Lena

Lena, a character in the A Courtesan of Rome book, is your villica and your boss. She is first seen in Chapter 1.

Appearance
Lena has brown eyes, long braided black hair and dark skin. She wears a red dress with golden hemlines encrusted with a blue gemstone. She also wears a golden headpiece, a golden necklace, and several golden gemstone-encrusted bangles.

Personality
She is practical and smart, caring about her courtesans' physical well-beings but leaves their private lives to themselves. As long as her courtesans bring money to her scholae, she cares little what they do with the rest of their time. She also prefers not to be told about any of your acts of vengeance. She wants her girls to have patrons of influence because it protects them.

Series/Book: A Courtesan of Rome

 * Chapter 1: A Princess of Gaul
 * Chapter 3: The Aid of the Gods
 * Chapter 4: The Hunt
 * Chapter 5: Red-Handed
 * Chapter 6: Marked
 * Chapter 8: The Goddess of Watching
 * Chapter 9: Power Vacuum
 * Chapter 10: Snakes in the Grass
 * Chapter 12: Raising The Stakes
 * Chapter 13: Bread and Circus
 * Chapter 14: A Twist of Fate
 * Chapter 15: Best Served Cold
 * Chapter 17: A Life for a Life
 * Chapter 19: A Warrior's Death
 * Chapter 21: The Ides of March

Main Character
Eight years ago, after the defeat of your tribe, Legate Aquila sold you to Lena and her scholae. She told you that she bought your freedom because she thought you would rather earn money for her than be a slave. In her scholae, you would learn to read, write, recite poetry, and play the cithara. And you would learn how to make men do anything for you. At first, you thought you would have to trade sexual favors for your patrons, but Lena told you that with her training, you would learn to make any Senator give you his fortune for just the touch of your hand. With her training, you would have power, the most power any woman could have. In Chapter 3, she tells you that any gift you earn from a patron is yours to keep. She also tells you her opinions of your patrons, and that it's necessary to make connections with as many patrons as possible. In Chapter 8, she warns you about Antony and to tread carefully as she doesn't want you to become another tool for him to use. In Chapter 15, when Antony gets mad at you and chooses Xanthe to accompany him instead, Lena admits that even though she shouldn’t play favorites, she loves you because you are everything she has wanted to be: strong and fearless. She doesn’t want you to get hurt but gives you more advice about Antony.

Syphax
Syphax is a bodyguard in Lena's employ. He protects her courtesans. She assigned him to you when you entered her scholae, and told him that she wanted him to also protect you from your own worst impulses. After taking the blame for Tribune Gnaeus Rufus's death, Syphax is imprisoned, awaiting trial and later, is given the chance to fight for his life as a gladiator. Winning the match doesn't release him back into Lena's employment, as he is bought by Legate Aquila's ludus.

Xanthe
Xanthe is one of the scholae's most celebrated courtesans. While she is jealous of you meeting Marc Antony, Lena scolds her and says that there will be war and that would threaten the safety of the scholae. Later, when your popularity threatens to surpass hers, Lena reminds you that you both need to earn money for the scholae. In Chapter 15, Lena isn’t pleased with Xanthe spreading rumors and turning Antony against you. In Chapter 21, when Xanthe threatens Main Character to reveal Cassius' plot, Lena sends her away to Sicily.

Trivia

 * She bears a resemblance to Trinidadian-American actress and producer Lorraine Toussaint.
 * She shares the same forename as Lena Ortiz, a character in The Heist: Monaco series.
 * The name Lena is of Greek origin and means: Alluring, temptress, light. It's a short version of the name Helena.
 * Her facial features were also used for Marianne D'Arneaux, a character in Red Carpet Diaries, Book 3.