has successfully breached the room, until you. Most who stumbled upon the room were so distracted by the treasure only to find that to set hands upon it led to their untimely deaths.”
“You underestimate mortal curiosity,” Dr. Hassan posed as he shifted his hat between his hands anxiously. “There are those of us who seek far more than treasure.”
“Yes. There are a few, but not many with your talents, Vizier. When the devoted, such as yourself, attempted to access the secret rite and failed, they were also disposed of.”
“So the other gods were unhappy about your servant’s transformation?” I asked.
A tinge of sadness stole over her lovely features. “They are not as open-minded about things as I am,” she said. “They believe that the state we are born into is the only state we should aspire to. If it wasn’t for me, the Sons of Egypt wouldn’t exist. I was the one who convinced the gods to act and reward the three worthy mortals with our power. If we hadn’t done so, we would be forced to intervene and manage Seth ourselves. Such an act would eventually drain us of our energies, leaving us unable to see to our duties.”
Isis smiled, as if I would completely understand her point of view. The indifference I sensed from her toward the things Amon and his brothers had to endure set me on edge. “So you are the one who made it so that Asten, Amon, and Ahmose have to die over and over again? They can’t fall in love or be husbands or fathers or have a normal life because of you? It’s unfair to task them with cleaning up your messes just because it’s inconvenient to you! Did you even ask them if that’s what they wanted?”
The goddess cocked her head. The corner of her mouth was upturned either because she considered what I said funny or because she thought I was a curious sort of bug that needed to be squashed. Either way, I was offended. I could feel righteous anger pumping through my veins.
“The Sons of Egypt were given a choice. They could depart for the afterlife and await their kin, or they could return for admittedly brief periods of time to serve the gods. They chose the latter.”
“I don’t think they really understood what it was you were asking of them.”
“Do you, Lily? Do you understand what is being asked of you? Or are you willing to change the very fiber of your being in order to save those you love?” I squirmed a bit under her gaze but kept my chin raised in an effort of defiance. “I can see your heart, young one, just as I could see theirs. They were worthy of the gift. Whether you call it a blessing or a curse is immaterial. They were willing, and we found a use for them.”
“Just like you used your handmaid?”
Anger shot through Isis’s features but the signs of it quickly disappeared. “You know not of what you speak. Baniti was dying. It was painful. When I made her a sphinx, I meant it to be a gift for a beloved handmaid.”
“What…what happened to her?” I asked.
“Baniti couldn’t come to accept her new life. She didn’t have the heart for it. You see, a sphinx is dual-hearted in nature. Her mind fragmented, and she could not reconcile the woman she’d been with the creature she needed to embrace. The stories of a sphinx devouring men are true, though it wasn’t because they couldn’t solve her riddle. Hunters chased her, cornered her in caves.
“She was nearly wild, feral; any humanity remaining was eclipsed by the beast. Her only option was to lash out. And when she smelled blood, her other half took over. She was horrified by what she was and eventually sought her own end, though death, except under very rare circumstances, was no longer an option. Finally, unable to care for her on my own, I approached the council, confessed what I had done, and awaited their decision. They granted what she sought. Her own death.”
“Then why keep the rite at all? Why not eradicate all evidence that it had ever been done?”
“Because,” she answered simply, “the stars said we’d need it.”
“What are you saying?” Dr. Hassan asked. “The stars knew about Lily?”
“Not about Lily, no, but we dare not question what the stars have seen. That might mean Lily is the reason. It might mean something else or someone else. It might mean nothing.