Gelvum's dignitaries are in a spin. The wealthy Voluus, ex-lictor to the Imperial Governor of Gaul, has decided to retire to the town and invitations have been issued for a welcome feast. How to respond and, more importantly, where do his riches come from? In an effort to find out, Libertus' patron, local magistrate Marcus Septimus Aurelius, asks him to make enquiries.
At Voluus's new apartment, Libertus is informed that one of the ex-lictor's treasure carts has been intercepted, the guards and horses brutally butchered. Events take an even bleaker turn when Libertus' actions are misinterpreted by a network of spies, leading him to be suspected of involvement in the massacre and marched to the garrison to await trial. But after daringly escaping, Libertus embarks on a dangerous quest to discover the truth . . .
- ISBN10 1847514219
- ISBN13 9781847514219
- Publish Date 30 November 2012 (first published 6 March 2012)
- Publish Status Active
- Out of Print 29 April 2021
- Publish Country GB
- Publisher Canongate Books Ltd
- Imprint Severn House
- Edition Main
- Format Paperback (US Trade)
- Pages 256
- Language English