After pausing to greet each child and its mother he finally reached Amestris and gave her a smile. “There you are, my queen. The child in your womb must be blessed
indeed, for you are lovelier today than ever.”
Amestris turned her eyes up. They were a perfect almond shape, the color of a round of amber. But the only spark to light them these days was of irritation. Her temperament
had worsened when she became queen. It seemed power fed her discontent.
Her smile, if insincere, was nonetheless stunning. “How kind of you to visit me. Unless it was another of your wives you came to see?”
Yes, there was that spark that could so quickly be fanned into a dangerous hatred. Xerxes grinned into it. “Naturally I must pay my respects to the group, but seeking you
was my primary goal. Is it not so, Darius?”
His son smiled guilelessly. “The moment I told him you were not feeling well this morning, he hastened to see you.”
She looked far from appeased. “The others are muttering about this Jewess. Why must the king shame us by adding a slave to our numbers? One the very age of his esteemed
daughter?”
It was all he could do not to roll his eyes. His brides were always within a certain age group. Could he help that his eldest daughter was now of marrying age as well? “I
assure you, Amestris, all I do is out of concern for you. Have you not made it clear I am to find my entertainment elsewhere when you are with child?” Or with a mild ache
in her head. Or a sore toe. Or in a sour temper. Or sometimes, he suspected, if her hair would not lie just so. Between all her complaints, she would not receive him three
hundred sixty of the three hundred sixty-five days a year.
Amestris settled her arms over the protruding round of her stomach and scowled. “Is she pretty?”
“Pretty enough. Not so beautiful as you.” He leaned down and pressed a kiss to her cheek. “Is there anything I can do for you?”
The tension around her mouth softened. “I am ready to deliver this babe and present you with another son, that is all. This new girl—is she a full wife or a concubine?”
“Uh . . .” He straightened and glanced to Haman.
Haman arched a brow. “Her father had no money for a dowry, master, so she received the lesser contract.”
Amestris’s lips turned up. “Very well. Enjoy her while she holds your attention. And see that she is cautioned to stay out of my way. I am in no mood for the airs of an
upstart concubine who knows not her place.”
“Of course.” He stepped back, giving the others a chance to smother her with flattery. His eyes tracked over the courtyard again.
Hegai stood in the corner—if anyone knew where Kasia would be, it was the custodian. He moved toward him.
Hegai bent low in greeting. “My king. We are honored to welcome you this morning.”
“Certainly. I was very pleased with Kasia. You did well with her.”
The servant smiled, his eyes bright. “Thank you, master. The young lady was very open to my advice, so I took pleasure in sharing your preferences. She is a lovely girl. A
disposition unlike any of your other wives.”
“Indeed. Is she settling in well?”
Hegai’s smile curled into a grin. “You may want to see for yourself. She is in the back garden.”
Since his companions said their farewells to the queen, he motioned them to join him. “We will do that. She selected her room?”
“Yes, master.” Humor laced his tone.
Xerxes lifted a brow. “Let me guess—the smallest, barest one she could find.”
Hegai chuckled. “You know her well for so short an acquaintance.”
Darius, Masistes, and Haman drew near, so Xerxes only nodded and led the way down the hall that would open into the rear gardens. He stopped them just inside the door.
Amidst the trumpeting blooms and trees stretching toward heaven, a gaggle of tots sat entranced around a cross-legged Kasia. Though the eldest of the children could not be
more than four, they all held still, faces intent upon her. And she sang. Hebrew, but he needed no vocabulary lesson to understand the playful tone. Her voice clear and
sweet, she moved her hands in a dance of movement. When she tapped each child on the nose in turn, a chorus of giggles broke out.
Finding a woman who had a way with children was no great thing. But finding one whose face betrayed total delight as she lifted her voice? One who laughed along with them as
if there were no greater joy? He had never met another creature who mustered such passion for each moment of life.
His brother stepped close to his side. “Lovely. I can see why you were intrigued.”
“Lovely, yes.” Haman sounded nowhere near impressed. “But better suited for a nursemaid than a wife of the king of kings.”
He shot his friend a glare. “She pleases me. Let that be that.”
“I will speak not another word of her.”