even though her tunica was fine linen and richly embroidered, the ties around her bodice and waist only accentuated how she had filled out to roundness. She breathed in, blew out the air in a puff, and continued.
“Tatius, is mean.” She leaned forward to find a plum in the bowl. Argolicus watched her breasts sway underneath the soft fabric, and immediately was eluded the inviting glance she gave him. “Would you care for a plum? Or a peach?” Livilla asked in a welcoming hostess voice.
“No, thank you. Tatius?” He was finding the widow Valerius tiresome with no clear picture of her situation and her irritating coquettish ways that belied her plump, middle-aged body. He heard Nikolaos scratching on his tablet.
“You will meet him soon. He does not want to split the inheritance with Secundus. And, he hints that he wants me to leave.” She paused, took a breath, continued, “I’ve been here so long…25 years. I don’t know another life. He keeps telling me he is not legally bound to take care of me. Is that right?”
“Right or wrong, it is the law.” Argolicus was clear on the law. Inwardly he felt relieved. “You are not his mother.”
“Family,” she sighed. All the girlishness was gone. She looked now like a defeated matron. Her shoulders sagged. She started to cry. Nikolaos was scratching away, peering at his tablet, then looking at the garden, then scratching again.
“Livilla Valerius, it is the law, but a very heartless way for a stepson to act. I am sorry.”
She looked up. “There is no law to protect me?”
“Only that which returns your dowry and your marriage pledge goods and money. He can’t keep that. He must return it…”
“I didn’t think it would be like this…”
“Mother,” a rough voice called from the portico arch. “Are you whining again? And to a stranger?”
Livilla wiped her eyes as Argolicus stood up. “Gaius Vitellius Argolicus,” he said.
“Valerius Tatius.” He nodded in greeting. “What is your business?”
Tatius was dressed in a tunic of unbleached linen covered with fruit stains with a large green leaf-stained smudge on the side. He was short and dark, like his mother, with the same blocky body. By his side stood a large dog, broad across the chest, with powerful legs and jaws that looked as though they could crush iron. The dog was entirely white except for a black nose and deep brown eyes that focused on Argolicus.
A warm breeze rustled the plane tree leaves. Nikolaos stopped scratching on the tablet. Livilla cringed.
“Pup, down,” Tatius said in a quiet voice. The dog dropped to the ground, looking up at Tatius with adoration.
“Tatius,” Livilla stood breaking out from her embarrassment. “We are discussing the farm. Tell Argolicus how we do our trade.”
Tatius glanced at Livilla, then looked Argolicus in the eye. “The farm is what you see. The orchards, a few livestock, olives. My father loved farming and so do I. But, Livilla, you don’t pay much attention to the farm. Why were you talking about the farm?”
“I was telling him how much I like it here,” she answered.
“Ha!,” Tatius grunted. Pup looked up concerned.
Author Bio
Zara Altair combines mystery with a bit of adventure in the Argolicus mysteries. The Used Virgin is the first in a series of mysteries based in southern Italy at the time of the Ostrogoth rule of Italy under Theoderic the Great. Italians (Romans) and Goths live under one king while the Roman Empire is ruled from Constantinople. At times the cultures clash, but Argolicus uses his wit, sometimes with help from his tutor Nikolaos, to provide justice in a province far from the King’s court.
Zara Altair lives in Beaverton, Oregon. She is a fiction author writing in the historical mystery genre. Her approach to writing is to present the puzzle and let Argolicus and Nikolaos find the solution encountering a bit of adventure and some humor in their search. Her stories are rich in historical detail based on years of research.
The next mystery in the series, The Peach Widow, is coming soon.
Follow me on twitter.
Read the blog for updates on writing historical fiction.
Join the Argolicus Readers Group for publication updates.