Return to Me - By Morgan O'Neill Page 0,72
the Western and Eastern Empires. You were so beautiful,” he rushed on awkwardly, “all dressed up in a golden gown, you glowed as brightly as the sun.”
“I was but five years of age!” she said, stunned, but unexpectedly laughing.
“True, true, but my feelings then were for your care and safety, not … my thoughts were never … lustful.”
“I am relieved to hear it.”
“Such base feelings have never been a part of my being, unlike … never mind. I assure you, had impure thoughts ever crossed my mind, I would have felt duty-bound to toss myself from a precipice. You will never want for honorable consideration from me.”
She held his gaze for several moments, and, indeed, saw only honesty. “I believe you, Constantius. I thank you, and I willingly entrust myself to your care.”
Placidia turned and motioned to Elpidia, Leontius, and the rest of her household to join her.
“King Wallia,” she said in a clear, carrying voice. “Serve your people as they deserve, treat them well and with honor, for you rule a great and worthy nation.” She kissed his cheeks, squeezed his hands, then stepped to Constantius’s side and turned to face the Visigoths.
She was no longer theirs. She belonged to Rome now, again.
Wallia withdrew his sword and, offering his hilt, took a knee before Constantius. “General of Rome, I, Wallia, King of the Visigoths, offer you my service and dedication.”
Constantius straightened to his full height and gazed down upon Rome’s newest vassal. “Rise, Visigoth, take your sword, mind Rome, and rule well. If you are wise and faithful to Rome, you will have a certain amount of independence. If you disregard Rome, you will die, along with those you rule. There is no middle ground. Do you understand?”
Placidia felt a knot form in her chest as Wallia bowed his head and consented.
“Then rise and clasp my arm in friendship,” Constantius said. “The blockade of food is lifted.”
• • •
Gigi breathed in the soft night air. Magnus walked toward her, lit in the glow of their campfire. She looked beyond him, seeing the dark outline of their ship, just beyond the pearly froth of the reef, which was all she could see of the ocean in the darkness. The children were back onboard, Vana and Lucius keeping watch over them. After the excitement of reaching the island of Gran Canaria, their boundless energy had finally found release in a day full of play on the sandy beach. Then, as dusk neared, and with grit covering every inch of their bodies, the younger ones had fallen asleep almost as soon as they stopped running, and couldn’t even be persuaded to eat before going to bed.
It had been a perfect day.
Magnus dumped some driftwood near the fire. “It is good to be on dry land,” he said.
She smiled at him. He sat beside her and took up a stick, poking at the flames and sending embers into the air, toward the stars. She glanced up and spotted the Pleiades, glorious and twinkling with cold, blue fire.
“We made it here safely,” she said, “but I’m still worried. We need to escape completely, Magnus. We need to go to Ravenna and get back to my world, but it would be so dangerous, for all of us.”
Magnus nodded. “Honorius will never relent in his search for us. If Africanus survived his wounds, neither will he, but I think we must find a way to make it happen. Also, I will not forget the promise we made to your parents.”
Mom and Dad. Gigi recalled the last, tearful moments with them, knowing they would await her return until they drew their last breath. She couldn’t let them down.
She glanced toward the east, imagining Ravenna as it slumbered beneath the same night sky. It was so far away, and yet the dangers were still so great. How could they possibly manage to get the kids into the baptistery and safely to her time, right from under Honorius’s nose — ?
She sucked in her breath and gripped Magnus’s arm.
He turned and stared, his eyes wide. “What?”
“Oh, my God!” she exclaimed, rising to her knees and taking Magnus’s face in her hands. “Honorius dies in the year 423! That’s only seven years from now! All this time I was thinking we had to get them out of here right away, but we can hide here, and then, after he’s gone, Placidia will be queen regent for her son. It will be clear sailing after that.”
Nodding, Magnus took her in his