The Song of the Bee-Eater (The Desert Queen Book 4) Read online

She screamed as another star fell on Amarna, and I prepared for what was to come. Pharaoh would want to hear from his many advisers, including the High Priestess of the Green Temple of Isis. As I allowed Shepshet and the others to dress my hair and my body, I wondered exactly what I would tell him.

  Whatever it would be, my true mission was clear. Protect my sister. The debt would be collected.

  A life for a life.

  Chapter Two

  Priestess of Isis—Pah

  As I rose from the chair, the stiff robe hung heavily from my shoulders. My eyes were lined with gold, and Shepshet had pressed shiny powder all over my face and hands. Staring at myself in the ornate mirror, a gift from Nefret, I thought I looked very much like a being from another realm. Good. This will play nicely. Just as I had anticipated, Pharaoh’s steward came to collect me. I was ready to leave the solace of my rooms and temple for his court. It was a strange thing for a high priestess to leave the temple for any occasion, except for the birth blessing of Pharaoh’s new children or some other royal ceremony.

  I walked down the long stairway. Dozens of my acolytes were sitting on the steps watching my every move. I did not rush myself, and I did not miss a step. I did not look at any of their faces, but I could sense their fear. Even the most ignorant priestess would know these falling stars were not omens of prosperity for the kingdom. As I arrived at the final step, I stopped and spoke to one of the acolytes. “I see fear on your face, priestess. What is your name?”

  “Yuyu, lady.”

  “When I return, Yuyu, I hope to see calm and serenity reflected in those eyes. Go now to the water and stay there until you have defeated your fear. Ask the goddess to send you a vision to make you whole again.” It might have been wrong to single her out, but sometimes making an example of one gave benefits to many. It was for the greater good.

  Shamefaced, she bent her head and bowed before me.

  The heavy doors were opened now, the ones I’d flown through earlier. I stepped outside, and the steward led me to the litter that waited for me. “No, I will not travel that way. I want to walk.”

  “What is that, High One? Pharaoh insists that you come quickly. With the streets so congested now, it would take an hour or more to reach him on foot. I cannot allow that. Please come with me.”

  I gave him a surly look but obeyed. Whatever he might say, I would walk back. I longed to see the city streets for myself at least once more. It had been so long since I had walked anywhere outside the complex. I had not previously had the courage to walk through the doors except for on official duties. Tonight’s display of falling skies had broken that fear. Paimu would not murder me herself. I would soon lay myself on the altar. For many years I feared her ghost would kill me as soon as I stepped outside the protection of the goddess. I was about to die anyway, and my death would be for a purpose.

  And then we will be even, Paimu.

  The steward did not speak to me about the celestial event or anything else as we rode double time to the Golden Palace. It was once called the Palace of the Happy Sovereigns, in the first years after its building, but that name was not used anymore. Now the palace was an unhappy place with too many wives, too much intrigue and a spirit of greed and opulence that touched all who entered it. As the litter came to a stop and the brightly painted box I sat on touched the ground, the steward slipped out and drew back the curtains to make room for my exit. To my surprise, I had been led not to the entrance of the throne room where these meetings typically took place but to the lower gardens, a private place that I knew my sister used. It was her sanctuary.

  “High One, the Great Queen would have audience with you before you join the other mage in the Sky Room.”

  “Oh, I see,” I said, acting as bored as I could. “I hope this doesn’t take too long. I am sure Pharaoh is anxious to see me,” I lied as I smoothed my gowns neatly. I had no love for Amenhotep. I had admired him long ago, but I’d long since lost respect for him. Too much had happened between him and my sister. He shamed her by bringing his harem into the palace. He was no honorable man.

  “Yes, but the Great Queen insists. Please.” The steward, a new royal whose name I could not remember, bowed as he opened the small blue door that led to the garden. At least Nefret still held her title. That was something to be thankful for.

  “Very well, but do not leave here. I will be inside only a few minutes. I cannot tarry,” I told him.

  “Yes, lady,” he answered none the wiser. Over the years, many rumors had circulated about Nefret and me. That we hated one another, that we weren’t truly sisters. And even more notorious rumors that I wouldn’t entertain. None of them were true. We did not hate one another. Although I rarely saw her or heard from her, we were not enemies as we once had been. That she would want to see me privately, especially on such an evening, was a rare thing.

  I walked silently down the path, my eyes adjusting quickly to the darkness. Vines and shrubs were carefully sculpted into twisted works of art in my sister’s garden. They looked like living things, mystical creatures in the low light of the moonless night sky. I’d been here a few years ago at the coming home of Nefret’s first daughter, Meritaten. I had not been invited back, although I could not recall the reason why.

  In the daylight hours the cheerfully painted walls told the story of a happy family. The white stone walls were painted with images of the royal couple and their family worshiping the Aten, sailing across the lake, offering the lotus and fruits to their favorite deity. One especially touching portrait showed Amenhotep and Nefret playing with their children, but now the images stayed in the shadows. I shivered at the thought. These were sweet pictures of the way things had once been. They were not that way now.

  Even though I did not dwell in the palace, I had heard the gossip about my sister and Aperel. Lies. All of them. No one loved Amenhotep more than Nefret, and she would never put her children at risk by flitting about with Pharaoh’s horse master. I knew this because I knew what she’d already sacrificed.

  The Great Queen was threatened constantly on all sides. She would be cast down from her lofty position, replaced by Tadukhipa or the concubine, Ipy. I did not believe it, but I did not envy my sister. Managing such a tangled web took talent—a talent I did not have.

  As I approached the inner garden, trepidation crept up my spine. I heard nothing, not even her voice. Then I saw her. Nefret squatted on the ground looking at something, and I stood quietly in the archway of the garden waiting for her to notice me. Even though I was her sister, I could not barge into her presence without being welcomed. Protocol was everything, and we had to keep up all appearances. Especially now when it mattered the most.

  Finally she stood, with whatever it was she examined in her shaking hands. Nefret’s red hair hung unbrushed down her back in clumps. She wore a lavender gown that showed the rounded shape of her body and an unbound belt of gold rope. Her clothing was in the Grecian style, a style my sister favored lately, I’d been told.

  “Sister, look! Look what they have done!” She held the bundle out toward me.

  “What is that? A bird?” Forgetting formality after seeing no one joined us, I did as she asked. I took the bird and examined it. It was no ordinary bird—this was a falcon. Nothing was amiss except its head lolled pitifully as if someone had snapped its neck.

  “Who would make such an open threat?”

  “I do not know. It was left here where I could find it. I cannot think who would commit such a heinous act.”

  Who indeed? I thought. The list was endless. The priests of Amun hated Nefret and her husband. Dozens of concubines and a handful of sister-wives also rose up my mental list of potential evildoers. “For now, let’s put that question aside and ask another one. Why would they do such a thing? I think the answer is clear, my queen.”

  “Tell me, then, Pah. I must know. The sight of this fills me with dread. I’ve seen dead animals before, but this…”

  How much to tell her? I couldn’t gauge her mind.
I sized her up carefully, trying to determine what to share with her. Her makeup was streaked as if she’d been crying. And not over a dead falcon. Nefret’s waist was thicker than it used to be, but that was to be expected after producing six children in fast succession. I hated that Amenhotep treated her as a brood mare.

  “You came to the throne as the Desert Queen, the Falcon of the Red Lands. Someone is warning you that your time is coming to an end.” Nefret gasped and put her hand to her chest. “Surely that hasn’t escaped you, sister.”

  “Can you look for me? Look in the fire and the water, Pah. Tell me who it is! Who will kill me, sister?”

  I put the bird into a nest of heart-shaped leaves and pulled Nefret next to me on a nearby bench. My heart broke for her, and I also felt dread rising in me. How strange that my twin and I would still be tied together even after all that had passed between us. I said in a low, stern whisper, “Listen and don’t speak.” I glanced around me before proceeding. “You must leave, Nefret. I will grant you asylum in the Green Temple of Isis. You cannot stay in Amarna. Disaster is coming here…and to Zerzura. Neither place will be safe. The stars have fallen from the bow of Osiris, the Dancing Man himself! It is a sure sign of disaster to this kingdom and all those living in its shadow.”

  “What? I cannot leave my husband and my kingdom, Pah! I can’t run away because of a dead bird and a few falling stars. Surely you make too much of this. Is this some kind of trick?” She was on her feet now, anger flashing in her eyes.

  “Sister, my sister.” I rose, taking her hand. “We are beyond this distrust, aren’t we? Haven’t I faithfully served you all these years?” For a long moment we stared at one another. When she didn’t argue, I continued, “You know that I love you above all others, but the time to complete things has come. Paimu came to me again. It is my time, a life for a life, and she will have it no other way. I will die. But you must live, sister. You must live for your children. Smenkhkare, Tasherit and Meritaten, they must live! They are our treasures.” I clasped her hands. Tears threatened to flood my eyes, but I held them back. I needed to keep a calm demeanor if I was to face Pharaoh with any degree of authority.

  “But Seritaten…all my babies.”

  “I know you mourn for them, but those children are dead and you cannot take them with you. You must think reasonably. Think of the ones who live still.” I could hear the gate opening behind me, and I stepped back from her. “I have to go to Pharaoh now, Great Queen.” In a whisper I added, “I will make him believe that all is well, but I tell him this only for your benefit. Listen to me now. We don’t have much time.”

  “Are you sure, Pah? I can’t bear to hear you speak like this. Surely you are wrong. And what about Father?”

  I glanced over her shoulder, thinking that I saw someone move in the darkness, but there was no one. “What Farrah said about him, that he will die for love, will come true. In this she was right. But you cannot think about him right now. You must do the practical things to prepare. When you receive the sign from me, you must leave with all haste. No dallying, or all will be for naught. And you must cut your hair. Shave it.”

  “What?” She reached for her tangled hair, her eyes wide with surprise.

  “Do you want to live? Or am I wasting my time?”

  “I care nothing for my life anymore—but I want my children to live, Pah,” she said, swallowing hard.

  “No questions, then, and let no one see you do this. You cannot have your servants help you. Burn the hair so no one finds it. Keep your head covered so no one sees.”

  Nefret was crying softly now, but she didn’t argue with me. Time was growing short, and Pharaoh’s servants lingered inside the door of the garden. As if his servants and hers worked together, her servants also appeared and hung near her now. She yelled at them, “Go away, Menmet. I am fine.” To me she said, “What do you have planned? Can you not tell Akhenaten the truth? Is he in danger?”

  “We are all in danger, sister! It is not human hands at work here. Listen and obey, please. I have never asked anything from you since I’ve been here, but I ask now—do as I ask so I can help you. All will be made clear. Look for a sign, Nefret, if you do not believe me.” I felt the magic prickle in my throat. “Yes, a sign you will know. And when that happens, do not question me but obey.”

  Nefret wrapped her arms around me. “I will do as you ask, only don’t leave me, Pah. My own sister, my heart and my treasure!”

  She sobbed now, and my heart was not a stone. I wanted to take her hand and run away with her, back to our home at Timia, but there were others to consider. Smenkhkare, Meritaten, Tasherit and yes, even Kames.

  “One last thing. Trust no one. You must look to the Greeks, our mother’s people, for help. There is one who will help you. His name is Adijah. He will know what to do.”

  “I have done this to us, haven’t I? My ambition. My love for Akhenaten.”

  “Nonsense. If there is anyone to blame, it is me. It was you who should have been mekhma. You would have led us to Zerzura. But we cannot think about those long-ago things now. Even our home is in danger. Enough with the past! Think of the future! Don’t forget—look for the sign. I will make sure Adijah comes to you soon.”

  “Will I see you again?”

  There was no fire and water to peer into, but somehow I knew the answer to that question. “Yes, you will see me once more. I must go, sister. Pharaoh waits.” Without waiting for her to stop crying, I walked out of the garden and followed the waiting steward.

  Time for lies. And soon it would be time to die.

  Chapter Three

  Mines of Blood—Semkah

  From the rocks above I could see the rebels murder my messenger. They slid a sword down his throat as he screamed and left him pinned to the ground with their blades. I swallowed the bile that rose up within me. I felt Zubal’s breath draw quickly beside me and then release angrily, yet he did not put words to what he witnessed. For that I was thankful.

  Now that the rebels had claimed the mine, it appeared they had no intention of quickly robbing and relinquishing the property as I had hoped. The mine’s secret location had been found, and the nearby tribes—even faraway tribes like the Algat and Kuni—would come in search of it now without fear. I prayed that Omel’s hand was not upon this. I could not believe that it was. It was a miracle that the location had been kept secret this long, but no more. I had no doubt that whoever these men claimed to be, they were here by consent of Egypt’s greedy pharaoh, my son-in-law. In the past few months, he’d demanded more gold than ever before, much more than we could supply him without killing those who dug for the treasures. I feared that our mines’ resources would soon be exhausted as the turquoise mine had been. He had seen to that. He would not seize it for himself directly, the two-faced bastard. Not out in the open. That would break my treaty with him. Instead, he sent robbers to steal from me and pretended he knew nothing about it, all the time demanding more gold. His gold! I spat at the idea. It was Meshwesh gold!

  I had not wanted to draw my daughter into our negotiations, if you could call them that, but her husband’s gold lust made her involvement a necessity. If I did not succeed here today, I had no other choice. She must help us. Omel had not been successful in shielding us from Egyptian greed. I had warned him of this all those years ago.

  “Are those truly Meshwesh, king? Why would they betray us? How could they do such evil?”

  “Egypt corrupts everything. That blade is not ours. These odious men were bought with a price, Zubal. We are not safe. Not even behind the walls of Zerzura. These men,” I said as I pointed toward the mine, “are no longer Meshwesh but traitors. To kill my messenger, their own brother, is to defy our ancestors and the gods—and me! Now they will pay the price for such blasphemy. Are you ready, Zubal? We will burn the entrance. Seal it up and seal them to their doom.”

  “Yes, Semkah! We stand ready with the carts and all that you have ordered.”

  “Call the archers. Line them
here, and here.” I squatted and drew in the sand, unwilling to reveal my hand to the criminals below. I wanted them to be surprised. “At my command, begin firing. They’ll retreat, cowards that they are, at least for a few minutes. During that time, you and the others fill the entrance with everything you can find, anything that burns. We will show them how we treat robbers and murderers.”

  Zubal nodded grimly, and I gave the shrill whistle that signaled our advance. We couldn’t take the mine back without destroying some part of it. They had food and water enough to last for weeks, but time wasn’t on our side. Pharaoh expected his gold, and if I could not deliver, he would rain down fire upon us. But I would show him I was no small king, no weak man.

  “Run! Now!” When Zubal’s men were in place, I whistled again and began making my way down the steep wall myself. It was no easy task with only one arm to steady me, but I did not dare slow down. The blue and green arrows of my archers began to fly through the air toward the front of the mine. As expected, the cowards sought refuge inside, but a few made attempts to return fire. Luckily for us, they were better thieves than warriors. In just a few minutes, Zubal and his men had covered half the front of the mine with the carts and every bit of rubbish they could find. They placed the small keg in the center at the base. The trapped men jeered at Zubal and his men but then sensed that something was seriously wrong and began to plead for their lives.

  I considered the plea for as long as it took me to see Alora’s body dragged back to my camp. He had been a faithful servant of Leela’s. She’d insisted he come to protect me, but now the old man was dead. Now I had to tell my wife the bad news, that her cousin gave his life obeying my command.

  Zubal nocked an arrow, a red one signifying my royal vengeance. We stood side by side now, fifty feet from the entrance. I yelled at the rebels, “You have done evil here. You have taken what was not yours. You have killed your brother. You will die.”