Read Reincarnation for Free Online

reaction to him was still powerful, but she forced herself not to let it overwhelm her.
    There was too much at stake for her now. She would be brave, like Isis.
    "Nakht has told me he is displeased with my reaction to you," she told him. "I do not want to be sent home. I have prayed to Isis and she has taken the terror from my heart. I hope
    you will not hold it against me in the future."
    He did not nod or consent. Did he even speak Egyptian? Many Nubians did, but she could
    not be sure. It seemed, though, that his expression softened a bit. He had stopped
    glowering at her, at least.
    "This day, the mistress of the house has learned that her father has died," she went on.
    "They are already preparing his mummy. My father is a pottery maker in the next town over.
    Nakht is sending Nerfi with me to buy four canopic jars from him. You are to go with us to
    carry our supplies. Ramose will accompany us. I have been told that since he is from my
    village, he is being sent along as a reward for
    44
    his service. But, I suspect, he has been sent to report back to Nakht on whether you and I
    can get along."
    Tetisheri heard coldness in her voice that she had not intended. Rather than have her voice
    shake and betray her fear, she held it steady through great effort. Nonetheless, she could
    tell that the resulting tone was not warm.
    He continued to stare at her steadily, his face revealing no emotion.
    "We will keep our cordial distance from each other and make the journey together. All will
    be well in that case," she concluded, heading for the door.
    As he had promised, Ramose stood guard outside. "All went well?" he checked.
    "He just sat there," she confirmed.
    "Do not fear him," Ramose assured her. "He is afraid of me. I will be there to protect you."
    "I dreamed of him," she confided. "He knocked me off a high place."
    "Dreams are but phantasms of the mind," Ramose said. "You were frightened by him and your mind concocted a fearsome tale. That is all."
    "I have heard our spirits travel in our dreams," she said.
    He grunted dismissively. "It will be good to go home. They are right to buy their canopic jars from your father. His workmanship is the finest."
    Tetisheri had always loved the jars when she was young. Four jars each with a different lid,
    representing the four
    45
    sons of Horus: Hapy the baboon, Qebehsenuef the falcon god, Duamutef the jackal, and
    Imsety the human. Then she had discovered their purpose. Each held a different organ taken
    from a mummified body -- the lungs, the intestines, the stomach, and the liver. They were
    entombed along with the owners mummy. From then on she could never separate the jars
    from their function, and lost her love of their fanciful lids.
    Her father often chided her for her distaste of everything to do with death. "It's a change
    much like the shifting sands of the desert," he tried to convince her. "Your ka, your spirit double, will roam after death. It may want to return for things it needed in this life. That's
    why we must supply them."
    But she would have nothing to do with it. She loved this earth, the sun on her face, the call
    of birds, the smells of oils and burning lamps. She was too much of this world to ever want
    to leave it.
    "My father is the best potter," she agreed, shaking off the thoughts of death.
    Ramose stepped closer to her. "I will enjoy spending time with you back in our village as we
    did when we were children."
    She was suddenly uncomfortable and turned to leave, but he held on to her wrist.
    "Back then we liked each other, didn't we?" he said.
    She knew he meant more than mere childish liking. It was true. There had always been
    something unspoken
    46
    between them. "But you went away and joined the army," she reminded him.
    "Strange," he said, "back then I always had the feeling that you would go away and never return, leaving me to wonder what had happened to you. It was such a strong belief, yet it
    was based on nothing."
    "So you left instead?" she