Julius Caesar Read Online Free PDF

a low table. A heap of papyrus rolls stood on it, each one covered with a long list of names. None of the three men had enough supporters to claim power alone now Caesar was gone, so they had decided to join forces. They had begun by working out who they could count on and, more importantly, who would be against them. ‘These then shall die,’ said Antony, picking up one of the rolls. ‘Their names are all marked.’
    â€˜Your brother, too, Lepidus,’ said Octavius. Caesar’s heir was very young, barely a grown man, and quite slender. But he had a strong face with a faint resemblance to Caesar, andan air of certainty about him. ‘Do you agree?’
    Lepidus shrugged. ‘So long as Antony’s nephew Publius dies, too.’
    â€˜That’s all right by me,’ said Antony. ‘Look, I’ve damned him with a cross against his name. Listen, Lepidus, I think you should go to Caesar’s house and dig out a copy of his will. We need to look at it and make sure we don’t give away too much of his fortune in legacies, whatever he might have wanted…’
    Octavius smiled to himself. He knew Mark Antony had made a great show of telling the people at Caesar’s funeral how generous Caesar had been in his will, and that many would benefit from it. But that had just been to keep the fools in the streets on their side. He and Antony weren’t stupid enough to give away Caesar’s money when they needed all they could get to pay for the coming war.
    â€˜Er, good idea!’ said Lepidus, hurrying off.
    Antony scowled after him. ‘The man’s a moron, only fit to be sent on errands,’ hemuttered. ‘It seems madness to divide up the world and give someone like him a third of it!’
    â€˜If that’s what you think, why did you let him add names to the lists of who should die?’ Octavius said. His voice was soft, but his eyes were hard.
    â€˜Trust me on this, Octavius,’ said Antony. ‘I’m older than you, so I know what I’m doing. We’ll use Lepidus to do our dirty work for the time being, and then as soon as he’s no longer useful, we’ll cut him loose. But we have more important things to discuss. Brutus and Cassius are putting together an army – we need to do the same as soon as possible, and to make some plans.’
    â€˜Quite right,’ said Octavius, jumping to his feet. ‘This is a dangerous time, and we have many enemies. Even some of our allies might be false friends.’
    Things moved quickly over the next few weeks. Brutus and Cassius had crossed the Adriatic Sea to Illyria, and most of the legionsin the eastern part of the Empire joined them. But Mark Antony and Octavius raised an army from Caesar’s old legions in Italy and the other western provinces. And soon both armies were marching down the long, straight Roman roads, seeking out each other like two red-crested, many-legged monsters of sharp steel and soft flesh.
    Brutus and Cassius split up at one point, Cassius going off to recruit more troops, Brutus setting up a fortified camp near the coast. As was their habit, the legionaries dug a deep ditch around the camp and used the soil to build a square rampart, adding a wall of sharpened stakes on top. Then they put up their tents in straight rows, with a large tent for Brutus and his officers in the centre.
    It was a warm summer’s day when Cassius returned, his new recruits behind him on the road. A messenger rode ahead to let Brutus know Cassius was coming, a certain Lucilius, a man who had served Brutus for many years.
    â€˜Well then, Lucilius,’ said Brutus, emerging from his tent. The two soldiers guarding it, one on either side of the flap, snapped to attention. Brutus was in full armour, sunshine glinting off his breastplate. ‘Is Cassius near at last?’
    â€˜He is, and sends you his greetings,’ said Lucilius, jumping off his horse.
    â€˜A word with