“That is unfair, Xerxes. This is not a rope or a river or even a single man you sentenced to death. This could have destroyed all of your family . . . even all of
mine, had Masistes succeeded in an uprising.”
“I know that. I can only try to do better, which is far more likely if you are beside me.” He squeezed her unresponsive fingers and stood. “As for my devotion—all I can
do is prove it. You underwent your purification yesterday, did you not?”
His heart twisted when her face hardened. She nodded, but rebellion gleamed in her eyes. He could call her, and she would come . . . but only because she must.
Must was not good enough. He kissed her fingers and then released them. “I will not force you to my bed out of duty. But I will call no other until you have come to me
freely.”
And there, disbelief. “Be realistic, Xerxes. There have been times enough when you would not or could not touch me—you never had difficulty finding your pleasure
elsewhere.”
A reality he suddenly wished he could spare her. “This time is different. This time our love is at stake, where it never was before. We are going through the fire now,
Kasia, and I do not want us to melt away or burn up. I want us to emerge the stronger.”
She lowered the lids over her lovely eyes, but it only forced the tears in them onto her cheeks. “I feel as though I have already been consumed.”
“Impossible. Only impurities are consumed, and that is not you. Me, perhaps.”
Earning that smile, tiny but true, made his day worthwhile. She sniffed and shifted Zillah so she could dash at her eyes. “And what if it takes me too long, and you lose
patience?”
“I will not. You are worth waiting for, my love.”
“We shall see.” She sobered into weariness and patted the baby’s back. “Hegai will come for me soon.”
“Dismissed, am I?” Hoping for one more smile, he tapped her on the nose. “And some people think I am the one in charge.”
She offered no return tease, but for a moment laughter lit her eyes.
For now, it would do.
*
Dear Jehovah, what was she doing here? Esther smoothed nervous fingers down the length of her fine chiton and tried to banish the doubt, the fear.
She was not like these other young women. Their jokes never struck her as funny, their gossip concerned figures she was not familiar with. She did not care who had received
the better length of cloth, whose necklace weighed heavier with gold. She took no pleasure in pecking at the others’ vanity, though they did little but peck at hers.
It would be a lonely year. Quite possibly a lonely life.
“Lovely, all of you.”
At the voice of the custodian, all the girls straightened, beamed. Esther could barely dig up a smile. She liked Hegai, and, if she were not mistaken, he liked her a bit
more than the others. Hopefully that counted for something.
He smiled at the line of them. “This morning you will have a couple visitors.”
Whispers sprang up—did they not realize how that would make annoyance flicker over Hegai’s face? Esther held her tongue as the others speculated as to whether it might be
the king. And hoped against hope it was not. She felt nowhere near ready to meet . . . could he really be her husband? This man who tread over nations, whom she had never
even glimpsed? It felt unreal.
“Ladies.” Hegai waited for them to quiet again. “I already told you the king will not see any of you until it is your turn with him. But this morning two very special
women have come to talk to you. First, the Queen Mother, to tell you what is expected of the next queen. She will be coming every few weeks to share her wealth of knowledge.
”
The most outspoken of the brides laughed. “All well and good, but who will tell us how to win the title?”
Hegai gave the girl a tight smile. “That falls to our other guest—the king’s favorite wife. Since she joined the harem three years ago, the king’s heart has belonged to
none but her. If anyone in the world understands him and knows how to please him, it is her.”
The girl raised her chin. “Then why is she not the new queen?”
“Because she is only a concubine. But make no mistake—you may join the harem as queen, but you will still answer to her. All of you. So watch what you say, do not try to
fool her with duplicity, and be grateful for the help she is offering you. Now if I can trust you to behave yourselves and refrain from giggling for half an hour . . .”
He led them into another room, where couches and cushions and chairs dominated. Esther chose one tucked into the corner, well behind the other girls, and settled in with a
sigh. The tittering kept up for another minute, until Hegai shushed them and the door opened again to a slew of servants.
Perhaps she should have chosen a closer seat. She could barely see anything, first through the other brides and then the mass of servants. They spread throughout the room,
one maid ending up so close Esther had to crane around her to try to get a glimpse of the queen mother and wife.
The maid leaned toward her, face intent. “You are Esther?”