Watching Eyes as dark as the night

The nightmare was so real. The dark creature pursued Gauis, its fiery red orbs so terrifying to look at. He ran with all his might stumbling every now and then on the uneven rocky ground. As much as he ran with all his strength, he does not seem to gain much distance. The creature breathed down his neck. Suddenly he found himself surrounded by the raging inferno which poured from the mouth of the deadly beast. He stood helplessly in the middle of the fire finding no way to escape. He screamed for help but that was a mistake. Smoke entered his eyes and nostrils, and he began to cough violently and gasp for breath as he dropped lifelessly towards the ground.

Gauis opened his eyes from his long sleep and nightmare, spluttering for breath. He tried to drag air into his deprived lungs by breathing deeply, his chest rising and falling on an increasing tempo like a man who has just escaped from drowning. Sweat beaded his pale face since his body's temperature was still hot from fever. Disoriented, he took a cursory look around his environment trying to figure out where he was. His heart lurched when he felt slight movement beside him and he struggled to sit up.

"No sir... Lay back or your bands may loosen and your wounds open up again and bleed."

A dark-skinned male slave appeared, pressing down on his good shoulder gently to keep him laying still. He had spoken to Gauis in broken Latin and even though Gauis do not fully understand half of what he said, somehow he knew the slave did not want him to get up from where he lay. He lay on a soft brown mattress, stripped from the waist up with white bands tied from his left shoulder and around his chest region. Intense pain spread across his body with any slight movement, so he listened to the slave and remained still.

"Where is this place?" Gauis asked hoarsely from his parched lips. His throat felt dry too.

"This is the domus of Master Flavius Servius in Lucca. You are in Lucca." Seeing Gauis still looking lost, the slave added, "I will go and let Master Luciano know you're awake." He scurried from the chamber before Gauis could say more.

Gauis didn't miss the look of pity and something akin to fear the slave cast him. He couldn't help but think of the event of the other night. Unknown to him, when he fell unconscious after the beast attacked, he had slept for a day and a half. Delirious with fever with so much blood loss from his ripped socket, Luciano has brought a Greek physician who was a former slave before he was freed, but now chose to practice his skill in the city of Lucca to attend to him. Being well versed in herbs and other forms of medication, the physician was able to stop the bleeding from his wounds completely while giving him some mixtures to bring down his fever.

Gauis has no recollection of that. All he remembered was that he accompanied his master, Luciano, to his home city to visit his family by driving his master's carriage. The journey has been smooth till that terrifying encounter with that hideous beast. He shuddered with fright at the memory of its fiery looks. Using his good hands, he gingerly touched his left shoulder. All that was left was a stump wrapped in bandages. Look at him now, Gauis grimaced. When he left the city of Gabii with his master, his whole form was intact. Now, he's just a man left with one limb. Which gods did he offend to be cursed with this fate, huh?

The door to the bedchamber opened and his master walked in with the slave boy at his heels.

"I see you're awake now, Gauis. ¹Deus laudanda!" Luciano greeted.

"Master Luciano," Gauis greeted back.

"Pray, tell me - how do you fare?"

Gauis grimaced again and thought in his head. Master Luciano, how do you think? Look at me... I am a man with one limb all thanks to coming to your cursed city.

"I fare as the gods fated me, master," he responded shortly.

Luciano laughed. "Gauis, perhaps the gods you know. I know just one God, and he never wishes evil on any man."

Gauis eyed his master with scepticism but chose not to respond. His master has always seemed eccentric to him. Perhaps, all those books he reads and being a scribe has loosened a nut or two in his head.

"Let me help you sit up."

With that, Luciano and the slave supported him gently till he was sitting upright with his feet on the floor. His left shoulder throbbed with pain and he felt lightheaded at the slight movement.

"You have been unconscious for a day and a half now. The servant here will bring you a meal for strength. Would you like to take a wash?" his master paused to ask.

"Yes, Master Luciano. I feel like I have wallowed in the sewers of Rome"

Luciano laughed again at his carriageman words.

"I am going into the city for some business. I will stop by the physician and let him know that you have woken to come check on you," he informed.

Turning to the slave boy, he instructed, "Jemal, Please, watch over him personally till I return. With that, he turned to leave the bedchamber.

~~~~~~~~~

Luciano felt eyes that watched him as he walked through the dark alleys connecting the popular buildings of ²Fora Lucca that housed elite shops of various merchants. Turning for the umpteenth time to see who may be watching or following him, he saw no one as the few people he saw was busy attending to one thing or the other. Shaking his head slightly, he determined to ignore the feeling of being watched and focus on the affairs that brought him here.

The shops in Fora Lucca was unlike the local shops found along thoroughfares in Lucca. One could say that the Fora was built for the privileged elites whilst the tiny street shops were for the plebeians. Luciano's family was slightly above average in wealth with his father owning two-fifth of the buildings around Fora Lucca. And with his recent venture into the merchant business facilitating payments for goods and services, lending and loaning money to general merchants for their businesses at affordable interest, Flavius Servius influence in the economic life of Lucca has broadened making it easy for his family to afford the privileged life without batting an eyelid.

Turning by the corner, Luciano stepped into the cloth shop that sells distinguished maiden ³tunica and wears. Earlier that morning, he had pleaded with his little sister, Flavia to help him find out the measurement that will be suitable for Persis. Being a man, it was not appropriate for him to enquire about it himself, especially as some of it has to do with her underthings. His sister didn't want to help him at first, torn between listening to her mother who gave her strict warnings not to go near the lady Luciano brought home and pleasing the brother she loved. In the end, she had sneaked into Persis bedchamber with the help of Lydia to get the measurement since it was also necessary to keep Persis presence in the household a secret.

Seeing a very handsome man enter the shop at the chime of the bell placed at the shop entrance, one of the sales maiden was quick to approach Luciano.

"Welcome to Romanus Apparels, " the sales maiden greeted flirtatiously, slurring her words. She was attired in a provocative tunic that showed more than it's appropriate. This man looks wealthy and extremely handsome. She wouldn't mind having a piece of him.

"How may I be of assistance to you, sir?"

Luciano nodded in acknowledgement. Handing over the piece of paper that has Persis's measurement, he said, "I need four set tunicas and matching ⁴subligacula with accompanying accessories in this size here."

The sales maiden curiously peered at the paper in her hand. Is the purchase for a young wife or a mistress, she wondered. Trying to pry further, she asked, "Is it for a maiden, young wife or older woman?"

Luciano frowned. "A maiden." his response was clipped. He didn't need any stranger poking her nose into this affair more than necessary.

Seeing his slight frown, the sales maiden didn't want to displease him since she still harboured the hope of having a taste of the man. What most buyers and sellers didn't know was that their shop sells more than others in the Fora because they offer other services in kind in their inner rooms for willing patrons. More than half of these patrons only come in the guise of purchases for the kind service, and forty percent of those are even married men.

Thinking this, the maiden sales girl led Luciano to a waiting chamber to rest whilst she gathers his orders.

Waiting for about fifteen minutes, the door to the chamber opened to have a woman enter. Sensing eyes on him and thinking the sales maiden has returned but wasn't saying anything, Luciano raised his eyes from the handy parchment he was reading to lock it with soulless eyes that were as dark as the night.

Footnotes:

1. Deus laudanda: God be praised

2. Fora: Center of Economic activities

3. Tunica: Garment worn by both genders in ancient Roman

4. Subligacula: Undergarments in ancient Roman.