone except for the assistance of his optio. It would restore the legion’s respect if he captured the rogue soldier.”