Crown in the Stars (38 page)

If you hoped to disrupt this meeting, Adoniyram, then you’ve done it
, Shoshannah thought.
But what would all these merchants and visitors do if they realized that you’re not their revered Nimr-Rada’s son?
She often wondered if he had been merely teasing her all those weeks ago.
If it’s true, then others must know …

The Lady Sharah would know, of course. Lord Kuwsh, perhaps—he seemed indifferent to Adoniyram, not fond or watchful as a grandparent would be. However, Lord Kuwsh was usually indifferent to others. And if Adoniyram were not Nimr-Rada’s son, wouldn’t the proud Lord Kuwsh have denounced him at birth? Unless he had some selfish reason to keep Adoniyram alive… As for their Master Ra-Anan… Frowning, Shoshannah watched her uncle, trying to decide.

Ra-Anan’s lips pressed to a thin, impatient line. “Be seated, Adoniyram, please. We are discussing our plans for the festival during the High Month of Shemesh.”

“I should leave then, since I have nothing important to say.” But he sat near Ra-Anan and relaxed, signaling for the keepers to settle his leopards nearby.

Without another glance, Ra-Anan turned from his nephew to the crowd of merchants again. As if Adoniyram were nobody.

I think you know Adoniyram is not Nimr-Rada’s son
, Shoshannah told Ra-Anan silently. B
ut you allow him to stay; you control him, as you control me, for your own purposes
.

“Look,” Demamah whispered, combing another puff of wool, “Tiyrac is going to stand with his brother. They seem to guard each other.”

She’s calling him “Tiyrac” now
. Astonished, Shoshannah eyed her cousin. Was Demamah becoming fond of Tiyrac? The thought was both delightful and worrisome. She didn’t want Demamah to become unwittingly enmeshed in her own future plans to escape with Kal and Tiyrac; if they were caught, Demamah would suffer terribly. And yet…

Unable to squelch her curiosity, Shoshannah asked beneath her breath, “What do you think of him? Is he as bad as Perek?”

“He’s much more polite than Perek—and never angry with me. You’d think he was trained to live in the city, while Perek is actually the wild man dragged in from the steppes.”

“You’ve been
watching
Tiyrac.”

“No, I haven’t, so hush.”

Shoshannah hid a smile. Demamah
was
watching Tiyrac. Oh, how she wished she could tease Tiyrac and see him blush and stammer denials that any girl, particularly one so lovely as Demamah, could be interested in him. But that could never happen; if Ra-Anan even suspected that Demamah was fascinated by the young man, Tiyrac would be sent away. And that was the last thing Shoshannah wanted.

To excuse herself for looking at Tiyrac and Kal, she said, “I think they’re trying to decide what to do if Adoniyram’s leopards attack anyone.”

“I’m sure you’re right.”

By now, Ra-Anan’s voice was rising as he spoke to the unwillingly attentive merchants. “This year we will have more visitors than ever before to our Great City. You will have more opportunities for trade, and we will all gain if we are prepared to receive them as honored guests. We expect your assistance in building temporary residences to shelter our visitors…”

The High Month of Shemesh. Thinking of it, Shoshannah’s stomach tightened. Surely her uncle wouldn’t expect her to take part in any of the temple ceremonies, knowing she worshiped the Most High and considered their Shemesh to be a god of their own making.

Their festival is almost four months away
, she reassured herself.
I don’t have to worry about it yet
. To calm herself, she gazed at Kaleb again, grateful for the sight of him standing there with Tiyrac, safe and well. For now.

Let us escape soon
, she begged the Most High. Fearing Demamah had noticed her, Shoshannah glanced at her cousin. Demamah hastily looked down at the combs and wool, away from Tiyrac.

Kneeling on a mat in the temple with Ormah, Shoshannah watched, fascinated, as the priest Ebed rolled a carved stone tube over a soft pat of clay. A fragile picture trail of streams, fish, and rays of sunlight revealed the path of the moving tube. She smiled, delighted. “Ebed, how wonderful! Please, may I see the stone? I’ll be careful, I give you my word.”

Seeming gratified, Ebed bowed his shaven head and offered the pat of clay and the carved tube to Shoshannah.
“Test the marker for yourself, Lady. This was our Master Rab-Mawg’s inspiration. Eventually each merchant in the city, and every priest and official, will have his own special marker, carved in his own particular pattern to seal the tokens of his agreements.”

Knowing that Ormah would want to inspect this new type of “marker,” as Ebed had called it, Shoshannah gently set it between them. She studied the carved stone, rolled it over the clay, then handed it to Ormah.

As Shoshannah hoped, the maidservant abandoned her usual haughtiness, eagerly applying the stone to the clay. Shoshannah smiled, contented. When Ormah was happy, she was less inclined to exaggerate stories of Shoshannah’s misbehavior to Ra-Anan. And the last thing Shoshannah wanted now was to make Ra-Anan more upset with her.

“Are you playing, children?” Awkawn asked, sweeping past the curtain into the temple from behind the hidden room. He threw a belittling glance at Ormah, who frowned.

Reluctant to acknowledge this rude priest, Shoshannah lowered her head and said nothing.

Awkawn planted his bare bony feet directly in front of her. “Rab-Mawg summons you now; you shouldn’t linger here unless you’re worshiping our Shemesh, O Daughter of Keren.”

Shoshannah stood, agitated by his taunt. Had he been talking about her with Rab-Mawg? Slowly she smoothed her garments and walked past the curtains to the hidden room to face Rab-Mawg.

He was waiting, alert but not wild-eyed. And there was no knife in his hand. Grateful for this small mercy, Shoshannah knelt in her accustomed place, with Ormah beside her. The maidservant cleared her throat nervously.

Rab-Mawg gave her a sharp, quelling look, then turned to Shoshannah. His voice stiff, almost clipped, he lectured, “As you are aware, Lady, we will soon celebrate the High Month of our Shemesh.”

Shoshannah nodded, not liking his topic.

He returned her look, clearly not liking his student. “You must begin to learn those duties abandoned by your mother.”

“My uncle has given you instructions…” Shoshannah murmured, allowing her words to trail off, not quite questioning him.

“Yes, he has. But even if he hadn’t, I would insist that you fulfill your obligations.”

Shoshannah listened, nausea twisting her stomach. She tried to remain expressionless, but the priest stared at her so hard and for such a long time that she began to fidget.

At last he said, “You will have to convince me that you deserve this honor—and the power you will possess. I give you one year.” He leaned forward, until she could almost feel his breath in her face. His eyes glittered sharply, as if he dared her to deny what he was about to say. “I know you still believe what those Ancient Ones taught you, and you are contemptuous of our ways—I’ve been watching you! But I’m telling you now that you
will
abandon those old beliefs. You will faithfully receive offerings and require devotions in this temple. You will become the wife of Shemesh, and you will proclaim his greatness to our people. You have one year.”

One year?
Then what would happen, if she failed to convince him that she “deserved this honor”? Was he already planning her death? So much for his insistence that she must be convinced she was safe here.

Rab-Mawg continued his lecturing. “Master Ra-Anan and I have decided, too, that our tower is unfinished.”

You and Ra-Anan and all the other greedy fools in this rebellious

city
.

“We intend to continue building until this structure reaches the heavens, until it stands in the clouds. This tower will draw all the other tribes to us and earn such a name for us that, whatever happens, we will be strong and united. We will never be scattered across the earth like straw!” Rab-Mawg’s expression was passionately intense, stirred with the kind of devotion that most men reserved for their beloved wives—or their horses.

Ugh! He’s in love with this tower
, Shoshannah thought, revolted. But a question occurred to her then, one that might calm and distract this bizarre priest. “Please, Master Rab-Mawg, can you tell me anything more about the future of this tower? Has my uncle made any other plans for it, except that it will be a temple?”

The young priest actually looked surprised. He studied Shoshannah, then eyed Ormah, who was now shifting impatiently—no doubt wishing Shoshannah hadn’t questioned him. Cool, he inclined his head.

“I have not spoken to your Master-Uncle about this, Lady, but I intend to ask permission to inter our Great King somewhere in this tower. After all, it is being built in his memory, and at his request.”

“Inter? You mean to… bring his body here and…”

“What we can
find
of his body,” Rab-Mawg agreed sharply. “Yes. We will protect his remains here. Lord Kuwsh has already interred the head beneath our altar.”

“Oh.” Shoshannah suppressed a creeping chill of horror, wishing she hadn’t pursued the subject. The Great-King Nimr-Rada’s body had been cut into pieces after his
death. After her mother and father had supposedly rebelled and betrayed him to their Father Shem, who had executed Nimr-Rada.
I’ll never learn to think before I speak
.

As she scolded herself for being so foolish, Rab-Mawg said, “In this way, we will honor our fallen king. Despite your mother’s treachery, our He-Who-Lifts-the-Skies will never be forgotten.” Leaning forward, the priest added, “You could be forgiven and remembered forever, if you fulfill your mother’s vows to serve Shemesh. You would be
worshiped
, even if you die before your elders. Just convince us that you deserve such adoration.”

I don’t want that kind of adoration
.

He continued to talk, his face again lit with that awful intensity that made her skin crawl. She wasn’t going to be able to fool him for long. He would certainly want to kill her at the end of her allotted year.
One year to escape
. She had to warn Kal.

While they were walking down the stairs, followed by the spying Perek, Ormah criticized Shoshannah indignantly. “You
had
to question him and keep him talking! You can’t ever keep quiet, not even when your life depends on it. And”—she shook her head—“I don’t understand why you find it so hard to just do what our Master Ra-Anan and the priests ask. It’s not the dreadful problem you seem to think it is! Just worship our Shemesh—as you should. It’s so simple.” Perturbed, the maidservant added, “I wish someone would offer
me
such a glorious place in our Great City in exchange for a few stupid lessons.”

I wish they would too!
Shoshannah snapped silently,
marching down the stairs, making Perek growl as he hurried after her.