The Queen Of Gods

Chapter 6

Chapter Six

My tears fell thick and fast as I cleaned and prepared the animals. I did nothing to stop them. These creatures deserved every moment of my heartbreak. They may have passed, but there was still a need to treat them with respect.

I rinsed my hands in a fresh bowl of water, watching the clear liquid turn cloudy as the dried blood left my fingers. I'd need to go and collect more water soon. But for now, this would do. A handful of flies still buzzed around, but most of them had left when I chased them away. I had to admit that it was a relief. At first, they'd tried to land on me and do whatever it was flies did to the living.

I rose to my feet, unsure what to do with myself next. Both animals looked peaceful now, completely hiding the violent ends that had become them. Hopefully, that meant they would be at peace in death.

A small bell sat on a table by the bed caught my attention. No doubt Horus used it to summon priests when he wanted something. That sounded like him. It would come in useful now, though. I needed all the help I could get.

I stuck my hand into my pocket, my fingers brushing against the cold metal of the ankh. I sighed. Why hadn't I left it at the temple? As much as I wanted to deny it, a small part of me was still desperate for Amun to prove he wasn't the person I thought he was right now.

Realising what I was doing, I pulled my hand away from the ankh sharply. I had no idea if I'd thought about him for long enough to summon him. I hoped not. With this latest stunt of Seth's, I wasn't sure how I'd be able to face him. By siding with the god of chaos, Amun was condoning this kind of disrespectful behaviour. I wasn't sure I could forgive him for that.

"Hathor."

His voice still sent shivers down my spine, even if I didn't want it to.

"What are you doing here?" I didn't turn around to look at him. I couldn't.

"You called."

"By accident."

"But you were still thinking of me," he teased.

I spun around, anger no doubt written all over my face. He was probably being flippant because he hadn't noticed what was going on in the room.

"Why are we at Horus' temple?" he asked, oblivious to my mood.

"How do you know it's his?" I snapped. Was he the one who left the present?

Amun waved a hand around the room. "His name is everywhere. It was a reasonable guess. Either that, or he's found himself a stalker. From what I know of him, he’d probably like that."

I almost laughed. Almost. Horus probably would like it.

Instead, I crossed my arms, regretting it almost instantly as it pushed up my breasts. I held still, simply because I didn't want to draw his attention to what I'd done. It would be an easy way for both of us to get distracted, and I was still mad at him.

"What are you doing here?" I repeated.

"You thought of me."

"So you thought that was an invitation?" I raised an eyebrow. "After how we left things last time."

He glanced away to cover up the guilt I saw flit across his face. "I thought you might have reconsidered..."

"Reconsidered what? My ethics? Right and wrong? I hate to break it to you, but I'm not as easily swayed as some people in this room."

"There's only two of us here."

"Precisely." Anger simmered away within me, one of the only things which was stopping me from crying. I was closer than I wanted to admit.

"Hathor..." He moved forward, opening himself up as if he was about to embrace me.

I stepped back, not wanting any part of it. He wasn't going to convince me that his way of thinking was right. I disagreed with everything he stood for, and more.

"Don't Hathor me," I hissed. "You've chosen your path."

"But if you'd listen to the reasons, you'd understand."

A loud, barking laugh escaped from me. "I'd understand?" I shook my head. This was almost too much. I couldn't believe he was still trying to reason with me. "Do you know what kind of god you serve?"

He flinched at that. No doubt hating the implication that someone ruled him. It was foolish to think we weren't all just pawns in someone else's game. That was how it worked. Right now, I was one in Ma'at's strategy. With thousands of years stretched ahead of me, I doubted that would always be the case. Sometimes, I'd be the one playing the game with others. Amun had long ago stopped being the one pulling any of the strings, even if he was known as the King of Gods sometimes. By that logic, I could claim to be the Queen of Gods. The Pharaohs had often associated me with their wives, after all.

"Do you want to serve a master who does this?" I demanded, waving my hand out behind me so he could see the devastation caused by my tending to the dead animals. While the creatures themselves now looked at peace, bloody rags, dead flies, and murky bowls of water still scattered around.

"Oh." He pushed past me and made his way over to the stained sheet with the cow and hawk stretched out on them. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

I closed my eyes as the anger seeped out of me at the two words. I guessed that answered the question about whether or not he was the one responsible for this. I wasn't sure if I was more relieved or frustrated by the revelation. Why was he okay following someone who would do this if it wasn't acceptable to him?

"Can you see why I don't understand your need to follow Seth?" I asked softly. Tears threatened, but I ignored them. For some reason, the idea of appearing vulnerable in front of Amun didn't sound terrible, despite his odd choice of affiliation.

"I don't know who did this."

"I'm telling you." My voice cracked. Why wouldn't he listen to me? Why was he so hell bent on refusing to acknowledge that his master was the one doing things like this. "And this isn't the first time. He's destroyed one of my temples, scared my priestesses and threatened me. And I'm not the only one he's done it to. You have to understand that your decision to support him and his tactics hurts people. Including those you claim to care about."

Amun stared at me, his expression easily revealing that he had no idea how to respond to me.

I took that as my cue, and spun on my heels before heading out of Horus' bedchambers. Hopefully for the last time. I had no desire to be back here at any point if I didn't need to be.

I paused when I reached the door, but didn't turn around. "I'm about to send one of Horus' priests in. If you don't want to be caught, then I suggest you leave the way you came."

The urge to turn around and ask for his help flooded through me, but I pushed it to the side. He'd chosen his allegiance. Unless he came to me with a promise he'd never work with Seth ever again, I wasn't going to ask anything from him.

My heart was going to have to get used to being ignored. I wasn't going to compromise everything I stood for because of him. Even if I wanted to.