by Diana Ballew
“No!” she repeated. She tried to pull away, but he held her hair in a bruising grip that made her wince. “Please, Enlil, I am untouched and unharmed,” she murmured with her eyes averted, hoping her meekness would placate his anger.
He shoved her away as he released her hair and returned to his pacing. “Well, that is good. That will make it easier to convince Pharaoh that we are lovers.”
“But how can that be when you didn’t even recognize me last time you came here?”
He cast her an accusing look, his eyes the color of a raging storm. “We shall show him our love. Right here, right now!” Before she knew what he intended, Enlil lifted her body against his own and punished her with a mockery of a kiss. His lips and teeth ground into her, choking off her breath. When she tried to evade him, tried to turn her face away, he shook her soundly before resuming his assault.
She pushed against his chest, but it was like a wall of stone, and she whimpered, powerless against his onslaught. The coppery taste of her own blood filled her mouth. He thrust his hips against her, and she felt his penis dig into her side as he began simulating the act of love.
She pulled back, attempting to wrest her mouth away from his probing tongue. “Please, stop,” she begged. He took a nipple between his fingertips and pinched hard. She jerked back as if he had thrust a blade through it, a cry bursting from her throat. “Please!”
“Surrender to me, girl; for the sake of your father who died in defense of you; for the sake of the brother whose lips spoke your name at the last. Surrender to me.” Again he gripped her hair and drew her mouth to his. “Open to me. Show me your loyalty. Show your loyalty to your family.” He forced her jaw apart with hard fingers and plunged his searching tongue inside her mouth. She tried to scream but his thick lips blocked her cries. She couldn’t breathe, drowning in his spittle.
The more she struggled, the more Enlil hurt her. Stinging pain stabbed at her as he bit and pinched and bruised until she could stand no more. A strange numbness began to spread through her body. Hot tears coursed down her face as the fight drained out of her, and she slumped against him. He was a man while she was but a woman; fate deemed this was her lot in life — didn’t her mother often warn her so?
I wish Pharaoh had banished me with all the rest of the slaves.
Suddenly, Enlil released her. Without his granite grip to support her, she crumpled, shaking, to the ground at his feet. Her breasts throbbed with an ache she had never before known.
Then, as the air began to again fill her lungs, she heard him laugh. “Your first lesson in being my wife, Alia. You will submit to me in all things. I will be master of my own kingdom! Now,” he bent down to help her to stand and tidy her clothing before continuing, “we shall return to the hall and tell Pharaoh of our plans to wed immediately.” He nodded to himself with approval as he adjusted his loose coat and belt over his still erect phallus.
“It is a shame we cannot finish what we started,” he ran his hand suggestively over his crotch, “but it will happen soon, my beloved.”
Alia’s gut turned when he uttered the word ‘beloved’. Coming from his lips, it sounded more like an insult than an endearment.
He patted her cheek, then gripped her jaw between his savage fingers, squeezing as he drew her closer. “Are you sufficiently recovered from our lovemaking, beloved?” Enlil appeared to find satisfaction from the fear she knew he would see in her tear-filled eyes. “Ah, yes, the flush of unfulfilled lust, it suits you.” He straightened to his full height as if his manhood had just been confirmed.
When she made to reaffix her veil he stayed her hand. “No, Alia, I wish Pharaoh to see your blush of arousal. It will add the weight of proof. Once we are beyond the city, I will meet my troops and begin our attack. Now that I have thoroughly seen the inside of the palace, I can lead my men under cover of darkness and rid the world of this unholy Pharaoh. If he thinks we are preparing for our wedding feast, he will not suspect a thing.” He looked down at her with the gleam of triumph shining in his cruel eyes. “If he’d lived, your father would be proud, Alia. Come.”
Taking her hand in his harsh grasp, he forced her back toward the reception hall.
As they crossed the threshold, a guard moved between them to lead them separately before the high chair. She couldn’t hide her relief that Enlil’s filthy hands no longer touched her.
Pharaoh’s gaze didn’t waver as he watched her approach. She knew he studied her for any sign that she aimed to betray his trust. She returned his regard steadily, knowing that in this, her king could not fault her. Alia had no intention of betraying him, and after Enlil’s violent display, her resolve to stay with Queen Neferure remained as firm as ever. She just hoped Pharaoh believed her and not the lies Enlil intended to tell.
She threw herself to the floor before the dais upon which Pharaoh’s throne sat.
“Arise, Little Flower. Have you made your decision?”
Enlil stepped forward before she could make her response. “Alia and I are agreed, Great Pharaoh. We will be wed on the day we return to the bosom of our people.”
No! Do not listen to his lies.
Pharaoh’s concentration remained fixed upon her face, and though he showed no outward recognition, a flicker in his amber eyes told her he heard her silent plea.
“Just now, in the garden, Alia demonstrated with her avid kisses that the fire of love is in her breast — that she desires for us to begin the journey home so we can be joined. It is the custom of our people for our women to obey their men in all things. This Alia has consented to do.”
Pharaoh’s eyes narrowed as he listened, but he did not interrupt Enlil.
“Therefore, she will follow me as my betrothed when I leave the city tonight. Our people will be glad you accept their jewels in return for the freedom of one of their true jewels, Great Pharaoh.” He bowed and backed up a step, unable to mask the self-satisfied expression that crossed his face.
For several minutes the hall remained silent, as Pharaoh appeared to consider Enlil’s statements. A scant moment later, the vizier entered the hall with a tall priest and swept up to the throne to whisper in Pharaoh’s ear. He raised an eyebrow as Rekhmire gestured to her, then at Enlil. As Rekhmire finished speaking, Pharaoh’s gaze again came to rest on her.
“Alia, I ask again and this time I bid you answer for yourself. Is it your wish to accompany your kinsman back to your homeland as his wife? Bear in mind, before you reply, that I granted your freedom the day after you entered Queen Neferure’s service, so captivity is not a question that needs consideration.”
She could see Pharaoh resisted the temptation to smile when Enlil’s head shot up — astonishment etched across the young prince’s face.
“If my beloved has already been granted freedom, then there is no need to continue this ridiculous debate. We shall leave your halls immediately, Great Pharaoh.” He attempted to move toward Alia, but the guard separating them brandished his khopesh and eyed Enlil with menace.
Standing, Pharaoh took a step forward on the dais to loom above Enlil. “Young Prince, I have offered Alia the right of choice, and that is what she shall have. The free women of Kmt are treated with the respect they deserve and can therefore choose their own husbands. Rekhmire tells me you appeared to be attempting to ravage Alia while you were in my garden. He also tells me that Alia fought you—”
“Simple maidenly behavior, Great Pharaoh,” Enlil interrupted with a dismissive gesture. “Women in our culture are taught this inspires greater lust in a man, so they pretend resistance. It is merely a game they play.”
Crossing his arms, Pharaoh looked at her, managing to keep his face expressionless. “Is this the custom, Alia? Was your struggle a ploy to arouse Enlil further?”
She couldn’t hide her quiver of revulsion. “Not at all, Majesty. I had no desire to have Enlil’s lips or hands upon my body, nor do I. Whatever pact my brother might have forged, neither my father, my mother, or I were party to it. As my brothe
r is now dead, I do not feel compelled to honor such a pact, and I do not intend to marry Prince Enlil. With your permission, Mighty Pharaoh, I will remain in the house of Queen Neferure and serve Pharaoh’s family for as long as I am permitted.” She bowed deeply to demonstrate her obeisance.
“So be it,” he said, and shifted his gaze to Enlil’s angry face. “You have courted death this eve, Enlil of Sechem, but in keeping with the treaties made by your countrymen in recent days, I will allow you safe passage from Kmt. Be warned, however, should you or yours attempt any form of rebellion, I assure you, your life will be worthless. Go now, and do not show your face in the Two Lands again.”
Enlil stiffened and cast Rekhmire and the priest a hateful glare before pushing past the guard to make his exit.
“Traitorous whore,” Enlil muttered for her ears only, as he passed by. “Know this — I shall have vengeance.”
The promise chilled her, for she knew he meant it.
Enlil’s footsteps echoed loudly through the hall. No one chanced to speak until he’d disappeared from view.
Pharaoh dismissed the other ambassadors with the undertaking that he’d meet with them soon to settle the last of their petitions, then he again spoke with Rekhmire.
Alia immediately headed to help clear the tables after the meal, but Pharaoh motioned that she wait. “I hope you are content with your choice,” he murmured as he approached and laid a hand on her arm.
She looked into his golden eyes and smiled hesitantly. “I believe I am, Great Majesty.”
Returning her smile, he bade her to take the casket of jewels still sitting at the center of the table. “They were your ransom, even if you did not need to be rescued.”
With a shake of her head, she waved the casket away. “The casket is a symbol of my former life. That no longer exists. I need nothing more.”
He reached over, lifted the carved box, and opened it before her. “Are you sure these baubles do not appeal?”
Again Alia shook her head.
“Grant a request, then, Little Flower. This life can be fraught with dangers. If something happens to me you will need security. The scribes will soon deliver your papers of freedom, of course, and Neferure shall protect you as best she can, but it is important that you have valuables that might be bartered if the need arises. Please, keep at least one item — even if it is only in remembrance of a loved one.”
Taking a deep breath, Alia searched the contents of the box until she came upon a small ring with a garnet nestled between the talons of a miniature bird-of-prey. As she held it, tears welled in her eyes, then trickled slowly down her cheeks. “This was the betrothal ring my father gave to my mother; as his chief wife, she was held in great esteem by our people. I shall keep this to treasure the memory of her.”
Pharaoh lifted his hand and caught the tear that quivered on her cheek. Slowly, his eyes fixed upon hers, he drew his fingertip to his lips and tasted her grief. “All will be well, Little Flower. Pharaoh has decreed it. I will have Rekhmire keep the casket for you.”
“No, please, give the jewels to Queen Neferure. She has taken me in and given me a trust that only my mother has ever done. If the choice is mine, I would like to gift her the casket.”
This time he didn’t try to hide his smile. “What you do brings you great honor, Alia. I am sure my great wife will be delighted by your gift. Now, I shall escort you to the queen’s apartments so you may present it to her. I have a need to speak with her anyway.”
“Thank you, Great Majesty.” Then she stopped in her tracks, recalling Enlil’s vow to return and attempt to assassinate Pharaoh. “Majesty, I must warn you that Enlil plans to return under cover of darkness and try to kill you. He said he has spent enough time here in recent days to know the layout of the palace.”
Both Pharaoh’s eyebrows rose as if perplexed.
“I thank you for the warning, Little Flower, though it is not really news. Several captured mercenaries have disclosed much of the plan to Rekhmire and the priests. I must ask — how is it you can dismiss all ties to your homeland in such a short time?”
Alia grinned. “You know little of the lot of women in my land.”
When he shook his head, she explained: “From birth girls are kept separate from the men. They live in different tents or houses and must remain within except for certain times of day when they wash and prepare food. My father had captive slaves who served and cooked, so the women were merely kept in order to provide heirs or seal marriage pacts. Some would say it is luxury to spend one’s entire day sewing or grooming, or learning the role you will play as wife to some foreign prince, yet in truth, it is little more than a prison.
“Boy children live with the women until they are old enough to learn of war and husbandry, then they move to live with the men. Women are chattel, nothing more, and the men may use them however they wish — even kill them without consequences, if it suits their purpose. I am certain, if I had been forced to marry Enlil, I probably wouldn’t have lived to reach the border.
“But since I came to live in Pharaoh’s house, I’ve experienced more freedom in my position as a slave than in I did in my home as a princess. So, the choice is easily made — the family I knew, the women I lived with all my life, are gone. I have nothing to return to even if I wished it — which I don’t, Great Majesty.”
She looked up to assess his reaction, and his face held a compassion she’d only ever witnessed on her mother’s face.
“Can I ask another boon, Alia?” he said as they continued down the long hall from the audience chambers to the queen’s apartments.
“Anything, Majesty.”
“When we are alone, you will cease addressing me as Majesty — my birth name is Menkhepere.”
Her eyes darted up in alarm. Never in her life had she been so informal with a man, let alone a king — or worse, a god!
“But Majesty, what if the priests or someone else should hear? My life would be forfeit.”
He waved a finger under her nose. “You said ‘anything,’ Alia. That is my wish. I spend my whole life listening to whole sentences where my name should be. All the titles, the way everyone addresses me, they are not who I am. Despite all the stories that are said of living gods, I am, ultimately, still a man.
“And like any other man, I need friends and to feel cared for. Will you be my friend, Alia?” He halted in front of the entrance to the queen’s suite, then took her hand and drew it to his lips, brushing her knuckles with an intimate warmth that robbed her lungs of air. His eyes were almost aglow in the light of the torches; aflame with molten gold and emitting such heat, she found herself completely enthralled. He placed her palm open on his bare chest, over his heart, and whispered, “You see, just a man.”
Ineni emerged from the curtain screen just as she dropped her hand. Terror filled her — what if Ineni had seen the intimacy between Pharaoh and herself? Would the queen have her ejected from her household?
Chapter 5
The steward’s face did not reveal his thoughts, and Alia scampered by him the instant Pharaoh gave her the direction to go.
Ineni remained with Pharaoh for some moments before leading him into Neferure’s private sitting room.
“Ah, wife, I trust I find you in good health?” he asked, as he seated himself beside her on a settee and placed a kiss upon her hand.
“Very well, Menkhepere. And you? What is this I hear about the young Prince Enlil trying to wrest away our Little Flower? I expect you dealt with him.”
“Actually, I gave Alia the choice, and she chose to remain. As you know, I have freed her. Enlil left a casket of gems that have immense value, but she refused them; she has asked that they be gifted to you.”
Neferure’s face lit with genuine delight. “In that case, I am pleased we placed our trust in her. She is both sweet and generous, and is already a happy addition to my household. If she pleases you also,” she said in a low voice that suggested far more than her words, “then we shall all find re
ward. Do you intend taking her as a minor wife?”
“Perhaps. She has yet to consent to become my lover, but we have agreed to friendship, which is a beginning. She is the first to really set my heart afire, so I will take our courtship slowly. And there is still danger from the Retennu princes. Enlil was extremely angry when he departed.”
“Was it wise to allow him to leave with his life?”
He stood and paced for a moment, then turned to face his wife. “Maybe not, but I still think he will lead us to the rebellion that is even now being planned. I feel it here,” he thumped his chest with his fist, “Enlil is the key to subduing the other princes. Once he has been brought to heel, the others will follow meekly, I am sure. The priests are watching him closely. If I kill him now, the other princes will seek revenge. Above all else I cannot afford to give them a martyr.”
Neferure nodded in agreement as she stood. “Was there anything further you required of me, husband? Ineni was just preparing my massage when you were announced.”
Her expression held a hint of mischief; reminding him of the few times he’d secretly witnessed Ineni’s massage.
On the first occasion he’d seen it, he was just the son of one of Pharaoh’s minor wives, in training with the priests of Amun. On a dare, he’d snuck over the wall into the quarters of his half-sister, Neferure.
At the time, he'd certainly had no inkling that he’d be elevated to Pharaoh or that Neferure would become his great wife. Much later he learned that the priests of Amun and Queen Hatshepsut were responsible for his elevation. Hatshepsut had apparently decreed it several harvests before, as a way of ensuring power for her daughter, whom he married shortly after.