Legacy: Book Two of the Chronicles of the Nubian Underworld (25 page)

“Folks, I have an important announcement of My own to make.”

I heard Amenhotep proclaim after everyone finished congratulating us on sajira’s collaring. I wasn’t sure what I heard, but the seriousness in His tone had my undivided attention, whether I wanted it to or not. “I believe this is long overdue, and My fellow gentlemen and ladies would agree with this.”

I turned my head in His direction, trying to figure out what the hell my Mentor was talking about. I sat with sajira, stroking her hair and enjoying the moment, basking in the glow she emanated from being on full display. Neferterri, seated on the other throne, and shamise, happily nestled between Neferterri’s legs, acted like they were completely in the dark and had no clue of what was going on. Damian, who knelt on the outside of Neferterri’s chair, only smiled as he listened closely to Amenhotep’s speech.

If I knew anything about my girls, they were horrible actresses when they wanted to keep something from me. Damian and I had yet to get to that level, so he was no help in trying to figure out what was about to happen. One look from me and they melted in moments, dying to spill the beans. When I noticed they weren’t acting, I was at a total loss as to what was up His sleeve.

The problem now came in the form of an enigmatic question: what in the world was inside the mind of Master Amenhotep? When
He wanted to play something close to the vest, there was a snowball’s chance in hell of anyone getting the information out of Him.

I looked at Osiris and saw nothing.

Seti wasn’t much help, and neither was Menes.

I scanned around for anyone to give me an idea, and my frustration rose with each passing second.

The crowd fell silent as Amenhotep stepped between the twin thrones to speak from a better vantage point.

I’m sure the befuddled look on my face was one for the history books, but it was genuinely warranted. The last time Amenhotep sprang a surprise on me was when I “inherited” the Palace and a small fortune. Only the gods knew what the hell He could be announcing.

“As most of you know, Ramesses and I began our journey together nearly fifteen years ago when He was just a young man…not that He’s still not a young man, but you all know what I mean.”

That comment drew laughter in the room.

After the laughter died down, He continued. “I have watched Him grow up, keeping a calming influence when it was needed, and letting Him make mistakes along the way, even if I didn’t want Him to.”

I felt sajira squeeze my hand. She felt the emotions stirring within me. I was happy she could feel me while we were in this moment, and I knew Neferterri and shamise could feel me also. A lot of what He said triggered nostalgic thoughts from deep within that I always selfishly drew upon whenever I got into a position where I needed to focus. Those thoughts were being brought to the forefront with each word Amenhotep spoke.

“I have selfishly wished and prayed for the day where a man I thought of as a son, and in some instances, I did ‘raise’ Him within
this realm, would join Me within the ranks of the inner circle…the
Neb’net Maa’kheru.”
He looked down at me, and in an instant I was twenty years old again, completely new, raw, and transparent to the audience that hung on His every word, wondering what He could be speaking of.

Neferterri heard the reference to the Society, and her facial expression almost gave her away. By then I was too far gone to notice. I was trapped in the lessons, the intense discussions we’d had at the beginning of my mentoring with Him. I chuckled at the questions I asked back then, the constant battling because I thought I knew better, and the patience He was able to exert despite my sheer ignorance of things.

“Tonight, with the blessings of the other members, I welcome You, Ramesses, within the
Neb’net Maa’kheru.”
Amenhotep extended His hand out to me, gripping it as I rose from my throne to embrace him.

The applause would have been deafening if I’d paid attention to it, but all I heard were the words, “I love You, son,” coming from my “father.” Seti, Osiris, Menes, and the other men flooded the throne area, offering their congratulations and well-wishes, laughing at the lack of words coming from my mouth.

Hell, why wouldn’t I be speechless? I looked around at men whose walks were years ahead of my own. For them to include me at this point in my journey was beyond my ability to articulate.

Master Osiris moved to the front of the group, his smile beaming as he looked at me. I was still struggling to find words to express my euphoria while in this moment. He held a case in his hand, sending my mind into a new level of confusion, trying to figure out what the case was for.

“Ramesses, we within the
Neb’net Maa’kheru
would like to present
You with this ring, which is recognized within our respective communities as that of a Master of Honor.” Osiris smiled as he held the opened case.

I stood astonished upon viewing the diamond and platinum-encrusted ring, complete with “Ramesses” on one side of the ring, and the word “Master” emblazoned on the other. My eyes moved immediately to my Beloved, who watched with pride as I slipped on the ring, blushing slightly as I cut my eyes at her, knowing she stealthily had revealed my ring size.

“Congratulations, Daddy!” I heard shamise yelling through the applause. I leaned over and kissed her forehead and then her lips, letting her know I heard her clearly.

The next moment, Lady Hatshepsut stepped onstage with Amenhotep. I found my throne and had taken my seat to reclaim sajira, oblivious to her presence. “Master Amenhotep, I would like to make My own announcement, if I may, Sir?” she asked.

“By all means, My dear.” Amenhotep stepped to the side. “After You, M’Lady, the floor is Yours.”

Now it was time for both Neferterri and I to wonder what the hell was really going on. This was only supposed to be a grand reopening of NEBU, but this was turning into something damn near legendary before it was all said and done.

“Ladies and gentlemen, it gives Me great pleasure to announce the formation of a Society similar to what the esteemed Gentlemen have within
Neb’net Maa’kheru,”
Lady Hatshepsut began. “With the generosity of the members of
Neb’net Maa’kheru,
we have established the Ladies of Beauty & Honor, forever to be known as
Nebet’new Nefrew Maa’kheru.”

The surprise on our faces gave the audience more reason to applaud loudly, especially the Dominas in attendance.

Lady Hatshepsut smiled more and waited for the applause to
die down before she continued. “With the creation of the Ladies’ Society, the rings have also been fashioned and ready to be presented to the Ladies that will be the charter members of
Nebet’new Nefrew Maa’kheru.”

Neferterri looked down at shamise, who was the only House member who knew such information to be able to give to Lady Hatshepsut to get the sizing correct. shamise immediately blushed, knowing she’d been able to keep things under lock and key until this very moment. Neferterri kissed her forehead and mouthed something I couldn’t make out, but I had a feeling a pseudo-punishment was on the horizon.

“So, I present to you all: Mistress Sinsual, Mistress Blaze, Lady Norene, Lady Ethereal, and finally, Lady Neferterri.” As Lady Hatshepsut called each of the ladies’ names, the NEBU male slaves happily knelt at the feet of each charter member, assuming the kneeling position and presenting the ring cases to them.

The ladies were speechless. The expressions of each of their faces, including my wife’s, was priceless. My Beloved looked at me in an accusatory manner, like I had something to do with it, and I held my hands up in an authentic gesture. I really did not know that this was going to be brought to witness.

The grins were genuine and radiant.

The night couldn’t have gone any better.

Amenhotep found a way to shatter the statement in a way I never saw coming.

“I want it known, as we speak from this point forward, that Lord Ramesses now be recognized as Master Ramesses.” Amenhotep concluded his speech. “As such, His slaves will no longer refer to Him as Lord, but as Master. The community, having publicly voiced their approval, shall recognize Master Ramesses as an honorable Master within this realm.”

He then presented me with His Master’s cap.

The blank expression on my face told Him I didn’t deserve it.

The look of pride on His face told me no one else deserved it more.

“To begin Your legacy, My son, You will need this. I expect this to be in good hands until such time as You will present it to Your protégé one day.” Amenhotep finally shed tears, something I’d seen Him do rarely. “This is My final gift to You, to complete the circle.”

The crowd applauded once more at seeing the reverence I still didn’t believe I deserved just yet. I would never feel I did, but I had to come to the conclusion that, whether I thought I deserved it or not, the community deemed me worthy.

I would have to make peace with it, in my own time.

But for now, there was more partying to do.

“Congratulations, my Master.”

I had no intentions of being this naturally high tonight, but obviously other folks had plans for me. I continued to allow the flood of good feelings swirling around the compound to continue.

I was in a circle of conversation with Master Seti, Amenhotep and Master Osiris, discussing the plans we had for the other two compounds. We wanted to make sure we were on the same page for the morning send-offs tomorrow.

Neferterri sat next to me, placing her input where it was needed, while shamise, sajira and Damian were in relaxed positions at the base of our chairs, silently enjoying the flow of information.

I didn’t know if I could get used to the title yet.

Master…this was the next level.

I promised myself I would weigh the significance of tonight’s events, because they were heavy indeed.

The rest of the night was reserved for celebrating.

And celebrate I would, because there was much to celebrate, on a lot of different levels.

Life was blessed right now.

“Master, may shamise and i be excused, please?” I heard sajira ask of me. “i left something inside in the limousine i need for the cooler weather later tonight.”

Neferterri objected. “you’re not leaving, not without an escort, girls. you both know your Daddy and I don’t like it when you’re away from either of us without knowing where you’re going.”

I cut a look at her, winking quickly in her direction before the girls could catch on. “Security is tight on the compound tonight, Beloved, and there haven’t been any reports from security tonight of any unauthorized entries. They will be fine.”

I saw the nervous looks on our girls’ faces. The whole mess with Deion still had them shook, and I couldn’t blame them. With security at the soft spots within the compound, and cameras covering every other blind spot in or around NEBU, I had no problems with letting them quickly head to the car and back.

“Okay, you heard your Master; be back in about ten minutes,” Neferterri explained to them.

“Yes, my Goddess, we won’t be long,” sajira replied as they headed out of the room.

“Are You sure about this, Beloved?” Neferterri asked, still a little concerned.

“Yes, baby, I promise, things will work out fine,” I reassured her, considering this was her first time going through this. “You’ll see. Everything is going according to plan.”

TWENTY-NINE
SHAMISE

I couldn’t figure out where I was.

The blindfold over my eyes let me know my captors had no intention of letting me know where I was or what was going to happen to me.

I felt the lushness of the comforter we helped select for the beds, and the coolness of the air against my skin let me know that we hadn’t left the safety of the compound.

But that didn’t mean I wasn’t out of harm’s way, as the binds on my arms and legs made their presence known.

Then another scary thought came to my mind.

Where was sajira?

The last thing I remembered was heading out to the limousine with her to grab something she forgot so we could head back in and enjoy the festivities down in the dungeon Daddy just unveiled. I felt a quick rush of air, then something slammed over my mouth, and I saw a figure grab sajira and try to do the same thing to her.