“Don't worry, Ismene, this will all be over soon. I'll get you home, I promise.” His voice held such tenderness for her. It tugged at her heart, but not enough that she forgot Alistair.
Thelopolis moved through the dark tunnels. Some were barely lit, though from what light source Ismene was not able to discern. It was, as Thelopolis suggested, a series of tunnels and caves. They could hear voices in places along the way. In those spaces, Thelopolis would press against the wall in a crevice until he could make out where the voices were coming from. His heavy breathing was steady in her ear. Unlike Alistair, this kind of thing was not something he was used to. She knew that his worry was getting the best of him.
Moments later, as they continued to navigate the tunnels, Ismene's absence must have been discovered. There were loud voices that seemed to come from all around them. Thelopolis spun around, moving first this way and then that. There did not seem to be a safe route any longer. What were they going to do? Leaning against the side of the tunnel, he took several deep breaths. Was he contemplating his next move? Uncertain of their ability to fight their way out, Ismene became fearful.
“What's this?” he said, turning toward the cave wall, eyeing the spot where his shoulder had been.
Ismene's eyes scrutinized the rock and saw what Thelopolis must have felt with his shoulder—a sizeable gap in the stone wall.
Shifting Ismene, he was able to set her in the gap. “Don't make a sound. I'll be back for you.”
She nodded, even knowing he couldn't see it.
* * *
Alistair had sent for a handful of his most well-regarded soldiers to come to his home. He planned to send them out in different directions, hoping to seek out the hiding place of the mob and, thus cover more ground. Captain Ptah and some of his men—Gyasi, Bomani, Jabari, Ubaid, and Ottah—had arrived at his estate. They were each, in turn, ushered into his receiving room and briefed on the situation. As they were given their assignments, Alistair warned them not to proceed into any location they suspected to house members of the mob without him. It was to be clear that he would be the one seeking out contact with the mob.
As they were being dismissed, Jabari came up to Alistair with some hesitation.
“Yes, Jabari, did you have a question?” Alistair was already somewhat distracted with the next thing: his own assignment.
Jabari paused before continuing. “I wanted to inquire after Alonah. Is she all right?”
Alistair was confused by the question, but decided to answer anyway. “She is healing. The doctor says she will make it through and be just fine.” Why would he care to inquire after Alonah?
Jabari breathed a sigh of relief and whispered a prayer of thanks. When he spoke again, he fairly stumbled over himself. “Might I...may I...is it possible for me to see her?”
By this time, Alistair had reached the end of his patience. “See her? I don't understand. What possible reason could there be for me to concern her with one of my soldiers?”
Jabari's eyes met Alistair's. He seemed to be struggling with the answer to that question, but he didn't apologize or move off to complete his assigned task. At last, he did speak, his voice rather timid. “General Merenre, I hope you can understand my predicament. I know this will not be easy to hear. But Alonah and I, we...we are married.”
“Married?” There were many things Alistair wanted to say. How could Jabari marry a servant in his household without consulting him? Why had they done this in secret? When had this occurred? His anger flared. At the same time, he knew that nothing could undo what had been done, and he could see in this man's eyes the same ache he felt. He could not deny Jabari a few minutes with his wife.
The soldier before him looked as if he expected a tongue-lashing, and he should give him one. He had every right to be angry, every right to demand that the man march out on his given orders and never return to Alistair's home. But Alistair felt his features soften. How could he not take pity on a man separated from the woman he loved? No matter what their circumstances, they needed each other just as he needed Ismene.
Alistair sighed. “Let me take you to her.”
They walked the short distance to Ismene's suite. As Alistair knocked on the door, he fought down a wave of emotion that threatened to overtake him. When he came to this door, it was to see his wife. And, on any other day, he would be greeted by Alonah's smiling face. But not today.
When the door opened, it was the face of Rabiah, who had taken charge of tending to Alonah, that greeted him. Smiling up at her master, she opened the door wide for him to enter at will. Jabari was shifting behind him, trying to look around Alistair and Rabiah to catch a glimpse of Alonah. He and Alonah caught sight of each other at the same time. She was awake, propped up on pillows.
“Jabari!” she cried out.
He rushed to her, falling on his knees next to the pallet on the floor.
Alistair had wanted to iterate to Jabari that this discussion about his deception was not over, but he did not have it in him to interrupt his and Alonah's reunion. So Alistair indicated to Rabiah that they should give the two a moment alone. The two of them stepped out into the hall.
Once outside, Alistair knew there was no more time to delay. He took his leave, heading off to follow his first lead.
* * *
Thelopolis moved down the tunnel, hugging the wall, lest he make himself too much of a target. It was of no consequence, however, for when the men came down the tunnel with torches, he was easy to spot. They took him without effort. He didn't even bother to fight them off. It would do Ismene no good for him to be killed in a scuffle.
The group of men moved him farther back into the cave, all the while searching out where he might have left the wounded prisoner they knew he must have been carrying. They stopped when they reached another search party.
“Sefu!” The leader of the group holding Thelopolis called to another man and jerked on Thelopolis's arm. “Sefu! We found this one in the tunnels.”
A man came up to Thelopolis, stopping just inches away from his nose, sizing him up.
“I haven't had the misfortune to run across this Greek scum yet. They are bringing them over by the boatloads by now, I suppose.”
Thelopolis met his gaze.
“Where is the Lady Ismene?” came the man's harsh question.
Thelopolis's mouth became a thin line.
“I know she didn't walk out of her quarters herself. You must have carried her and hid her somewhere. Now tell me where she is.”
Thelopolis continued to stare at the man without uttering a sound.
“I warn you, my associates here can be terribly impatient,” the man said, wandering over to where one of the torches was affixed to the wall. He handed it to one of his men.
“Now,” he said, still facing away from Thelopolis. “I will give you one more chance. Where is the Lady Ismene?”
Thelopolis clenched his jaw. The man's associate moved the torch to sear his skin.
* * *
Back in Ismene's chambers, Jabari stroked Alonah's hair and gently pressed a kiss to her face. Tears slipped down her cheeks.
“Oh, my angel, look what they've done to you!” Tears brimmed in his eyes.
“It looks worse than it is, love. I am well.” She ran a hand over the side of his face, enjoying the feel of him being here with her.
They stayed like that for several minutes, enjoying one another's presence.
“Nothing would make me happier than to remain here with you,” Jabari said, kissing her hands one at a time. “But I must do my part to seek out who is behind this plot and bring your mistress home.”
“I know,” she whispered, mimicking his gesture and kissing his hands. “Go. Go with great speed, love. And then come back to me.”
* * *
Alistair's credentials at meting out swift justice on the battlefield to the enemies of Pharaoh were well known. It was one of the reasons the Egyptian army was so powerfully devoted to him. This penchant bore
the same fast reaction as Alonah gave him the description to the jewelry shop where she and Ismene had been attacked.
Mounting his steed without further ado, he galloped into town. It didn't take long to track down the store. After he dismounted, he entered the shop. No one seemed to be there. He wasn't surprised. There were whispers from others outside the store. In all likelihood because they had heard some version of the events from earlier.
Alistair didn't stop just because the shopkeeper wasn't present. He found the steps in the back leading upstairs. Bounding up the stairs, his eyes swept the residence until they landed on Lapis. He closed the distance before she could move. Just as she was turning around at the realization that another had entered her home, he was in her face.
“What are you doing in my home?” came her shocked, innocent reaction.
“Don't play games with me, woman. Tell me who you work for, and your life may be spared,” he said with a cold voice, as he clutched her by the shoulder. Alistair had a menacing look in his eyes as he glared at her.
“I...I...” she creaked. She was speechless, obviously fearing for her life.
As his eyes continued to scan in a more subtle fashion, he noticed a couple of knapsacks that appeared to be full. “Hmm...going on a trip?”
Her eyes shifted to the bags, and then in the other direction.
“Taking something else?” As he released Lapis, he looked over to where she had. He walked toward that part of the room, scanning everything he could see.
There was a side table that had some vases filled with freshly purchased flowers. In the center was a small box with a lid and a drawer. He rummaged through it, and at first found some keepsakes, but underneath that was a sizable amount of money.
“Tell me who hired you, and I might talk Pharaoh out of having you chained to a rock in the desert.” He said this without even looking back at her, but he knew the shocked reaction that was on her face. As he moved toward her again, she began sobbing.
“Sefu...my husband's name is Sefu. He is the one that got us in with the Alexandrian mob. I told him we could make enough, but he wouldn't listen to me!” She was falling to pieces.
“I didn't know the Alexandrian mob paid big money.”
“Sefu told me we could make some more on the side.”
“This,” he shoved the money into her face, “is blood money.” He got in her face again, searching her eyes. She was afraid of him...terrified. It was clear that she would answer his questions.
“Where is your husband?”
“I swear I don't know.” Her voice broke as tears started forming. “He told me to pack our things and prepare to leave town. That's it. Not a word about where he was going.”
To his dismay, Alistair could sense that there was no lie in her. It was then that he heard some of his soldiers coming up the stairs. As they topped the stairs, he backed away from her.
“Place this woman under military arrest and place two men at the house to wait for her husband to return. He is to be taken into custody if and when he returns.”
Alistair didn't wait to watch them put Lapis under arrest. As he made his way down the stairs and out of the building, he felt the tension of the last several minutes release...somewhat. Where was he going from here? This lead had gone cold. He could not imagine that Sefu was ever coming back here. Something had kept him from returning for his wife and, if he was half as intelligent as he would have to be to plan the things he'd put into play, he would know not to return home.
Alistair moved toward his horse, still considering where to go next, what his next move should be. He felt the pressure of time slipping away. Then it hit him.
“Ubaid, I have an errand for you...“
Thirteen
Great Haste
Alistair made his way to Pharaoh's receiving room and, for once in the entire time he had been coming here, there was no aide to greet him. He opened the door with hesitation.
“General, please come in.” Ptolemy motioned him in.
Alistair obeyed. “Did you send for him?”
Pharaoh nodded. “I was most disturbed to hear of the events of the last few hours, General. I will do everything in my power to help you find your wife and bring those responsible to justice.” He sat and invited Alistair to sit as well.
Alistair managed a half smile for him. “Of course, my liege.”
“I requested Chigaru's presence forthwith, so he should be coming with all due haste.”
“I do thank you.” Alistair was not much for conversation right now; his mind was clouded by images of what may be happening to Ismene, what questions to ask Chigaru to get the information he needed, and what step to take next. But that was the problem. There was no next step. That was why he was having that snake Chigaru summoned; he was Alistair's last resort.
Alistair had long since suspected that the mole was, in fact, in his house or in Pharaoh's. The mob knew too much about Ismene, about her comings and goings, and her interests. He wished now that he had paid more heed to the investigation and given it more credence. He hoped Chigaru could give him some kind of lead, something, no matter how small, to go on.
The door opened and Paki announced the investigator's presence.
As Chigaru entered, confusion and then surprise registered on his face. Truth be told, Alistair had not expected to cross paths with him again. Perhaps Chigaru had felt the same.
“My liege,” Chigaru said as he bowed before Pharaoh. It was obvious to Alistair that the man was uneasy. He wasn't sure what to expect. No results in a critical investigation could have a rather terminal effect on one's career. And that might have been his suspicion about why he was summoned.
Ptolemy waved his hand, and Chigaru rose. “I'm sure you remember the general.” This was Ptolemy's way of indicating who actually wanted to see this investigator.
Chigaru's attention shifted to Alistair.
“I am here to ask you some questions,” Alistair said, giving an indication that Chigaru's life wasn't on the tip of a sword.
The investigator eased a bit, but still seemed as mystified as when he had entered.
“I'm not sure you have heard, but the Lady Ismene has been abducted.”
“I'm aware of it. It is my job to stay informed of such critical developments.” Chigaru was shifting out of his mode of self-preservation into his more common role of detective. “Why? Do you know something new?”
“Indeed. The mistress of the shop was packing to leave, and had a considerable amount of money.” Alistair pulled out the money he had seized, showing it to Chigaru. “She said that her husband, Sefu, is the one that got them into the mob, and that they were hired to seize the lady.”
Chigaru looked closer at the money as Alistair handed it to him. Then, looking up, he asked, “Did you arrest her?”
“Of course. She has been detained by my men. Did you run across anyone who knew Sefu as you queried my staff?”
“No, that name never came up. Why do you believe this to be the case?”
“It is too coincidental that the mob would know so much about the lady's movements and not have a contact inside my household. I thought maybe you had heard names, but did not know the significance of the name Sefu.”
“Unfortunately, what I did uncover doesn't quite line up with that.” Chigaru looked back towards Ptolemy.
“What you uncovered?” Ptolemy was rising out of his chair with a growing sense of vehemence.
“My liege, I found some suspicious things, but nothing I could act on, let alone build a case around.” The words rushed out of Chigaru. Now he was defending his life. “It seemed that two of the general's staff could not account for their whereabouts on one evening in particular: Neterka and Akil. I had hoped that questioning other members of the staff would cause their names to come up again and point me in a direction, but nothing else surfaced regarding those two.”
“Neterka? You must be mistaken. He is the person I trust most in my entire household. The man runs t
he whole estate and often must be in many places at once. I'm not surprised you couldn't place him on one particular evening.” Alistair's eyebrows were knit together as he thought about what Chigaru was saying.
“That was my conclusion after speaking with much of the staff. Several of them confirmed for me that he often must go into town to handle your affairs. With nothing more than that, I couldn't go and investigate all of Alexandria.”
“But you also mentioned Akil,” Alistair prompted.
“Yes. As a porter and common manservant, his duties didn't seem as widespread as Neterka's. So I tried to cross-reference his activities with others, and...” Chigaru paused at this point.
Alistair was confused by Chigaru's hesitation. “Well, you cross-checked, and what?”
“It seems he was seeing someone outside the household. The maids knew about this, and tried to cover for him, but I was able to break them into telling me this. On one evening in particular, none of the maids saw him leave. They only remember his return. I'm sorry, General. Her name is Habibah. She swore to being with him and wouldn't back down when I pressed her on this point. I didn't believe her, but couldn't get any further.”
How many people in my household are out on romantic quests? Alistair wondered as he reflected on Alonah.
“And this is all you know? Akil has only been a member of my household for about six months. This woman, Habibah, you think she was lying?”
“That was my gut instinct when I spoke to her. But when it comes to being romantically involved with a household servant, it is hard to discern what she was lying about. I didn't think this was enough to take back to Pharaoh. If this was a real lead, there would be more connections to your household. Connections that never materialized. All of this is being written in my report.” He became somewhat defensive.
The General's Wife (Ancient Egypt) Page 21
