Masters of Rome by Robert Fabbri Read Free Book Online Page A

last of the smouldering huts. All around lay the bodies of the dead – women and children as well as warriors – sprawled, bloodied and broken. Ahead of him, lined across the hill-fort, from the southern wall to the northern, stood the II Augusta’s first and second cohorts, supported by the third and fourth. Beyond them was a mass of warriors and their families.
    â€˜Looks like they’re going to surrender,’ Magnus observed, scratching his grey hair. ‘They must have decided that a life of slavery is preferable to an honourable death. I’ll never understand these savages.’
    â€˜That suits me; it’ll save a lot of Roman lives and I’ll get a healthy cut of the profit from their sale. But if they are surrendering it must mean that Caratacus is dead.’
    â€˜Or he’s escaped.’
    â€˜Impossible, the fort is surrounded.’
    Magnus grunted, his scarred ex-boxer’s face betraying his scepticism at that assertion, as they dismounted.
    Cogidubnus was waiting for Vespasian next to Tatius. ‘They are willing to surrender; Drustan and Caratacus are dead.’
    â€˜Where are their bodies?’
    â€˜Drustan’s is with them but they claim that Caratacus’ corpse was completely burnt in the fire.’
    â€˜Bollocks!’
    â€˜That’s what I thought; but if they’re willing to surrender they must be confident that Caratacus is safely away.’
    Vespasian scowled. ‘Take their surrender; he can’t have got out of here.’ He turned to Tatius. ‘Have every hut searched fortrapdoors and other hiding places and whilst the lads do that have the prisoners pass through the gates one by one so that Cogidubnus can examine each of them.’ He turned back to the Briton. ‘Even the women; you never know what he could be disguised as.’
    Cogidubnus nodded and walked away with Tatius to organise the surrender and search of the hill-fort.
    Vespasian turned to Magnus. ‘Something is not quite right here. Come on.’
    He kicked his horse towards the south wall and, dismounting, climbed one of the many ladders leading up to the walkway that ran around the palisade’s entire length. Magnus followed him up.
    Looking out around the hill’s circumference Vespasian saw what he expected: it was surrounded by cohort after cohort with never more than a fifty-pace gap between each one. ‘Surely no one could get through that.’ They walked around to the western and then northern sections; every angle was covered.
    â€˜Perhaps he was burnt after all,’ Magnus suggested.
    â€˜No, if he died they would have saved the body to prove it.’
    â€˜Then he must be hiding.’
    â€˜Sir!’ Tatius called from under the west-facing wall. ‘We’ve got something.’
    Vespasian and Magnus ran back and climbed down to the primus pilus; in his hands he held some wooden boards.
    Vespasian looked at the ground at his feet; it was a tunnel entrance, just wide enough to admit a man. ‘Shit!’ He pulled up the remaining boards and saw a ladder within; he climbed in.
    He headed down into darkness with Magnus following. After descending ten feet or so he came to a level tunnel; light could be seen at its far end. He speeded up, anxious to get out of the close confinement. A few moments later his head popped out into the open; in front of him were stakes: he was in the ditch below the palisade. Opposite was another tunnel leading to the second ditch; he made his way through the stakes and climbed in. Pulling himself along with his arms for a dozen or so paces of gradual descent he emerged at the other end into the second ditch. He dusted himself off and looked around. On the far sidewas the only growth of bush that had been allowed to cultivate around the defences on the steep west slope; foot-holes led up the ditch’s side beneath it.
    Magnus joined him. ‘So this is how he got out.’
    Vespasian