‘Well, they were!’

‘Perhaps not, Petro.’

‘Oh Titan’s turds!’ Suddenly, Petronius saw where I was heading. He was tired after last night’s shift with the vigiles. Realisation drowned him in self-disgust and frustration. ‘He cannot be this clever!’

‘Lucius, my old friend, I’m afraid he is.’

‘He played us?’

‘Tickled us like dim trouts in a mountain stream.’

While Petro cursed and tried to pretend this had not happened, Helena Justina took over from me, to explain the unpleasant truth. ‘Anacrites had a dilemma. The Claudii were threatening to expose his background unless he protected them. He had to make them think he was looking after them—while all the time that busy brain of his, the intelligence even Laeta compliments, was desperately finding ways to eliminate them instead. He had to deal with each in turn—and without the others noticing. He found the perfect solution. Marcus and Lucius, he used you two.’

With a deep sigh I acknowledged it. ‘He took away our case—knowing we would refuse to give up. A pattern existed. We had continued on cases secretly before. We hated him. He used our own doggedness against us.’

Petro shared the confession: ‘He organised either the twins or Nobilis to kill that courier, so they would think he was cleverly diverting attention from them in the Modestus case—’

‘When I asked, he even admitted the diversion idea stank,’ I said. ‘He made sure we had seen through it. He wanted us to stick to the Claudii.’

Petronius groaned. ‘Then he began picking them off—using us. We did his dirty work; he looked innocent to his brothers. He sent Pius to us deliberately. He’d dispatched Virtus to the marshes, so he could not help his twin. We helpfully took Pius—’

‘We fell for it like automata.’

‘So whose idea was that, Falco?’

‘Be fair—both of us,’ I pointed out. Petronius shrugged acknowledgement. ‘The spy avoided looking for Pius until he thought we must have finished him off. Even Pius realised he was abandoned. He gave up. He saw Anacrites was never going to rescue him, because Anacrites had planned it.’

‘Pius could have told us,’ said Petro.

‘If he explained what was happening, it was as good as confessing his involvement in the murders. Afterwards, Anacrites probably told Virtus to stay “out of the way” in the marshes, so he never realised his twin had gone missing. We know he then instructed Nobilis to run for cover—just when Quintus and I were on our way to Latium, and might have run into him.’

Petronius cursed. ‘I bet he knew all along we were working with Silvius and the Urbans. Jupiter, you don’t think Silvius is some crony of his?’

‘No. I think Silvius is straight. Concentrate on Anacrites,’ I instructed.