They moved out of earshot and Cato turned to his friend with a searching look. ‘When we get hold of Ajax it is my intention to take him back to Rome alive. Do you understand?’

Macro was silent for a moment and his expression hardened as he replied through gritted teeth. ‘After all that bastard’s done? You haven’t forgotten Crete, Cato. But then it wasn’t you he held captive in that shitty cage. It was me, and Julia.’

‘I know.’

‘Bollocks. I say we kill him, dump his body in the Nile and be done with it.’

‘Those were not our orders.’

‘Orders?’ Macro leaned closer, face to face with Cato. ‘Fuck the orders . . . Fuck ’em. Fuck Sempronius, Narcissus, the Emperor. Fuck the lot of ’em. I don’t care. Ajax owes me, and I want my revenge.’ He paused and softened his tone as best he could. ‘Cato, lad, I need revenge, and so do you, for Julia’s sake.’

‘I won’t speak for her.’

Macro stabbed his finger at Cato’s harness. ‘She’s going to be your wife. Do you think you can live with that precious conscience of yours, knowing what he did to her and yet letting him live an instant longer than necessary?’

‘Ajax will die,’ Cato replied firmly. ‘He will be condemned by the Emperor and crucified. You know it.’

‘Oh, he’ll be condemned all right, but what if Claudius decides to send him to the arena? You know how good he is. If anyone can win over the mob, it’ll be Ajax. Then what? Supposing Claudius spares him, as a sop to the mob? Even if he dies, he’ll go out a hero. Either with a sword in his hand spitting defiance, or screaming his hatred of Rome from the cross. If he’s crucified, he’ll be a martyr, just like Spartacus before him.’

‘Then we’ll have to bridge that cross when, or if, we come to it.’ Cato grasped his friend’s arm. ‘Macro. We have no choice. We have our orders and I will carry them out. And so will you. Give me your word on it, or I’ll have no choice but to send you back to the camp.’

Macro’s face flinched with the effort of containing the poisonous rage that Ajax had planted in his heart many months before. At length he sucked in a deep breath through his teeth. ‘As you command . . . sir.’

‘Thank you.’ Cato bowed his head slightly in gratitude before he glanced towards the river. ‘The boat’s here. Let’s go.’