‘Then we need to plead our own case.’

  P

  ools of shadow were swelling in the streets as Piay and Hannu strode to the entrance to the palace, the Gate of Lions. The columns on either side towered four times Piay’s height. The gate itself hung open. The Master of the Flame was already moving around the courtyard beyond, lighting the lamps along the walls. In the wavering light, Piay could see the king’s personal guard standing sentry along the avenue to the interior, their spears erect at their sides, their crimson capes bright against the white walls.

  From the edge of the courtyard, out of sight from the gate, Piay could hear the stamp of hooves and the whinnying of the horses. The Hyksos were already inside.

  Piay marched up to the gate with the intention of striding through, but two guards stepped forwards and barred his way with their spears.

  ‘I wish to speak with the king,’ Piay insisted.

  The guards said nothing.

  ‘Hold.’

  The command emanated from the growing darkness at their backs. Piay turned to see Mennias striding towards them.

  Piay felt his irritation rising and he swallowed it as best he could, as Taita would have instructed.

  ‘Why are we standing here in the dark while the barbarians are inside?’

  ‘I understand your anger,’ Mennias replied. ‘You will get your chance to speak with the king tonight.’

  ‘Why now? Why not when we first arrived in the city?’

  The general looked up at the flickering lamps, choosing what he could say.

  ‘The Hyksos sent a messenger ahead, saying that an Egyptian murderer and thief was coming to try to trick the king and perhaps take his life.’

  ‘That makes little sense,’ Piay snapped. ‘Surely no one would believe such a thing.’

  ‘The king is a cautious man, and a clever one. He wanted to hear both sides of the story before listening to your petition.’

  ‘The Hyksos knew we were coming to try to find allies in the war with them,’ Hannu grumbled.

  ‘Of course they did. They are not fools. Why else would Piay, Taita’s master spy, travel so far from the frontier?’ Piay breathed in to calm himself. ‘All we ask is a fair hearing.’

  ‘And you will get it,’ Mennias replied. ‘The king is fond of Egypt. In his youth, he travelled along the Nile, to the City of a Hundred Gates, so he says. He tells many tales of the wonders he saw and the kindness of the people.’

  ‘I did not know this.’ Piay felt surprised by this information, but already he could feel his mind sniffing ahead, finding a path to use this to his advantage.

  ‘One other thing,’ Mennias cautioned. ‘I know you and the Hyksos are bitter foes. So I will tell you what I am about to tell them – King Hurotas will not tolerate any bloodshed within the city walls. This is a peaceful place. And such things may well inflame the helots, and that we cannot have. Any transgression will be punished, regardless of your status as honoured guests.’

  ‘Tell that to the barbarians.’ The torchlight danced in Hannu’s dark eyes. ‘They are a murderous breed and they cannot be trusted.’

  ‘The guards will take their swords before they enter the presence of the king, and yours too,’ the general said. ‘And I will have my men watch them carefully. My obligation is to you, do not forget that. I do not take my vow lightly. I have already put in a good word for you with the king and he will look on your request kindly, as courageous and honourable guests.’

  Mennias raised a hand and the two guards stepped aside.

  ‘Follow me,’ he said.

  P

  iay marvelled at the vast chamber. In the centre, four columns supporting the ceiling surrounded a reflecting pool. A shaft above it was open to the sky so that the waters would catch the rays of the sun and the moon. The surrounding floor was polished stone so that the light would seem to flow everywhere. The walls were covered with large mosaics of lions, deer and ships, and more tiles picked out interlocking designs of squares and circles across the ceiling. Gold and silver glinted in the torchlight, and the spicy scent of incense drifted through the air.

  ‘Wait here,’ Mennias said. ‘The king will send for you when he is ready to hear your petition. I pray the gods will smile on you.’

  The general strode away, the clatter of his leather soles echoing. Hannu looked around the room, his eyes wide.

  ‘I have never seen such a place,’ he said.

  ‘There are riches here, yes,’ Piay said. ‘Let us hope there is wisdom, too.’

  While Hannu peered into the depths of the reflecting pool, Piay paced the chamber, examining the mosaics. His mind was racing and he could not relax. Once again he had been too confident. He’d failed to suspect that the Hyksos might try to disrupt his plans. He should have known better.

  ‘Hello.’

  Piay turned to see two women standing in the doorway. They were looking him up and down as if he were some strange object whose function they could not quite understand. They were both tall, slim-waisted, with high cheekbones and almond eyes. Hair fell around their shoulders, one blonde, one black. Unmarried, then. Though they had both seen at least twenty summers, the one with blonde hair seemed slightly older, and her beauty was radiant. Her emerald eyes gleamed. She wore a dress the colour of the burning amber of the late sun. Fine gold wire was braided into a belt and more gold glimmered in a necklace. The younger of the two wore a dress the colour of a forest at twilight, with swirling ivy leaves embroidered down one side.

  ‘My name is Piay.’

  ‘The Egyptian we have heard about.’ The blonde-haired one’s lips twitched into a faint smile. Piay grinned back at her. ‘This is my friend Tiasa,’ she said. ‘I am Serrena.’

  Piay’s grin tightened. ‘The king’s daughter.’

  Serrena nodded.

  Piay bowed. ‘I am honoured.’

  The two women glided over and circled, still scrutinising every piece of him. Piay settled into the attention. In his experience, the women at court were bored and always looking for distraction. He was happy to oblige without thinking too hard about the consequences.

  ‘You have the body of a warrior,’ Tiasa said, studying his arms.

  ‘I have been known to wield a sword.’

  Serrena held his gaze with a confidence that some might have considered brazen. Her thick lashes didn’t flutter, like some of the women he encountered. Instead her eyes were as hard as jewels, challenging him, testing him. Here was someone who bowed to no man, he thought. He liked that.

  ‘Why is a soldier visiting our city?’ she asked.

  ‘I am not a soldier.’

  ‘What are you, then?’

  ‘Many things. A man of learning. A man who seeks adventure in all things. A spy—’

  ‘A spy?’ Serrena pursed her lips. ‘Of what use is a spy who announces his presence?’

  ‘I am not spying on Lacedaemon. I am here to offer the hand of friendship.’ Now Piay began to circle Serrena. She paused, allowing him to play his game. ‘Would you accept my hand in friendship?’

  ‘Are women so easily charmed in Egypt?’

  ‘They are entertained by good conversation and wit, as all women are everywhere.’

  ‘You are very sure in your abilities.’

  ‘I know my worth, that is all.’

  Serrena held his gaze for a long time. She seemed to be weighing whether he was an opportunity worth pursuing.

  ‘I could tell you stories of life in Egypt, if you like,’ Piay said. ‘And perhaps if you enjoyed my tales, you could speak to your father to convince him of the rightness of my request.’

  Was his tone light enough, his smile enticing but respectful? There was an opportunity here. If Hurotas had seen fit to name this city after his beloved wife, surely his daughter could sway him with a few honeyed words in his ear? And then once he had secured an agreement, perhaps he could see where her attentions might lead. He had never enjoyed the company of a daughter of a king.

  As he flirted, Tiasa pushed between him and Serrena. Her jaw was set and her eyes had narrowed.

  ‘Let me have this one,’ she said, adding with a flinty tone, ‘It is my turn. More than my turn.’

  Serrena did not respond at first, but just as she finally appeared to reach her decision, Piay felt a hand clamp on his arm.

  ‘If you will excuse me,’ Hannu said to the two women, ‘but I have pressing business I must discuss with my master before our audience with your father.’

  ‘Have you lost your wits?’ Hannu breathed as he tugged Piay away. ‘Toying with the daughter of King Hurotas? That way leads to losing two things – whatever we hoped to gain by coming to this city, and then your head.’

  ‘There is an opportunity here—’

  ‘Aye, for what lies beneath your tunic. Sometimes it seems your brains hang below your waist.’

  Piay glanced back and felt a pang of disappointment as he saw Serrena leaving with her friend.

  ‘Life is hard and we all need comfort,’ he said. ‘You, me. Even them.’

  ‘There are times for comfort and there are times when I need to save you from yourself.’ Hannu gritted his teeth. ‘Would that I had known the extent of my thankless task when I agreed to be your assistant.’

  ‘Stop grumbling. I saved you from a life of misery. Some thanks would not go amiss.’

  Mennias stepped out of the doorway on the other side of the reflecting pool, raised a hand and flexed his fingers. A moment later, Piay was walking beside him along a torchlit avenue to the king’s residence. Hannu trailed behind.

  ‘Has Hurotas spoken with the barbarians yet?’ Piay asked.

  ‘Not yet,’ the general replied. ‘At my request, he decided to hear your case first.’

  ‘Will the king be receptive?’

  ‘I cannot say. Hurotas is a wise man and he will weigh your request justly.’

  Mennias ushered them into another large chamber. This one was as big as the waiting chamber and as ornately designed, with mosaics across the walls and ceiling, but it was darker. Only a few lamps had been lit and the shadows clustered in the corners. A fire crackled in the hearth, keeping the chill of the evening at bay. Guards stood in silence along the walls.

  Hurotas stared into the fire with his hands behind his back. He was a broad-shouldered, muscular man, despite the grey hair Piay could see falling past his shoulders.

  ‘Stay by the door,’ Mennias murmured to Hannu. ‘The king will hear only from your master.’

  He took Piay’s and Hannu’s swords and handed them to one of the guards, then led Piay across the chamber to the king.

  Hurotas turned as his guest approached, and Piay could see he had a thick grey beard and a skin that had a darker tone from the other Spartans. His eyes sparkled in the firelight and a smile played on his lips as he studied the new arrival.

  ‘This is Piay of Egypt,’ Mennias announced. ‘Bow your head to the king of Sparta.’

  Piay bowed, but he already felt a question burning in his mind.

  ‘Leave us to speak, Mennias,’ Hurotas said.

  Once the general had retreated to stand near Hannu, Piay said, ‘Forgive me, but . . . you have the look of an Egyptian about you.’

  Hurotas’ smile twitched. ‘I have Egyptian blood in me, that is true.’

  Piay nodded, hiding his surprise. He had heard many tales of the king of Sparta, but not this. But it could only make his task easier.

  ‘Thirty years have passed since I last saw my homeland,’ Hurotas continued.

  ‘Again, I beg your forgiveness,’ Piay said. ‘The reputation of King Hurotas is known, but I had not heard of your heritage. I am surprised that was never spoken of.’

  Hurotas’ lips tightened into what Piay thought was a sly smile.

  ‘Perhaps I was known by a different name then. Perhaps my wife was, too.’

  ‘The queen of Lacedaemon is an Egyptian?’ Piay could no longer hide his surprise. There were mysteries upon mysteries here.

  The king beckoned and Piay followed him.

  ‘Egyptians are not rare in Sparta,’ Hurotas said as they walked. ‘The admiral of my navy is one. He goes by the name of Hui. Have you heard of him?’

  Piay frowned. He thought he had heard tell of such a person, perhaps in one of his master’s long lectures about the past.

  ‘He was a trusted friend of the great general Tanus, and he fought in the war when the Hyksos invaded.’

  Hurotas came to a halt at a large and ancient wooden throne, carved with the heads of lions, and he sat in it, hanging one muscular leg over the armrest.

  ‘As an Egyptian, you must feel anguish at the misery that the Hyksos have inflicted on Egypt,’ Piay said. ‘The battle has raged along the Nile for many years, but now the barbarians are planning an assault upon Thebes. The defenders of Egypt are sorely weakened and if the Hyksos are allowed to keep the city, Egypt may be lost for good.’

  Hurotas snapped his fingers and one of the guards hurried out of the chamber.

  ‘I keep my ears open to events in Egypt, but I am a King of Sparta now. I have much to concern me here – the constant harrying of the bastards in Corinth not the least of it.’

  A slave hurried in with a flagon and two cups. He swilled red wine into both. Hurotas took one and offered the other to Piay. The wine was sweet and rich and refreshing after the long day.

  ‘Tell me what you want,’ Hurotas said.

  ‘My master Taita bid me—’

  ‘Taita?’

  ‘You have heard of him?’

  Hurotas stared into the shadows cloaking the corners of the ceiling.

  ‘I may have.’

  More games. What Hurotas was hiding, Piay didn’t know, but matters were more pressing than uncovering the distant past.

  ‘My master Taita leads the fight against the invaders in the name of the Pharaoh,’ he continued. ‘I speak in his name and on his authority. He has dispatched me to seek an ally—’

  ‘Against the Hyksos?’

  ‘An army to fight alongside us and drive the barbarians back into the sea.’

  ‘And what gain is there to Sparta?’ Hurotas watched Piay over the lip of his cup.

  ‘I come in the spirit of fraternal bond. And now that I know you are an Egyptian, then we can both see that this is more than mere words. We have a bond, a blood-bond.’

  ‘Do not overestimate my bond with Egypt. Yes, I love my homeland. But I left for a reason and I have not been back for thirty years.’

  ‘I would not have come without more to offer. Amethyst. More of that violet gemstone than you have ever seen in your life. A mine, a secret mine, known only to a few. It will all be yours if you come to our aid.’

  Hurotas nodded thoughtfully. ‘Good. Good. I can see that would be a reasonable exchange. But how do I know this mine exists outside your imagination? How do I know that when I arrive in Egypt it will not mysteriously have vanished into the sand of ages?’

  Piay felt his smile grow fixed. ‘I was given a sample of the amethyst to persuade you of the quality of the mine’s contents. But it was lost in the wreck of the ship carrying me across the Great Green. But you have my word—’

  Hurotas shook his head. ‘Then, in the matter of these negotiations, it is . . .’

  He waved his fingers in the air. Insubstantial. Worthless. Piay felt the bite of frustration, but he forced himself to continue in a voluble manner.

  ‘When the barbarians are gone, we will give you trade on more favourable terms than you could ever gain from the Hyksos. And we will be good allies in return. You are in a bitter fight with Corinth, and I am told wars with other cities come and go. With the might of Egypt beside you, those enemies would always know you have the upper hand.’

  Hurotas swirled his wine around his cup. ‘Or I could send men to fight with you and the Hyksos could destroy them all, and then Lacedaemon is weakened in the face of our enemies here. We have as much to lose as we have to gain.’

  ‘With Sparta and Egypt together, the Hyksos could never win.’

  Hurotas nodded. ‘Perhaps. But you must understand – you are desperate. I would drive a hard bargain if we tried to reach an agreement.’

  ‘Taita would expect no less.’

  Hurotas threw back the last of his wine and tossed the cup aside.

  ‘Very well. I will hear what the Hyksos have to say before reaching my decision.’

  Piay held out his hands. ‘What could the Hyksos say that would sway you?’

  ‘That they would offer me more favourable trade terms than the Egyptians. That they have already conquered most of Egypt and they are close now to taking whatever remains. That your resistance has melted like the shadows at dawn and, however much you boast about the might of Pharaoh’s army, you are too weakened to win. Why should I ally myself with a force facing certain defeat? That is what they will say to me.’

  Piay felt the muscles in his shoulders tightening. This was proving harder than he had anticipated. Hurotas was no fool. To hold the throne of Sparta for thirty years – and as a foreigner, too – would require a man prepared to take hard decisions, someone not prone to sentimentality.

  The king pointed a finger at Piay and drew a circle in the air.

  ‘And they would make it clear – though they would not say it – that the Hyksos have crushed everyone they have ever confronted. No wise king would want them as an enemy.’

  ‘And I would say that the Hyksos are a people that are as restless as their horses. They have no interest in Sparta today. Who is to say that will still stand tomorrow?’

  Hurotas scrubbed a thumb along his chin, thinking. After a moment, he said, ‘I see why Taita chose you as his assistant and his envoy. You have a quick mind, like your master. I admire that. I will think hard on all you have said. But do not expect me to decide quickly. These are weighty matters, with much at stake for Sparta.’

  Piay bowed. ‘I would expect no less. You have Egypt’s gratitude for hearing my petition.’

  Had he done enough? He couldn’t be sure.

  He was halfway to the door when Hurotas said, ‘One other thing.’

  Piay turned back. Hurotas levered himself from his throne and wandered to the fire.