Rome - 9. Chapter 9

Over the next two weeks, with the additional help and two mules, they cleared all of the rubble around the house and about half of the property. Lucinius judged that at the end of another week, all of the rubble would be gone. The architect showed up with two other men. They looked at where the house stood, took measurements, asked some questions about orientation and if he wanted sleeping quarters on the first floor or second, second was his answer. The architect told Lucinius he would be back in five to six days with the final plan. The architect already had an idea of what the house initially looked like just from what he could see. He did lay out the dimensions of the house by placing markers in the ground. Just looking at the markers, Lucinius already knew that the house would be bigger than his father’s but not as big as either of his grandfathers. Knowing a little about the overall dimensions, Lucinius could plan where he wanted the animal sheds. He took two things into consideration, the proximity to water and the direction of the wind. He remembered where his grandfather had his animal sheds.

The gods must have been smiling on Lucinius. The dried-up grapevines started to grow. Aumen had been watering them for two weeks, and it seems that the roots weren’t dead. Now they needed to repair the stakes holding the vines. That night Lucinius prayed to Apollo, thanking him for blessing him with good friends and family. In the morning, he heard some of the men shouting. When he went to see what it was about, they had captured a wild pig. “I didn’t know there were wild pigs here.”

“This looks more like someone’s pigs got loose. What are you going to do with it?”

“Since we’re able to catch it, I’m going to sacrifice it to Apollo. Last night I prayed to Apollo, thanking him for my good fortune finding men to help me. I think he sent this pig, and if I am right after we sacrifice this one, he’ll send another.”

“If he doesn’t?”

“That would be okay. Apollo has blessed me in many ways. I owe my life to him. My father was ready to kill me, but my mother took me to the Temple and had the priest consecrate me to Apollo. My father was afraid to do anything.”

“Then we’ll sacrifice the pig to Apollo.”

The next day, when the sun was directly overhead, they burnt the pig dedicating it to Apollo on a makeshift altar. Lucinius took the ashes and spread them over the land they had cleared. He saved some for when the house was finished. The rest of the day, they continued to clear the grounds. In the evening, they took the horses and mules to an area where there was a lot of grass for them to eat. They supplemented this with oats and wheat. Almost at the same time as yesterday morning, the men said they caught three pigs, two small and one large. Lucinius looked at Aumen and smiled. Nothing more needed to be said. That night, again, Lucinius prayed to Apollo, thanking him.

The large pig was a female, and evidently, the small ones were hers. We moved them into one of the sheds that were finished. I told the men that when everything was finished, we would roast one.

The architect return with a copy of the house plans. Lucinius and Aumen looked at the drawings. Lucinius made one change, he wanted the Baths to be heated by the kitchen stove, and he wanted it to be horizontal with the walls of the house. He then wanted the Baths as part of the courtyard. He drew a picture that showed a small wall between the Baths and courtyard. The architect thought that was a good idea and changed his drawings. Lucinius signed the drawings stating he approved. The architect told him he would start in three days.

Four weeks later, his grandfathers arrived to check on the progress Lucinius had made. What they found was a surprise to them. The land was cleared, the stones were used to build a wall around the property. “I didn’t think this property was this large.” Gaius agreed with him.

“Lucinius, I didn’t think this property was this large.”

“The architect brought a plan showing the original boundaries. He checked the deed Father gave me. He stated the land that once belonging to the house was all mine.”

The grandfathers just smiled. The rebuilding of the house was well underway. There were a few rooms completed except for the final coating on the walls. “When does the architect think he will be finished with your house?”

“He said the actual building would be completed in three to four weeks. The finishing will take another two weeks. Then another six weeks on the courtyard and Baths.”

“We’ll be back in three months to have a feast to celebrate your new home.”