m the Palatine and from their Caesar
by the mob whose solid ranks they had hitherto been unable to break. The
Augustas and their slaves were also safe within their palaces.

But what Tertius did not know, and was therefore unable to impart to his
eager listeners was that the party of conspirators, with Hortensius
Martius as their acknowledged leader, were taking advantage of the
disturbance to place themselves at the head of the mob, hoping that the
cry of "Death to Caligula!" would soon be followed by one of "Hail to
the Caesar! the new Caesar, Hortensius Martius! Hail!"

CHAPTER XXV

"Watchman, what of the night?"--ISAIAH XXI. 11.

And far away beyond the noise and tumult which ranged around the foot of
the Palatine, the honey-coloured moon illumined with her weird and
ghostly light the vast arena of the gigantic Amphitheatre, where a
company of the town guard, under the command of an aedile, were busy
collecting the dead.

A narrow streak of those same ghostly rays found its way through the
folds of the curtains which spanned the window of Dea Flavia's room. It
peeped in boldly, stirring up myriads of impalpable atoms and whipping
them into a living line of silver. It wandered further, and finding a
golden head that tossed restlessly upon a silk-covered pillow, it
alighted on it, making the white face appear ghostlier still, and the
wide eyes to shine like stars.

A timid step shuffled across the floor.

"Blanca, is it thou?" whispered Dea Flavia, as quickly she raised
herself up, squatting now upon the bed, with one hand pressed against
the pillow and the other to her breast.

"Aye, mistress, it is I!" came in whispered response.

"Well? Have they returned?"

"Aye! gracious lady. Half an hour ago."

"Did they find him?"

"Yes."

"Is he...?"

There was a pause, whilst from afar came that strange low sound of
thousands of men murmuring, which is so akin to the booming of the waves
upon a rocky shore.

"The praefect of Rome was in a swoon when they found him in the imperial
tribune," said the young slave-girl, still speaking under her breath.
"Nolus and Dion carried him to the litter, and once or twice he groaned
whilst they carried him."

A gentle breeze wafted the curtains into the room; the rays of the
waning moon fell full upon the huddled figure on the bed, with the
stream of gold falling each side of the set, pale face, and the large
blue eyes now strangely veiled with tears.

"Whe