Swords Around the Throne: Twilight of Empire, Book 2 (Unabridged‪)‬

Rewarded for saving the emperor's life in battle, centurion Aurelius Castus is promoted to the Corps of Protectores, the elite imperial bodyguard, the swords around the throne.

But he soon discovers the court to be just as hazardous as the battlefield; behind the gilded facade of empire, there are spiralling plots, murderous betrayals and dangerous seductions. And one relentless enemy.