Rome, 23 BC. Beneath the imposing shadow of the Forum of Augustus, a chilling census is underway. Tiberius Claudius Nero, a meticulous census taker, finds a terrifying pattern emerging from his scrolls: citizens mysteriously perish soon after their names are recorded. They die not by violence, but by whispers — inaudible to most, yet deadly enough to steal the very breath from their lungs.
When a prominent senator collapses mid-oration, Claudius’s ordered world begins to unravel. He confides in Marcus Junius Brutus, a shrewd lawyer, and Livia Drusilla, a sharp-witted scribe, whose keen eye uncovers manipulated records hinting at a far more earthly conspiracy. Their investigation plunges them into the shadowy alleys of the Subura, where whispers of a forgotten god, Viduus, intertwine with the ambitions of the ruthlessly powerful Senator Lucius Calpurnius Piso.
Piso, veiled in piety, exploits the whispers and the growing fear, orchestrating a calculated scheme to seize control of Rome. As the whispers intensify, Livia uncovers a dangerous ritual linked to her own ancestry — a ritual that could sever the curse, but at a terrible price. Brutus, caught in a web of political deceit, must choose between his ambition and the safety of the city. And Claudius, his belief in logic shattered, must confront the terrifying reality of a world far more chaotic than his meticulous records suggest.
With the grand Ludi Romani festival fast approaching, Piso prepares to unleash the amplified curse upon the unsuspecting masses. The fate of Rome hangs in the balance. Can Claudius, Brutus, and Livia expose Piso’s conspiracy and silence the whispers before they consume the city, or will they become the curse’s next victims?
