Chapter 14: The Lion Among Senators

They seized him from me at sunrise.
The city of Athens sparkled ahead, a crown of marble and ambition. Damon entered its gates as if stepping into a den of lions. I was not permitted to follow, only to witness him vanish beyond the walls, the royal seal of summons gleaming on his cloak like a curse.

He had not been summoned as a guest.
He had been summoned as a cautionary tale.

The entire day stretched out before me. The hours moved slowly like scared children. Each noise outside the villa sent my heart racing—the sound of hooves, the whispers of servants, the wind stirring among the olive trees. I attempted to pray, but my words felt weighty, dropping into a dry well.

They said Themiston, the Archon of Athens, presided over the judgment.
I envisioned the chamber, with expansive marble flooring and rows of men who fancied themselves as gods. And there was Damon, tall, proud, and too fearless for his peril.

I could almost hear them speaking.

“Damon Kyrios,” the Archon would pronounce in his smooth voice, “You are summoned here not as a criminal but as a man who must recall his place among civil Greeks.”