‘That will be Maximus and the messenger,’ he said. ‘They were on their way. I was about to tell you when I first came in, but then I was distracted by discovering the corpse.’ ‘So you found the boy who brought the message to the roundhouse yesterday?’ He nodded. ‘We asked around and it was easier to find him than we thought. That urchin-girl we spoke to knew who it was at once and was eager to help us, for a tip. She even took us to the building where he lived – a flood-damaged ruin in the swampy part of town, where lots of the egentes find shelter overnight. He wasn’t there himself – he’d found another errand, taking a urine-pot to one of the fullers in the town – but we tracked him down, and he promised that when he’d finished he’d come and tell you everything he knew. Maximus was going to wait for him and show him where to come—’ Another knock, more tentative this time. Junio strode to the doorway. ‘Shall I let them in? Or . . .?’ He nodded towards Radixrapum’s body on the floor.
