by Wolf, Joan
“Esther.” His smile flashed: warm, intimate, delighted. “You are jealous!”
“I would like to take those two women and throw them off the South Wall,” she answered fiercely.
He flung himself on his back beside her and laughed. It was her turn to raise herself so she could look down at him. “It isn’t funny.”
His face was flushed. “I think it’s wonderful.” He reached up and cupped her face between his hands. “I think you are right, my love,” he said. “I think that from now on I will concentrate on making legitimate children.”
My love. He had called her my love. As her hair tumbled around them, she thought hazily that perhaps this was not the moment to tell him he may have already succeeded.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Later that Thursday afternoon Haman stood by the window in the reception room of the royal courtyard, staring out at the orange trees that formed a privacy screen between the wing that held the royal apartments and the south platform. Ahasuerus was late for their appointment, but the servants had told Haman that the king was with the queen and could not be disturbed.
Haman shifted the roll of parchment he was carrying from one hand to the other and stared blindly at the trees. The day’s light was fading and soon it would be time for dinner.
Ahasuerus had gone into his apartment over an hour ago and he had not yet come out. They had said he was with the queen. He was supposed to be with Haman.
Finally there came the sound of voices from the corridor that led to the king’s apartment.
He’s left her at last, Haman thought bitterly. Perhaps now he’ll have time for me.
He moved away from the window to stand under the golden disk, symbol of Ahuramazda, that hung on the wall directly opposite the arched doorway into the corridor. On the disk, in bas-relief, was a winged globe with the head and shoulders of the god rising out of it. This particular symbol appeared in all the king’s private rooms. Its significance was that Ahuramazda, who reigned in the sky, watched over and protected the king, who was his viceroy on earth.
Finally, well past the time of their scheduled appointment, the king came into the reception room.
“Haman,” he said pleasantly, “I’m sorry that I was detained.”
As always, Ahasuerus was immaculately groomed. His hair, still damp from the bath, was perfectly ordered. The folds of his robe fell with mathematical precision. But the faintly languid look in his eyes would have told the sharp-eyed Haman what he had been doing earlier, even if Haman had not already known.
During the years since first he had laid eyes upon Ahasuerus, jealousy had become Haman’s familiar demon. In Babylon he had been fiercely jealous of the small, tight-knit circle of the king’s boyhood friends. He had envied bitterly their ease with him, the beautiful ease of old friends who have known each other forever. But over time he had come to see that even Ahasuerus’ old friends had never breached the shell of reserve that lay between the king and the rest of the world. For all their undoubted comradeship, their obvious love of Ahasuerus, his essential self remained beyond their reach. It was this perception that stoked Haman’s burning desire to be the person who truly got close to the king.
Never before had he been jealous of a woman. Never before had he begrudged Ahasuerus his sexual pleasure. But never before had he seen Ahasuerus so bewitched. Haman was beginning to suspect that Esther might prove to be more of a rival than he had ever thought a woman could be.
He went now to kiss the king’s cheek in greeting. He stepped back and said, “I have been waiting for over an hour, my lord.” He heard the querulous note in his own voice and winced.
Ahasuerus heard the note also and his eyebrows lifted. However, he merely repeated, “I am sorry.”
Haman forced a smile. “I apologize if I sounded testy, my lord. It is just that I greatly desire to speak to you about this treasury audit I conducted.”
Ahasuerus said, “I do not have time for that now, my friend. We will go over your audit on another day.”
“Certainly, my lord.” Haman’s voice was expressionless. He tucked his fingers into his belt, then took them out again.
Ahasuerus said, “I have some good news for you, however. A messenger arrived in Susa earlier in the day from the Satrap of Palestine. He writes that there is a so-called prophet who is trying to incite the Jews to take up arms against the Edomites in South Judea. You were right about that. However, this prophet has not been able to rouse the people. The satrap writes that there is no sign of a Jewish army being raised. The people of Jerusalem are going about their business as usual. So you see, my friend, there is no cause for alarm. Your people are safe.”
Haman lowered his gaze to conceal his bitter disappointment. He had been so sure that the satrap would find evidence of a Jewish rising! He said with forced good humor, “That is excellent news indeed, my lord.”
“I thought you would find it so.” Ahasuerus smiled. “It is good news for me as well. I most emphatically do not want to send Persian troops to quell a border dispute in Palestine.”
“I understand, my lord.”
Ahasuerus said, in his unhurried way, “I have invited the officers of the Royal Bodyguard to dine with me this evening.”
Haman took the gentle hint. “Then I will be going, my lord. Perhaps we can go over this audit tomorrow?”
Ahasuerus shook his head. “Not tomorrow. But later in the week, certainly.”
Haman turned at the door to make a courtesy bow. Ahasuerus was standing in front of the open window and the glow from the setting sun lit his golden hair like a halo. Haman bowed stiffly and left.
It was nearly suppertime on Thursday evening when Milis and Artanes met together in a secluded corner of the barracks courtyard. No one was near them, but even so they kept their voices to a low murmur.
Milis said to his friend, “We told Smerdis about the plot this morning, and nothing seems to be happening. I don’t think Smerdis has warned the king.”
“I don’t think so either.” Artanes face was white and pinched-looking. “What if he isn’t going to say anything? What if he is part of the plot?”
This was Milis’ greatest fear. If Smerdis had told the king, Teresh would have been arrested by now.
Three guardsmen walked across the far side of the barracks courtyard, talking and laughing. Milis could feel the sweat pouring down his chest. He said, “If the two of them are in it together, our lives aren’t worth a single golden archer.”
Artanes looked around wildly. The courtyard was almost empty as most of the guards had gone to supper. Breathing fast, he said, “The only way we can save our lives now is to warn the king ourselves.”
“But how?” Milis shut his eyes for a moment, trying to think. “How can we get access to Ahasuerus?”
“There must be someone who can help us!”
Silence fell. A faint memory flitted across Milis’ mind and he gasped.
“Have you thought of someone?” Artanes sounded desperate.
“Possibly. One of the men who came through the Household Court this morning while we were waiting for our audience with the Grand Vizier? I recognized him because I was on duty in the harem courtyard the day he brought in a candidate for the king’s hand.”
“So?”
“So the candidate was Esther! Perhaps this man would be able to get to the queen for us.”
“Who was he?”
“His name is Mordecai and he works in the Treasury.”
“Let’s go to the palace and see if we can catch him before he leaves for the day.”
Milis nodded and the two young guards began to run.
Mordecai was already in the main courtyard by the great statue of Darius when Milis and Artanes accosted him. The three stood huddled together in the shade of the statue and, while a crowd of men hurried by on their way from their jobs in the palace to their homes in the city, Milis told Mordecai of the plot against Ahasuerus and of their failure with Smerdis.
When he
had finished, Mordecai said grimly, “Come with me. We will go to the queen.”
The three men threaded their way against the traffic in the courtyard back to the palace. They entered through the Service Court, passed under the huge enameled-brick mosaic of the Immortals, and went through the Treasury Offices and into the Household Court, where the guards had had their abortive audience with Smerdis that morning. From the Household Court, Mordecai turned north, passing through a series of offices and reception rooms until they had reached a portico where two tall, blue-robed eunuchs stood guard before the great double door that separated the king’s private apartments from the public rooms of the palace.
“Find Hathach and tell him that Mordecai must speak with him immediately,” Mordecai said to one of the eunuchs. “It is a matter of the greatest urgency.”
The two sentries stared at Mordecai with impassive faces and made no reply.
Mordecai’s voice sharpened. “Did you hear me? If you value your lives at all, one of you will go instantly and bring Hathach to me.”
After another strained moment, one of the eunuchs turned, pushed open one of the massive doors, and disappeared.
The two guards and Mordecai waited in tense silence under the eye of the remaining eunuch until the first one returned. He was followed by Hathach.
“Thank you, Lord,” Milis heard the Jew say under his breath.
The smooth-faced young man looked from the guards to Mordecai. His expression was unreadable. “You sent for me, Master?”
Mordecai said, “Hathach, I must see Esther.”
“The queen is resting at the moment. May I make an appointment for you?” Milis realized that Hathach had been offended by Mordecai’s familiarity and he hoped the Jew had not made a critical mistake.
Mordecai said, “I must see her immediately. It involves the king and is a matter of life and death.”
“A matter of life and death?”
“That is what I said. It cannot wait, Hathach, believe me.”
Hathach once more scanned Mordecai’s face. “Very well. If you will wait here, Master, I will ask the queen to see you.”
The wait was only fifteen minutes, but to Milis it seemed an eternity. Finally Hathach reappeared with good news. “The queen will receive you, Mordecai. These guards must wait here.”
Mordecai looked at Milis and said, “I will explain matters to the queen and then we shall send for you.”
Hathach and Mordecai disappeared through the door, and Milis and Artanes stood in the portico with the two impassive eunuchs and waited. Milis thought of all the hours he had spent standing and waiting while on sentry duty. None of those long boring hours had dragged the way the minutes were dragging now. He stared through the open space between the wooden columns of the portico to the expanse of the Apanada that lay beyond. He began to count the columns in the Apanada.
Time passed slowly.
At last the door opened again and Hathach reappeared. He said in a clipped voice, “Come with me.”
Milis and Artanes trailed Hathach’s long, elegant back through the great double door into an anteroom and then into what was most certainly the king’s private dining room. Opening off this room was the large, columned courtyard that was the private venue of the royal family.
Milis discreetly cast curious glances around as he followed Hathach’s silent progress through the deserted courtyard. On the nights they did sentry duty at the king’s door, the guards entered the bedroom wing directly from the Rose Court. Milis had never seen this part of the palace before.
They went up a few shallow steps and he recognized they had moved into the corridor of the bedroom wing. When Hathach opened a door on the left, not the right, Milis realized they were entering the Queen’s Apartment.
The first person Milis saw when he stepped inside was the king.
“My lord.” He dropped like a stone and felt Artanes drop beside him.
“You may rise,” said Ahasuerus.
They got to their feet.
“Which of you is Milis?” the king demanded.
“I am, my lord.” Milis took a half step forward. Out of the corners of his eyes he ascertained that Mordecai and an unveiled woman were sitting on one of the divans. The queen, he thought.
The king said, “Tell me what Teresh said to you.”
Milis drew a deep, steadying breath and proceeded to recount the entire conversation.
“Now tell me exactly what you said to Smerdis this morning.”
Once again, Milis replied.
Silence fell.
Milis saw the queen make a motion, which she quickly stilled. Her eyes were fixed on her husband.
“So,” Ahasuerus said. His voice was calm, his face was composed, but his eyes were like twin chips of ice.
Mordecai spoke quietly. “Smerdis would have warned you if he was not part of the plot, my lord.”
“Yes, he would have,” Ahasuerus agreed.
“They wanted to smother you while you slept,” the queen breathed, her voice filled with horror.
The king had made up his mind. “Hathach, bring Coes to me.”
The eunuch went out again and the five people left in the room waited in silence. The king went to the window and stood looking out, his back to the rest of them. Mordecai sat on the blue-cushioned divan and stared at the tips of his shoes as they protruded from beneath his clean but worn-looking robe.
Milis peeked at the queen and saw she was looking at her husband’s back. The king’s very stillness was frightening.
Mordecai said, “Did I tell you, Esther, that Milis came to me because he was one of the guards on duty in the harem courtyard the day you and I first came here?”
She dragged her eyes away from her husband and turned to look directly at Milis. He dared to look back and found her smiling at him. He couldn’t stop himself from smiling back. “It was clever of you, Milis, to remember Mordecai. You did well.”
“Th . . . thank you, my lady,” he said.
He watched her eyes return to the king, who had not moved.
They waited in silence. At last the door opened to admit the broad-shouldered young noble whom Milis knew to be one of the king’s closest friends. Ahasuerus turned to face Coes and briefly, in a cold, controlled voice, he related the plot.
“I want you to take an escort of guards and bring Teresh to me,” he ended.
Coes’ faced was flushed with anger. “Yes, my lord.”
Coes left and once again the room was silent. For the first time since he had come in, Milis saw Ahasuerus look toward his wife.
“Is this too much for you, Esther? Do you want to retire?”
She shook her head vehemently. “No. I want to stay.”
“All right.” And he went back to staring out the window.
She said, “These guards must be hungry, my lord. It is well past their suppertime. Perhaps Hathach could take them to the dining room for some food.”
Ahasuerus nodded.
Milis was relieved to follow the eunuch out of the queen’s room. He had no wish to be present when Ahasuerus confronted their commanding officer.
He could have been killed. Over and over the same thought repeated itself in Esther’s brain.
He could have been killed. If Teresh had approached another man . . . if Milis had not thought of coming to Mordecai . . .
She shivered. The cold she felt had nothing to do with the temperature in the room.
But why? Why would Teresh want him dead?
It was only when both Ahasuerus and Mordecai turned to look at her that she realized she had spoken out loud.
“We shall find out soon enough.” For some reason, Ahasuerus’ icy fury was far more terrifying than boiling hot anger would have been.
Mordecai said, “Is there any chance that these guards might be lying? Perhaps they saw this ploy as a way to win favor for themselves.”
“We will know when I question Teresh.”
He looked back out the window.
When the door finally opened, all their heads turned, but Coes came in alone.
“Where is Teresh?” Ahasuerus demanded.
Coes replied somberly, “My lord, when he saw me coming with the guard, he killed himself.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Esther, Ahasuerus, and Mordecai waited again while Coes next went to fetch Smerdis. Ahasuerus once more asked Esther if she wanted to go to bed, but she refused. She did not want to let him out of her sight. Mordecai also urged her to retire, but Ahasuerus looked at her face and said, “If you wish to stay, stay. But you can leave at any time.”
“Thank you, my lord,” she whispered.
Coes had better luck with Smerdis. The Grand Vizier was a sweaty puddle of fear and excuses as he came into the room to face his king. He swore that he was not a party to Teresh’s plan. When the king called upon Milis and Artanes to confront him, he admitted that the guards had told him of the plot, but in his defense he pleaded that he had not believed it.
Ahasuerus had Smerdis arrested.
“You will have your chance to vindicate yourself before a judge,” the king said, and Coes removed the protesting, petrified Grand Vizier from the room.
As the door closed behind the two, Esther felt an overwhelming tiredness sweep over her. She thought that if she stood up, she might faint, so she stayed where she was as Mordecai said, “He is guilty, my lord. I saw it in his face.”
“Of course he is guilty.” Ahasuerus’ face was a mask, showing nothing. “I only wonder who else in the court may have been involved in this sordid plot.”
Others? He thinks there might be others?
Esther’s breath caught audibly. As Ahasuerus turned to her, she stared at him in terror. “Do you think there are others, my lord?”