Page 112 of Conspirators' Kingdom

The clicking ceased. The silence as Khety’s talon stopped mid-air was deafening. Khety’s hand balled into a fist before he laid it to rest.

Had he hoped to set Mereruka to the task and then castigate him for invented failures?

Not today.

“You will, but I expect you to preserve Maat’s dignity in this,” Khety said.

“Always, Your Eternal Serenity,” Mereruka replied.

“Then you may make use of my scryer to contact Keftu.”

A spy to report on every word and gesture they made. Their every action would be picked over and analysed for a reason to attack them. Mereruka nodded and bowed. Taisiya followed suit. Khety waved them away.

“The rest of you may go. If we learn anything new, you will be summoned,” Khety said, ending their meeting.

It behove Mereruka to resolve this situation with Keftu, before Khety elicited false confessions from the foreign delegation that would put Mereruka at a disadvantage. Thankfully, Keftu’s king wanted what its late queen was greedy to secure—the waters of the Hapi. And Mereruka suspected he could buy off the king at a fraction of the cost.

“Mereruka, Taisiya, please, follow me. I’ll show you to the scryer.” Serfka hurried to join them.

They followed him through the airy, sombre halls of the Court of Emergence. That Mereruka hadn’t been forced to shed his siblings’ blood this day was a real success. Khety would have to try harder to destroy him. Merely throwing him at the non-existent mercies of Keftu’s king wouldn’t suffice. Now, it was time to meet the bastard who’d ordered his sister to be made into a monster and take the first step in ensuring his downfall.

Chapter 43

“It’sapity.Shewas an excellent queen.”

They weren’t the words one would usually associate with a husband who had just found out he’d become a widower. Nor was the boredom in his tone or affect. Taisiya did her best to school her features in the face of this heartless, beautiful creature. Seated in a throne of jagged, multi-hued gems, the king of Keftu was dazzling in his perfectly bronzed, sharp-eyed, sharp-jawed way, his voice as deep as the sea and twice as deadly. A veil of unnaturally still water, spelled to form a window into the foreign throne room, allowed them to speak. Taisiya was grateful that no one could use it to bodily walk through to the other side. Her skin crawled at the very idea of being in the man’s physical presence.

“You have our heartfelt condolences,” Mereruka said.

The king sneered and clicked his tongue.

“Have you forgotten to whom you speak? Sweet words are a waste of air. What will you offer me to make up for this disgraceful inconvenience?”

And there it was. His wife’s death—a mere inconvenience.

“So that you might honour her memory, a statue of gold and gemstones made in her likeness.” The king looked ready to complain when Mereruka added, “As tall as, say, the height of your throne room?”

Mollified, the king smiled.

“So you do understand our language, brat. What else?” he asked, reclining in his glittering throne.

“We would like to offer her weight in water, the Hapi’s waters, to be precise. Surely, she would wish you to have it.”

He tapped his finger lazily on the arm of his seat, a look of amused tolerance on his face.

“This is acceptable.”

“If I may?” Taisiya asked.

“Speak.” The king waved his hand indulgently.

“Nefertnesu’s children may be considered obstacles to your future queen. We would like to offer to shelter and educate them, until, or if, you find you have need of them,” Taisiya said.

His baffled expression gave way to laughter. Better for her to look the fool in his eyes than to allow those children to die. For all their sakes, it would be best not to have such a creature sitting on the throne of a neighbouring kingdom. Taisiya’s heart pounded in her chest the longer he laughed. Fear that he might reject the offer or take offence held her immobile. When he was finally done, his smile was amused as he wiped tears from his eyes.

“So bloody sentimental. Gods, the lot of you are so pathetic. Fine, take the brats. It will save the cost of proper tombs were they to remain here. And on that subject, bury the late queen in Maat. No need to send the body back to Keftu.”

Relief flooded her.

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