‘Symeon has made representations to me that you be released into his custody for the duration of your stay in Petra. I will grant this, on the following conditions: first, that you swear an oath not to attempt to quit the city; second, that you confine your movements to the centre of Petra, and make no effort to reconnoitre our defences; third, that you avoid all contact with Bannus and his Parthian allies. If you encounter them in the street you will ignore them. Any breach of these conditions will result in your immediate reincarceration. ‘

‘Reincar-what?’ Macro muttered to Cato.

‘They’ll chuck us back in the cell.’

‘Oh.’

The chamberlain looked at them. ‘Are you willing to accept these conditions?’

Macro nodded. ‘We are, sir.’

‘Very well. Do I have your oath to abide by these conditions?’

‘I swear it.’

‘And your friend?’

‘I swear it also,’ Cato responded.

‘Good! That is settled then. Bannus and the Parthian prince have sworn the same oath, so there will be no trouble between you while you are under our jurisdiction. ‘There was no doubting the imperative undertone of his statement and the Roman officers nodded their assent.

‘So, then,’ the chamberlain continued. ‘What is it that Rome would ask of the Nabataean kingdom, in respect of the present situation?’

Macro frowned as he tried to follow the gist of the chamberlain’s words. Fortunately Cato had a firm grasp of Greek and was able to reply on their behalf. ‘We want the safe return of the boy taken hostage by Bannus. We want the return of a casket that belongs to the boy’s family, and we want Bannus.’

‘And what of the Parthian prince?’

Cato looked to Macro for a decision. Macro opened his mouth, paused and then raised a finger.’Just a moment please, sir.’ He turned to Cato and whispered, ‘What do you think? Should we let that Parthian bastard off the hook?’

‘I don’t see what else we can do,’ Cato replied, with a quick glance at the chamberlain who was clearly less than amused by Macro’s informal request for an intermission. ‘You heard what Symeon said. Nabataea dare not risk offending Parthia. For that matter, I doubt that the Emperor would want to present Parthia with any grievance against Rome. I’d say we drop any claim we have on him and concentrate our efforts on Bannus.’

Macro thought it over. It made sense in the circumstances, even though he was reluctant to lose his moral claim for revenge against the Parthian who shared the responsibility for the deaths of so many men of the Second Illyrian. He swallowed his anger and turned back to the chamberlain. ‘We lay no claim on the Parthian.’