The Murder of King Tut Read Online Free PDF Page A

do.”
    Rich and poor, scribe, surgeon, and farmer, had come from all over Egypt. They had cheered with delight when their pharaoh
     oversaw the morning’s cattle census. An even larger group gasped in wonder as he donned the Sed cloak at noon. But that was
     six hours ago.
    Now the crowd numbered in the tens of thousands. A combination of too much sun and too much ale had turned their enthusiasm
     into restlessness. Artisans, shopkeepers, even slaves were chanting as one, demanding to see their pharaoh make the dangerous
     chariot run.
    How could he possibly fail—if he was divine?

Chapter 11
Thebes
    1347 BC
    NEFERTITI GLANCED AT HER HUSBAND, expecting to see him trembling in fear. Instead, Amenhotep wore a look of serenity. “When
     I am done with this, I will have put my mark on all of Egypt,” he told her. “No longer will I allow those pompous buffoons
     in the temple—”
    “You speak that way about the priests?” Nefertiti whispered. She had little respect for the priests but knew better than to
     talk like this. What was happening to her husband? Was he saying all this because he knew he was about to die?
    “That’s right. You heard me. No longer will they have any say in how I rule my kingdom. Starting tomorrow, Amun, Re-Harakhty,
     and all their other pitiful gods will be banished.”
    “You speak heresy,” Nefertiti said. She felt faint. Had Amenhotep gone mad? Was it his terror speaking now?
    “We will worship Aten—and Aten alone.” Aten was the sun god.
    “Do the priests know? Any of them? Does Ptahmose know?”
    Her husband’s cunning smile answered her question.
    “They will be furious!” she said. “They will come after you.
And me as well.
”
    “That won’t matter. Do you want to know why?”
    Actually, she didn’t. In his current state, Amenhotep IV was likely to say something utterly crazy. He didn’t disappoint.
    “I’m building a new city for us.”
    “I don’t understand, Pharaoh,” said Nefertiti. “What new city? Where would it be? Why haven’t you told me before?”
    “It will lie halfway between here and Memphis,” he continued. “It will be the greatest city in the world. I will never leave
     there. Not even to wage war or collect tribute. Thebes and Memphis can return to the desert for all I care.”
    The crowd was loudly chanting the pharaoh’s name, but Nefertiti wasn’t ready to let him go. She clung to her husband and said
     nothing more. But then he pulled away and began walking up to the reviewing stand—without so much as a kiss or a good-bye.
    “Oh!” he said, turning around to her. “I have saved the best for last. Tomorrow I will change my name to honor our god’s greatness.
     No one will ever again confuse me with my father.”
    “What will I call you?” the queen asked, her mind reeling and her knees weak.
    “Akhenaten.”
    And then, to deafening applause, the pharaoh strode to his chariot and began his ride to immortality.

Chapter 12
Thebes
    1347 BC
    AN EVEN GREATER ROAR echoed through Thebes as the pharaoh’s horses picked up speed.
    High atop the reviewing stand, Nefertiti watched…
Akhenaten
… and tried to appear calm.
    Meanwhile, two deep-set eyes leered at her. They belonged to her husband’s royal scribe, a powerfully built man in his late
     thirties named Aye.
    The populace was mesmerized by the horse-faced pharaoh galloping his favorite chariot, but Aye could have cared less. He was
     tantalized by the nervous young queen—and then aroused when she slipped her index finger into her mouth to bite her painted
     nail before remembering that thousands might witness her insecurity.
    The royal scribe licked his lips. He could have almost any woman in Egypt, but she was the one he wanted. Aye studied her
     graceful neck and the rest of her, down to the gentle sway of her hips. She was much smarter than the pharaoh, who was a freak
     undeserving of her, Aye thought. Having served under his father, Aye knew how a pharaoh should look