“Is he ill?” That would explain the sacrifice to Hathor.
“In body, no. But some fevers don’t burn the flesh. Tiye sent her best physician to the boy’s rooms, but discreetly, to keep Pharaoh ignorant.”
“She’s good at that sort of thing,” I said tartly.
“When her doctor reported that there was nothing physically wrong with Thutmose, she sent a magician to sniff out any evil spells or curses.” She looked at me closely. “From what I learned, you were very lucky that the man was too honest to tell Tiye what she wanted to hear.”
“She thought I was at fault?” I shuddered. My enforced solitude had made me miserable, but suddenly I realized that the ignorance that came with isolation could be a very dangerous thing.
“She hoped you were at fault,” Princess Tabiri said. “For as long as I’ve known that woman, she’s only felt secure if she could heap the responsibility for her problems in another person’s lap. It makes everything so … tidy for her. You are safe for now—a goddess spoke for you—but I have a bad feeling that Tiye won’t rest until she finds someone else to blame for her boy’s illness. She’s desperate to drag him out of this unnatural behavior, one way or another. She literally tried to drag him out of his bed with her own hands, but he was too strong for her. What’s worse for Tiye is that in spite of all her schemes to keep Thutmose’s condition secret, Pharaoh has taken notice. He’s not pleased. The way he sees it, Thutmose is deliberately defying him. When Pharaoh moderated the boy’s punishment, instead of appreciating it, Thutmose turned his back on such a gracious gift. Six days ago, he ordered the boy to leave his bed and his rooms, but as his Pharaoh, not his father.”
“But Thutmose still refuses?”
“Oh, no, he complies with the royal order, in a way. He rises from his bed, walks once around his private garden, and lies down again. Then he summons a scribe to write a letter testifying that Pharaoh’s command has been fulfilled. I hear that Pharaoh is furious, and Tiye is distraught. It’s as if the boy wants to bring doom on himself.” She unfastened her collar and held it at arm’s length to admire it. “That is why I make this sacrifice to Hathor: for healing and for love. Thutmose needs both.”
She took my arm a second time and we walked on. Ta-Miu took turns rushing ahead of us, trailing behind, and sometimes doing her best to wind through our feet and trip us. I gave up the battle and gathered the little cat into my arms for a scolding. She just purred and rubbed her head on my chin.
At last we came to a part of the palace that I recognized. “Oh! Princess Sitamun’s rooms are nearby,” I said. “I can find my own way back from here.”
“Do you dislike my company so much, Lady Nefertiti?” Princess Tabiri’s ready laugh warmed the night. Before I could protest, she patted my hand and said, “Now that we know one another, you will come back and visit me, yes? And I will come to the women’s quarters and visit you.”
“I’m surprised your rooms are so far from that part of the palace.”
“If Tiye does not live cheek-by-jowl with the rest of Pharaoh’s women, why should I? Private apartments befit my rank. I may be childless, but I am still a prince’s daughter, and not some junior wife. And Pharaoh is still sometimes fond of me.” She tapped another heavy gold bracelet.
“I hope you will be able to come see me,” I said. “But Aunt Tiye might find a way to prevent that.”
“I’d like to see her try. Really, I would like to see that. The two of us haven’t butted heads in a while. My life these days flows peacefully, but there are times I miss the thrill of a lively clash with a worthy opponent.”
“Princess Tabiri, with all due respect, I don’t think you realize how good your life is without that sort of thing.”
“Does anyone ever appreciate the life they have? Good night, Lady Nefertiti.” She smiled, kissed my cheek, and went back to her rooms.
I started to do the same when I heard new voices coming from one of the corridors. They sounded agitated, and I noticed that the hall from which the voices came was far more brightly lit than the one where Princess Tabiri had left me holding Ta-Miu.
I wonder what’s going on? I thought, peering curiously toward the light. The cat meowed and stuck her head under my arm. “Tsk! Where’s your sense of adventure?” I said, tickling her neck just under the gold collar she wore. “Let’s investigate. Something important might be happening. If it is, won’t it be grand for me to be the first person in the women’s quarters to know about it? That will teach them to play keep-away with me, even if Aunt Tiye’s the one forcing them to play that game! And if it’s nothing more than a servants’ quarrel, at least I can ask one of them to bring a lamp and light us all the way home.”
It was not a servants’ quarrel. As I approached the source of those raised voices, I could hear what they were saying and it had nothing to do with any sort of squabble between them. Both voices belonged to young men, both were on the same side, and both were deathly afraid.
“—not even one bite this time! See for yourself, the food’s all untouched.”
“Even the bread?”
“The bread and the meat and the fruit and the beer. What are we going to do? If the queen finds out—”
“We’ll do what we did yesterday, except this time you’d better share the beer or people will start asking questions about your morning ‘headache.’ ”
“We can’t! Didn’t you hear what he told us tonight? He suspects we’ve been eating his rejected meals, and he’s sent word to the chief cook to notify him at once about how much food the man finds left over on the prince’s dishes.”
“That’s crazy.”