Fall of a King ; Battle for Egypt Book 2

Chapter 5 the Day Before

    It has been 69 days, 69 days of mourning and preparing. 69 days since Neferure died. The palace and all of Hierakonpolis has been in a state of mourning. The halls are solemn and silent as a tomb. No one, not even the servants spoke about that night. I had not seen Bakari, not since the morning after Neferure's passing. He had held his wife's body all night. Ka had to drag Bakari from the room kicking and screaming. When the priests of Anubis came to take her body away, Bakari threatened to kill them all. Saying that he would not let his wife go. It was only Ka who could stop him, to get him to listen to reason. Since that day, it had been up to Tiye and I to raise and watch Thutmose grow. He had grown so much since his birth. Tiye and I spent much of the time buying and sewing new clothes for him. As days give ways to weeks Tiye and I fell into a routine. I would attend to my queenly duties in the morning. And in the afternoon I would spend my time with Tiye and Thutmose. Tiye has grown so much in the past 69 days. She had become a mother to Thutmose, and the chief lady among my ladies. But the sadness in her eyes was still there. She often slept in the cot by Thutmose's cradle. She did not want to leave him. Ka had become distant from me. He would spend his nights with Bakari. Never coming to my bed. I felt as if a part of us had died that day. And that scared me. We had barely spoken, we only spoke during our royal duties. And often it was short and to the point. He would not even touch me. It was as if he was afraid to touch me. As if I would break if he touched me. Something changed in Ka that night. And I was afraid to even ask him about it.

Today... Today was the day we would leave for Abydos. Neferure's body was being prepared and buried there. She had been preparing for 70 days. Her soul being prepared for the afterlife. As today had drawn closer and closer, I felt anxiety well in my chest. It was only Tiye and I left, we had spent so many nights crying together. Comforting one another. Grieving together, we both had lost our sister that night. But I missed Ka,  I missed my husband. I still feel guilt from her death. Neferure was like a sister to me. She should not have done what she did. She did it to protect us. To warn us. And it had cost her her life. My maids finished preparing me for the journey. Once they were done, I made my way to the nursery. Thutmose had truly become the only source of joy in this gloomy palace. I entered, the wet nurse was feeding the child. She was sitting by the garden. The sun shining down on the water. Tiye was already there. She was sitting in the sun. Her eyes were closed, a sad smile on her lips. We were meeting the men at the docks. It was much safer to travel on the sacred Nile. The roads were still crawling with Sutekh's men. And traveling on the water was much easier on the child. Tiye opened her eyes. Her gaze met mine. She stood up and bowed. I walked over and motioned for her to sit. I joined her. We sat there in silence. Both thinking about Neferure, and how we would bury her tomorrow. I reached over and took her hand. Giving it a gentle squeeze. 

"Are you ready for this? Ready to say goodbye. To bury her," I asked Tiye. She looked at me. Her eyes brimming with tears. I knew her answer, but I knew she needed me. Needed me to be here while she grieved. In these times of grief, a queen had to be strong for those around her. Even when I felt like I was about to crumble.

"Is anyone really ready to bury a sister," she asked. I knew she was not alright. She had watched as her sister was beaten for information. And then watched as she bled from her wounds, giving birth to her one and only son. Anyone would have been traumatized by these experiences. But Tiye kept living, she took her pain and channeled it into love for her nephew. She wanted to live, to allow Thutmose to have a mother. Tiye had truly grown into a beautiful woman. I hoped soon that this war would be over and that Tiye could grow old in a city of peace. She deserved that much. She deserved to find a husband that loved her, and had her own children.

"No, I suppose not," I replied. She got up and walked over to the wet nurse. She touched Thutmose's head. The sadness in her eyes dimmed. Though we may have lost Neferure, we still had Thutmose who brought joy into our lives.