Domina Victrix

Chapter 32: 24 AD, Rome and Capri

Juba waited as his body servant and orderly buckled his armor in place. He knew why he had been taken from Brundisium toward Capri, then diverted to Rome. The Ovation was turning out to be a bust, as more and more delegations pulled out of participating. Of the more than a dozen allied kingdoms who fought in the Armenian campaign, only five would have representatives riding in the procession to the Curia.

Claudius had also been sent back to Rome, and both he and Juba had been allowed and ordered to stay with Julius Antonius, who was surety for their good behavior and no attempted escapes by Juba, who was capable of it. Claudius and Julius sat nearby while Juba made ready. As the servants arranged his cloak, Juba reached for the gilt arm braces that Tiberius had sent him. Roman soldiers did not wear wrist bands, but Numidian cavalrymen did. He would have to do without his turban, but he draped a scarf around his neck. Today, he was a Prince of Mauretania, not a Roman Prefectus Equitum.

"I'm proud of gens Antonia," Julius said and stood up along with Claudius. "This will be a day to remember. We have to head out now. See you there."

They left and went to the front drive of the house to board their litters. In a formal Triumph, the Emperor would watch the proceedings from a dais along the parade route. But Tiberius was another no-show, meaning that Claudius was the most senior male member of the Imperial Family present. He, along with Antonia, Livilla, Agrippina and her daughters, Drusus and Nero and their wives would occupy the dais to watch the procession enter the Forum on its way to the Curia.

Juba went outside to wait for his horse. He could see Praetorian cavalry formed up on the front lawn. In theory, they were a guard of honor, but he knew he was in reality a prisoner after today. He sprang into his saddle without needing a boost, and took over the reins. Unlike a Triumph, the commanders and their staffs rode horseback to the Curia. There would be no military units other than Praetorians participating. He set the horse into a canter, letting the Praetorians catch up.

....

Gaius and Alexander of Emessa waited on the front lawn of Antonia's house as orderlies brought their horses. Gaius rolled a pebble with his foot, trying to remember the speech he was supposed to give today. His mind was blank. All his life he had hated being the center of attention. Now it was mandatory and pissing him off, along with Lucius' divorce, and the additional charges levelled against Bolt, which included disobedience of orders, dereliction of duty, cowardice, and conduct unbecoming an officer. A year and more after his humiliation by the Parthians, Bolt was being both celebrated and humiliated again. What Gaius could not understand was why.

"He's done nothing wrong," Alexander of Emessa said as though reading his thoughts.

"Truth doesn't matter when people are trying to make a point," Gaius said.

An orderly boosted him onto his horse and they left the estate, which fronted on the Via Appia into Rome. Memories of his son's hard-knock life filled Gaius' mind. Like Victoria, Bolt was accident-prone and had had his share of broken bones and stitches, but his five near-death experiences stood out the most.

Diphtheria swept their family when Bolt and Victory were five. Three little Antonys died that year. General Marcus lost his second Baby Marcus and a tiny Fadia, and Gaius lost his namesake, Gaius, Jr. Bolt was the only surviving Antony boy but was the worst stricken. Gaius held his son in his arms as Bolt, his neck swollen several times its size, gasped for air. He convulsed with fever and lost conscious for several minutes while his pulse slowed to nothing. As Gaius clutched him and wept, Bolt suddenly caught his breath, reared back, and exploded in bile, hurling undigested gruel, broth, and mushed fruit everywhere. The force of the vomiting dislodged the clump of membrane in his throat enough that Gaius was able to pull it out of his mouth and keep him from choking. With the fever broken and his airway clear, Bolt would mend. But this also marked his first encounter with his great-grandfather.