Chapter 41. Poisoned

JULIAN

The carriage rattled and swayed, the wheels kicking up dust as we sped along. I hadn’t thought switching masters would be so…eventful. Sitting across from me was General Claudius Decimus Aurelius, the Grand Commander of the entire Northern Legions of Rome.

I was keenly aware of the strange silence between us as our eyes locked numerous times. Though we hadn’t spoken a word since departing the arena, my head was a storm of questions.

Everyone knew General Claudius Decimus Aurelius—the living legend. But what on earth was he doing posing as a gladiator in a small village arena? Why had he hidden his identity? And, more troublingly, had something gone awry in the North?

From the way he looked at me, I knew that he knew me, or at least, the fact that I was a core legionnaire. The roman numerals tattoo ‘IX’ of Caesar behind my ear lobes were a hidden testament only known to members of the special forces of Rome. General Claudius was also the commander of th