Then he spotted the chest. “That was not commissioned.”
The servant bearing it smiled. “A gift, master, from the patriarch of the family.”
That grabbed Kasia’s attention from the chairs. She spun around, fingers pressed to her lips and tears flooding her eyes. “A gift?”
The servant placed the large box upon the floor with care. “He says he knew you would need something for your belongings when you travel. This way, you will always know his
prayers go with you.”
She knelt beside the chest, and Xerxes crouched beside her. The designs any eye could appreciate; the inscriptions were in Hebrew. “And the Lord went before them . . .”
One hand still on the wood, she turned her face into Xerxes’ shoulder. She took a moment to regulate her breathing, then looked up at him. “Do they meet with your
approval, my love?”
“I certainly hope so, given that I already commissioned enough to keep your father and brother busy for the next five years.”
She blinked back tears that glistened like diamonds. “You did?”
“When we return, lovely Kasia, you will see the work of your father’s hand everywhere you turn.”
The droplets spilled over onto her flawless cheeks. “How is it that a poor Jewish girl ended up the wife of a man so generous? You cannot know how I love you.”
Words more precious than all the gold and jewels in Persia.
Fourteen
Outside Celaenae, Phrygia
Eighteen months later, in the fifth year of the reign of Xerxes
Kasia cuddled the babe close and pressed a kiss to his downy head. The tiny boy, only three months old, yawned and stretched one arm before nestling in. His complacency made
her smile.
Zad stretched out beside her as she lounged against the cushions in her tent. All in all a peaceful place, this nomadic home of hers. Not that she would complain when they
reached Sardis and she could enjoy the comfort of a bed again.
Desma crouched down to tickle the infant’s foot. “Shall we play for you, mistress?”
“Please.”
“Mistress.” Theron stepped inside from his post at the exit, a frown on his brows. “Diona comes.”
“Perhaps she forgot something?” Mindful of the baby, Kasia rolled onto her feet and stepped over the lazy dog.
The other concubine fluttered in, hands in the air. “He is raging again. I cannot abide it, Kasia, my nerves are too frayed.” Diona lifted her copper curls from her
forehead. “I could hear him bellowing from half a stade away.”
Kasia chuckled and bounced the babe gently. “You know well our husband will not take his anger out on you.”
“I know even better he will not take it out on you.” Diona stretched out her arms. “Please? Will you go instead?”
With a sigh, Kasia relinquished her friend’s son. “I thought you wanted a quiet night.”
“Which I will obviously not get with our husband. This wee one has come by his screaming naturally.”
She bit her lip to hold back a grin. “You know I never mind spending time with Xerxes, but he did call you.”
Diona rolled her eyes, green as the hills of Phrygia. “Only because he thought you still unwell. Go, please. I shall be in your debt.”
“Nonsense.” When her maids stood, she motioned them back down. “Stay and rest. Theron will see me safely there.”
“Oh, thank you.” Diona walked out into the twilight with her, where slaves waited to see her back to the tent she shared with Lalasa and the three children they had
between them.
Kasia raised her hand in farewell and took her place beside Theron. Xerxes’ tent resided at the head of the procession that stretched for miles. Diona was right—his
shouting was audible from a good distance, and his choice of words made Kasia shake her head. A few engineers scurried out as she drew near—the unlucky recipients of her
husband’s wrath. She entered as he tossed a frayed rope to the ground.
The other concubines always thought her mad for grinning at such a display. “Has the rope dared to offend the king of kings? Shall I stomp on it for you, for good measure?
”
Xerxes spun around, and the light of anger in his eyes shifted to one of amusement. “Would you? The touch of your lovely foot may convince it to hold fast when it would
like to break.”
“Perhaps it would. It does seem the ground gets greener, the more I tread on it, undoubtedly due to the power of my lovely feet.”
He laughed and gathered her into his arms. “Such phenomena has nothing to do with leaving the desert?”
“Nothing at all.”
After one long kiss, he pulled away with narrowed eyes. “I sent for Diona.”
“And scared her off with your bellowing.” She poked a finger into his chest. “You will have all the world talking of your temper.”
“I would not lose it so much if people were competent once in a while.” He sighed, and the tension left his shoulders. “You are feeling better? You looked quite ill this
morning.”
“It passed.”
“Excellent.”