His gaze met mine. “You think that do you? You’re not just trying to push me to get the crown so you can have revenge for your son?”
I leaned forward and whispered in his ear, “Tut is gone, and you are here.”
I softly kissed his cheek.
As I pulled away, he didn’t move but watched me closely. I turned to go to the storage room when he rushed at me and pushed me up against the wall. “Are you trying to manipulate me?”
I tried to pull away. “No! Why would I―?”
“Naomi, you are driving me to madness! You are yes and then you are no. I am growing weary of it, so tell me; what is it to be? Do you love me?”
I met his gaze. “Yes.”
He pulled back, completely thrown off guard by my answer. His voice lowered. “Do you want to marry me?”
I dropped my gaze. “Eventually…”
“Eventually? Naomi, I can’t keep on like this!”
“You must marry Mutnodjmet first!” I protested. “And Ay must be gone as well, so he cannot hunt down me, my children, and my family. It’s not as simple as a yes or no with us, you should know that.”
He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. “This is so…”
But then he stopped. I saw his mind ticking over and his eyes shot to me. “A peace offering. He has been angry at me of late, and I can offer a woman to bear a child as a kind of peace offering.”
I stared at him, confused at first by his sudden change in demeanor and the direction of our conversation. “You are back to talking about Ay, aren’t you?”
He waved his hand dismissively. “Yes, then the court would empty and you would be left alone with him, or so he would think, and I could slip around behind him and…” He grinned. “Yes, you are quite beautiful, and still very strong.”
I smirked. “I don’t think you’ve ever called me beautiful before.”
He raised an eyebrow at me. “I’m sure I have.”
“No. Plain and common were what you used to call me.”
“That’s not the point. You are too easily sidetracked.” He slowly paced the room. “Now to set a day and time and refine the details.”
He reached out his arm and rested it over my shoulders as he began to share his plan with me.
he sun was setting, and the streets were near empty after a long day of hard labor. I left the children with Hepsati and Itani and told them I was going to visit with Rena for a while. Horemheb would meet me at the gate between the two sectors so I could pass without any problems. We were then going to return to his house where I would dress from head to toe in jewelry and put on makeup to help me appear more enticing. I modified my dark blue tunic, so when I removed my robe, my arms would be bare, and my legs would be exposed through the slits up the sides that reached to just below my hips. I hadn’t felt so exposed by my clothing since I had been a queen and had to wear the tight dresses with their low necklines and no sleeves.
As I rounded a corner, Rena appeared up ahead of me. She seemed to be looking for something, then she called out, “You stupid animal! Where are you?”
She turned and before I could duck away, she saw me. “Naomi?”
“Hello, Rena.” I walked toward her and smiled. At least I could honestly say I saw her. “What are you doing out?”
“Zakkai may have done a great job at training those dogs to be sheep animals, but they are far from obedient.”
Apart from Zakkai’s, Bilhan’s was the only dog that survived the lion attack that had killed Liam. “Bilhan has gone to see if he’s out with the sheep while I’m checking he hasn’t broken into someone’s home.” She paused and looked me over. “What are you doing out here anyway?”
“I left something at the estate,” I lied.
She frowned. “I’ll come with you―”
“No!” I protested a little too strongly.
She gazed up at me, her eyes narrowing. “Why do I feel like something is going on?”
“It’s nothing, Rena, truly.”
She leaned closer, with wide eyes, and whispered, “Are you…?” She shook her head. “No you wouldn’t, would you?” She grabbed my arm. “Are you meeting up with Horemheb to have an affair?”
“Of course not!” I scowled.
She clenched at the sleeve of my robe. “Naomi, I didn’t mean to…” Her gaze locked on my shoulder and I looked down to see my skin exposed from her pulling at my sleeve.
“Naomi!” She pulled it harder to show the modified tunic. “What’s going on?”
I pulled my sleeve back to cover me as I responded in a hushed voice, “It’s something you best not know anything about. Now go and pretend you never saw me.”
She held onto me. “No, not this time. I’m your sister and you have always protected me, so now it’s my turn to protect you. Whatever you are doing, I’m going to go with you.”
“No, it’s too dangerous―”
“If it’s so dangerous, then you cannot do it alone. Eliora has already gone, and I will not sit back and allow your children to become orphans while I lose a second sister.”
I looked down into her eyes, and appreciated her loyalty, but I couldn’t allow her to come with me. “I will be going into the palace; you cannot go in there.”
“Yes, I can. I’m going with you even if I have to follow you.”
I huffed. “You are so stubborn.”
“I learned from the best.”
I couldn’t help smiling. “You have me there.” I took her hand in mine. “Horemheb is not going to be impressed.”
“He was never particularly fond of me, anyway.”
We hurried to the gate. Horemheb scowled as we approached. “Naomi, why did you have to bring your sister?”
Rena giggled. “You were right, he isn’t impressed.”
“She insisted on coming with me,” I told him. “She’s smart; she could prove helpful.”
He grunted and led us away.
At the estate, he pulled out plenty of gold and fine jewelry for us to wear. While Rena adjusted her tunic in the laundry room, I pulled off my robe and began putting jewelry around my ankles, wrists, neck, and waist. I even dared to slip in earrings.
While I adorned myself, Horemheb watched, his gaze lingering with desire over my exposed legs and arms. It made me feel incredibly uncomfortable, but he never spoke a word.
As Rena entered, she paused beside Horemheb, who hadn’t noticed her. She glared up at him and slapped his chest.
“Stop staring at my sister.”
He glanced down at her coolly. “I wasn’t staring, I was just thinking how Ay would react to her.”
Rena leaped back. “The Pharaoh?”
He looked back to me. “You brought her along and didn’t even tell her what we were doing?”
I turned away from him as I pulled my robe back on and didn’t answer.
He growled something under his breath. He then explained to Rena what we were doing while she slipped on her jewelry and I put on my makeup. She soaked it all up quickly, but he left out the most important detail. He simply implied an overthrow, rather than a murder.
Once we were ready, he tied our hands, and attached a rope to each of us. He then led us out to the palace.
Night had fallen, so the throne room would be nearly empty when we arrived. Horemheb knew Ay would still be there because he had become fearful of sleeping, due to his poor health, so avoided it whenever possible. He was afraid if he fell asleep, he would never wake up.
Horemheb brought Rena and me, bound, into the throne room, where he led us to stand before Ay. He stopped at the step by Ay’s feet and bowed.
“My lord. An offering of peace between us.” He tugged at the rope, for Rena and me to kneel.
I wished she hadn’t insisted on doing this with me, but when I glanced at her, I saw her strength radiating from her eyes.
“A peace offering, Horemheb?” Ay sneered. “Hebrew women? Don’t insult me.”
“My lord, I know how you crave an he
ir, and both these women are extremely fertile. Surely as long as a son is born, it won’t matter from where.”
I watched as he contemplated Horemheb’s suggestion. He stroked his beard slowly and eyed us both.
“Kiya was a strong childbearer. Maybe…”
He stood and waved for the room to empty. Then, when just the four of us remained, he stood. “I thought Hebrew women were supposed to be virtuous. So tell me, Horemheb, how did you convince these two to offer themselves up?”
“They are widows with plenty of mouths to feed. I just had to name a price.”
Ay sneered and pulled at Rena’s rope. She stood in front of him as he removed her veil and shawl.
“Very nice,” he muttered. “Hebrew women are only good for two things; to look at, and to use to breed.”
I watched Rena struggle to suppress her urge to fight.
Ay then turned back to Horemheb. “I don’t know, Commander. They seem a little old.”
“Let them dance for you, my lord, so you can see their strength and beauty. Then I am certain you will be pleased with what I offer.”
Ay hooked his thumbs through his belt. “Very well. Unbind them and move out of the way.”
Horemheb leaped to his feet as Ay returned to his throne.
I smiled as Horemheb untied Rena, knowing our plan was going perfectly. Horemheb removed Rena’s robe and shawl to reveal her bright orange tunic that, like my own, she had removed the sleeves from, and slit the skirt up to her hips on either side. She also had a sash around her waist, with gold coins tied to its tassels, and heavy gold bracelets on both wrists. I stared at her as Horemheb stepped over and began unbinding me, and realized she was as much of a queen as I was. She looked stunning, confident, and brave.
“Naomi,” Horemheb whispered as he pulled off my veil. “Be careful.”
I looked up at him as he untied my robe. “Let’s just finish this.”
He pursed his lips as he dropped the robe to the ground to reveal my dark blue tunic and jewelry that matched Rena’s. He stepped back and bowed.
Ay sat forward and looked us both over with lust in his eyes. I glanced across at Rena, who lifted her chin and began to sing. I stepped toward her, took her hand, and harmonized with her. We shook our hips, causing the gold to jingle in rhythm with our song. We lifted our arms and shook our bracelets, and flicked our thick, wavy hair back.
Horemheb moved up the side of the room, but Ay was transfixed by us, and didn’t notice. I had to keep him completely focused on us, especially me, so I led Rena toward him. We both spun in front of him and ended the move at the foot of the step to the throne. Ay stared at our exposed legs, and as we shook our hips with our arms in the air, his eyes slowly examined our entire bodies.
Horemheb moved behind the throne, so I stepped up in front of Ay. I lifted my leg to place my foot down on the throne and leaned into it. He ran his hand up my bent leg, all the way to my hip. I could see his excitement growing under his tunic. I smiled at him and grabbed the collar of his tunic.
“Do you like me, my lord?”
His other hand came up and rested on my waist. “Very much.”
I leaned down closer to him so our lips were almost touching. “Who would have thought we’d see the day when you lusted after Kiya.”
His eyes met mine and widened. “It’s not possible…”
Horemheb grabbed his head and pulled it back against the throne.
“Look at her, Ay. You killed her son, you enslaved her people, and now she has come for you.”
I dropped my leg. I rested my hands on the arms of the throne and leaned forward so he could see my face clearly.
“You’ve never been able to shake me, Ay. I’ve been right under your nose for years, but your ignorance blinded you. I would see you look right at me and not know who I was, but not anymore. Now you see me here, and I will be the last face you will ever see.”
His hand searched for his weapon at his hip, so I pinned his arms. I smiled at him as I saw fear in his eyes.
“You have been feeling weak these last few months, haven’t you?” I searched his eyes for his reactions. “Well, Ay, I have been administering poison to you in small doses. You see, I am the Commander’s cook, the one whose food you love, but about whom you would make crude jokes. However, that doesn’t matter anymore. You are now weak enough for us to overpower you. This final dose will kill you, and because you have been in poor health, no one will ever be the wiser.”
Horemheb raised a vial over his mouth.
Ay stared at it, wide-eyed with panic, causing his face to contort. “No! This is impossible.”
“It serves you right for never checking your food,” Horemheb said. “You old fool. Your one weakness was too easy to exploit. You were too proud to think anyone would dare doing something as simple as poisoning you.”
Horemheb tilted Ay’s head back and pressed the vial against his lips.
Ay struggled, but between Horemheb’s strength combined with mine, he could not break free. I watched as the poison poured into his mouth. He tried to spit it out but Horemheb grabbed his jaw and forced it shut before blocking his nose.
“Swallow, Ay,” he said with a growl. “Swallow so justice can be served, and look into the eyes of the mother of the boy you killed.”
I brought up my knee and held his chest down with it as he struggled to break free. “This is for all my people who have died and suffered because of you. This is for my son and for the misplaced trust he gave to you, but most of all, it’s for me and the years you hunted me and forced me to hide away.”
I rested my hand on his throat as he turned red, then, I felt him swallow.
Horemheb let go of him and stepped away, leaving me standing over him as he gasped for air.
“You’ve killed me,” he snarled.
I reached up and pulled the crown off his head. “Praises be to Aten.”
I pushed off and turned to see Horemheb standing beside Rena. They both stared at me with shocked expressions as Ay made a strangling sound behind me. As the poison set in, I looked at the crown in my hand. So much suffering for this single item. I placed it on my head and turned back to Ay. I watched him, as he turned blue and exhaled his last breath. Finally, freedom…
I turned back to face Horemheb and Rena. I stepped down to stand in front of Horemheb. Looking up at him, my love for him pounded in my chest as I pulled off the crown and handed it to him.
“I believe this is yours now.”
I stepped around him and walked toward the exit, only pausing to collect my clothes from the floor.
Rena rushed after me and grabbed my arm, spinning me to face her. “You killed him!”
“No, it was I,” Horemheb responded, as he walked slowly toward us. “I could never let Naomi become a murderer.”
She clung to my arm. “You looked him in the eye and watched him die! How could you do that?”
“He was a tyrant, Rena. With him gone, things can change for us.”
She shoved me. “Naomi! Is this who Kiya was? A cold, calculating, queen who manipulated her way to the top and didn’t care who she hurt?”
“He killed my son!” Tears burned in my eyes. “He paid a man to run Tut off the road and kill him! And when he came to see Tut after he died, he barely even reacted; all he did was tell Ankhe her loyalty was spent before he abducted her and forced her to be his wife! She ended up killing herself because of it. And then, oh then! Think of your little boy, and Jared who died because of his hatred for us, and all the others over these past few years while we have been enslaved! And before that, how he forced conscription on us which killed Enoch and cost Joshua his leg. It wasn’t going to end with him, it would have only gotten worse. I can’t live each day watching my family, my children, suffer because of him. I do not regret being a part of this, and I know I will not be condemned for protecting my people. This was the reason I was made a queen in the first place; this was God’s plan for me to preserve his people.”
Rena stared at me, awestruck, her jaw hanging. Then her hand dropped and her gaze fell. “You really believe that?”
“I really do.”
She nodded, and her gaze shot back up to me, her eyes full of tears. “Why did it have to be you? Why were you chosen to perform such a horrible task? Why did He not bring forth a prophet or a king from among us? I thought we were supposed to be delivered from bondage and brought to Canaan.”
“I don’t know. Maybe there is still something we have to learn in this place.”
Her tears fell as she flung her arms around me. “You have always protected me. I love you so much.”
We held each other tightly for several minutes, before Horemheb’s hand pressed on my back. “We must leave before we are discovered here.”
Rena and I quickly replaced our robes, shawls, and veils, and we rushed out of the palace.
Back at the estate, as we removed the jewelry, Horemheb set the crown on the table and sat staring at it.
“It’s mine,” he said, sliding his hat off the reveal his hair. “I never intended to climb this high, but…” He looked across at me. “Come here, Naomi.”
I walked over and he grabbed my hips.
“You did this, do you know that?”
I blushed. “No, you did this yourself. I just gave you my allegiance.”
“Do you remember when I first asked for it, when we were sailing to Amarna?”
“Of course I do.” I smiled. “I thought you were trying to trick me. I could see how all the men on the ship were afraid of you.”
He shifted my robe back slightly so his fingers could touch my skin through the slits on my tunic. “That was the first time I thought you were beautiful. It was your eyes. I could see you were suspicious of me, but you let me in anyway.”
His hands ran down the side of my legs, making me tremble, just before he stood and touched my neck. I held my breath as I gazed up at him, feeling as if finally we were going to make things work between us. His thumb brushed my cheek as I leaned closer.
Rena cleared her throat to remind us of her presence.
Horemheb stepped back from me and glanced away. “Mutnodjmet has accepted my marriage offer, so she will be sailing down soon.”
KIYA: Rise of a New Dynasty (Kiya Trilogy Book 3) Page 23