Stealing a Kiss

He opened the letter and read its contents, and was stunned.

It was unmistakably a reply from Bartitas to Grebo:

"...The Thracian who disobeyed your orders and secretly fled home has been bought by me. He has some talent. I'll keep an eye on him as you requested and make sure he dies in the arena one day—but not now, or anytime soon. I need him to make me money...

"...I need a political post. I hope to earn the honor of becoming Consul of Capus. If I need to go to Rome to work on it, I'll provide you with all the necessary expenses and support...

"One last thing: as you requested, I took the life of that Thracian's wife, Sura, from the Syrian merchants. I lied and told him she was still alive, and that I'd bring her back to him. This will help strengthen the Thracian's loyalty and courage."

Kirk had known all along that Bartitas had sent men to kill Spartacus's beloved Sura, then promised to find her and kept Spartacus working for him with that lie. The other Contractors knew it, too. But if they told Spartacus this cruel truth outright, they wouldn't gain the protagonist's friendship and trust—they'd get his furious blade instead! Without evidence, all they had was their word, and that would only enrage a Plot Character and put their lives at risk.

But if they handed Spartacus the letter in their possession, he would surely believe them in the face of such undeniable proof.

What would happen then?

Without a doubt, Spartacus would fly into a rage, kill Bartitas ahead of time, and spark an early uprising against Rome's slave system.

Kirk had no time to think. He quickly stowed the letter in his space, then continued rummaging around. He took a book from the shelf, the Roman Infantry Manual, which seemed readable, and tossed it into his space. Then another thought crossed his mind: he snatched up Grebo's private seal, ink, and parchment and tossed them all into his space. By then, the slaves had found their way over. He hurriedly jumped into the swimming pool on the first floor and shouted for help. They caught him there and took him back to Illyria. It was all to cover up the fact that he'd ransacked the library.

Illyria was about to scold him when the front door guard announced that her husband, Grebo, had returned and was on his way to the inner residence. Illyria was terrified. How could she tell her husband she'd been planning to watch a man wrestle a chimpanzee? She could only hurry Kirk into hiding.

Kirk ran around like a man caught sneaking into another man's home, with the husband suddenly at the door. Illyria thought he looked ridiculous, so she gritted her teeth and hid him under the bed.

Really, all she had to do was disguise Kirk as a slave, and everything would be fine. Grebo hardly ever came home. Even when he did, it wasn't as if the household servants had to line up for inspection.

Hiding under Illyria's bed, Kirk was terribly nervous. If the Legion Commander found him beneath his beautiful, lonely wife's bed, would he nail him to a cross?

But as soon as Grebo returned, a furious argument broke out and dragged on for hours. Illyria was a spoiled young lady, pampered by her senator father, Abinus. Grebo was an ambitious young Roman officer, proud and intent on climbing the ranks. Naturally, he spent very little time with his wife. The lonely young woman held one women-only spectacle after another. Now that her husband was home, the two of them started fighting again over some trivial matter.

There were no trashy relationship shows like "Who's Talking?" or "The Third Mediation Room" back then. When a family quarrel escalated, it often ended with the man slapping or whipping the woman until she fell to the floor, sobbing. As the saying went: "Enjoy women, but remember to bring a whip."

Even the household of a high-ranking Roman official was no exception.

Grebo had probably just come home to pick something up before heading back to Rome. There were plenty of women there. He was young, handsome, and had a bright future ahead of him. Rome was open-minded and wild, so he had no trouble finding noblewomen and young ladies to sleep with. He had no patience for wasting words on his beautiful but haughty wife. She was mainly a political tool; he'd married her for her father's influence. As long as he didn't cross the line or divorce her, her father couldn't complain. Besides, her father needed his influence in the military. They were simply using each other.

Grebo stormed out in a rage.

Kirk had escaped disaster. Like a mouse, he crept out from beneath the Roman beauty's bed. Illyria was weeping softly, tears streaming down her face. Her husband had slapped her in front of outsiders, wounding her pride. She waved Kirk away, telling him to leave at once.

But Kirk wasn't in a hurry to go. He grinned like a mouse that had stolen an egg. If he didn't take advantage of the moment and steal a kiss now, when would he?

He plopped down in front of Illyria and whispered a few words into the pretty, rosy ear of the displeased noblewoman. Then he took out a piece of parchment. It was the result of several hours spent under the bed, listening to the couple argue and diligently embellishing the story as he wrote. Grebo's private seal was stamped haphazardly on it. It was a love letter to a noblewoman, written in Grebo's voice and based on the gossip Kirk had overheard during the argument. It was embarrassingly flowery, and it insulted Illyria to the utmost. To distract her, Kirk kept talking until she was spitting mad.

Illyria read a few lines, her expression changing dramatically. She leapt to her feet, furious, and demanded a carriage so she could go confront Grebo. Kirk's forgery was extremely clumsy. Anyone who looked closely would see through it in an instant. But Illyria had just suffered domestic abuse, and her friends had long filled her ears with gossip and rumors. She was already convinced that there was a mistress. Kirk had merely presented her with some fabricated evidence, giving her an excuse to believe what she wanted. In her fury, the beautiful young woman had no doubts at all.

A resolute look flashed in Kirk's eyes. He grabbed the young woman as she rose to leave and launched a sudden attack, silencing Illyria's startled lips with his own. Then his hands began roaming over her chest. After a bout of reckless advances and a few more whispered words, he toppled the golden-haired Persian Cat into the soft bed. Her thoughts were in a jumble, her body burning, her mind reeling, and her limbs limp; she yielded halfway willingly...

(The next 3,560 words are omitted.) (Someone tried to upload a still of Illyria, but it was rejected. Search "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" for yourselves. The beauty was very, very... you know.)

Two hours later, Kirk left Grebo's villa, smug and swaggering. Illyria saw him to the door with her lovely cheeks flushed pink, her eyes sultry and her red lips lightly caught between pearly teeth. Her alluring manner showed that the beautiful young woman had been thoroughly satisfied, her heart now completely bound to this slave gladiator with two points of Charisma. Kirk couldn't resist. Seeing no one nearby, he pulled Illyria into the carriage, told the driver to get lost, and then they had sex in the carriage for another thirty minutes. Before the sun set, Kirk had plowed the beautiful blonde a few more times before helping the sweaty, noble young woman out of the carriage. She was so overwhelmed she could hardly bear to leave his arms.

Sitting in the carriage, Kirk grinned like a victorious general returning home. Brother Spartacus, I'm sorry I couldn't kill your enemy with my own hands, but I did take his wife. Justice and righteousness must prevail! Still, that blonde beauty was no joke. My back's about to give out, and I nearly died of exhaustion.

In truth, Kirk had simply seen through Illyria's naïve, lonely-young-woman nature. In the Original Drama, the bored and lonely woman was a beautiful puppet, manipulated by Lucretia. Kirk had only used a small trick: a blank piece of parchment bearing Grebo's private mark, some passable imitation of his handwriting, and Grebo's private seal. With those, he'd completely won over the woman's heart and body. But then again, Roman women weren't especially bound by notions of chastity. Illyria was a haughty young lady who had just suffered domestic abuse and had long been neglected by her husband. She'd also heard that he frequented brothels. It was only natural that she'd chosen to have an affair.

After sleeping with the beautiful woman, Kirk gave it some thought and realized the cult leader's plan. As a senator's beloved daughter and a Legion Commander's wife, the beautiful young woman held tremendous influence in Capus and even across the Roman Republic. In the Original Drama, Illyria had been manipulated into using her influence to put Spartacus and Vero on the same team for a fight to the death, directly leading to Vero, the Ten Thousand Enemies, choosing to die at his brother Spartacus's hands. A woman's influence over her husband was immense. As the old saying went: "Men fight with strength and are captured on the battlefield; women persuade, and save whole nations." Wasn't that powerful?

After the Contractors banded together, that cult leader found it hard to make a move, so he turned to the upper class for help. Unfortunately, Kirk, with his two points of Charisma, foiled his plans. Now that he'd won Illyria over, Kirk could use the noblewoman's influence to spring all kinds of dirty tricks on his enemies.

Kirk returned to the training camp as dusk approached. Little Fatty was the first to approach him and ask in a low voice, "I can see you're dignified and imposing, big brother. You're practically glowing with righteous energy. My admiration for you is like a surging river..."

"What are you trying to say?"

"Did you sleep with her?" Little Fatty asked bluntly, staring at Kirk through his glasses.

Kirk's heart skipped a beat. "Who? Illyria?"

"Big brother, you really are a joker. I believe in your charm, but everyone knows Illyria comes to watch the gladiators all the time and keeps herself chaste. She never gets involved. I meant that pretty maid from last time." Little Fatty's eyes sparkled.

"Of course, haha." Kirk gave a dry laugh and hurriedly changed the subject. "We're going to Marseille tomorrow for the Dionysia Festival. How are the preparations coming along?"

"The gladiators are all ready. Five Contractors will compete as gladiators: Audi, you, MT, the Female Magician, and the Black One-Eyed Dragon. The other ten Contractors will take part in the gladiator fights as slaves," Little Fatty said.