Julius considered this in angry silence. “And who shall I send to be tortured, Mark Antony? We are not discussing a beating. Pompey would take hours over him to be certain he has the truth. I’ve seen him work on traitors before. Our spy would lose his eyes to hot irons and with them the hope of surviving the ordeal. Pompey will be thorough with him. Do you understand? There’ll be nothing left but meat.”

Mark Antony did not reply and Julius snorted in disgust, his sandals clicking as he walked the marble floor. At the furthest point from them, he paused and turned. He couldn’t remember when he’d last slept, and his mind was numb.

“You are right. We must lessen the coup of having Brutus go over to them. Pompey will trumpet it far and wide if he has any sense, but if we can sow distrust, Pompey could well waste our precious general. Do the men know yet that he has left?”

“Some will, though they may not guess he has gone to Pompey,” Mark Antony replied. “It is beyond belief for any of us. They would not think of it.”

“Then a loyal man will suffer the worst agonies to undo this betrayal,” Julius said grimly. “It is the first of what he will owe us. Whoever we send cannot know the truth. It would be burnt out of him. He must be told that Brutus is still one of us, but playing a subtle game. Perhaps we can have him overhear the secret, so he does not become too suspicious. Who can you send?”

The generals looked at each other reluctantly. It was one thing to order men into a battle line, but this was a dirty business and Brutus was hated in that room.

Mark Antony cleared his throat at last. “I have one who has worked for me in the past. He is clumsy enough to get himself caught if we send him alone. His name is Caecilius.”

“Does he have family, children?” Julius asked, clenching his jaw.

“I don’t know,” Mark Antony said.

“If he has, I will send a blood-price to them when he is clear of the city,” Julius said. It did not seem enough.

“I will summon Caecilius here, with your permission?” Mark Antony asked.

As always, the final order and the final responsibility rested with Julius. He felt annoyed that Mark Antony would not take the burden with a few easy words, but Brutus would have and Brutus had turned traitor. It was better to be surrounded by weaker men, perhaps.

“Yes. Have him come here. I will give the orders myself,” Julius confirmed.