‘Quiet there!’ the prefect called out anxiously. ‘Quiet, I said! Prefect Cato will have every military resource in Alexandria made available to him in order to facilitate the capture or destruction of Ajax.’

Macro nudged his friend. ‘That’s news to me.’

‘And me.’ Cato smiled faintly. ‘Most welcome news.’

‘What else could I say?’ Petronius said irritably as he conferred with the two officers in his private quarters after the audience. ‘You heard ’em. Their mood was almost rebellious. A number of them have influential contacts in Rome. If that isn’t bad enough, the last two emperors have handed out Egyptian estates to their favourites as if they were party snacks. Even Narcissus has a few parcels of land in the delta. The trade in grain and other produce from those estates is being put in jeopardy by Ajax. Narcissus is the kind of man of influence that I’d rather not get on the wrong side of. So it’s vital that Narcissus and his friends know that I am doing all that I can to keep a lid on the tensions here in Alexandria.’

‘But you’re not going to actually give us what we need to do the job, are you, sir?’ said Macro.

‘No. I can’t. I told you, our forces are stretched thinly as it is. I can’t afford to send them on some damned wild goose chase.’

‘It wouldn’t be a wild goose chase if we had more men and more ships,’ Macro persisted. ‘We could cover the ground more quickly, and be there in overwhelming strength when we eventually find Ajax.’

‘If you find him.’

‘We’ll find him,’ Cato said firmly. ‘You have my word on it.’

‘What if he quits the delta?’ Petronius asked. ‘What if he sails north, or west? What then? You’ll be wasting time chasing shadows.’

‘He won’t leave the area. Why should he? He’s doing a great job of stirring up local feeling against Rome. He’ll stay here as long as he thinks he is undermining our interests in Egypt. Give us the fleet and we can find him and trap him in short order.’

‘Give you the fleet?’ Petronius smiled mockingly. ‘I’m already having to use the marines to supplement the city watch. Besides, every available man is needed to counter the Nubians.’

‘I need the fleet,’ Cato insisted.

Petronius breathed in sharply and briefly considered the demand. ‘I’ll give you six more ships. But only for one month. That’s as long as I can spare them.’

Cato considered the offer. Eight ships in all should be enough to deal with Ajax and his men, but the limited time was a problem. ‘One month might not be enough.’

‘That’s all you have. After that I want you and your men to join the command of the legate of the Twenty-Second at Diospolis Magna. I suggest you get moving, Prefect.’

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SIX