In fact, some scholars have argued that Procopius died at least a few years after 565 as he unequivocally states in the beginning of his "Secret History" that he planned to publish it after the death of Justinian for fear he would be tortured and killed by the emperor (or even by general Belisarius) if the emperor (or the general) learned about what Procopius wrote (his scathing criticism of the emperor, of his wife, of Belisarius, of the general's wife, Antonia: calling the former "demons in human form" and the latter incompetent and treacherous) in this later history. However, most scholars believe that the "Secret History" was written in 550 and remained unpublished during Procopius' lifetime.