Rae gritted her teeth. “I am. And she hasn’t put me under a spell, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“I wish she had. It would be an excuse for you believing this nonsense.”
“Curse you, Omari, will you just listen for a minute? Even if the oracle does not come to pass, it remains true that Neff has a plan to take down Meryamun. If we release her, the slaughter in Sakesh will cease, and she and I can work together to ensure the cursing ritual doesn’t take place. She has more access in the palace than I ever could.” When it looked like Omari still wasn’t convinced, she added, “I already told Tam about it. She believes me.”
Omari’s lip curled. “Of course she does.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Itmeansthat Tamerit is predisposed to swallow your nonsense because apparently you’ve been bedding her every night.” Omari spoke with such venom that Rae momentarily forgot about everything else.
Heat rushed to her cheeks. “Is this about you walking in on us that day back in Sakesh? You’restillupset about that? Look, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you how I feel about her, and I’m sorry you had to find out the way you did. But it’s not fair to suggest Tam would blindly follow my orders no matter what. She’s brilliant, and if she thought it was a bad idea, she would say so.”
Omari shook his head in disbelief. “You think I’m angry because you didn’t share your gossip about having a lover? Really, Rae? After all these years, youreallydon’t know?”
Rae blinked. “What are you talking about?” Then, slowly, realization dawned on her, turning her entire world on its head. “Omari, you’re not suggesting… You didn’t thinkwewould…”
Omari’s face was an open wound, bleeding years of pain andfrustration and anguish. “Of course I did! I loved you, Rae!” he exclaimed. “I’ve loved you since we were children! Since the day your mother died, and we sat by the river and promised everything to each other! I thought you understood! I thought you felt the same! Then, when everyone around us spoke as if our union was inevitable, you acted like it was a joke! And every time it was like a knife in my heart!”
Rae put a hand to her mouth in dawning horror. “Omari…”
Omari was shaking, his breath coming in short bursts. “I joined the Horizon because I wanted to do something important, to rise in the ranks and become a leader in the community. I’d hoped that if I did, you’d finally see me for the man I am, a man deserving of your love.
“But then you had to drag the truth out of me too early, force yourself into that first meeting, and made such an impression on Asim that it took all the attention off me and put it on you instead. Suddenlyyouwere the leader,youheld the sway, and I was simply there to clean up your mess.
“But at least we were working together, I thought. We could connect during this mission to Thonis. There was still time for me to show you who I really am. I hadn’t given up hope. And then I saw you withher.”
Rae had forgotten to breathe. Her gaze flicked to Neff, whose face had gone deathly pale. Throughout his tirade, Omari hadn’t slackened his grip on her wrist.
“If it had been another man, it would have been painful enough. But a woman? It was proof that all those years of my pining and hoping and striving for your love had been a totalwaste. I never had a chance. You made me into a fool. An utter, complete fool.”
Rae worked to get her thundering heart under control, to slow the whirl of her mind enough to choose her next words. “Iam sorry you suffered so long in silence, Omari,” she said. “If you had onlytold meabout your feelings, all of this could have been avoided.”
“So, this is my fault, is it?”
“I’m not saying that.”
Omari was squeezing Neff so hard that Rae could see he was hurting her. She was angry, but she knew that anger would only make things worse.I need to ease the situation. Say whatever is necessary to get Neff away from Omari until he calms down.
“Look, I want things to be right between us, Omari. You’re my best friend, and I never intended to hurt you. But we don’t have time to settle our differences now. We must get Neff back to the palace and make a plan to liberate our people before it’s too late. I promised my father the Horizon would come to their aid.”
Omari barked a humorless laugh. “Ah yes, your father. I’m sorry to tell you this, Ay, but he was dead the moment he was taken.”
Rae went cold. The ground beneath her trembled.
“Take it back, Omari.”
“It’s true, and you know it. This entire rescue mission was pointless from the start, not that the rest of the Horizon seemed to understand that. They were so dazzled by your feats of heroism they were willing to look past the fact that a small group of rebels have exactly zero chance of saving prisoners from inside the king’s palace. I only came to conduct reconnaissance work for when we eventually invade this city—and to ensure you didn’t do anything monumentally stupid.” He swept an arm before him, encompassing their current predicament. “And it’s a good thing I did.”
“You were the one to suggest abducting Nefermaat in the first place!” Rae retorted. “Why would you do that if you thought the plan would fail?”
Omari shrugged. “There was a chance the king was soft enoughon the girl to release one or two of the prisoners in exchange for her safe return. But I wasn’t surprised when he raised the stakes instead. It was the obvious choice.”
“Youpredictedthat he would attack Sakesh? And you said nothing?”
“Do you remember what you told me in Baki’s barn? The night you killed the brewer? You said we can’t force everyone in Sakesh to join us in this fight. They have to come to it willingly. ‘Not every mind works as yours does,’ that’s what you said. And you know what? You were right. Besides dealing with the king’s taxes and the rule of the nomarch and the Medjay, most Low Khetarans are too busy living their lives to dedicate themselves to the cause. What they needed was to find their fury. Their passion. They needed an event that would unite the whole city under the Horizon’s banner.”
“An event like a massacre?” Rae asked. She felt sick.
