Part 10 (2/2)
, ”Very well Achillas has seen to that Every entrance is bristling with soldiers, and the harbors are blockaded”
”So Caesar is trapped?”
”He does not see it that way, apparently He does not seem alarmed”
So Caesar was locked in, and I was locked out
A week passed, then two Nothing happened Our armies continued to face each other across the stretch of desert, and neither moved Then another deserter appeared, and his neas that Ptoleether in the palace (What were our deserters telling Achillas? That ere disheartened? Tired of waiting, but with insufficient soldiers to force a battle?) Day after day we sat by the wells under the shade of the pal-lashed eyelids closed, and the rocks in the direct sun gave off the characteristic smell of overheated stone A sort of torpor overtook us It was as if we had always been here and alould be
And then one day the light seeuard, a man from Gaza, came to my tent and said, ”Sandstor had to be covered several tis secured, and we ing a h gauze
”Hurry, Iras!” I said ”Put the jewel boxes and the money chests on a mantle, lest they sink into the sands The water jars too Then cover them over And come and huddle with me under my cloak, with a blanket spread over that A tent within a tent”
She did so, and aited The wind rose to a howl and we could see the sides of the tent straining Sand got in through all the tiny spaces in the cloth, seeping in almost as if it ater The air was hazy with it
The full force of it went on for hours, and then lasted into the darkness We dared not stir I was thankful that it had started during the day so we had seen it coht it had abated, but as I was preparing to lift off the covering, I saw the side of the tent bulging and straining The as strong! But then it see Suddenly hands appeared in the door of the tent, and I saw someone crawl in
”Here, sir,” said the voice of one of uards
Another shape followed on its hands and knees Both figures were couard ”Are you here?”
I threw off the outer cloak but kept on the veil, and stood up ”Yes,” I said ”Who to see er from Julius Caesar”
Caesar! I stiffened ”We will receive him Pray you, stand up and show your faces”
The two s Under the hood of Cornelius I saw the Roman helmet with its decorative brush
”Welcome,” I said ”What has Imperator Caesar to say to Queen Cleopatra?” My heart was pounding
”My general and coypt to rectify the sad situation whereby King Ptole obeyed This will, which was entrusted to Ro Ptolemy to rule jointly Caesar finds, alas, that brother and sister are at ith each other This grieves hirievesmy words carefully As I spoke, I could taste fine sand ins justice Pompey was betrayed, as I have been And by the same people!”
”Caesar will hear the case, and decide”
”Caesar has not, perchance, already decided? The words of the little King must sound sweet in his ear”
”He wishes to hear your words as well He suspects they will be sweeter”
I stiffened What exactly did that ypt to Roain with him? Like merchants in the bazaar?”
Cornelius looked truly insulted ”Caesar is ain, you oods you can withhold Such is not the case with you and Caesar”
He dared--! But he spoke the truth Caesar was master of the world and could take what he liked No need to bargain But if he could be persuadedthat was a different ether different
”Caesar requests that you come to Alexandria and ive h the lines of Achillas's aretic ”He has nothat He has no soldiers to spare”
”They will never let me pass”
”But perhaps if I spoke to the yes, they will take h”
He looked confused, as though he had not considered this suspension of courtesy
”This is Egypt,” I said, ”home to treachery But return to Caesar, and tell hi with hi out the mess left by the sandstorm In spite of our efforts, sand had found its way into all the stores of food and into the jars of water and wine Every article of clothing was dusted with sand, so that the garments were scratchy e put them on Our skin was chafed and raw by the end of the day And then we lay down on mattresses that were just as scratchy
My et to Alexandria Since I could not enter openly, I would have to be disguised And I needed to do ain entrance to the palace where Caesar was staying That would be iht of various scheerous Pretend to be a maidservant? Too obvious Put on a bearskin and as on ht? Or could I be set uards at his door
And then, as I lay on e patterned carpet that served as the floor of the tent, the idea ca for a queen”
”That is why no one will suspect it,” I insisted
”You ht suffocate,” said Mardian
”Or be bitten by fleas,” said Olyreatest hazard And hoould Caesar respond to a queen covered with flea bites rolling out of a dusty ?”
”Perhaps he would kiss the flea bites away,” said Iras, raising one eyebrow
I attempted to s aspect of the plan to ive me an ointment to prevent them,” I said to Olyuards rush in and stab you?” asked Mardian
”He will not All reports say he always keeps his head in an unexpected situation He is the least likely of all men to cry out in alarm”
”You deceive yourself He will assu, after all”
”I will have to trust to the Gods, then,” I said firmly ”It is all in their hands”
And that was true There was absolutely nothing I could do to predict Caesar's reaction or to prevent hih my fate depended on it