The Meridian Gamble (35 page)

Though her name is Samahlina, we
all call her “Lina,” instead. It was a nickname we gave her, because one of my
sisters could not properly pronounce her name growing up, and somehow it stayed
with all of us. Even the General has taken to calling her that, one of his few
expressions of playfulness.

Lina is the true beauty of the
family, with deep brown eyes and dark hair that stun all the young men, and the
distinctive nose that both my father and Uncle share. Some might find it
unattractive, but I feel that it makes her look regal, like a queen.

I told her that once, though she
misunderstood me.

“The queen is the real beauty of
our realm. And I do not want to look like one of the monsters,” she said.

“You look like ‘a’ queen, not ‘the’
queen,” I replied. “I’ve never seen her up close.”

But I’m sure Lina does not feel
beautiful on this day. She lies sick in bed, once again. Though she has been
blessed with attractive features, she has also been cursed with a weak
constitution. Today, she has a fever, and I wake her to give her a cold drink
of water that I’ve brought with her food. She rouses with some difficulty, and
I lift her head. When she has taken a sip or two, I dip a cloth in the cool
water, and wipe the sweat from her brow.

“You must eat something, sister.”

“I don’t want to eat. I’m not
hungry.”

“You must eat to keep up your
strength.”

“I will eat, only if you stay with
me for a while to keep me company.”

“That I will gladly do,” I say,
with a smile.

And I lean by her bed, spooning
some food into her mouth. Something rouses her. She pushes aside my hair, and
looks to the bruise on my face with concern.

“What have they done to you?”

“It is nothing. It will heal
quickly,” I say, touching my tender cheek. “You should see what I did to
Uncle.”

I smile, trying to seem
light-hearted, but Lina is not dissuaded.

“It is awful, what they are doing.
Training you to kill. It will be the death of you.”

“But you know how father is. I have
no choice.”

“Because you are the special one
amongst us. Because you will come back again, if they murder you?”

“Yes,” I say, looking away from
her.

“But he does not consider that we
only have the one life with you,” Lina says. “Sometimes I think that the
Luminos are the true monsters.”

“Don’t say that. Their cause is a
noble one.”

“But you don’t want to play their
games. I know it.”

“I have little choice in the
matter. If I refuse, then Father will be the one who will end my life. Better
it be used for a good cause.”

“Then we will have to hope that
they teach you enough so that you can slay them all.”

But somehow, I am doubtful this
will ever happen.

Lina looks to
me, sadly, and brushes a stray lock of my hair back over my ear, and I make her
take another spoonful of food.

I wake up abruptly in the middle of
the night, as a hand comes over my mouth. I have fallen asleep, sitting next to
my sister’s bed. And for a moment, I think it is the vampires who have come for
me.

“Shhh! Gather your things. It is
time.”

It’s Uncle, instead. He leaves the
room, and I am shocked that the moment has finally come. I silently go to my
bed, and pull out a small pack I have kept for just this occasion. And I put
into it the one or two pieces of clothing I want to take, a few shirts and a
skirt. And I try not to wake my sister, not because I worry about ruining her
sleep, but because I know it will upset her to see me leave. It will be better
if I simply slip away in the night, so she does not try to fight against my
fate.

I go to the kitchen, and find Uncle
and the General there, illuminated by the light of a small lamp.

“Sit down,” the General whispers.

I do, and instantly I know there
will be no reprieve against my fate. I am not coming back, the Luminos have not
changed their mind and called for me to live with them.

“We have an opportunity. We need
you to do something.”

“What is it?”

“We have a contact in Pharaoh’s
palace. They have need of a servant. And we will pay this man a great fortune
to make sure it is one of our own.”

“You mean me?”

His face doesn’t move, and it’s
difficult to read the General’s true feelings from his stony expression. But I
see what I hope is remorse in his eyes, as he answers me.

“Yes, I do. You are to try to get close
to them. You must try to kill one of the monsters.”

I was right. This is why he has
been training me, all these months. This is why I have been chosen. Because I
am expendable, even more than the others, because they think I have never been
on this earth before. Because I must prove myself. And with my face full of
innocence, no one will ever suspect me.

“I understand, Father,” I say.

“You should go now, before the
others wake,” he says. “Your uncle will be taking you there.”

And I am shocked at the General, as
he averts his eyes when I stand, which I have never seen him do before. He is
always so stoic, so unwavering in his resolve for his battle, so willing to
face it. But I do not let him off so easily. I wait, until his gaze returns to
mine.

“Promise me one thing. Promise me
you will always look after my sister, whether she matters in your war or not.”

“Of course,” he says.

And that is it. He does not move to
embrace me, nor does he say anything else. The General looks away, and I
suspect that I am already dead in his mind.

Uncle and I
slip out through the front door of our home, disappearing into the night.

We walk the darkened streets of the
city, heading toward the temple of Pharaoh. Lights can be seen shining from it,
illuminating the structure in the night sky, and I feel I can almost reach out
and touch it. Yet, its appearance is deceiving. The building is so large that
it only seems close, and it takes quite a while to truly get near it. As the
sun rises over the horizon, brightening it further, the majesty of the
structure only serves to make it all the more intimidating.

There are certain back alleys we
walk through which I would normally be afraid of, even with my training. But I
feel safe knowing Uncle is with me. He and my father are master fighters, and
anyone who might try to attack us would be making a foolish mistake. Eyes look
at us from darkened doorways, but there is something in our gait that makes
them reconsider the thought of challenging us.

We finally get to a wall that
surrounds the palace, and guards stand out front; tall men who are strong and
well-fed. They stop us, and I can see Uncle’s muscles tense, as he readies
himself for the possibility of a fight. But the men don’t suspect us. They
think we are only common peddlers.

I look to the ground, and away from
the guard’s eyes as he addresses them.

“I have a new servant for the
kitchens. For Famoush.”

They point us to another entrance
along a side wall, and as we walk there, I can see Uncle scanning everything,
memorizing every detail he can. He says nothing, but I know it goes against his
every instinct to leave me here, that it fills him with pain. Which is more
compassion than the General could muster.

We find another guard, and Uncle
utters a few low words, repeating the name “Famoush,” who is a cook in the
temple. The guard sends word inside, and eventually a decrepit, elderly man
with runny eyes comes to the door. And I think this is Famoush, at first.
Without saying a word, the old man looks me up and down, and looks to my uncle.
He nods his head, and passes Uncle a small bag, which is supposed to be our
payment. But I know it is only a ruse, and I see Uncle covertly slip the man a
bag of his own, the true payment for sneaking me inside. And I can only imagine
what gold or precious jewels it contains.

Before they pull me through the
gates, Uncle hugs me, and whispers in my ear.

“I will see you again.”

But I do not get the chance to say
anything else, as I move inside the wall and the door shuts. And in my heart, I
know that if I do see Uncle again, it will not be in this lifetime.

The old man leads me through the
grounds outside the palace, and I see many things; barracks and a training area
for the soldiers, pens where goats and chickens are kept, gardens where grains
and date trees grow. And like Uncle, I try to take it all in, to store in my
mind any detail I might later use against the monsters.

We go through a door and up some
stairs that lead us to a sleeping area several floors up, a room full of cots.
I am given a space where I can put my things. And I wonder how I will ever find
this place again, as I am quickly led away once more. And we go to a kitchen,
where I am finally introduced to Famoush.

He is not much, a man several years
older than my father with black hair that is thinning, which, perhaps, makes
him look older than he is. And he bears the expression of someone who has been
beaten down by life. The old man leaves me with Famoush, and I never see him
again.

“Let’s see what you can do,”
Famoush says, eying me.

He pushes me
in front of a pile of dead chickens which are covered with damp cloths, to keep
the buzzing flies away. And he gives me the task of plucking and cleaning them.
And so begins my new life in Pharaoh’s palace.

I spend several days alone in the
kitchen with Famoush, and we are overwhelmed with work, as the girls who assist
him have been quickly promoted to the kitchen upstairs, which I suppose is the
fate I hope for, even though I fear it at the same time. But eventually,
another girl appears who is also new here, and we call her Mar Mar. There is a
roundness to her face and figure, which is all curves, especially her breasts
and hips. She is taller than myself, though I can tell she is weak, and I could
easily defeat her if we fought. Mar Mar is very serious at first, and refuses
to speak to me unless it directly involves our work, but I suspect it is only
because she is scared. Famoush is a terrible taskmaster who will yell at us if
we make the slightest mistake. But he slowly warms to his two new helpers,
especially me, because I am an excellent worker. And I try to look out for Mar
Mar, to keep her from making blunders.

Mother has great skill in the
kitchen, which she learned from one of the Luminos, who had earned his talents
over lifetimes. And she taught me well. I am adept at making one of her
favorite recipes, little loaves of bread that we serve to the soldiers. And I
am equally talented at cleaning vegetables and cooking up meats, and pulling
them at just the right moment from the ovens we cook in that are located on a
terrace outside the kitchen. But as competent as I am, Famoush is even better.
He shows me methods of rubbing spices into the meats to make them especially
tender, and I am amazed at his knowledge and cannot believe he gained so much
in just one lifetime. I look at him sometimes, trying to detect the Luminos
glow, just to be sure, but I see no signs of it around him.

Our work in the kitchen is
grueling, especially lugging up the water we use to clean the pots and scrub
the dishes. But soon, Famoush allows us small kindnesses, handfuls of dried
nuts and fruits, and small glasses of wine to get us through the day. And a few
spare moments to chat.

Mar Mar loves to giggle and gossip.
Once she has warmed up to me, it is as though a floodgate has opened.

“Where are you from, Mar Mar?”

“From the city. My family are
sellers in the market.”

“And why are you here?”

“They are sellers. They sold me, of
course,” she says, with a laugh.

And a cold chill runs down my
spine.

“But … why?”

“For riches,” she says with a small
smile. “My father wasn’t going to at first. But they finally offered him enough
that he had no choice but to agree. A new space in the market and a handful of
jewels. One of the royal family saw me in the street and insisted they have
me.”

And Mar Mar blushes.

“And what of you?” she asks me.
“How did you come here?”

“The same way,” I say. “Sold,
though none of the royals saw me. My family had too many daughters.”

And I try to add a tinge of sadness
to my voice, so Mar Mar won’t ask any more questions. Though I have practiced
my lies in my head, it is better to say nothing, to draw as little attention to
myself as possible. And Famoush has heard enough. He clucks his tongue, and
claps his hand for us to start working again.

That night, when we go to our
sleeping quarters, Mar Mar trades places with another girl and moves her mat
next to mine, so we can have a few extra moments to whisper before the others
shush us, before sleep takes us. The palace is huge, so large it almost seems like
a city. And I wonder where all these girls work. Perhaps in others kitchens
scattered within the structure. It takes more than us to cook for the soldiers.
But I will find out soon enough. I have been sent here to spy, among other
things, and I will gain the information I need.

“Have you ever seen Pharaoh?” I say
to Mar Mar, as we lie in the semi-darkness.

“He is most beautiful. And the
queen, too. Dazzlingly so, more than even the gems my parents were given,” Mar
Mar whispers, with glee. “And so is the prince. They passed by me in the
corridors once, when I was told to bring bread to their servants. I thought I
would faint.”

“And where are their chambers?”

“At the top levels of the palace,
of course.”

I wonder if I can sneak up to where
the monsters live, and kill them in their sleep.

Another girl hisses at us, thinking
she intimidates. And, of course, I cannot fight back against her and reveal my
hidden training. The workers in the palace are tired, and deserve their sleep,
so I say nothing more. There will be time for me to uncover the secrets of the
place.