The Falcon Rises (The Desert Queen Book 2) Read online

  Instead, Ayn and I explored the many empty rooms around us and were amazed at the hawk carvings that stood outside the door of one large room, obviously a feasting area. Feeling tired but anxious to use every minute available to me, I walked the narrow streets beside my home and visited with my people. Many hugged me and reached their hands toward me. Many cried, “Hafa-nu, mekhma!” and I returned their greetings. Tears filled my eyes at the sight of the tired yet relieved faces of the Meshwesh. Tired we were, and many fewer than before, but we were home—back in Zerzura. To my surprise, many Egyptians patrolled the area, although most of them had camped outside the gate and I could hear the sounds of construction. Obviously they were attempting to repair the damage that had been done to the front gates. I had never seen such things as exploding barrels and fire bursting into the air. It was a powerful weapon, and now I could see why Egypt ruled the world. The things they knew far exceeded our own knowledge.

  The sun had finally set as we made our way back to my chambers. Ayn hesitated outside the door, and I smiled at her knowingly. “I am sure I will be safe, Ayn. Go. See your general.”

  “This is our last night before we return to Thebes and to his wife. I do not know what the future holds. I want to treasure every moment.”

  “I understand that. Go. I’m going to bed.” Ayn hugged me. It was a rare thing to receive a hug from the warrior. I accepted it, patting her on the back as she walked quickly down the street. As she turned the corner I took my chance. Now was the time to see Alexio! Ramose would be busy with Ayn and would never know. I turned the corner, deciding to take the long narrow backstreet that led to the Lightning Gate. I had no cloak, but the streets were almost empty. Most of the people had already settled in for the night and were unconcerned with one woman walking through the city. Still I stayed in the shadows as much as I could, silently cursing the bright moon that rose above me. I did not know the city well, but I headed north to where the Lightning Gate once stood. As I had promised, we had destroyed that gate today. There would be no entrance through that gate anymore. The stones had crumbled, and we would forever be safe and protected from the Nephal—and the Kiffians. I was panting as I scurried through the streets. I cleared the corner and nearly gasped when I saw an Egyptian soldier standing just a few feet away. He had not spotted me, so I quickly turned back and stood flush against the wall. I waited for him to walk by or walk away before I continued on my path.

  After a short time, I poked my head around the corner to see that the soldier was now gone and the gate was in the distance. I did not see Alexio, but I hoped he had received my message and had found a place to wait until I could come to him. There were no buildings to hide beside now; there was nothing but open space from here on to the gate. I would have to run quickly to make it unspotted. I tossed my hair behind my shoulders, wishing again that I had a cloak to hide it. But there was no time for that now. I raced toward the gate only to hear a loud whistle echo through the courtyard.

  “You! What are you doing here?” It was Ramose! Before I could answer him, he gripped my elbow and pulled me back to the edge of the courtyard. “You heard me. What are you doing here, Desert Queen?” I could not get free from his grip and stood frozen, unable to think or speak. Suddenly he shoved me against the wall and pressed his body against mine.

  “Let me go!”

  He stifled my cries by placing his mouth over mine and kissing me long and hard. I punched at his chest and pushed him as hard as I could, but he was like granite. I could not move him.

  “You think to make a fool of me? I knew this was what you would do. Imagine, the great mekhma strolling through the streets like a common street—”

  “Get off of me! I will scream, General, and you will have the Shasu upon you before you can think.”

  With a rough hand he grabbed my breasts and kissed my neck. “Scream all you like. Is this not what you wanted? Leave the boy alone, Desert Queen, or you will get him killed. I am a man, and I will keep your secret. I can please you.”

  Ramose kicked open the door beside us, and I could see his intentions. He would take me whether I said yea or nay. This was my last chance to reason with him. “And what about Ayn? What about your child? Do you care for no one?”

  He froze just a few inches from my face. “What are you talking about?”

  “Ayn carries your child. Finally, you will have your immortal name, General. But when I tell her what you’ve done to me…”

  He pushed himself away and blinked at me in the dim light. “You lie.”

  “I do not. Ask her yourself. She has gone to see you.” I straightened my clothing and wiped his kisses from my face.

  His mouth opened and closed, but he said nothing for a long minute. He stared at me with his hawk eyes and then said, “Go home then, mekhma. But do not step outside your chamber door again. For if you do, I will not listen to your pleas for mercy.”

  Feeling numb I walked back to my temporary home, which was now my prison. I did not look over my shoulder or turn around for fear that Ramose was on my heels. I had no doubt he followed me at some length, and I believed his threat. For whatever reason, he would not allow me to see Alexio.

  My heart felt like a brick in my chest as I walked up the steps and into my bed. Ayn did not return. After crying for hours and staring at the bright moon from my window I finally fell asleep.

  Chapter Eleven

  The New Daughter—Queen Tiye

  I had no intention of letting the dust settle on her sandals before I made my purpose known to all. As I had learned from my husband, there was nothing like the element of surprise, especially when it came to outmaneuvering your enemies. Today was the day I presented my new daughter to the world. With only a moment’s notice, my faithful steward summoned all the queens, the court and even my son to greet my new daughter. For a moment, I considered Sitamen and what this would mean for her, but only for a moment. I was sure she would misunderstand everything, such a sensitive child was she, but what choice did I have? My enemy, Tadukhipa, left me no choice! With my husband hovering between life and death, nothing could be left to chance. We had been foolish to invite Tadukhipa into our home—into our marriage—into our kingdom, and I refused to allow that mistake to continue through my son’s reign. Hopefully, the steps I took today would knock that smug smile off her face.

  I pushed the door open and walked into the Desert Queen’s room unannounced. She stood in the midst of the room; a half dozen women, my cleverest servants, attended her. Immediately they all turned to face me, bowing their heads and shoulders in obedience. Even the girl had the sense to show respect to the Queen of Egypt. She was lovely, lovelier than I remembered. I had not seen her last night when she arrived, but my general made sure I was aware of her presence. Memre would serve her as her steward, hopefully to guide her in subjects like proper etiquette and basic traditions, things expected of her from the court of Thebes. This was such a complicated place, yet she was intelligent and I trusted that Memre would help her assimilate quickly. I had my eye on other candidates, but in beauty, intelligence and bravery, the Meshwesh girl had exceeded them all. I quietly congratulated myself as I walked around her, examining her hair and clothing.

  My servants had obeyed me and had not shaved her gorgeous hair, nor had they yet put on her the dark wigs she would soon be expected to wear. Perhaps this was a mistake, but I thought not. Why not let the courts see she had been touched by the gods with her flaming red hair? Why not let them look upon her natural beauty before I took her into my household officially? Her hair was in two braids at her temples, which had been swept up and gathered at the back of her head in an elegant bow. Her startling green eyes were lined with kohl, making them even more intense, and on her lips was a touch of pink. My servants had dressed her in a blue gown that fit her youthful body perfectly, and the material… Ah, the material. It had been sent a week ago to the palace as a gift for Kiya from my husband, who remembered she had admired it during a recent trip with him. My
servants had wrangled the delivery from hers and upon seeing it, I could think of no one better to wear it than Nefret. She appeared calm now, but I could only imagine what she was thinking.

  “You,” I commanded one of the servants whose name escaped me, “bring me those gold cuffs.” The young woman quickly retrieved the jewelry and stood before me holding them neatly on a pillow. I removed the cuffs and placed them on Nefret’s wrists. “That will do. Leave us.”

  As I stood close to the girl I could see that she was not quite as confident as I had imagined. She shivered visibly, but I did not ask her about her health. She had better not get sick, not after the investment I made in her. Fixing my gaze upon Huya, I said calmly, “You may also go. Wait outside.” He did as he was asked, leaving me alone with the Desert Queen.

  “How do you like your surroundings? Are your rooms pleasing? You may look at me.”

  She raised her head, and her eyes were like two pools of a green sea. I felt as if eternity were staring back at me. Yes, she was the one. The priestess had been right.

  “Yes, Great Queen. My rooms are pleasing. Thank you for your generosity.” I walked around her, examining her slender frame. She was taller than I, which was no surprise, but also taller than many women.

  “My general tells me that you left behind some family. Tell me about them.”

  “My father is Semkah, the King of the Meshwesh. Or he was king until his injury.”

  “And your mother?”

  She looked puzzled at my line of questioning but had enough sense not to ask me questions. “My mother was Kadeema, the Princess of Grecia.”

  “And where is she now?”

  “No one knows, Great Queen. She disappeared into the desert, and no one has seen her since.”

  “Ah, so it is true. I have come to tell you the truth today, Nefret.”

  “The truth?”

  “Yes. You were not the daughter of Kadeema but of Isis. It was she who gave birth to you and she who placed you in the desert.” The look of surprise upon her face amused me, but only for a second. She needed to take my words to heart, remember them and say them.

  “I do not understand, Great Queen. I do not know Isis or any other god or goddess. Once I thought I knew one, but now I am not sure.”

  I grabbed her by the elbows and pulled her close. We were only a breath away from one another. I could almost feel her heart pounding like a frightened rabbit in a trapper’s net. I relished these moments far too much. Moments when I held absolute power over another life. But this power was also a grave responsibility.

  “Do not say such things. I am the Queen of Egypt, the Great Wife of Amenhotep. I am Queen of the World and Priestess of Isis. I speak the truth, and you need to heed and obey. From this day forward, you are the daughter of Isis. Say it now!”

  “I am the daughter of Isis.”

  Gripping her arms tighter I said again, “Say it louder!”

  “I am the daughter of Isis!”

  I dropped her arms and stepped back. I captured the dancer’s pose—holding my left arm high and my right arm pointed behind me below my waist, I curved my hands in the shape of the holy symbol.

  “Do as I do and say it again.” I made the girl repeat the sentence over and over again until I was satisfied. “Do not think for yourself. Do not imagine you have permission to think for yourself. You do not. I do the thinking in this court. Still, you have a choice, a choice I did not have. You can live as a prisoner, or you can become a true Queen. Those are your choices. There is nothing else.”

  I left the Desert Queen alone to consider my words. It would not go well for her if she failed to follow my instructions. I was surprised to see my daughter Sitamen waiting for me outside the doors of the Desert Queen’s room.

  “Sitamen, why are you here?” I asked in a flat voice. She looked me up and down, examining the garb I wore as Priestess of Isis. She knew the importance of this event, yet I had told her nothing. Why should I? I was the Queen of Egypt and not beholden to any man or woman, even if that woman happened to be my own child. I looked up at her, remembering to soften my voice a bit. She had always been a tenderhearted child, and the condition had gotten worse as she got older. I blamed the Monkey for her latest flares for the dramatic. Before the arrival of the Hittite woman, Sitamen had obeyed every word and followed my instructions perfectly; now she had sold herself to Kiya in exchange for a few pleasant words and false compliments. The girl was a fool.

  “So it is true, then. You are bringing this foreign queen into our court, into our family. Why?”

  “And you have been putting your nose in places it does not belong, have you not, daughter? I do what pleases me. Why should I explain anything to you?” Fat tears hung in the girl’s dark eyes. Sitamen had her father’s heavy brows and few of her younger sisters’ good looks, but she loved her brother as she loved no one else. While they were young, they were inseparable, but unfortunately for Sitamen, she would not be Amenhotep’s true wife. He did not want her, or at least that was what he said now. Men were nothing if not changeable.

  Before her emotions overtook her capacity for thinking, I had considered Sitamen intelligent. With a gasp of frustration, I walked past her, and she did the unthinkable—she touched the sovereign without being asked. She grabbed my arm just as I had held Nefret’s. I froze and cast a look back, reminding her who was mistress of this kingdom. “How dare you place your hands upon me?”

  “Mother, Great Wife of my father, it is I. Have you no care for me? Have you lost your mother’s love for me? What have I done—why are you doing this? I am your daughter! You have daughters—why have another?” The servants backed away from us respectfully and silenced their whispering. Sitamen jutted out her angular chin and said, “Am I not a queen too? I should know what it is you are doing.”

  In a flash, I reached under her wig and grabbed a handful of her thick, coarse hair. I pulled her face to me as she yelped in pain. “I know well what kind of queen you are, daughter. Do you think I do not know where you spend your evenings? How dare you place yourself upon my level? How dare you think you are my equal! There is no one here who is my equal, not even you—fruit of my womb!” With a savage twist of my hand, I released her, taking with me a handful of her hair. The tears flowed freely down her face now, and she screamed in anger. She reached for the silver knife on the table, my knife, the one I used daily to slice into my pears.

  Suddenly Huya appeared in the antechamber, but I raised a hand to him and stopped him in his tracks. Whether she knew it or not, having a blade this close to the Queen of Egypt was a capital offense. Thankfully she was not foolish enough to raise the blade against me. Instead, my daughter held the knife to her own throat.

  I laughed. I knew and she knew that she would never have the courage to take her own life. Sitamen pushed the blade into her skin, and a stream of blood flowed down her pale neck. I stopped laughing, but my eyes never left hers. “Go ahead. Drain your life’s blood and be done with it. At least then I will be free of your tears.” I walked away from her, unwilling to give her one more moment of attention. I heard her weeping behind me, but I did not turn from my purpose. Huya was beside me, and I said to him, “Make sure she is in the court and in her proper place. I do not care if she is dead—I want her there.”

  “As you wish, my Queen.” He scurried away to take care of his duties, and I stepped out on the dais to face the crowd. There were hundreds of faces perfectly painted and observantly staring back at me. In unison, they bowed, raising their hands in respect to me. Once, twice, three times. I held my head high in my fine silver gown, a snake crown upon my brow, a blue scarf wrapped around my shoulders. I accepted their greetings and cheers with dignity as I stood on the dais. I did not sit, for no one sat before the arrival of the Pharaoh or his son. I could hear the crowd whispering—the excitement was growing. If what Sitamen said was true, the gossip had already spread through the courts. I wondered how many knew what I intended to do. There was a stir outside the
court doors. My son had arrived, and the other queens were in their places in the lower court. I would not have to punish any of them today. The heavy doors opened, and I saw the face of my son, Amenhotep. He had been a friendly boy, sometimes friendlier than I preferred, but the people loved and respected their Pharaoh’s son. Everyone, even the queens and I, bowed at his approach. As I rose, I studied him, remembering the boy I used to know. My mind was also filled with thoughts of another boy, my own precious Thutmose, victim of the schemes of the priest of Amun. They took one son, but they would not have another. Out of the corner of my eye I observed Kiya. She cast a lustful eye on Amenhotep, but she would never have him. In name only would she be his wife.

  I turned my attention to Amenhotep. He towered above all those in his kingdom, even his father. He was built like a god. Today, he wore the double crown, reminding the people that he represented all, both Upper and Lower Egypt. In celebration of the special event, which he and only a few others knew about, his eyes were painted and he wore a fine necklace of turquoise and gold. A thoughtful gesture meant to please the Desert Queen. I wondered if she would notice.

  Amenhotep climbed the steps of the dais and took his seat upon the throne of his father. It was an inspiring moment, even for me. As Great Wife to the current Pharaoh, it was my privilege to sit beside my son the Regent. He waved his hand respectfully to me, inviting me to take my place. I thanked him with a courteous nod and took my seat beside him. How thankful I was that he trusted me in this matter, and I would never forget it! I would have given my life for my son, just as I had been willing to give my life for Thutmose…if only I had known the danger he was in.

  Huya waved his hand, and the court musicians began to play. The gathering whispered to one another, jostling to get a good position along the processional. Then a hush fell over the proceedings. The place was filled to capacity with curious onlookers. It seemed that even the paintings were peering down from the ceiling to see my new daughter. For the first time in a long time, my throne room seemed too small.