In the shadow of ancient Rome, a modern conspiracy unfolds...
When classics professor Marcus Whitby is called to a murder scene at the Museum of Classical Antiquities, he discovers more than a dead body. The victim has been arranged in perfect imitation of Julius Caesar's assassination, complete with twenty-three stab wounds and a cryptic Latin message: "The Aurelii Remember."
As more victims fall-each death recreating pivotal moments in Rome's transition from Republic to Empire-Marcus finds himself drawn into a deadly conspiracy stretching back two millennia. With his unlikely allies-a paranoid graduate assistant and his detective friend-Marcus races to decode an ancient cipher system hidden in plain sight.
What connects garden gnomes to imperial bloodlines? Why is Marcus's ex-wife's new husband so interested in Caesar artifacts? And most importantly, who are the Aurelii-the secret society claiming direct descent from Rome's emperors?
Marcus must decipher the clues before the killer completes their historical reenactment-a performance where he may be cast in the final role.