Sean picked up the sickle. “I’m tired of this act.”
“This is not an act! I really don’t understand any of this!”
He rubbed the point of the blade on the base of her throat. Natti winced, the very tip prickling her nerves.
“Very well. I’ll play along. I assume you know of the legend of Isis and Osiris.”
Natti nodded, remembering the conversation back in the café. “Only since Seth told me.”
“Do you remember what power she gained in her action?”
“Ra’s secret name,” she answered. But what does that have to do with this? With me?
Sean nodded with a wicked smile. “The power of the sun god, for knowing a thing’s true name is power over the thing itself, Natara Stone. It’s a vital part of ourselves, an element of every man, god, and creature. It gives us our identity.
“When Set discovered what Isis had done, he intercepted her on her way to her dead husband. He approached her.” Sean brushed his hand up Natti’s inner thigh, making her squirm. “He tried to coerce her into sharing the secret. Tried to seduce her with his own charm into his bed. Even offered her a place by his side as queen of Egypt. She refused him, and in his rage, he locked her in his chamber. Yet, still, Isis was still able to slip from his grasp, into the night, and rush to her dead husband’s side.”
Sean’s hand inched higher. Even through the fabric of the dress, his fingers set Natti’s skin on fire. She thrashed against the restraints with little success. Sean merely took pleasure in her discomfort.
“Set was not about to just give up. He gathered his worshipers and from seventy-two men, he selected and blessed seven, giving each one of his own skills: charm, strength, speed, intelligence, stealth, clairvoyance, and deception. These seven men became the leaders of a new order, the Sons of Set, training Set’s worshipers to become his eyes and ears. Their purpose in life was purely to cause chaos and retrieve Ra’s secret name for the almighty Set. For this, Set has promised his followers a place by his side and power in the new world he would create.
“Isis realized the danger and sought council from two of Ra’s daughters, Ma ‘at and Bastet. Together the three women took the secret and hid it in a faraway land, one that the ancients could never locate. They had already formed the cult of Isis, a group of seven priestesses. Each woman was blessed with a gift that would pass on to their daughters and granddaughters after them. These women later became known as the Daughters of Isis.”
With the blade of the sickle, Sean stroked the skin of her neck. Natti’s focus drifted to his eyes, which reflected his hunger. Her fear consumed her body, making it feel as if it transformed to stone; becoming cold and still.
“Unfortunately, when he came of age, Osiris sent his son, Horus, to defeat Set and banish him to Duat. But we’ve have never turned our back on our god. We continued to pursue the Daughters of Isis for centuries, following them across empires and into unexplored territories. We cut their numbers down by manipulating and infiltrating highly influential systems of law and government. Yet there was one Daughter of Isis who continued to elude us. The Secret Keeper herself.”
“Secret Keeper?” Natti asked, her brain freezing up with fear as an image of the cedar box crossed her mind for a brief moment.
Sean finally released his hand and lightly pressed the tip of the sickle into her throat. Natti’s breath grew rapid, her chest rising and falling between the restraints.
“She is a very special member of the Daughters of Isis, for she and her ancestors were gifted with a sliver of the sacred feather of Ma ‘at placed in their hearts. Only they know the location of Ra’s secret name.”
Natti was beginning to see where the conversation was leading. Yes, her grandmother had passed on a secret to her. And yes, it was even written in hieroglyphics. But the location of the secret name of Ra? That was absurd! Ra was a mythical being, not a living god! This had to be a mistake. “I-I th-think you have the wrong per-person. I-I’m not a DDaughter of I-Isis. I-I’m not blessed by M-Ma ‘at. And I-I’m definitely not this S-Secret K-Keeper you’re looking for.”
Sean chuckled and laid the sickle aside. He allowed the eerie silence to settle for a moment, his gaze studying each one of the syringes. “There is no mistake. And you will tell me everything you know before the night is through.”
“I keep trying to tell you! I don’t know anything! Nothing about Daughters of Isis or the Secret Keeper! I swear to God!”
“For one who is blessed to see truth in others, you are a very good liar.”
Tears began to roll down Natti’s cheeks. “I’m not lying!”
Sean raised the first syringe and uncapped it. “Have you ever felt the sting of a scorpion, Natara?”