Egyptian Timewave

Chapter 31

"Captain, could I speak with you for a moment?"

Huy nods. "Kheti, watch her for a moment." He ducks out into the hallway, and Abayomi can hear hushed voices. When Huy returns, he is frowning deeply. "I've been told that one of the princesses is missing her handmaiden. I don't suppose that would be you?"

Abayomi smiles. "That would be me. I hope she isn't too troubled by the inconvenience of my disappearance?"

"The princess will be informed of your whereabouts and will be escorted here to retrieve you. Do stay out of trouble. Kheti, with me, you have a job to do."

Silently, Kheti slips out of the room, door closing behind him to leave Abayomi in silence. She waits three breaths before sagging in relief. They believed her, or at least they gave the impression that they did and regardless, they're letting her go. That's a relief.

About half an hour after the guards left her alone in the dark room, Abayomi can hear the sounds of rushed footsteps in the hallway. Someone speaks in low tones before opening the door, revealing Anippe on the other side. The princess has to restrain herself from full on rushing inside the room to Abayomi, choosing instead to fist the fabric of her dress for at least ten heartbeats. She turns to the guard who had escorted her to the door.

"I assume she's free to leave now?"

The guard bows. "Yes my lady, she is free to go."

"Good." Anippe curls her fingers towards Abayomi in a beckoning gesture. "Come."

Quickly, Abayomi stands and hurries over to her, shooting a glance over her shoulder as she does. From outside, the room is even more horribly gloomy, with the shadows on the floor so thick that she can't actually see the floor from out here. She shuffles closer to Anippe. The other girl notices and glances at her, gaze scanning over Abayomi's body for any injuries. She nods sharply after a moment.

"Let us go."

Anippe leads Abayomi down the corridor to the right, the guard who had escorted her trailing a few steps behind them. He keeps following them until they reach a courtyard, a place that took them several minutes to reach. But once they have stepped out into the green space, he fades back down the corridor. Still facing the courtyard, Abayomi can see Anippe's face crumple for a heartbeat before she smoothes it over with a deep breath.

Abayomi blinks. "Are you alright?"

A sharp nod from the princess and another breath. "Yes I'm fine."

"Anippe?" She glances over at Abayomi. "You don't have to be fine."

"I must be fine, at least while I'm in public. Are you alright?"

Abayomi nods, wrapping her arms around herself. "I think so. They just asked me a bunch of questions."

"Just questions? What kind of questions?" Before Abayomi can respond, Anippe shakes her head. "No, wait until we get back to my chambers. We may need that privacy."

Nodding, Abayomi steps back behind Anippe and to her left, trailing behind the other girl as she leads the way back to her rooms. Her mind is whirling, but Abayomi can't tell if it's turning over the conversation she overheard or if it's just the last vestiges of panic still buzzing through her.

Either way, her head feels both too quiet and too loud. She shudders, wrapping her arms tightly around herself once more and takes a breath. It's shakier than she had expected it to be, there must still be some panic and fear coursing through her. Anippe must have noticed her actions out of the corner of her eye, for she turns back to Abayomi with a concerned look.

"Are you sure you're alright?"

Abayomi gives her a tight smile and nods in response. "Yes."

Anippe sighs. "Very well."

She turns the corner and leads them up a narrow staircase and walking a short distance past it before stopping in front of her rooms to push open the door. She waves Abayomi ahead of her and after following, she is quick to push the door shut instead of letting it close on its own. The moment she hears the sound of it hitting the doorframe, she sags, her shoulders dropping and her face falling. She takes a ragged breath, raising one hand to drag it down her face.

"What happened?" Abayomi blinks at her. "What happened to get the guards to drag you away?"

"I was walking, walked into a guard and fell down. When I got up I ended up turning back the way I came."

Anippe frowns. "That can't be all."

Abayomi shifts nervously. "Well, no. He thought that it meant I was eavesdropping."

"Eavesdropping on what?"

"A conversation between guards and two priests. At least one of them was a priest from the first conversation I overheard, but I think it was both of them."

"So you did eavesdrop."

"Yeah."

A heavy sigh from Anippe. "Abayomi, this is how you get yourself killed. Do you want to go back to your own time or not?"

"Of course I want to go home! I only listened in because it was connected to the first conversation I overheard."

"Then what were they talking about?"

"The guards are going to be investigating within the court for any suspicious behavior, any clue that someone could be working with or under the influence of the snake."

Anippe pales. "Oh dear."

"What?"

"If someone looks too closely, Abayomi, you'll look suspicious! You don't have any background if someone goes digging!"

Abayomi flinches slightly. "I know, I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to get in trouble or get caught, I promise."

"I know, I know. Did you find out anything else?"

"I can identify some of the speakers?"

"Who?"

Abayomi frowns. "Umm, someone named Meryre-"

"The high priest?"

"Yes, and the other one might have been named Hori? He was either the second priest or one of the guards. And the guard who was asking me questions, Kheti? He was there too." Abayomi looks up to see Anippe still turning over the words 'high priest' in her mouth. "Anippe? You good?"

"The high priest got pulled into this?"

"Yes? He's one of the ones I overheard the first time."

"Why didn't you tell me that before?"

"Because I didn't know? I only know his name now because someone said it. Is he going to be a problem?"

Anippe toes the ground, frowning. "It's possible, it means they have a lot of power behind their search and if they grab you again, it won't be easy to help you. Even my word as a member of the royal family won't hold for long against the high priest, ande even less so if they bring my uncle into the matter."

"I'm sorry?"

Anippe sighs. "It's not your fault, Abayomi." She pauses before walking over to her bed and falling back onto it. "I need a break."

Abayomi laughs. "You need a break so you're going to nap?"

A shrug. "Why not?"

Abayomi supposes she can't argue with that.
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Hi, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I um don't have any questions for you all right now, so just tell me what you thought of it.

Also umm I'm not going to be posting any more chapters for a week, maybe more, I'm going through some stuff right now. I promise I'll come back, but I need some time with myself and my family.

See you next chapter,

~ Goddess of Fate, signing out