Page 39

Isesi nibbled on Shara’s hair and brushed her muzzle against our queen’s cheek, making her laugh. Though I was nearly shitting myself at how close those teeth were to her face. Her delicate throat. Like me, they might have ram heads but the teeth inside their mouths were nothing a grazing beast would have.

Ini effortlessly leaped back onto the pedestal and resumed her statue pose. Flipping her tail casually side to side, Isesi walked alongside our queen back to her side of the aisle, deliberately not looking at me. Keeping his actions playful, Daire glided in between them, somehow even purring despite my roar.

“We’re going to play a game now.” Shara watched the sphinx hop back into place, though she lay down on her stomach so Shara could stroke her head. Then I swear to fucking goddess, Isesi started to purr too. A heavy thunderous rumble to Daire’s, but definitely a purr. “Within the hour, we’ll have guests. Watch them. See if you can tell who has already betrayed me. But don’t feast until I have the proof I need. Yes?”

Isesi chuffed out a low growl of acquiescence. Across the aisle, her sister mimicked her pose, looking more like the famous sphinx of Giza than the proud upright pose from the Avenue of Sphinxes at Karnak.

Shara looped her arm through Daire’s as they walked closer to the edge of the dais where I waited. She tipped her head against his shoulder. :That was a good idea to invite them to play.:

Not purring now, he flicked a quick glance up at me through his tumbled hair. :They’re just big kitty cats, right, general?:

I couldn’t completely smother a grimace. :And Mehen is just a mouthy brat.:

:Take my fucking name out of your mouth, motherfucker,: the dragon snarled. :Before I brat you the fuck up.:

Daire laughed. “See? Maybe we should get them some catnip to roll around in.”

“Oh, they want to roll around in something alright but it sure isn’t an herb,” I muttered.

“Shhh,” Shara whispered, her eyes widening. She lifted her hands in the air before her. Her eyes fell shut, her head tipping back. “Oh, goddess. She’s really here.”

16

SHARA

Ithought the most marvelous part of the Isador artifacts had already been revealed in the sphinxes.

Until I felt the pure shimmer of power radiating from the stone dais. Time seemed to hang suspended. Golden light spilled from overhead, illuminating the space with dancing motes and sparks of energy. The air even smelled different, as if we’d stepped back through millennia to a sacred ceremony with burning herbs and incense. Humming music vibrated through the air just beyond hearing.

Imbued with the Great One’s spirit, each piece of carved, chiseled granite had been meticulously moved from Aswan and placed back together here. Not grand in gold or ostentatious in velvets and jewels. Just stone panels carved with hieroglyphs and images. A stone chair without any arms sat in the center of the raised dais, its back carved to resemble a cobra’s hooded head. Two dark holes for eyes, fangs bared, nearly as massive as I would be if I shifted.

Behind the chair, stone panels were carved with outstretched wings framing a large horned disc, one of the symbols for Isis. The disc itself was tinged red from remnants of tint placed thousands of years ago. No words were carved in the stone panels, just creatures including scarabs, sphinxes, crocodiles, jackals, cobras, long legged birds like herons, and winged beasts I couldn’t immediately identify.

“Originally, there were two Isador thrones,” Harvey whispered, his voice shaking with reverence. And probably still a little terror from Sekh’s mighty roar. “One for each of our queens. Your mother had one of them moved to New York City when Queen Selena stepped down.”

If this one was the cobra… “Did it have a crocodile head carved into it?”

“Oui! Of course you must have already seen those artifacts.”

“Not yet,” I admitted. “Magnum said the throne room was impressive. I just haven’t had the chance to tour it yet.”

“Impressive is an apt description, especially when the pair were placed side by side. Though they only rarely sat in them. I remember…” He hesitated, his cheeks coloring when I turned to look at him. “I was only a boy, Your Majesty, so my memory is certainly colored by a child’s wonder. But when the two queens sat in their thrones…” His voice dropped to a soft, shaking whisper of reverence. “Everything changed. It was like we were all transported back to the magnificence of the Philae temple thousands of years ago when it was first built. The mural river looked real. Water flowed, the sound of rippling waves and rustling reeds, strange, exotic birds and insects calling to each other. The air was thick with sweet spices. Even the queens…”

Harvey’s eyes closed, his head bowed, as if in prayer. “They looked different. As if the goddess filled them. It was… magnificent.”

When he lifted his head, tears glistened on his cheeks. Embarrassed, he wiped them away with a sheepish quirk of his lips. “It’s been my greatest hope to see an Isador queen take her rightful throne once more, Your Majesty.”

I reached out to take his hand in mine. “I hope it’s as magnificent as you dreamed, Harvey. I’m going to spend some time with our goddess before we bring the siblings inside.”

He ducked his head, pressing a quick kiss to my knuckles. “I’ll stand outside the door myself, Your Majesty. When you’re ready to begin, let me know. I’ll record all the queens’ names as they enter the ballroom, so you can call upon them one by one at your leisure.”

Releasing my hand, he backed away, occasionally bowing, his steps slow. Hoping to see a miracle with his own eyes.

I turned back to look at the simple stone throne. “I have a feeling this dais is a kind of portal. A doorway to Her domain. I don’t know if I’ll disappear, but if I do, I’ll return as quickly as I can.”

Rik lightly touched my back. “We wait upon you, my queen. Take all the time you need.”

I took a deep, slow breath, and then stepped up onto the dais.