The nearest men made a show of bending low and urging their horses on, but there was little chance of catching up with the raiders now and Macro sheathed his sword and sat erect as he surveyed the scene. Beyond the auxiliaries, the raiders were rapidly disappearing over the nearest dunes. Elsewhere, the herders were returning to the caravan and restoring order to the nervous animals, who were milling about where they had been left. Some of the merchants were retrieving the loot that been spilled on the sand and repacking it into the baskets hanging over the backs of the pack camels.

A pounding of hooves drew Macro’s attention and he saw Centurion Postumus approaching him across the desert. At the last moment, Postumus reined in, his horse kicking up a cloud of dust and loose stones, so that Macro’s horse recoiled with a nervous whinny.

‘What the hell d’you think you’re doing?’ Postumus screamed at him, thrusting an arm towards the dead raider.

Macro glanced at the body and shrugged. ‘I’m doing your job, Postumus. At least, I’m doing the job you should be doing.’

Postumus clenched his teeth and stabbed a finger at Macro. ‘You’ve fucked it up, Macro! It’s taken months to set this up. It was going like a dream . . . Now?’ Postumus looked at the body again and shook his head. ‘I don’t know what’s going to happen. There’ll be reprisals.’ He turned back to Macro with a bitter grin. ‘You’re going to pay for this.’

‘I don’t think so. Not when word gets back to Rome about the little deal you had with that lot.’ He gestured towards the last of the raiders, already far off, half hidden by the dust kicked up by their flight.

‘What makes you think you’ll live to expose us?’

Macro laughed. ‘Are you threatening me?’ His hand dropped to the hilt of his sword as he watched Postumus closely. ‘Go on then, if you’ve got the balls to do it. Draw your sword.’

Postumus stared at him, then shook his head and sneered.’I don’t have to fight you, Macro. I have powerful friends who could swat you like a gnat.’

‘Really? Then let them try.’

‘In any case, aren’t you forgetting something?’

‘What?’

‘You struck me. In full view of the men.As soon as we get back to Bushir, I’ll bring charges against you. Make no mistake, you’ll pay for this.’

‘So you say. We’ll see. But for now, I’m relieving you of command for the rest of this patrol.’

‘On whose authority?’ Postumus smirked. ‘Aren’t you forgetting something? Until your appointment is confirmed you have no-’