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“I did. It is time to embark upon a mission to reestablish the trade routes that the Hyksos disrupted during their occupation of these lands. I have commissioned five of the largest, fastest ships to sail to the Land of Punt. And I have determined that I shall lead this mission myself.”
Shai considered this.
At her pause, he asked, “Why not send an emissary instead, my Queen? It is safer for you to remain on Egyptian soil.”
An unhumorous smile passed over her lips.
“It is safest for me if I never left my chambers too,” she returned.
“This is a worthy risk, and one I intend to take.”
She glanced away then, brushing at a nonexistent piece of lint on her Pharoah’s tunic.
“Besides, a tribal king in the Land of Punt has extended a personal invitation for my attendance.”
At the casual flick of her hand, Senenmut, the royal steward, unrolled the papyrus he held and read out loud:
“Oh, Great Queen Khnumetamun Hatshepsut, Regent of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, accept the esteemed greetings of a neighboring sovereign…”
Shai listened attentively as the steward droned on.
The King of Punt offered many gifts for a visiting envoy to bring back—frankincense and myrrh, jewels, exotic silks and spices. Most of all, he offered particular hospitality to Hatshepsut herself. Though not explicitly stated, it could be inferred that the king was in search of a new wife, for his first wife had passed in childbirth the previous year.
When Senenmut began to recite the king’s raptures of Heba’s famed beauty, she waved him into silence.
“Nonsense,” she dismissed.
“As well as irrelevant. What he really wants is to expand his power to include these lands. He is a man in his prime, a warrior with a robust constitution, and supposedly still in possession of all of his teeth. I am a woman of child-bearing age, ruling as Regent without the guiding hand of a stronger man.”
At this, her mouth quirked sardonically. Clearly, the latter part of her statement was made with sarcasm.
“It is an interesting opportunity for us both. And Punt is rich with treasures and arable land. Many who have traveled there call it a desert paradise, a fertile oasis blessed by the gods.”
Shai steadied his voice before speaking, one hand clenching the other wrist tightly behind his back. So tightly, his bones creaked with protest.
“Will you take it? This opportunity?”
She did not answer immediately, merely staring down at him with those unreadable eyes.
And then she said, “I would be a fool not to see for myself what the king and his lands have to offer. Hence, I am coming on this expedition.”
Shai clenched his jaw hard.
“You are coming with me as my personal guard,” she informed him in that same emotionless tone.
He bowed, removing his eyes from her.
He could not look at her at the moment. She would see the chaos of emotions he felt as clear as day if he did so.
“As you wish, my Queen.”
“I trust you will arrange for the Pharaoh’s protection and care with utmost discretion.”
“Aye.”
She did not have to ask. Of course, he would.
“How is the project coming along?” she inquired.
