“Who?” Rae repeated.
“He knew that we were supposed to meet. He knew that youwouldn’t really hurt me.”
Rae felt the earth tilt beneath her feet. The girl was doing it again. There was something about her that unnerved Rae. Something that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end.
“You’re wrong,” Rae said. “You’re in great danger, Nefermaat.”
“I am. But not from you.”
Rae swallowed and decided to change tack. “What do you mean, ‘supposed to meet’? We’ve already met.”
Neff shook her head. “I met Ahura, but you’re not her. You’re Rae. Greetings to you. You’re not the only one with secrets. Our goals are not as different as you think.”
Rae felt a flash of satisfaction.I knew it.“So the priest was right. You and the prince really are conspiring against the king.”
Neff looked surprised. “You saw Montuhotep?”
“I did, in the throne room. He was going on and on about what a devious child you are. He only ended his rant because the king slit his throat. He won’t be spreading rumors about you any longer, I can tell you that much.”
Nefermaat’s eyes bugged. “Montuhotep is dead?”
“Very much so.”
Neff slumped back against the wall of the tent.
“It wasn’t your fault. The rat obviously had it coming.”
“Still.” The girl’s gaze settled on the loaf of bread. “Could I…?”
Rae gave her a stern look. “I’ll untie your hands, but you must promise not to try to escape.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Neff replied. “I’m exactly where I need to be.”
Another thrill of energy crept up Rae’s spine as she unbound Nefermaat’s hands.Why does she speak in riddles?
“I still don’t understand,” Rae said as she watched the girldevour the bread. “You’re just a child. Why would you risk your life to work against the king?”
Neff swallowed a bite of food and looked straight at Rae. “Because of the lamb.”
Rae straightened. “The lamb?” The words whispered through her mind like the wind, full of smoke and honey and wine.
“Yes. The Oracle of the Lamb.”
The little priestess told her everything. About her dreams, her visions, her journey from Bubas to the Temple of Amun to the royal palace. She recited the words of the lamb and their connection to four very special individuals: Nefermaat herself, the princess Sitamun, a Red Lander named Karim—
“And you.”
Rae scoffed. “You’ve got to be joking.”
“I’m not,” Neff replied.
“You want me to believe that a thousand years ago, Khnum, the Divine Potter, decided that a High Khetaran princess, a thirteen-year-old girl, some desert tribesman, and a Sakeshi rebel were supposed to meet and somehow save the kingdom from…what? A tyrant king? Is Meryamun the cause of the ‘sorrow and ruin’ your lamb speaks of?”
“Yes and no,” Neff mused. “Stopping Meryamun is part of our calling, but I’m certain there’s more to it than that. I don’t know yet exactly what, but I have a feeling that we’ll find out very soon.”
Rae tilted her chin and stared at the top of the tent, where early evening light filtered through the weave of the canvas. “This is madness. Come on, you’ve finished eating. I’ve got to tie you up again and go find Omari.”
Neff shook her head. “No, don’t! You must listen!”
