Chapter 12: A sad and sudden ending

"Oh, Hathor has blessed me," Dedyet whispered right after their lips had stopped touching.

"With beauty, yes."

"But also with love."

The couple got interrupted before any other action of intimacy could happen. It was an angry pharaoh, storming into the room.

"Dedyet, these men are leaving!"

"What?!"

Two guards came inside and grabbed Ramses's arms. "Hey! Let go of me!" He yelled angrily. "I'm royalty!"

But they dragged him outside.

"What is happening?!" Dedyet asked her brother in shock after getting up herself, not knowing if she should scream or simply cry.

"This is a scandal! These men tried to take my throne away from me!"

It was then when Dedyet heard Ramses screaming her name in the chaos. She ran after him, leaving her brother behind.

"Ramses!"

"Dedyet!"

Ramses was thrown outside like dirty laundry.

Dedyet tried to hug him one last time, but the guards kept her away. She started to cry in despair and rage.

Before anything else could happen, Ramses found himself back in his litter, his father sitting on the throne in front of him, surprisingly calm.

"What is happening?!"

"Ramses, my son. This man is unpredictable!"

"What did he do?!"

"I think I might have prattled away…"

"You told him our plan?!"

"Well, he guessed the last bit himself." The pharaoh seemed incredibly careless.

"Seriously?! You have broken my heart!" Ramses responded in an overly emotional way.

"Ramses, you knew this woman for a day!"

"It was love, Father. Love!"

"You wouldn't know what love was even if it spit you right in the face! Now sit down and stop talking! The servants are bringing us home, back to where we belong! Away from this terrible dump!"

The litter began moving, but Ramses was anything but ready. "Stop calling it 'dump'! This is her home!"

The pharaoh rolled his eyes. "As long as you didn't impregnate this woman, I do not care about her future."

"Because you don't care about anyone! You only care about yourself!"

It was exactly this sentence that made his father raise his voice. "How dare you! I'm literally the reason that you met this silly woman! I'm the reason you exist! I've wanted YOU to unite the two kingdoms! And what do I get? My excuse of a son, calling me selfish! ME! The pharaoh!"

Ramses' answer was quiet, almost sad. "I have met the woman I love. And you are dragging me away from her."

"Just two days ago, you called this place disgusting. You didn't want to go here at all. And now it's different because you saw a pretty woman?!"

"I didn't just see her. I got to know her. And that's what counts. Beauty isn't about having a pretty face. It's about having a pretty mind, a pretty heart and a pretty soul."

"Where did you hear that nonsense?!"

"From Dedyet. The woman I love."

"And why didn't you impregnate her then?! If you love her so much?!"

"What was I supposed to do?! Force her to sleep with me?!"

"Yes."

The litter turned quiet. Ramses looked his father in the eyes, shocked about his answer.

The pharaoh crossed his arms in anger. "What?"

"Is that what you would have done in my place? Rape her?"

"Stop acting so surprised! You told me you love her!"

"But that doesn't mean she's my property!"

"You are just too gentle, that's all! A child would have been perfect now. She'd find out she's pregnant and look for you. You'd get her through it, have a child and start a family."

"As if it's that easy."

"It's pretty easy, Son. As soon as they find out they're pregnant, they crawl back to you, looking for support. It's almost pathetic."

"I care about Dedyet. And I wouldn't do that to someone I care about." Silence. "Actually, I wouldn't do that to anyone!"

"Do you know how many female slaves get pregnant by their owners?!"

"You can't compare my girlfriend to a slave."

"Ramses. Women serve a certain function. No matter if they are royal or property."

"I can't believe that that's what you think about women, Father."

"Grow up and stop making a fuss about basic biology!"

"I have-"

"Ah, whatever. We will go home and you will marry your sister, just as planned."

"And then? Rape her too?"

Ramses' father slammed his fist against a table. "No, you idiot! I told you that it would have been smart of you to get Dedyet pregnant as you had enough time to do it!"

"Father, I know her since yesterday."

"Do you see it now? Do you see how ridiculous you sound, saying that you love her?"

Ramses faced the ground, obviously humiliated.

"Love is unimportant. I have never loved your mother. Yet she has gifted me four children."

He looked up in anger. "And why? Because it's her function?!"

"Yes. That's exactly why."

Ramses didn't answer. Instead, he looked out of the window, realizing that every mile took him farther away from the person he loved.