Nefermaat was sitting up, her bound hands pressed together in a prayer position, looking for all the world like a tiny goddess waiting for a supplicant to arrive. There was no fear in her eyes as she followed Rae’s approach, nor surprise when Rae pulled the gag from her mouth.
Neff was the first to speak, though her voice was ragged and dry. “You believe me, don’t you?”
Rae shivered, unnerved. “Yes.”
Neff’s huge eyes glimmered, and for an instant, she looked like she was going to cry. Rae had begun untying her wrists and ankles when she reached for Rae’s hand and squeezed it.
“So…” Rae said once she was done. She suddenly felt too big and too awkward in the intimacy of the little tent. “You said the man I met—Karim—is part of this oracle?”
Neff nodded. “He came to the Temple of Amun searching for information about a pharaoh named Setnakht, who had been erased from the king’s lists. It’s got to be connected to the oracle, I just don’t know how yet.”
“And the last person is Princess Sitamun? I figured she’d be a lot like her brother.”
“Sitamun and Meryamun are alike in many ways, but different in all the important ones. You know she ran away from him.”
“Why?”
“Because he wanted to marry her. And because he murdered their father.”
Rae’s eyebrows rose. Bedding his sister? Patricide?The king is even worse than I thought!“Do you know where she is now?”
“Close,” Neff said, staring into the middle distance. “And getting closer.” She blinked and focused back on Rae. “Listen. The cursing ritual will take place in two days. If we are going to stop the king and save your people, we must move quickly.”
“I agree. I will explain everything to my friends. It’s going to take a little convincing…” Rae helped Neff to her feet and moved to leave the tent, but the girl stopped her.
“The big man, Omari. He is not your friend.”
Rae scoffed, incredulous. “What are you talking about?”
The young priestess hesitated. “There is darkness in him. I fear you will not be able to convince him to go along with this plan.” Rae noticed Neff’s hand move to rub her upper arm, where a lurid bruise had formed.
“Wait. Did he do this to you?” Rae asked. Upon closer inspection, she found purple marks on the girl’s neck as well.
Neff didn’t reply.
She didn’t need to.
Rage kindled inside Rae’s belly, greeting her like an old friend. Perhaps it burned hotter because she’d been keeping herself under such tight control for so long, or perhaps it was the thought of someone harming a defenseless young girl. Either way, she wasn’t exactly in control of herself when she stormed out of the tent, straight to where Omari was sitting, and shoved him.
“What is wrong with you?” she exclaimed. “What did you do to her?”
Omari stopped, knife in hand, and slowly turned toward her. “Calm down, Ay,” he said warningly.
“No, I won’t calm down. I thought we were fighting for freedom. For the greater good. Since when does that include torturingchildren?”
Omari slipped the whetstone in the pocket of his tunic. “Since the king gave us no choice but to retaliate in kind. His men are in Sakesh right now, killing our people in droves. Or had you forgotten?”
Rae said, “Of course I haven’t forgotten! But if we aren’t careful, we will find ourselves making excuses for atrocities, each one more heinous than the last, until it will be impossible to tell the difference between our enemies and ourselves!”
Omari gripped the knife so tightly his knuckles turned white. “If you think this rebellion has any chance of success without spilling innocent blood, you’re a bigger fool than I thought.”
The insult was fuel to her fury, and Rae was about to shoot back when she sensed movement behind her. Nefermaat emerged from the tent. The girl looked unsteady on her feet and glanced warily between them.
With a roar, Omari dashed toward the girl and grabbed her by the wrist. “Why would you untie her?” he asked, seething. “She’ll run right back to the palace and tell them where we are! Are youtryingto get us killed?”
“She’s not going to run away, Omari! That’s what I wanted to tell you.” Rae paused and took a deep breath. She didn’t wish to dispel her rage, but she had to control it long enough to explain the situation. As succinctly as she could, she told Omari about Neff’s plan to stop Meryamun and about their connection through the Oracle of the Lamb.
When she was finished, Omari was stupefied into silence. Finally, he said, “You’re not serious.”
