The streets nearer the acropolis were packed. Danae weaved through the throng, straining to catch more information.
As the great stone steps up to the acropolis swung into view, a commotion broke out behind her. The crowd was peeling back from the road. Pushed toward the buildings on the left, she fought to see what was happening over the heads of the people in front.
A procession was making its way down the road.
Danae stretched onto her tiptoes. At the head of the procession was King Theseus, his shoulders draped in a cobalt blue cloak that pooled over the rear of his chestnut steed. The band he’d worn on the hunt had been replaced with a golden crown, and his gray eyes were cold as a winter sky.
She weaved forward, squeezing her way through the first line of onlookers just in time to see the rope stretching from the back of the king’s saddle. Her stomach lurched when she saw that it dragged the body of the man she’d seen pursued through the forest. He was so battered, she almost didn’t recognize him. He was naked, and his lithe frame was torn and punctured with bite marks, his skin crusted with dried blood.
He is King of Athens now.
She remembered what the Maenad Ariadne had said about Theseus. This was the man who lay with her then abandoned her on an unknown shore. He had always been cruel, even before his heart was poisoned with vengeance. To be cuckolded by his own son was a grievous wound indeed, but to hunt his child like an animal then defile his body was beyond brutality.
Behind the body of Theseus’s son walked a woman. She wore no jewels, and her long silk gown trailed around her bare feet. Danae gaped. The resemblance was uncanny. She was younger than Ariadne, her long silver hair still streaked with blond, but the tilt of her mouth and shape of her jaw were the Maenad’s replica. This must be the sister Ariadne spoke of. Danae wondered if this woman knew what had happened between the Maenad and her husband.
The Queen of Athens stared down at her stepson’s broken body, as though the crowd were not there and the two of them were all that existed. She didn’t cry, but her pale green eyes were caverns of grief. A step behind her were six guards, two abreast. They wore full Athenian battle armor, their blue-plumed helms masking their faces, hands resting on the pommels of their swords. Danae had the feeling they were there to guard the queen rather than protect her.
Bringing up the rear was a woman with a severe brow and light brown skin, mounted on a gray dappled mare. Her dark hair was cropped short, like all her kind, and she was swathed in a black robe. Despite the horror of the procession, the sight of her made Danae’s skin tingle. She must be the royal seer.
Danae had only seen one other seer, a long time ago in Naxos Port. Men and women who became seers were chosen from a young age to study under a master and learn the secret arts of divining the omens. They then chose which king or military commander they would serve. A female seer was an anomaly, a woman outside of the confines of societal restrains. Even a queen was ruled by her husband’s whims, but a seer could travel anywhere with anyone and command respect. A woman who decided her own fate.
King Theseus dismounted at the base of the acropolis steps and began to climb. His seer followed him, and the guards detached the body, dragging it up to the middle of the stairs. The queen, still flanked by the guards, was positioned next to it. It was a chilling sight, the king surveying his citizens, his wife and the mangled body of his son below him.
Theseus raised his hand, and silence descended.
“Athenians, may the Twelve see you and know you all.” He spoke in the manner of a prince who’d never had to fight to be heard. “Your king stands here today, before his people, to address the rumors that I’m sure by now you’ve all heard.” He paused. The city was so quiet. Even the memorabilia sellers were silent. “Adultery has been committed. Let none of us forget, for a woman to betray her husband is a sin against the gods. It is a sickness that must be driven out and cauterized. No one is above judgment, not even royalty.” The tension in his voice betrayed how difficult this was, but Danae couldn’t see the pain of heartbreak on his face, just the fury of wounded pride.
The seer nodded slowly as he spoke. Danae wondered if Theseus had been forced to make the admission. Kings may rule their people, but priestesses ruled their kings.
“My son, Hippolytus, was mine to deal with.” Theseus glanced at his seer. “But I leave the fate of Queen Phaedra to Athena.”
The crowd muttered amongst themselves, then fell silent again as the seer lifted her arms to the sky. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head, then she opened her mouth and a language Danae didn’t understand poured out, the guttural tones raising the hair on her arms. This woman was communing with the gods.
The crowd waited, spellbound.
After a while, the seer lowered her arms and looked around as though waking from a trance.
“Athena has spoken. The queen’s life will be spared.”
Many gasped. It wasn’t like the gods to be merciful. Theseus’s mouth twitched; he almost looked disappointed.
“But,” continued the seer, “she must be cleansed and atone for her sins. Athena wishes Queen Phaedra to travel to Delphi immediately to be purified by the oracle. If she does not, a terrible plague will befall this city.” The seer turned to Theseus. “The fates have aligned, my king. The chosen novices are due to travel to the holy city tomorrow to be presented as candidates for the new Pythia. The queen must accompany them.”
Phaedra blinked and said nothing. She didn’t seem to care that her life had just been spared. There was a pause while the king looked intensely at his seer. Then he turned back to the crowd.
“Let Athena’s will be done.”
Danae didn’t pay attention to what happened next. While the people around her drifted back to their lives, she remained still.
And began to form the outline of a plan.
14
Burning Gold
“Please let this work,” Danae whispered as she cradled a stone in a strip of material she’d torn from the hem of her tunic.
She bit her lip and took aim.
