“No need to apologize,” the prince replied to her immense relief. “All you heard were the lamentations of a girl who has everything and wants more.” He pulled a small knife from his belt and started to carve his fruit.
Neff moved to watch him, having never seen that kind before. “What is that?” she asked.
“A pomegranate.”
“Mm,” she murmured. “She’s really pretty, your sister.”
Ruby red juice slipped down the prince’s blade. He licked it clean. “She is.”
“It’s nice that she wants to spend time with you.”
Kenna pulled a slice of pomegranate from the whole, exposing a cluster of glistening seeds within. “I suppose.”
Neff knew she shouldn’t say more, but she couldn’t help herself. “So… why don’t you spend time with her at the palace? You could visit and still do your job here, couldn’t you?”
The prince popped a few seeds into his mouth. “Why do you ask me these questions, Nefermaat?” he asked after chewing.
Neff thought a while before answering. “My mother wanted five children. One for each finger on her hand. But Father was only able to give her one child. Sometimes I wonder if that’s why he’s always been so desperate to make us rich. To make up for not giving her what she really wanted.”
She’d had nothing to drink with her meal and her throat was dry. She licked her lips, then continued, her voice a bit quieter. “For as long as I can remember, I’ve never wanted anything more than a sister. So it’s hard for me to understand why you’d turn yours away.”
The prince stopped chewing. His nostrils flared.
Neff suddenly wished she could take it back. He was kind, it was true, but the prince could still have her thrown to the crocodiles. And here she was, scolding him for not being nice to hissister. What was she thinking?
“I shouldn’t have said that,” she blurted, taking a step back from him. “I’ll go.” She turned and started back toward her quarters, hoping to escape before he decided on a punishment.
“Wait.”
Neff froze. She turned, and one glance at the prince’s face told her he wasn’t angry, just troubled.
“I’m sorry you have no siblings, Nefermaat,” he responded. “But there is something to be said for being so special. Sowanted.The waters of your parents’ love all wash upon your shore, and yours alone. I am one of three, born all at once. My father spent the first year of our lives spreading the story of our births far and wide, sharing how the gods blessed him with abundance and sanctified his place on the throne. Yet I have always felt like an afterthought.
“I love Sitamun. But she lives for parties and finery and stories of passion and romance. That is not my world, and I won’t have her dragging me back into it. The fact is, Father might die. It is sad, but death is a part of life, and like everyone else, Sitamun must learn to face it without behaving like a child. We all need to grow up sometime.”
He glanced at Neff, and his expression softened. “Perhaps you’ll never have a sister, but you can call me brother, if you wish.”
Neff could hardly believe her ears. “I’m just a girl from Bubas. You’re a prince. You’d call me your sister?”
Kenna shrugged. “Crown or no crown, we are all children of Khetara.” He held out a seed from the red fruit.
A crown, Neff suddenly remembered.Wasn’t the first figure I saw wearing one?Perhaps one of the three young royals had something to do with the lamb’s prophecy. If so, her friendship with Kenna was meant to be.
Neff took the seed from him and inspected the tiny jewellikefruit. “I’ve never tried one of these before,” she said, before popping it in her mouth. It was unlike anything she’d tasted—crisp and sweet and tart, with a hint of bitterness at its center. It was wonderfully refreshing.
“I have a feeling you’ll try a lot of new things in the coming days, little sister,” Kenna said.
“May I have more?”
“You can have it all,” Kenna replied, handing her the rest of the pomegranate.
Neff took it and sunk her teeth deep into the fruit, suckling the flesh until its juice dripped down her chin.
12
Sita
By the time she returned from her visit to the temple, Sita’s hands were shaking so severely she was afraid one of the servants might notice. She’d avoided taking the Royal Road to get back, favoring one of the less-used side paths instead, so luckily she hadn’t met anyone on her way home.
