Sia kissed the scroll and unrolled it. Inside, was a bloodstained dagger. He grabbed it. “Only death can bring us the light.”
Queen Ty stormed into the Amun healing temple, as Sia was raising it above her son’s chest.
“No!” she screamed, rushing toward the platform where Teppy was strapped.
That night, the queen found it hard to sleep. Her maternal instincts led her to visit Teppy’s bedchamber where she discovered him missing from his bed. A black mamba was slithering across his bedcover in his place. The sight of the snake in Teppy’s bed, she believed, was an omen from the Oracle she murdered and his Amun priests.
When she found Teppy lying on the priests’ platform, Sia was holding the dagger in one hand and a goose by the neck in the other, stifling its ability to squeal. The queen’s sudden appearance alarmed him.
“No need to be concerned. The blood of this sacrifice will heal the boy, so that he walks like a pharaoh,” Sia said defending his actions to a horrified queen.
It appeared that the Amun priests’ intent was not to harm Teppy, but to cut the jugular vein of the goose and spread the blood over the boy’s chest. Still, the queen wasn’t convinced. She believed what she witnessed with her own eyes; the Amun priests attempting to sacrifice her son to destroy the only obstacle preventing them from ruling Egypt.
Queen Ty unfastened the straps from Teppy’s wrists and ankles. The boy was so overjoyed at the sight of his mother that he cried and flung his arms around her so tightly she could barely breathe. She kissed his forehead and assured him that everything would be as it was before.
“Are we going home?” he asked.
“Yes, my little prince.”
Keeping one eye on Sia, the queen lifted Teppy off the platform and escorted him out. The priest muttered a curse at her for halting their ritual, and she silently cursed him for subjecting her son to their barbaric ritual.
After Queen Ty tucked Teppy into bed, she asked who had taken him to the healing temple. He informed her it had been his uncle, and as soon as he drifted off to sleep, she went to find out why.
Asleep in his bedchamber, Ay awoke to a flint knife pressed against his throat. Queen Ty straddled his chest, breathing erratically, prodding him to make even the slightest movement so she could sever his head without guilt. The knife trembled in her hand and broke the skin on his neck. Ay looked in her eyes, petrified.
“So you secretly wish to give my son over to the evil of the Amun priests?” Ty asked.
“No, I am your brother and the servant to your husband. You know that I’m not of the Amun priests anymore,” Ay said squirming.
“You’re my brother and I have loved you all my life, but I swear, if you don’t give me a reason I can believe, I’ll decapitate you right here and now,” she said to him.
A drop of blood pooled around the blade as the queen pressed the knife deeper into Ay’s throat.
“My sister, Sia and Neper convinced me they could heal Teppy so that he would walk without falling. They swore it would guarantee his ascension to the throne, and that they would bless Teppy’s kingship in the presence of the pharaoh.”
“Lies!” Queen Ty shouted. “You know how much I despise and distrust them, and yet you took my son to those evil priests? What reason will you give me to spare your life?”
“One reason only, and I swear to you it’s the truth. I’m afraid of him. Sia threatened to punish me if I didn’t follow the will of Amun and bring Teppy to them.”
“How can they punish you when you’re protected by royalty?” she pressed.
“I’m not protected from their magic.”
Ay slid his garment down, careful not to make any sudden moves.
“This is the curse Sia left on my body when he touched me,” said Ay pointing at his chest.
At first glance, the queen saw nothing, but when she looked closer, it appeared. The bruise Sia had left on Ay had spread across his torso to twice the size.
WHEN HOREMHEB ARRIVED IN THEBES days later, he gave Lupita’s body over to the Amun priests, and they at once prepared it for mummification. He had succeeded in getting her body there in time, but soon after, collapsed from exhaustion and had to be escorted to his chamber. After consuming seven measures of wine, and pieces of fruit, and meat, he regained enough strength to drive his chariot to the pharaoh’s palace.
Horemheb strolled through the corridor with a sack in his hand. Ay ran up from behind and caught up with him.
“General, is there something I can assist you with?”
“No,” said Horemheb without breaking his stride.
“If you’re here to see the pharaoh, the queen has forbidden anyone to disturb him.”
“I’m not anyone. I’m the general of his army.”
Ay was worried. The queen had ordered him under no circumstances to let anyone in to see Amenhotep. He tried again. “General, any interruption would only aggravate his illness. The queen advises you confer with her on all matters of state until the pharaoh recovers.”
Horemheb ignored him and continued toward Amenhotep’s chamber. When he pulled back the curtains, the queen stepped forward, blocking his way.
“Welcome back, general,” she said.
“Is he here?” asked Horemheb.
“My husband needs to rest. I can give him your message at sunrise.”
“It can’t wait until sunrise.”
“I am the queen, the great royal wife of Amenhotep, and I’m more than capable of handling the affairs of state on his behalf. What is it?”
“I’m very aware of who you are. This matter is between me and the pharaoh.”
The faint sound of Amenhotep’s feeble voice silenced them both.
“General? Is that you? General?”
Horemheb stepped around the queen and into Amenhotep’s chamber.
Inside it was pitch dark. Balls of incense were set atop burning coals releasing the astringent aroma of myrrh and frankincense. The smoke enveloped the entire chamber, obscuring Amenhotep’s face as he sat slouched in the corner gazing back at Horemheb.
“General, you have to stop them. They’re coming for me. I can’t fight them alone,” Amenhotep said in a crackling timbre, his face still obscured in the dark.
“My Pharaoh, who is coming for you?”
“The Nubians. The ones I killed in the war. If you listen closely you can hear them.”
“But my Pharaoh—”
“Shhhh, listen General, they’re here,” whispered Amenhotep cutting him off.
The pharaoh stepped out from the dark corner of the room. Horemheb was shocked. Amenhotep’s face appeared gaunt, his body looked half the size it was from the last time he saw him. He had aged beyond his years and was frail and slightly bent over like an old man. His eyes were sunken and dark—the sure look of opium addiction. Horemheb himself had fought his own battle against the cure, and for the most part had won. It was heartbreaking for him to see that now it had hurled Amenhotep into madness. Not only was he losing his pharaoh, he was losing a loyal friend, one who he had come to love and respect as a great ruler and military commander of Egypt.
Amenhotep paced around the chamber in a paranoid frenzy, searching for something.
“Did you hear that? They’re here,” he repeated. “They’re hiding because they’re afraid of you, general.”
“My king, there’s no one here but us. No harm will come to you.”
“You don’t believe me. Why don’t you believe me?” he said pleading. “I’ll show you. Yes, I can prove it, general.”
Amenhotep ripped the garment from his torso. To Horemheb’s astonishment, the letters H-E-R-E-T-I-C were crudely carved into the pharaoh’s chest. A scab had formed over it so that the word appeared as though it was written in black kohl.
“Now you see? You see what they did to me?” asked Amenhotep.
Horemheb watched him step over a flint knife as if it wasn’t there. The tip of it was stained in blood.
“They’ve taken
my Lupita, and now they’re coming for me,” said the pharaoh.
Horemheb took his hand and led him back to his bed.
“You have to take me away from here now,” he mumbled to Horemheb. “Ty won’t let me leave.”
Horemheb placed his hands on Amenhotep’s shoulders and sat him down on his bed. He didn’t want to tell him, especially now, but maybe the truth might bring his pharaoh back to reality, no matter how painful.
“No one has taken Lady Lupita,” said Horemheb.
“Then where is she?”
“Lady Lupita is dead.”
Amenhotep’s eyes widened. “The Nubian spirit killed her?”
“No, my Pharaoh, it was not a spirit. Lady Lupita left Egypt for Mitanni without my army as an escort. The Hittites captured her and her convoy in the Ugarit valley and slaughtered them all,” he said without the slightest restraint.
Amenhotep shook his head. “It can’t be. For what purpose would she go there without telling me? I never told her about her brother’s murder. Did you, general?”
“I’d never betray what we speak in confidence.”
Amenhotep buried his head in his hands weeping over Lupita’s death. It was enough to keep Horemheb from divulging his suspicions about Queen Ty.
“My sweet, gentle Lupita,” Amenhotep cried out. “She was pregnant with my child, my heir.”
“You’ll have vengeance, my Pharaoh.”
“The Hittites have broken the peace treaty and spat on me like a dog. Swear to me, on the oath of Amun and the god Montu, that you will find the ones responsible.”
“I swear to you amidst the glory of the highest god Amun that they’ll pay an equal price for what they did to Lady Lupita. You have my word.”
Amenhotep reclined back into his bed, and for an instant, it seemed his pharaoh was having a moment of clarity.
“General, if they come to take me away, I trust only you to carry Egypt and my people forward as pharaoh, not my queen nor Teppy. You are the courageous and noble overseer of Egypt. I’ll draw up a declaration today and place the scroll with the priests of Amun for safekeeping,” said Amenhotep.
His declaration moved Horemheb. They had always shared a mutual admiration for each other, but he never imagined the pharaoh looked to him as his equal. Amenhotep, the great ruler and builder of Egypt, had complete confidence in him to lead his glorious country in his absence. Overwhelmed by the honor, Horemheb bear hugged the pharaoh. “I’m humbled and honored to serve you and my country, but no one is coming to take you away. You will live a thousand years, my Pharaoh”
Horemheb laid the sack he was carrying on the bed next to Amenhotep, bowed to him, then exited his chamber, knowing that when the pharaoh opened it, he would find Tazam’s severed hands cut off at the wrists and bound with string. Although it meant nothing to Horemheb now that Lady Lupita was dead, it would mean everything to Amenhotep that he had kept his oath to him.
CHAPTER 14
Queen Ty regretted sending Teppy in alone to see his father. The cruelty brought on by his delusions had caused Teppy to fear him. This time she would be there to assure his protection.
The queen dressed Teppy in a miniature soldier’s uniform that she had especially tailored for him, thinking that if Amenhotep envisioned their son as an Egyptian warrior king, it might change his heart and persuade him to give Teppy a chance at claiming his divine destiny as heir to the Egyptian throne. She believed this would happen only if she continued to be tenacious.
“Ma, is this all mine?” asked Teppy excitedly as the queen fastened the scaled-down breastplate around his chest.
“It’s all yours. You are your mother’s brave little warrior.”
“Can I show it to Uncle Ay and cousin Sete?”
“Let’s put your helmet on first,” she said as she removed a war helmet from a burlap sack and placed it on him. Teppy laughed because it swallowed up his entire head.
He lifted the helmet above his eyes. “I can’t see. It’s too big.”
“I know. You’ll grow into it soon.”
The queen hesitated. There was another presence in the room. When she turned around, General Horemheb was studying them from the entryway in silence.
“What’re you doing here?” she asked.
“I was directed here by your maidservant,” said Horemheb, wry-faced at the sight of Teppy in a miniature replica of his army’s uniform.
Queen Ty took the helmet off Teppy’s head.
“This is my son’s bedchamber, general.”
“I know where I am. My guards protect your son’s bedchamber.”
“Teppy, go to your Uncle Ay’s quarters,” said the queen.
“Can I play the twenty-squares game with cousin Sete too?”
“Yes, you may if your uncle gives you permission. I’ll come and get you soon,” she replied with a forced smile before kissing the top of his head. As soon as Teppy left the room her smile changed to a scowl and she turned her attention back to Horemheb, perturbed at his ill-conceived entitlement to enter any royal chamber at will.
“What is it you want, general?”
Horemheb handed her the lapis-lazuli earring he had found near Lupita’s body. She was jarred by the sight of it but adroitly masked her reaction.
“It appears to be of royalty. Is it yours?” asked Horemheb.
The queen glanced at it again, pretending to be perplexed by the sight of it. “It’s been missing from my cosmetic box for many days. Where did you find it?”
“It was lying near Lupita’s mutilated body.”
He searched for a reaction in the queen’s eyes. There was none. She placed the earring in her pocket and began to braid the locks of her hair.
“I would never think that she would steal from me,” replied the queen nonchalantly.
Horemheb sneered at the absurdity of her answer. “It would be senseless for a mistress of the pharaoh to steal, my queen, when she could as easily request anything she desired directly from him.”
“No matter how she obtained my jewelry, what does this matter have to do with me?”
“Would you really be interested in hearing my speculation?”
“No, though I’m certain that won’t stop you.”
The queen walked over to the ablution tank and slowly washed her hands and arms—a perfect excuse to have her back turned to him while he spoke.
“I could be far from the truth,” said Horemheb, “but I would guess someone discovered that Lady Lupita’s brother was murdered and went to her and told her of it. Because she was young and naïve, this ‘someone,’ was able to convince her to travel back to her homeland without informing me or the pharaoh, knowing that she and her Mitanni convoy would be an easy target for the Hittites.”
Queen Ty felt Horemheb peer over her shoulder to see if she was paying attention to him before he went on speaking his accusations.
“The earrings, I would surmise,” continued Horemheb, “were used to win Lady Lupita’s confidence, a parting gift for an ill-fated journey.”
Horemheb impressed the queen. She now understood it was not just because of his combat skills that Amenhotep praised him so but also because his perceptual abilities were profound. She chuckled as she grabbed a cloth from the table and dried her arms and hands, the only reaction possible to rebuff the general’s accusations. “I pray to the gods you find and punish the savages that attacked her, the ones who are truly responsible for her death.”
“All who were involved have Lady Lupita’s blood on their hands and should suffer the punishment. Would you not agree?"
“I agree that everyone should receive what they deserve,” said the queen.
“Do you know of any other purpose she would leave Egypt for Mitanni without informing me or the pharaoh?”
“I can assure you Lady Lupita never thought of me as her confidant if that is what you are so absurdly suggesting. Is there anything else?” Queen Ty turned away from Horemheb and placed Teppy’s helmet back into the burlap sack.
“Yes,” said Horemheb. “Have you prepared living quarters for the girl?”
“Girl?”
“Lupita’s niece, Kiya, the princess of Mitanni. She’s eleven years of age, and I would imagine very fertile. King Tushratta has given her in marriage to the pharaoh along with their statue of Ishtar. They have arrived and are waiting at the entrance of the palace. I must admit, intense beauty proves to be a consistent trait of Lupita’s family. What living quarters are prepared for her?”
Stunned to hear such news, the queen smiled at Horemheb to disguise the affliction the general had brought on her. “There are none at the moment because I was simply not aware of any of this,” she explained. “I’ll have my servants prepare a special place for her soon, but for now my concern is for my husband’s recovery.”
“I assume you will make her feel as comfortable as you did Lady Lupita,” said Horemheb.
Horemheb’s sly remark revealed how much pleasure he received from taunting her. His presence made her nervous, and there was no relief until he bowed and left the room. Her mission became even more urgent now.
HAND-IN-HAND, Ty walked Teppy in his soldier’s uniform down the long, winding corridor. When they reached the entrance to the pharaoh’s chamber, she straightened his miniature armored breastplate and kissed him on his forehead.
“Look at you, my little warrior,” she said, beaming with pride.
The queen escorted Teppy into Amenhotep’s chamber, illuminated by a single torch, and led him right up to his father’s bedside. There Amenhotep lay sound asleep, breathing silently through his nose but exhaling an intimidating snore from his mouth.
When she took another step toward him, a white cat jumped out from under the pharaoh’s bedcover. It was Lupita’s cat, Bastian, and it hovered over Amenhotep like his protector, pacing back and forth across the bed. With no fear, Teppy walked toward it, and before the queen could pull him back he petted the animal’s head. Bastian purred in affection.
“Don’t be afraid, Ma, it’s a nice one,” said Teppy. Astonished by her son’s bravery, Queen Ty approached the animal herself, but when she put her hand out to pet it, the cat hissed at her. The queen grabbed Teppy’s hand, and they slowly stepped back from the bed, and out of Amenhotep’s chamber.
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