CHAPTER SIXTY-FIVE
How did the royal family know that I was at the temple? My first thought was that the witness must have told them. That he had seen me at the Golden Lamb, realized who I was, and somehow told the palace.
My second thought was that Io must have told everyone. But she wasn t even here and I d only just confided in her. How could she have shared my secret already? She had sworn she wouldn t.
Or maybe someone at the festival had overheard us and passed the information along to the prince. They were probably paid a good amount of coin for it.
It had been so foolish of me to tell Io. If I had just kept my mouth shut, this wouldn t be happening.
That wine had led me to so many bad decisions last night. All the eyes in the courtyard turned toward me. Some wore questioning expressions, others accusing.
Suri s eyebrows raised as Ahyana asked, Is that true?
Well, at least now I had proof that Io had kept silent. Our sisters would have been the first people she told.
Yes, it s true.
Ahyana looked devastated. Why didn t you tell us?
You know why, Zalira interjected. They ll never let her stay here now that they know who she is.
I didn t say anything because I was trying to prevent this from happening. The prince is going to demand that I marry him to solidify his claim to the throne. I had hoped I had another week at least. I m sorry I kept this from you. But, as you can see, this secret coming out is going to jeopardize everything I ve done.
Soon I wouldn t have a choice. I imagined that Theano would happily hand me over to this Thrax, and as soon as I got close to him, I was going to kill him. Which meant I was going to wind up in prison or executed for crimes against the soon-to-be king and his personal representative.
To my surprise, Antiope turned toward me and said, Lia, do you want to go with this man?
No, I do not, I called back.
She returned her gaze to the captain. There. You heard her. She doesn t want to go with you. She is under our protection and will not leave the temple grounds. No woman here will be taken by the likes of you. You re welcome to come and try to claim her but I wouldn t recommend it.
Everyone was going to wind up dead. I was about to be the reason for a war between the royal family and the temple.
He nodded, as if he had expected this response. The temple is surrounded and will continue to be until Princess Thalia is handed over. No one will be allowed to leave and no supplies will be permitted in.
Io, Ahyana breathed. Will she and the others be able to return? Or will they take them captive?
They won t hurt Io, I said confidently. She will be fine. These were her people, after all.
Although I couldn t predict what might happen to Tryphosa and the other acolytes.
Antiope scowled. I could see she didn t like this threat. She might even go out there and eliminate the king s army by herself.
The historical sieges I d read about usually did not end well for the people being invaded. This Thrax had robbed me of Quynh and now he was going to starve us into submission.
To force us into a position where we would have no choice but to surrender.
I wasn t going to let him hurt any more of my sisters. But if I went with him, this would all be over. Locris would be doomed and I would never get the answers I d been looking for.
Back inside! Antiope called to the crowd, and we all filed into the dining room. Again I was treated with names and curses and glares from women who obviously wished me dead.
It wasn t anything new but it was never easy to deal with.
My sisters lined up next to me, shoulder to shoulder. I knew they would fight to help me if necessary.
There was a lot of yelling and confusion until Antiope stood up on the dais and ordered, Shut your mouths! Now! I will not have this kind of disorder!
Our supply of food is not limitless! an older priestess said. We will be fine for a time but eventually we will run out.
We can ration, Antiope said.
What if they cut off our water supply again?
Were the prince s men responsible for that? But if they had been, wouldn t Io have said something? Wouldn t she have recognized the red dirt?
Or maybe she had kept quiet to not risk giving away her own identity.
Did that mean Prince Alexandros was responsible for the pirate attack on the Nikos ? Why would he have done it?
Had he wanted to eliminate me before I ever came to Ilion so that he would be free to marry his precious Chryseis?
That didn t make sense. He could have just canceled the contract. There would have been a fine to pay, but he certainly could have afforded it. He didn t have to end my life to have his way. And why would he want me to turn myself over now?
Whoever had stopped up the spring wasn t working for the prince.
We will go out now and fill up as many vases as we can from the fountain, Antiope said. An attack on one of our acolytes is an attack on all of us. The prince does not get to dictate our actions or our choices. We are not subject to him. We are one sisterhood.
I should turn myself in, I said, shaking my head. Despite Antiope s rallying speech I could see that not everyone felt the same way she did. I m not going to put everyone in danger.
One for many. I knew that it was the right thing to do.
Didn t you hear Antiope? Zalira said, coming to stand in front of me. We stand together. We are sisters.
My heart clenched at her words, wanting to believe them but knowing how this would eventually turn out.
I couldn t hold out forever. Neither could the women of the temple.
Eventually I would have to do what the prince wanted to save everyone here.
And I would do so willingly.
I would find a way to still save Locris. That wouldn t change.
What would change was getting to see my adelphia every day. I knew that at some point that would have happened regardless, but if I was being honest with myself, I d dreamed about convincing all of them to return to Locris with me, with Jason captaining our ship.
It was a ridiculous fantasy and I shouldn t have even entertained it.
Everyone go back to your responsibilities! Antiope yelled over the fray. If our decision changes, we will let you know!
Zalira took me by the arm and led our sisters back to our room. When the door was shut she said, We have to smuggle you out.
Ahyana nodded enthusiastically. Yes! We ll get you out of the temple and then you ll be safe. You can hide in Troas until you find whatever it is you re looking for and then you can go home. You can have all of my coins. She went over to her heavy box. I don t have a need for them.
I bit the inside of my cheek so that I wouldn t cry. I knew how long she d been collecting her drachmas. I won t take your money.
It s actually Kunguru s money since he was the one who stole it, but he would want you to have it, too.
Suri went over to the window and looked out, as if she expected to see a mob with torches calling for my head.
There won t be a way to leave, I said. Did you see how many soldiers were out there? That Thrax said they ve surrounded the entire temple. I ll never be able to sneak past them. Even with distractions and cloud cover.
I don t accept that, Zalira said with a shake of her head. There has to be a way. I won t let them march in here and grab you and force you into a marriage you don t want.
We may be left with little choice. Demaratus had impelled me to be realistic. If I knew what the outcome would most likely be, then I could prepare for it and maybe even find a way to circumvent it.
There s always a choice! We just have to find it, Zalira countered. But in the meantime, one of us should always be with you. I don t think things are going to be safe for you going forward.
I thought she d meant from outside the temple but I soon discovered that the greater threat came from within.
The army did not leave. True to their word, they laid a serious siege outside the temple walls. They never entered the grounds, but they stayed put. They didn t allow any messengers or supplies in or out. Our pantries were well stocked and every available vase had been filled with water. It seemed unnecessary because the water continued to flow.
Every evening at dinnertime Thrax came to the archway in his chariot and made the same announcement. His name, that he was captain of the prince s royal guard, and a demand that I be turned over to him to honor the contract.
I always came out to see him when he arrived, planning all the ways I was going to make him bleed as soon as I got the chance.
When there wasn t a literal army between us.
Zalira, Ahyana, and Suri kept trying to come up with a plan for me to sneak out but nothing they thought of was viable. The vise had been applied too tightly. There was no way to escape.
On the morning of the fourth day, I headed out to do my morning chores. My sisters had stayed up late last night plotting and I hadn t wanted to wake any of them this morning. They deserved their rest.
I was filling a vase with water when something hit me hard in the back of my head. My knees gave way and I turned onto my shoulder to cushion my fall. I quickly rolled over, my head throbbing, and pulled out my xiphos and got back on my feet.
Artemisia stood with a staff, along with the remaining members of her adelphia behind her. Once again you bring nothing but trouble to the temple. You re going to get us all killed. I m going to hand you over before that happens.
Several of these girls were part of the Chosen. This was not going to be an easy fight. Not only was I outnumbered but I was outclassed. They were more skilled at combat than I was.
I m not going anywhere, I said. I d had the same thoughts. That I should turn myself over to Thrax, if for no other reason than to get close enough to take my revenge, regardless of what the consequences would be after.
But I wasn t going to let Artemisia force me out. I would go on my own terms, in a way that I chose.
I bent down to retrieve my broom and I broke the shaft away from the brush. They were all wielding staves, which would give them a distance advantage over my sword. I expected them to rush me but they didn t.
Do you know how much I m going to enjoy watching you bleed? Artemisia asked. You come in here and betray everything we stand for. You defile this temple and all the people who serve. Your nation is responsible for so much death and so much chaos. You have taken a sister from me. You have cursed us, and the only way to make things right is a blood sacrifice. There is more than one way for you to leave this temple.
No more vague threats, no more pretending to get along.
She intended to kill me.