Cara of Camulodunum dreams of traveling the world, but as the daughter of a blacksmith, the height of her exploration is the plebian carpenter's shop of her intended. Then she meets the patrician's son, Eric Paterculi, who regales Cara with tales of Greece and Hercules. The sons of Roman noblemen are meant to become soldiers and politicians, and Eric's father, the Legate of Britannia has illustrious plans for Eric. However, Eric fails rhetoric class and seems more interested in training for the Olympic Games than for statesmanship. At the training grounds, Victor Ocelli, a member of the Viri piracy ring, befriends Eric in order to use him against his father. The more Cara learns about Eric, the more she desires to break free from the restrictive rules of her intended. But breaking the rules lands Cara in a bondage worse than she could have imagined. Only Eric can save her, but will a patrician defy his familia to rescue a plebeian?