The Emperor's Assassin

Chapter Two

I turned around, found Camilla behind me. We did not look like sisters. Camilla had fair hair, a round face, and ivory skin like Mother, while I had Father's dark hair, high cheekbones, and olive skin.

"Father said a timely arrival is long overdue. Everyone is present. Everyone!" said Camilla. "What are you waiting for?

I chucked her gently on the chin. "Pricilla said I must make a grand entrance."

"I don't recall saying that." Pricilla tucked a disobedient lock into my coiffure.

"Are you dining with us?" I asked Camilla.

"Pffft! Father says I am allowed to dine with the adults but only if I sitin a chair! I'm almosta woman! Any day now, I know it! I refuse to eat on a chair like a child or servant! I told Father I must recline on the couch with the other guests or I will not attend!" She thrust out her bottom lip.

Despite her insistence, Camilla still looked like a child, her hair tousled from running, her hem speckled with vineyard mud.

"Maybe if you bathed and Pricilla adorned your hair..."

A quiet cough alerted me to another presence.

A female servant hovered nearby. "Dominus summons you."

I hugged Camilla but looked at Pricilla. Her eyes shone with love and pride. For a fleeting moment I imagined they reflected the spirit of Mother's approval.

The waning light cast long shadows across the marble floor as I walked through the hall toward my future. This encroaching darkness was chased away by servants who lit the tall bronze lamps that stood like so many centurions in the corridor, each new-lit lamp fading my fears.

I passed the atrium where marble-headed ancestors whispered glad tidings of health and fertility from atop stone pedestals. Hips swaying, breasts pushed forth, each step forward I shed the vestiges of youth so I might cloak myself with a woman's demeanor.

I heard the guests first. Merry sounds of laughter floated into the hall. Which voice belonged to my future husband?

With feet heavy as granite, I hid near the entrance and toyed with my bracelets. A new life awaited. A woman's life. I did not know if I was afraid or excited. Probably both.

I looked over my shoulder, and saw Camilla standing in the doorway of my room. For I moment I envied her. Wanted to be a child again. Then I recalled a bit of wisdom by Heraclitus. There is nothing permanent except change. With a courageous breath I squared my shoulders and entered the dining room prepared to face my destiny.

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