Mara, Daughter of the Nile Read Online Free PDF Page A

spending a week in the usual ceremonies of purification. You will seek out an Egyptian called Saankh-Wen, who is in charge of the ships, and give him this.”
    He drew from his girdle a tiny green scarab, inscribed with the name of Hatshepsut. Mara took it in a hand cold with excitement. So far this man had not really told her anything. What was behind all these strange instructions?
    “The clothes? The hair?” she murmured.
    “Saankh-Wen will arrange for all that,” returned her master, gesturing impatiently. “When you leave Abydos attached as interpreter to Inanni’s train, you will be suitably adorned, and entirely above suspicion of any kind. Now.”
    He paused, fixing her with narrowed eyes, and Mara stiffened.
    “Once in Thebes,” the man went on softly, “you will accompany the princess to her quarters in the palace and remain there for an indefinite period. You will be present at all her interviews with the king, naturally, since she does not speak a word of our language, and he will not deign to speak hers.
Keep your ears open
. Listen to whatever goes on between the king and those who surround him—his servants, his scribes, his musicians. I want to know which of these people carries his orders to others outside the palace walls. Somehow he is sending and receiving messages. I want to know how.”
    Mara stared at him, breathing hard. “In short, I am a spy.”
    “Exactly. If you are as clever as I think you are, you should have no trouble obtaining this information. If you succeed, you will not be dissatisfied with your reward. But if you fail, whether by accident
or design
—”
    He did not finish the sentence. He did not need to. He was smiling in a way that sent a little trickle of fear down Mara’s spine.
    She took a deep breath. “How am I to report to you?”
    “Leave that to me.”
    “Is it permitted to know your name?”
    “It is not. The less you know, the less you will be tempted to let your wits run away with you.” The man stood up, taking a heavy gold chain from his neck. “Take this. It will pay your passage to Abydos. Get on the next boat that leaves.” Again the thin smile. “Remember I am no stupid baker’s apprentice. Should the chain—and you—disappear somehow between here and the wharves it would be … regrettable. Do we understand each other?”
    “Perfectly,” said Mara.
    “Then go. Enjoy your freedom and your fine clothes and your acquaintance with royalty—while you can. It may not last long.”
    He leaned back, gesturing toward the door, and Mararealized that she was dismissed. She was free, free to walk out that door, make her way unchallenged to the wharf, and set sail for Abydos, Thebes—adventure. No more rags. No more beatings or loaf snatching. No more hunger! Instead there would be luxury and royal intrigue and excitement; and once she was in the palace, whatever this man’s threats might be, there would be endless opportunities for a girl who knew how to use her wits!
    The future opened up before her in a vista radiant with possibilities, each more entrancing than the last. Without knowing it, she laughed aloud for joy.
    The man’s dry voice rasped suddenly across her daydreams. “Be careful, Mara. You are still a slave.”
    She shrugged and grinned. “I’ll try to remember.”
    “I will be there to remind you,” he remarked acidly. He jerked his head toward the door and this time she went, without even looking back.

Chapter 3
The War Hawk
    WHEN Sheftu had assured himself that the street was finally empty, he opened the door in the wall and quickly slipped through it. The Nubian was waiting for him.
    “This way, my lord,” he murmured.
    “Well, Ebi, what think you? Is there good news for me?”Sheftu asked in a low voice, following the servant across the courtyard.
    “I cannot say, master. This garden is green and pleasant. Khofra is an old man now. To be truthful, he is tired of both wars and pharaohs, having seen too much of both in his