Ancient Rome, AD 50 The boy Nero lives. His mother Agrippina has married her way to power, tangling the Emperor Claudius in her skirts. The emperor may have a son and heir of his own, but Agrippina sees no obstacles to her ambition. Rome is a path through a marsh, lit by torches. Those who walk it are always one step from disaster – and the road itself is treacherous, slippery with blood. Claudius may have the world at his feet, but he has Agrippina in his bed.