Quintatus cocked an eyebrow and shrugged. ‘As you wish. Now, there are a few details I need to settle. You say Caratacus had ten thousand men, or thereabouts.’

‘That’s my estimate.’

‘How many of those are cavalry?’

Cato struggled to organise his thoughts. ‘No more than five hundred.’

‘And the infantry? What quality?’

‘A quarter have armour. More now since the loss of the column. The rest are lightly equipped. But they are well motivated, sir. I’ve rarely seen men fight so hard. They’ve suffered losses attacking the fort and Tribune Mancinus’s column but I doubt it will hold them back. Caratacus knows how to get the best from his men.’

‘That may be so, but they’ll be no match for the Fourteenth Legion. I just hope that they remain in front of Bruccium long enough for me to arrive on the scene. Then I’ll put paid to Caratacus. The man has been a thorn in the side of Rome for too long. If I am the one chosen by the gods to complete the task then maybe I can share an ovation with Ostorius, eh?’ Quintatus smiled self-consciously. ‘It is never a bad thing to win favour at the imperial court, Cato.’

‘In my experience, it is wiser still to have nothing to do with the imperial court, sir.’

Quintatus gave him a calculating look. ‘You speak from experience?’

‘Yes, sir.’

‘I see. Then that’s a story that is worth hearing.’

Cato did not respond at first but stared back with an inscrutable expression. ‘Let me just say that it is easy to make enemies simply through serving the Emperor loyally and protecting his interests. My promotion to prefect was my reward for such service. However, life seems to give with one hand and then take with the other. My promotion was balanced by incurring the enmity of a powerful element at court.’

‘No doubt you crossed the path of one of those infernal freedmen of his. That, or his new wife and that son of hers, Nero.’

Cato ignored the prompt for further information. ‘It was out of regard for that enmity that I took the first opportunity to leave Rome and take up command of a unit on a distant frontier. It was my hope that I might devote myself to a military career and be forgotten. But it seems that I was hoping for too much. Why else would I be given the command of the garrison at Bruccium?’

Quintatus settled back in his chair and folded his hands. ‘I’m not sure I follow your line of thought, Prefect.’

‘It’s straightforward enough, sir. The previous prefect was killed in suspicious circumstances. Murdered most likely.’

‘That is a serious thing to suggest.’

‘Murder is always a serious matter. But you were content not to investigate the matter too closely, while you gave Centurion Quertus a free hand in how he chose to wage war against the Silurians.’