Free TW11 The Cleopatra Crisis NEW by Simon Hawke

for a more brave and loyal army."
    "No army could hope for a better general than Caesar,” said Travers, not intending it as mere flattery, but meaning every word of it.
    "Thank you, my friend," said Caesar. "Nor shall I forget you, either. You have served me well through all these many years. But our work is not yet done. Egypt is a ripe fruit ready for the plucking. Tell me, what do you think of this oily eunuch, Pothinus? He seems to hold more influence with the king than do any of his ministers."
    "Pothinus does seem to be the power behind the throne," said Travers.
    "The young king plainly defers to him. I have observed that the ministers take pains to ingratiate themselves with him. Or at least to avoid his displeasure."
    "Yes, that is my opinion, too," said Caesar, frowning. “It is Pothinus who rules here and not Ptolemy, who is little more than a child. And the ministers all fear him. I have been told that it was Pothinus himself who assassinated Pompey."
    "You have been told?" asked Travers, instantly on guard. “By whom?"
    Caesar smiled. "There are those here who are well disposed toward Rome, if only because they are ill disposed toward Pothinus. That crafty eunuch sees us as a threat to the power he has managed to accumulate through his manipulation of the king. We must have a care, Septimus, not to sleep too soundly so long as we remain here."
    "You think that Pothinus would try to have us murdered? With our legions here?"
    "He might well serve us as he did Pompey and then protest his innocence," Caesar said. "It would win him no small favor among our enemies in Rome. Although perhaps I worry needlessly. It is not yet the Ides of March." He smiled and Travers felt suddenly uneasy.
    "Still," Caesar continued, "our influence in Egypt is not what it once was. Pompey has mismanaged things. I must take steps to remedy that situation. We must make the power of Rome felt here once again. Tomorrow, I will begin by demanding the tribute that is due to Rome, so that we might reward our army. And we must see to it that a more benign influence is set behind the throne. What do you know of the king's sister, the one who was exiled when Pompey was in power?"
    Travers replied evasively, "Cleopatra? I fear that I know very little of her, Caesar. It is said that she is young and very beautiful. Also ambitious, which is why Pompey had banished her."
    "I think perhaps we should recall her," Caesar said. "Let us arrange, through certain of these ministers who have no love for Pothinus, to send word to her to come and see me. I would like to speak with her myself and judge what manner of woman she is. Perhaps we can help her see that she would best serve her own interests by also serving Rome's. But I think it would not be wise to alert others of our plans before we have decided on a course of action. I will send word to her to come to me in secret."
    Caesar smiled. “In the meantime, Septimus, my friend, we shall take full advantage of this grudging hospitality and send for wine. It shall probably be sour, but no matter. We shall only pour it out. Let them believe that we dissolute Romans are drinking through the night. So long as lights burn in our chambers, stealthy assassins might hesitate to enter.” He clapped his hand to his sword hilt. "And if they do, we shall be sober and prepared for them."
    Throughout the night, the palace servants brought them wine, which neither of them even tasted. The hours stretched toward dawn. Caesar had no need of Travers, to help him stay awake. His hyper personality kept him going, dictating letters and portions of his memoirs until Travers was exhausted, and then Caesar, seeing he was tired, apologized for working him so hard and told him amusing anecdotes and stories of his childhood, which Travers wanted desperately to write down, but couldn't both because his wrist was sore from taking dictation and it was all that he could do to keep his eyes open. At some point, he dropped off, and