Pharaoh's Desire (32 page)

Suddenly, bursts of colorful images shot through his vision. They swirled around him like a violent storm, overwhelming his senses. He recalled his failures, his successes, his hopes, his dreams—his past! He remembered his trust in Meketen, and that trust betrayed.

Amonmose rolled them both, still gripping the knife. In one swift movement, he raised his arm high and brought it down with bone-crushing force, thrusting it deep into Meketen’s heart. He twisted the dagger, just to be sure. Meketen’s eyes rolled back into his head as he gasped for his last breath of air.

Amonmose heard loud footsteps and looked up to see Kama, Baal, and Nadesh hurrying toward him. Their eyes were wide with disbelief as they watched Meketen’s rich red blood stain the mosaic tile floor.

Kama rushed to Amonmose and sank to the floor on her knees beside him. “Are you hurt? Are you bleeding? Speak to me.”

“I remember now,” he said breathlessly. “I remember everything.”

Chapter Twenty-five

Two Months Later

Amonmose sat in a chair in his chambers reading a report from his newly appointed treasurer, Sadiki. He was as steady as Hai had been soft. At least Egypt’s coffers had not suffered under Hai’s supervision. Amonmose dropped the report and picked up a second scroll, this one from Nadesh.

Nadesh had been harder to let go. The man had been like a father to him. They had not always seen eye to eye, but Amonmose was never one to surround himself with mindless followers who would easily bend to his will. To his surprise, Kama interceded on Nadesh’s behalf. She believed he had the capacity to change for the better, a truly stunning act of forgiveness on her part. He trusted her judgment, so he had allowed Nadesh to keep his role as grand vizier. So far, it was a decision he had not regretted.

A soft knock interrupted Amonmose’s thoughts. “Yes?” he called.

Latmay practically skipped in, a smile lighting his face from ear to ear. “I’ve come to see about my patient,” he announced cheerfully.

Amonmose waived him away in mock protest. “I told you, I am fine. My injuries are all healed. Now stop fretting.”

“Not you,” Latmay sighed. “The
other
patient.”

“Oh.” Amonmose feigned surprise. “You mean Kama. I haven’t checked on her today.”

Latmay snorted. “I seriously doubt that.”

Amonmose laughed. “Am I that obvious?”

“Yes. But there is no shame in it. She is the light of your life. I’m sure you will spend many more years making beautiful babies.”

“Let us just get through the first one!” Amonmose said as he led Latmay into his bedchamber to examine Kama.

She was lounging comfortably, supported by a stack of soft pillows. She had the healthy glow of a pregnant woman. “My two favorite men.” She smiled and patted her stomach tenderly. “Soon to be joined by a third.”

Amonmose sat beside her and caressed her growing abdomen. “How can you be so certain it will be a
he?
”

“I dreamed of him.”

Amonmose gave her a lopsided grin. “I don’t know if you can put much credibility into dreams.”

“It worked for you.” Kama teased. “Your dreams led you to me.”

“Hmm. I cannot argue with that logic.” He leaned in and gave her a long kiss.

She kissed him back. “I want to spend the rest of my life making new memories with you.”

“No need to wait.” He devoured her with a hungry look. “We can start this moment.”

She returned his smoky gaze. “I’m ready, if you are.”

They kissed again, surrendering to the smoldering heat that was the first flowerings of passion. Somewhere in the distance, they heard Latmay discreetly cough. They had forgotten all about him and seconds later heard the door quietly close.

Kama pulled herself from Amonmose’s tender lips for a brief moment. “You were lucky to have found me, you know,” she murmured.

“It was not luck,” he answered. “It was destiny.”

Her gaze locked with his amber eyes. “You own my heart, Pharaoh. And I will never belong to another.”

“You
are
my heart, temptress, and I shall never want another.” He gently caressed her cheek. “Remember, you will always be the Pharaoh’s desire.”

The End

Author’s Historical Note

I hope you enjoyed Kama and Amonmose’s story. Although they are fictional characters, their type of love was real. While the majority of the nobility married members of the same class, it was not uncommon for them to marry commoners and foreigners, especially to forge political alliances. Many nobles had multiple wives, as in the case of Nadesh. From writings, journals, and other documentation, we can see that Egyptians enjoyed sex and marriage, and many were passionately in love with their significant others. I tried to capture this passion by writing about Kama and Amonmose.

Many readers may not be familiar with the relationship between Ancient Egypt and Nubia. The period from 1040 B.C. to 1640 B.C. is known as the Second Intermediate Period in Egypt’s history. This era was characterized by extreme chaos and disorder. The Egyptian population was threatened by the increasing presence of outsiders and foreigners who came to trade. The popularity of the pharaohs also decreased; the crown often passed haphazardly from one pharaoh to the next. It was a period of social upheaval, religious separation, and unpredictable behavior.

One of Egypt’s most formidable enemies was Nubia. Located in present-day Sudan, Nubia was directly south of Ancient Egypt. It was also known as the Kingdom of Kush. With its natural resources, its advanced form of government, and its deadly army of archers, Nubia was a force to be reckoned with. Historical records indicate that Nubia had a flourishing population, rich in precious metals, ivory and ebony, livestock, exotic animals, and agriculture. In addition, they possessed military expertise and educated scholars. The Nubians also built great pyramids. Research confirms that their vast amount of pyramids far outnumbered those of the Egyptians.

Egypt and Nubia shared a common border. They fought constantly, with the two cultures ruling each other intermittently over the years. Reports vary, but some show Egypt dominated Nubia from 1950 B.C. to 1100 B.C. But 1,000 years later, when Egypt collapsed into civil war, Nubia was able to conquer it and rule from 800–656 B.C.

The two cultures had a significant influence on each other, and the peoples lived among each other, worshipping the same gods, following the same customs, and marrying amongst each other. At one point, it became difficult to identify an Egyptian from a Nubian. Both cultures were similar in color, but they labeled themselves based on origins of nationality, not in terms of race.

In antiquity, Nubia was a land of great natural wealth and prized trade routes. There is speculation that this great civilization eventually ruined itself by exhausting its natural resources. Trying to keep up with the great demand for steel, it is thought that Nubians over-harvested their crops, destroyed their forests, and polluted their lands. Traders went elsewhere, and the population gradually died out.

Present-day Nubia is the homeland of Africa's earliest black culture with a history that can be traced from 3800 B.C. Nubian monuments and artifacts, as well as written records from Egypt and Rome, confirm the existence of this empire. In the 1930s a large proportion of the Nubian villages along the Nile were totally submerged. This was due to the construction of a faulty dam that was originally built in 1889. The dam was subsequently raised twice, but each time the dam was raised, the waters also rose higher. A second dam (known as the Aswan High Dam) was constructed in 1960. Nubians who were settled in the area between Aswan in Egypt and the Sudan were relocated, and their great Nubian monuments were dismantled and reassembled on higher ground. However, many historical sites were drowned and lost for good. Archeologists are still trying to decipher the mysteries of Nubia’s lost civilization.

Due to their close proximity to each other and their intermingling of cultures, it was inevitable that ancient Egyptians and Nubians would meet and fall in love. Amonmose and Kama were no exception. If you are interested in learning more about ancient Egypt and Nubia, try the following sources:

Handbook to Life in Ancient Egypt
by Rosalie A. David

Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology
by Paul Nicholson & Ian Shaw

The Nubians: People of the Ancient Nile
by Robert Steven Bianchi

The Black Pharaohs: Egypt’s Nubian Rulers
by Robert G. Morkot

Ancient Nubia: Egypt’s Rival in Africa
by David B. O’Connor

The Hyksos: New Historical and Archaeological Perspective
by Eliezer D. Oren

www.chantarand.com

Author Bio

Chanta lives in Dallas, TX with her husband and a tankful of tropical fish that keep mysteriously keep multiplying.
 
When she's not writing, she enjoys making jewelry, shopping, traveling, and collecting Native American pottery.
 
She's currently hard at work on her second novel, The Highest Bidder.

If you'd like to contact Chanta, send an email to [email protected].
 
She'd love to hear from you.

Red Rose Publishing

Pharaoh’s Desire