Chester (Part Three)

Eve and I took an immediate liking to Chester and wanted to help him.  He was one of those rare people in this time and place that had empathy for those around him, causing him to try and fix the pain and suffering exuding from people.   He had given away most of his money and gold, but had considerable wealth in livestock and land.  We supposed he really didn’t understand that he could sell off the land and livestock and remain comfortable the rest of his life.

“Chester, who are the caretakers of your father’s land and livestock?” I asked.

He replied, “The old woman’s husband and four sons.  They take care of those things.”

Eve and I realized this family of caretakers was taking advantage of Chester and hiding this from the authorities that protect the ruling class families in Rome.  The old woman is sent to keep him happy while the others pilfer his live stock holdings and farming properties.  She keeps him fat and immobile while the others steel from this defenseless young man.

“Chester, we want to help you.” Eve said in her moist consoling voice.  “We believe there are people that are doing bad things to you and keeping you from the truth.  Where do the old woman and her family live?”

He thought for a moment. “I really don’t know. I haven’t thought about it.  She comes here and takes care of me and that’s all I know.  I usually provide fifty denarius a month for her to take care of everything.”

When Eve heard this I saw her beautiful face go red, then ugly. She had that dangerous look she gets when she feels someone has been wronged.  I would always call her my “avenging beauty”.  She was always getting into trouble  . . . .

We asked around and found that Marianna, the old woman and her family lived about two miles down the main road that leads out of Rome.  I convinced Eve that we should wait for the old woman to confront her about Chester’s father’s land and livestock before we go marching into their home to cut off heads.  My “Avenging Beauty” agreed --- late one evening we waited for her to visit Chester’s house.  That was the beginning of some bad things for all of us.

We surrounded Marianna and confronted her for the truth.  She wasn’t very happy with the fact that she and her family’s integrity were being questioned.  And it didn’t help matters that Eve grabbed her by the chin and pushed her against the wall to pry out the truth.  Marianna’s motherly demeanor disappeared and a horrid old woman’s anger emerged, slapping Eve’s hand away and while kicking her in the groin in one swift movement.  Eve fell to her knees as the woman ran to escape us.  While she was running we could hear her threats, “My sons will come back and take care of you and the fat man.”

Rome in 80AD was a good place to take these threats seriously.  We knew that we would have to gather our household men to protect Chester.  Eve was fuming about the old woman’s kick to her groin and wanted to grab a blade and remove her head that same night.  I calmed her with some wine and soft words and after, I told her to run back to our house to get help in case of a fight, while I stayed with Chester.

I sat with the young man, not letting him know that a grave situation was about to occur, but this didn’t matter.  Marianna’s family descended upon us with a group of twenty men. They first grabbed me (I was without a weapon), as ten of them pulled Chester from his bed and began to viciously beat him.  He screamed and cried to have mercy, but here was none.

The old woman’s husband came to me and spit on me, then called me a filthy “Roman whore.”  After I spit back he took his blade and ran it though my heart.  I was really enraged that I was caught so unaware.  As I lay dying for the thousandth time, I knew Eve would be back, she would be outraged at what she would see.

“Oh well”, I thought as I heard the assassins leave. It’s time to die and wake up again . . . .

To Be Continued . . . . .

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