Mary Calmes - Change of Heart 04 - Crucible of Fate by Mary Calmes

Author:Mary Calmes [Calmes, Mary]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

“IS THATgrass?”

“Yes,” Kabore responded, yawning as we arrived at ten the following morning. “Ipis sits over an underground lake; the whole area is lush with plant life.”

It was stunning. Sobek was dry, almost everywhere I’d been in Egypt was, but this was gorgeous and brought the classic image of an oasis to mind. When we reached the town itself, we parked close to an outdoor café and got out, my khatyu filing out silently behind me. Instantly there was a contingent of men there to greet us, and I wasn’t surprised. They had to have seen us coming for hours; there was only one two-lane road there and back from Sobek. I had spoken to Taj, and he had asked if I wanted him to leave his position outside the semel’s home to come greet us. I ordered him to stay; I would be there soon enough.

“Sah’eed nahharkoo.” A man stood in front of twenty men, even though every second more and more people gathered behind them in the square.

I couldn’t speak the language, and I wasn’t in the mood to try and stumble through it. “I am the semel-aten, Domin Thorne. I need to speak to Hakkan Tarek, the semel of the tribe of Feran.”

Everyone went to their knees.

“Who is Hakkan Tarek?” I demanded of the crowd.

No one said a word.

Jin cleared his throat behind me.

“What?” I asked, glaring over my shoulder at him.

He mouthed words.

“What?”

“Give them permission to speak,” Kabore muttered out of the side of his mouth.

“Oh.” I cleared my throat. “Please, everyone rise, and someone please tell me where I might find the semel.”

They all rose quickly, and I tried not to scowl.

“My lord.” The man who had first spoken to me stepped closer. “I am Hanif Tarek, son of the semel, Hakkan Tarek. Welcome to Ipis.”

“Thank you. I need to speak to your semel at once.”

“Of course, he is at the fort, my lord. I will take you to him.”

“The fort?”

“Our home, my lord.”

“All right.”

“I’m sure he will be very pleased that you have come to mediate, my lord, and find a resolution for the newest of our many issues.”

I frowned. “Did my sekhem not inform you of the reason for first his visit and then mine?”

“He did, my lord, but my father will not hear that concern, but only that of the catacombs at Abtu.”

I was confused. He had to be at least twenty-one, what the hell was going on? Why wasn’t he the semel? Why had his father not stepped aside and begun mentoring his son?

“Why are you not the semel, Hanif Tarek?”

He cleared his throat. “My father’s as-yet-unborn son will be semel.”

I was missing something. “You are your father’s son, are you not?”

His eyes went to the ground.

“Hanif?”

Nothing.

“Look at me.”

He lifted his chin and met my eyes with his.

“Explain.”

“My father has taken a new yareah, and it is with her that he will bring forth the next semel.”

“Jin.”

He moved up beside me.

“I think I’m missing something,” I said and then tipped my head at Hanif.

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