are in a transitory state, it makes sense to hold off for a time.
Ignoring my inner lioness, I turned my attention back to Ahmose, who had been holding out his other hand, stretching it over the top of the sand. Nothing happened at first, but then the grains began to shift. Asten kept moving ahead, and I worried again that he would get away from us. The sand hardened and a crooked path formed, coming in and out of view.
Ahmose stepped up onto a section of firm sand. “If we walk this path, we will avoid the pitfalls that would swallow us up and lead to destruction,” he said.
“What about Asten?”
“Asten must walk his own path. We will stay as close to him as we can and only deviate from the path if absolutely necessary.”
“Okay,” I said. “Lead the way.”
I hoped that as soon as I saw Amon again, these awkward feelings I was developing regarding other men would disappear. Whether they were originating from Tia or not, I was apparently a willing, if reluctant, participant.
I tried not to think about it, but since she was, at that very moment, thinking about Ahmose’s well-defined arms, my thoughts drifted in that direction as well. She was wondering if she could come to love either one of them, and I couldn’t fault her for that. They were both good choices.
Her thoughts particularly drifted in Asten’s direction and as we walked she replayed his confession in her mind. She empathized with him, for she, too, felt out of place and less than worthy. The idea that Tia considered herself not as important as I was shocked me, and I made a promise to try to give her opinions and thoughts equal weight.
Asten moved in and out of our sight from time to time, but Ahmose always reassured us that he was close, and the path did seem to follow the same general direction he was walking. Occasionally, Ahmose would stop and place his hands on the path, and he’d discover a new direction that would get us closer to his brother. After a few hours of traversing the same dull landscape, me lost in my thoughts, we finally found the source of the burning smell.
It wasn’t obvious what it was at first. The horizon glowed with a golden-orange hue and I thought it might be a sunset, though Ahmose told me he didn’t think that was possible. A sunset would indicate the presence of Amun-Ra, who, though he had guided me to Cherty, had never set foot in the netherworld. At least, as far as Ahmose knew.
Soon we figured out what caused the lights over the hills. We came upon a wide lake that roiled with a blazing liquid that undulated and shifted as if there were various forms writhing beneath its surface. Asten stopped as if taking in his surroundings. The light coming from it reflected off Asten’s face like the flickering of a campfire, and I found the quiet power and ruggedness of his jaw beautiful. I had the overwhelming urge to run my fingertips along it.
Asten blinked as if waking from a dream, and in that moment he looked down at me and must have seen something in my expression, because his changed. His brown eyes lit with tenderness and his lips parted just slightly, as if he’d found something he’d been long seeking. I took a small step closer. For just a moment I thought he was going to touch my cheek, but then something broke the surface of the lake and commanded his attention.
When the moment passed, I shook my head slightly, wondering what on earth was going on. Maybe the heart scarab was affecting him, too. I knew it was only a matter of time before it would influence both Asten and Ahmose, but this was the first indication that one of them was bending to its power. Sucking in a breath, I vowed to be stronger and turned toward the lake.
I’d never conceived of anything like it before. Across the burning water was a waterfall of sorts that seemed to feed it, but the liquid was thick and viscous, a golden chocolate caramel lit from behind. The lake was beautiful in its way, even though I knew that Asten’s personal demons must live hidden within its depths. As I thought of what they could be, Asten moved closer to the fiery water’s edge.