Chapter Twelve, What Would He Do If He Found Us Out?
"THE BEAUTY WHO FELL FOR THE BEAST"

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     The feeling would come and go in waves.

     That everlasting feeling of joy and euphoria that rose in her chest whenever she looked into Lucius' eyes, and remembered their entanglement of pleasure and warmth as he touched her flesh with this ardent expression of love, and treated her in a way she had always deserved, left her feeling this insatiable taste of desire and passion she had never once felt before. Or, at least, she had always subconsciously felt it since the moment they first met. She just didn't know that yearning feeling she once felt deep in her bones to feel loved, to be in love, to be held like she was the most precious thing in his world, would be with someone she never expected to show up when he did.

She remembered the long nights when she would sit out on the balcony looking over the city of Rome, occasionally looking up at the sky, wishing on a star to find the will to love Geta.

And the Gods decided to send her Lucius instead.

She would go about her days feeling eternally thankful that they had, because the woman never believed she was destined for her happy ending. She came to terms with it when she accepted the reality of her situation, trapped under the thumb of the mad emperor, fearing for her life until the moment she took her last breath. That was meant to be her destiny. Now, she was starting to realise it didn't have to be the end of her story, because the fates had brought her to him — to Lucius — and she wasn't ready to let him go. The mere thought of having to leave him now to just go back to the palace, it left her feeling weary, and almost lonely, because how do you walk away from the person you wanted to be with?

     Octavia Amulius continued to ask herself that very question as she sat upright from the makeshift bed made of stone, a quiet and gentle sigh leaving her lips. Lucius soon joined her, sitting upright himself, before he leaned forward and planted a gentle and tender kiss on her shoulder. Octavia let out a playful hum before she turned to face him, her eyes locking with his own for a moment, before Lucius hooked his finger underneath her chin, pulling her closer to press another kiss against her soft lips. Octavia smiled in response to Lucius' soft gestures, before she pulled away, resting her forehead against his own

     Lucius then smiled back at the woman, removing his touch from her skin before he caressed the side of her face, tucking some of her raven black hair behind her ear in the process. "I wish you didn't have to leave," He whispered to her, a sense of yearning laced in his low and quiet voice.

     Octavia felt the same. She wanted nothing more than to stay with Lucius, even if it meant spending that time in a cage. As long as she was with him, it didn't matter where they were. The only problem was she had been gone for hours. She was surprised Geta hadn't sent half of his guards to search for her by now. She wanted to take the risk and stay longer, but she couldn't afford to be caught lying with another man that wasn't the emperor. If she did, her infidelity would cost the woman her head. So, Octavia let out another shaky breath before she pulled back, the same smile etched at the corners of her lips, all while Lucius continued to caress her cheek.

     "Geta will send his guards to look for me if he notices I'm gone," Octavia commented in a sad tone, the mere mention of her betrothed surely dampening the mood. "But I will come back before the games tomorrow," She reassured.

     "And after that?" Lucius questioned her further. He was right to. Their situation wasn't exactly the traditional kind.

     They were on opposite ends of the empire. She was to be the wife of an emperor in just a few days, and while he came from a powerful parentage, adorned with the same name as one of the greatest rulers Rome has ever come to know, he was still a rogue gladiator who would either be granted freedom someday, or meet his end in a pool of blood and wrath. They both knew there was always going to be a chance of their story ending in tragedy. Maybe it was written in stone from the moment they met. But neither were prepared to accept that fate just yet. Now that they had each other, neither were ready to let the other go.

     Octavia stretched her hand out and grazed her knuckles gently against Lucius' face, a hopeful twinkle burning bright in her eyes. "I will find a way to free you from this fate, and when I do, we will find a way to be with each other. I swear it," She replied, each word filled with hope for the future.

     It was strange to think that only days ago, Octavia believed she could never escape her engagement to Geta, believing that her life and her father's life were at risk.

     And now, Octavia was willing to risk it all for love.

     Octavia's eyes then flickered over to her hand again. She retracted her hand and looked down at the ring sitting on her finger again — the same ring that once belonged to her father before gifting it to her. A singular thought crossed her mind before she removed the ring from her finger, now holding it out for Lucius to see. "This was my father's ring. I want you to hold onto it. This way, we are never apart," Octavia offered.

Lucius allowed his kind eyes to linger on Octavia for a moment, a ghost of a smile forming across his lips, before he took the ring from Octavia and placed it on his finger next to the wedding band on his other finger. "I will wear it with my wife's ring," He informed.

     Octavia flashed him a sheepish grin, reaching out and holding onto his hand with her own, her thumb tracing over the red jewel of her father's ring before her gaze flickered to the wedding band next to it. "I wish I had been able to know her. I just know she was an amazing woman," She replied earnestly.

     "She was," Lucius nodded his head, staring down at the wedding band for a moment with a sad look in his eyes. But when he lifted his gaze to meet her own again, the sadness he once felt when thinking about his late wife was quickly erased by the warmth that rose in his chest, causing for a look full of sunny disposition to flood his crystal, blue gaze. "But I know she would be grateful that I found love again in another. I like to believe she brought me to you," He elaborated, his words pulling at Octavia's heartstrings in the process as she reached out a caressed the man's face with her gentle touch.

     "And I will be forever grateful that she did," Octavia replied, before she leaned forward and pressed another short, yet passionate kiss to Lucius' lips.

     Lucius reciprocated the kiss for a short moment before he pulled away, his lips parting so he could speak, "As am I."

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     The Roman palace was dimly lit with the calm flames of the torches stretched down the corridors of the large and open building, a vast mix of red, orange, and bright yellow dancing around each other in the dark shadows of the night. By the time Octavia managed to smuggle her way back into her home in the midst of the night, knowing all the right doors and atriums to enter to keep herself hidden in the night, it was quiet, so quiet, that she could hear herself breathing slowly and calmly in the desolate silence that plagued the empty corridors. It was enough to make Octavia frown in response to the eery feeling that sent chills down her spine, wondering where the large number of guards that should be stationed all around the palace had disappeared too.

Octavia knew that was a worry she had to push to the side for now, knowing she had to get back to her chambers unseen. The last thing she needed was news of her infidelity finding its way back to Geta. She knew it would cost the woman her life, and she doesn't even want to imagine what Lucius' fate would be. Geta would make him suffer, she knew that much was certain. Octavia knew deep down in her beating heart that it was selfish to have given into her desires, putting herself, and more importantly, putting Lucius, in a deadly situation. However, it had become a risk they both willingly took in the name of love. Come morning light, she would have to find a solution to free the man from his shackles, and somehow outrun her own fate all at once.

Because Octavia loved him. She loved him enough to risk it all.

That feeling remained in her chest, surging around her heart with gentle warmth, as she reached her chambers, only to find Caius was not stationed outside like she expected. Instead it was completely vacant. That warmth in the woman's chest quickly faltered when she started to think something was wrong. Caius never leaves his post unless instructed by her. She had asked him to remain there until her safe return. Nonetheless, she still pushed forward, wrapping her hand around the handle of her doors before she pushed them open, and when she stepped inside, she found something completely unexpected. In fact, it forced Octavia to stand frozen in horror when her eyes found his.

Emperor Geta remained seated on the edge of Octavia's bed, his gaze quickly finding hers when he heard the doors swing open. He was dressed in nothing more than his red and gold robe, his ginger locks in a mess, while his tired eyes stared daggers into her soul. He appeared betrayed, hurt, almost devastated even. But that wasn't what terrified her. She had grown accustomed to that stare, so it no longer had that effect on her like it used to. What scared the woman was the dagger clasped in his right hand, the serrated edge of the sharp blade glistening in the light.

     Octavia swallowed thickly as Geta rose to his feet, his sights focused on her, and only her. "What are you doing in here?" She asked, trying to pretend she wasn't terrified of him right now, her eyes flickering between his narrowed gaze and the blade held tightly in his hand.

     Geta exhaled sharply, a bitter smile ghosting across his lips. "There was a plot." Octavia felt as if her eyes were going to bulge from her skull when she heard those words leave Geta's lips. "It seems your dear friends...Acacius, Lucilla, Caius, Augusta..." As each name rolled off his venomous tongue, each word and syllable uttered into the silence, left Octavia trembling where she stood. Her dearest friends had been plotting against the emperors without her knowledge, just like her father once did. "They were going to overthrow Caracalla and myself, but not before they freed a rogue gladiator from the cages," He continued, hoping for some sort of glimmer of realisation.

     Unfortunately, Octavia gave him exactly what she wanted, her eyes looking down at the ground beneath her feet as Lucius crossed her mind. She knew Lucilla must have been plotting with Acacius to free her son from his fate of dying in the colosseum. She just didn't understand what Caius and Augusta had to do with it, and why were they enlisted into the plan to begin with, and most importantly, if they were okay.

     "It's funny. When I sent my guards to apprehend Acacius, who was on his way to free a gladiator from the cages, one of them saw you leaving looking rather...unkept," Geta seethed through gritted teeth, taking another step closer towards Octavia, who took a step away, her back hitting the set of doors behind her. "And then the more I thought about it...you insisted that you and only you took care of Macrinus' prized fighter. You would see him even when it wasn't required. I'm assuming the attempt on my life was to do with him..."

Octavia shook her head, her quivering lips parting so she could speak. "Geta—"

"Tell me it isn't true," Geta interjected harshly, cutting the woman off with a sharp and vicious tone that made Octavia flinch in response. But she didn't dare talk back to him as her weary eyes met his again, watching as they filled with tears and waves of raw emotion. "Tell me you haven't been fucking him," He snapped, beginning to raise his voice.

Octavia wanted to lie to his face. She wanted to tell him none of it was true to protect Lucius and herself from their punishment that loomed over their heads following their sinful pleasures. However, Octavia did not see the point of trying to convince Geta of something different compared to what he had already accepted in his mind. To try and raise her voice and lie would only cause another argument. Her only regret was that she wished she had been more careful. Why wasn't she more careful?

When Geta realised Octavia's reluctant silence was giving him all the answers he already knew, he let out a bitter chuckle, almost like he was amused, before his face contorted into a look full of rage and devastation as the realisation washed over him that Octavia was not as loyal as he had wanted her to be. "Why?" Geta asked, his voice barely above a whisper. "I have given you everything and anything you asked for. I could've had anyone in this city, and I remained nothing but loyal to you. And this is how you repay me?" He ranted, clearly in a state of shock and disbelief.

"Repay you for what?" Octavia retorted, taking a step closer this time, her gaze occasionally flickering down the dagger clasped tightly in Geta's hand. "You manipulated me into marrying you. It was that, or my father died, and it was my duty to protect him. That's the only reason why I am standing here now. It isn't because I love you. I never loved you. Why would I? You have done nothing but take and take since the moment we met. You're like a leech, sucking me dry until you outgrow me. I would like to stand here and tell you that I'm sorry, and beg for your forgiveness." Octavia paused for a moment, shaking her head. "But I will not be made to feel guilty for falling in love with someone who cares for me."

     Geta couldn't help but scoff in response to the woman's words. "Is that what you think you two share? Love?" He questioned in disbelief, clearly amused by her declarations.

     "I know that's what we share," Octavia argued, confident in her statement.

     "He doesn't love you. He's just another barbarian wanting to bed another Roman whore," Geta spat, looking the woman up and down like she was the most disgusting thing in his presence, and Octavia felt her jaw tighten when he addressed her in such an unflattering manner. "You are no different. Just another forbidden fruit who gave him a taste. The foolish part is that you actually believed he could love you. Barbarians like him don't know how to love. It's just who they are."

     Octavia began to shake her head in response, choosing not to believe a single word Geta said. "You're wrong," She informed.

     "You think so? Well, let's test that theory of yours," Geta paused for a moment, and Octavia watched as the smug smile tugged at the corners of his lips, one that shined with madness and cruelty before he turned his attention towards the doors. "You can bring him in now!"

     Octavia felt her heart beating hard in her chest, the feeling becoming magnified when the doors swinged open. The violent motion was enough to force her to turn around and see two guards dragging Lucius into the room with Geta and herself, the sight of him, accompanied with a few fresh cuts and bruises (a gentle punishment for bedding the emperor's bride, knowing it could've been so much worse) being enough to make her heart hammer against her ribcage at a violent rate. Octavia watched as the guards threw him down to the tiled ground, and without even hesitating, she made an attempt to run to his aid. However, she was quickly stopped when Geta stood beside her, raising the dagger to her throat so the sharpest edge was close to her flesh, forcing Octavia to freeze in her tracks, tears forming in the corners of her eyes when she realised she couldn't help Lucius, and it was all her fault.

     "The second I was informed of your visit to the cages this evening, I had him seized," Geta spoke up, his maniacal voice rattling her bones to the the very core of her being, swallowing thickly when he pressed the blade tighter against her throat. But all Octavia could do was keep her eyes on Lucius, her teary eyes finding his hardened gaze. "Yeah, he tried to fight off my guards, hence the bruises."

     "Why are you doing this?" Octavia snapped, her voice cracking in the process, her gaze never once leaving Lucius, scared of what would happen if she dared to look away.

     "Why am I doing this?" Geta questioned, clearly amused by his own endeavours. "My Love, this is all your own doing. If you had remained loyal to me, this wouldn't be happening. Let's not forget that," He elaborated, the coolness of the blade resting against her flesh sending chills down her spine.

     Octavia released a shaky breath, and despite not wanting to do it, she allowed her terrified gaze to find Geta's cruel eyes, a pleading look beginning to burn bright in her copper coloured eyes. "Please, if you want to punish me, do it. Leave him out of this," She begged, hoping her convincing tone would be enough to make Geta spare Lucius' life.

     Geta chuckled, removing the dagger from Octavian's throat. "But then he'd miss all the fun..." The emperor paused as he turned to his guards, giving them a nod. This caused for the guards to lift Lucius back onto his feet before Geta approached the rugged looking man, and when he stopped in his tracks, he held out the dagger for Lucius to take. "Kill her," He ordered.

     "What?" Both Octavia and Lucius raised their voices in unison with one another, shocked when they heard Geta's vicious and callous request. Even his guards were stunned by his words.

     "You heard me, Barbarian," Geta spat, narrowing his eyes at Lucius with a hateful glare burning in his eyes. "I wanted you dead.  But Macrinus drives a hard bargain, and convinced me that the real problem was my bride here." Geta turned around, nodding his head towards Octavia, who remained frozen in place. He smirked again before turning back to Lucius. "You kill her, you gain your freedom—"

     "Stop this—"

     "Do not tell me what to do!" Geta shouted, turning around and storming closer towards Octavia, forcing the woman to flinch in response as she took several steps back. Lucius jolted forward to try and stop the emperor, but was restrained by Geta's guards once again. Geta then turned to Lucius, "Kill her. And don't even think about trying to take me out. My guards will cut you into two before you can make a single move towards me. You kill her, you can walk out of this room a free man."

Silence filled the air surrounding them, and Octavia watched as Lucius took a step forward before he took the dagger from Geta, now holding it with his fingers curled around the hilt of the weapon. Octavia shuddered at the sight of the man she loved now holding the blade that would be her undoing. The only difference is that as Lucius approached her, blade now in hand, she didn't harbour any hate or resentment towards him for this choice. She understood why he made this decision, and she even accepted it. Octavia wanted nothing more than to see Lucius be a free man, and knowing he wouldn't meet his end in the arena if he took her life, that was a choice she could accept with no hate in her heart — just love.

"It's okay..." Octavia whispered as Lucius stopped in front of her. However, when the man's eyes met her own, his gaze was filled with tears of his own. They were subtle, but Octavia could see them poking at the corners of his eyes. "I understand why you have to do this. It's okay."

Upon hearing those words, Lucius' hand holding the dagger began to tremble, and he cursed at the Gods above for not giving him the will to fight for his own freedom, because the second those words left Octavia's lips, he dropped the dagger. Octavia let out a quiet gasp when she heard the blade hit the ground, the metal clanging against the tiled flooring beneath her feet, while Lucius stepped further back, shaking his head as he continued to breathe heavily. He realised that no matter how much he wanted his freedom, he cared about Octavia enough to suffer in captivity for the rest of his life until his imminent death in the arena, because in what world could he ever harm her?

"Remarkable..." Geta whispered as he stood in between Octavia and Lucius, a look of enjoyment and bewilderment evident in his expression as he continued to smile. "Truly remarkable..." Octavia wanted to curse him down for enjoying this as much as he was. "The beauty..." Geta looked to her, before he turned around, his eyes finding Lucius. "Who fell for the beast."

     "Are you happy now?" Octavia blurted out, a stray tear rolling down her cheek.

     "Very much so, but we are not done. Take him away," Upon hearing his orders, the guards escorted Lucius out of the room, and shortly after they left, Geta turned to her. "Do not fret. I have no intention of hurting a hair on your lover's head just yet. I still need him for other reasons. But someone still has to answer for your treachery."

     Octavia furrowed her brows in confusion for a moment. "Why don't you just kill me then?" She asked.

     "I can't have you killed two days before our wedding. If your lover had done it, I could spin it as a deadly affair. However, I did not anticipate his restraint, so I made sure a backup was in place," Geta explained, beginning to pace back and forth for a moment, almost like he was a predator trying to corner his prey into a corner. "You remember what I told you? How two of your dearest friends in this palace were involved in a plot?"

     Realisation hit Octavia all at once, like a violent wave crashing against the shore of the sunny Roman beaches. All of sudden, the doors to her chambers swing open again and both Caius and Augusta are escorted inside. Caius was clearly beaten to a pulp, his left eye swollen and an open gash indented into the flesh of his cheek, while Augusta was left untouched and unharmed, but the emotional turmoil she had been forced to endure was evident in her red and puffy eyes. Octavia tried to reach out for them, but Geta was quick to cut in between Octavia and her dear friends.

"What are you doing?" Octavia snapped at him. "If you want to punish me, then punish me. Do not harm them."

"We both know punishment doesn't work on you. If there's something I've learned about you, it's that in order to hurt you, I have to hurt them," Geta taunted, those seemingly harmless words causing for Octavia's hands to tremble with dread. "So, choose which one I should have my guards execute here and now."

Octavia couldn't believe what she was hearing. Geta wanted her to choose between two of her closest friends. He wanted her to pick who would lived, and who would die. The mere thought of having to choose between them left a bitter taste in her mouth, her heart continuing to hammer hard against her ribcage, a dull ache erupting in her chest when she realised Geta was being serious about his request to have Caius or Augusta killed right in front of her, and all because of her treachery. One of them would die tonight because of her, and Octavia wasn't sure if she could live with that.

"No," Octavia denied, shaking her head.

"Choose," Geta repeated, taking a step closer towards the woman.

Octavia continued to shake her head, "No."

Her response only infuriated Geta more before he reached out for her, wrapping both his hands firmly and tightly around Octavia's arms, causing for the woman to wince as he parted his lips to speak. "You will choose. If not, I'll have them both slaughtered where they stand now, and after they've both bled out all over the floor, I'll send my guards into the city to kill Augusta's son." Geta was shaking Octavia's body, jolting her back and forth in a violent manner as he raised his voice towards her. "Is that what you want? Do you want her boy's blood on your—"

"Kill me."

Geta was cut off when Caius stepped forward and made his bold declaration for the emperor to hear. Octavia turned her teary eyes to find Caius, watching as he looked to her with a firm nod before he turned his attention to Geta, his eyes flooding with hate. "You want to kill someone, you kill me," He repeated.

     "Caius, no!" Octavia cried, ordering him to step back and rethink what he was saying.

     "It is the right thing to do, My Lady," Caius informed her, sparing Octavia a warm glance before his eyes found Augusta, looking down at the other woman with a small smile ghosting across his lips. "This way, we both get to go home to our children."

     Octavia continued to shake her head profusely. She knew this would be the only outcome — Caius or Augusta would die — and Caius decided to sacrifice himself for them both because it was the right thing to do in his eyes. However, it didn't mean it wasn't an avoidable outcome either. Octavia couldn't chosen Augusta to die, but that wouldn't have been right either. Caius saw her struggle in choosing a sacrifice, and in order to save Augusta and her family, he decided it had to be him — a childless father who would have his dead children waiting for him in the next life. Octavia knew Caius had made peace with his choice the second he stepped forward, knowing he would see his boys again, but it didn't mean she had accepted it.

In fact, Octavia tried to fight it.

"It was an honour to serve you..." Caius told Octavia, sending her a reassuring smile.

Octavia noticed the guards beginning to approach Caius, and as one held Augusta back, escorting her out of the room in the process, the other took out his sword, now standing in front of Caius. Octavia lunged forward to try and put an end to the madness unfolding. But Geta was quick to wrap his arms securely around the woman, holding onto her tight enough that she couldn't wriggle out of his hold on her. All Octavia could do was scream and cry, helpless, as the guard drove his sword swiftly through Caius, twisting the blade through his stomach, causing for the man to fall to he knees as the sword was pulled from his dying body, blood spewing from his mouth, and the gaping wound in his gut.

Geta continued to hold onto Octavia, preventing her from rushing to Caius' aid until his stopped choking on his own viscous blood, his body becoming limp to signify he had died painfully, but quickly. That was when Geta freed Octavia from his arms, her legs bucking beneath her as she fell to the ground, choking back on her sobs as her teary eyes laid upon the bloody state of Caius' dead corpse in front of her, a pool of red beginning to surround him.

"What have you done?" Octavia cried, her voice barely above a whisper.

"What have I done?" Geta replied in disbelief, his eyes flickering between a beaten down Octavia, and a dead Caius lying in the centre of the room. "Don't you understand? This was all your fault. You have no one to blame, but yourself."

Geta hurried out of the room soon after that, the doors slamming shut behind him, thus leaving Octavia alone with Caius' limp corpse. The woman continued to sob as she found the courage to drag her aching body towards the man, using all her strength to do so. Once she had reached him, her dress, her skin, becoming stained in crimson, she gently placed her hands on either side of Caius' face, a shaky breath leaving her lips as she looked into his dead, hollow gaze, before she forced them to close. Octavia then removed her hands from the man's face before she took his limp hand into her own, holding onto him tightly with one singular hope igniting in her heart.

"You're at peace now, Caius," Octavia managed to choke out past the shaky breaths and uncontrollable sobs. "Go to them. Go to your boys," She paused again, leaning down and placing a gentle kiss to the knuckles of his hand. "I will see you soon."

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authors note.
Caius is with his family again...who else cried? Just me? Okay cool...
Nah you guys had it so good in the last chapter I had to give you whiplash by killing a character especially with the stakes being as high as they are at this point in the story as we approach the end. And the next chapter won't be any better because we'll be saying goodbye to another character (if you know, you know...)

Until then I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and I'll update again soon!!