Chapter 61: Several opinions
Dedyet rolled her eyes. "That's just nonsense."
"Haven't you heard what the priests say?!"
"I have."
"I have talked to my advisers as well."
"And?"
"All of them say that it is safer to get rid of Nefera and have a new child."
"Are you kidding me?!"
The nurse walked outside carefully, knowing they were about to fight.
"I am not."
"Ramses! Nefera is our child! We can't just abandon her like barbaric people would!"
Ramses seemed careless. "We would drown her in the Nile."
She looked at him in anger. "I can't believe it!"
"It's okay, my love. Nefera won't harm you if we take her away soon enough."
"Nefera won't harm anybody! She's a newborn!"
"Possessed by a demon."
"That's utter nonsense! I'll punch anyone in the face who tells me my child is possessed and evil! She is innocent, newly born even!"
"I see."
"Hmpf!"
"Are you possessed, too?"
"Are you kidding me?!"
Ramses came closer, trying to take Nefera away from his wife, but Dedyet pulled her baby closer.
"Ramses, a few hours ago you told me you loved her!"
"I have solely complimented her beauty, that is all."
"You are terrible!"
"Dedyet," he tried to explain in a gently tone, "I just want the best for us and the kingdom. If this child really is possessed, then there is a demon controlling her. We are in danger!"
"Argh, I wish I wouldn't have married you! Then I could go back to the North now, live with my brother and take my baby with me to safety!"
Ramses seemed truly hurt. "Don't say that, Honey…"
"It's true! Because we have just had a baby, and now you expect me to abandon it!"
"I love our baby, too…"
"No, you want her dead!"
"Dedyet, the priests I have spoken to have years of experience. They are selected by the gods themselves to-"
"Oh, and you trust them on it?"
"Absolutely."
"That's disgusting!"
"Please, my dear, don't forget that the priests are in close connection to the gods. The beings who have created our land and have given us life."
"You are connected to them, too! You are literally a half god, Ramses!"
"I have prayed."
"And?"
"There was no answer."
"I suppose you expect me to leave?"
"What? No!"
"Well, apparently you do. Because I will not leave Nefera alone anymore, knowing that her own father wants her dead, supported by the majority of people I am supposed to trust."
Ramses sighed. He stepped closer and looked his baby in the eyes. Nefera looked at him, too, smiling a few seconds later.
"My little girl," he mumbled.
"Ramses."
"Yes?"
"You have to tell me something."
"Anything, my dear."
"Tell me how it all happened. They told you she had a mark on her arm, and then?"
"Well, I was concerned and took a look while she was in the arms of our new wet nurse."
"Also."
"Yes?"
"Why did you hire a wet nurse?!"
"I didn't want you to breastfeed on your own. It's really exhausting."
"And you know that because…?"
"I have spoken to several women…"
She gave him an angry look, waiting that he'd admit it.
"Fine! My mother told me!"
"How does she know? She never breastfed on her own!"
"She doesn't want you to stress yourself so much. Just imagine Nefera would have woken you up at night. I am sure you would still be asleep now. Your body couldn't handle it. You need to heal."
Dedyet sighed. "Can… Can you tell me more about the mark on Nefera's arm? How it all happened?"
"Of course, my love. So, I took a look and was concerned, so I let the servants get the best priests and doctors."
"And who arrived first?"
"The doctors. They have their quarters right in the palace while the priests had to get here first. So, naturally, the doctors were here earlier."
"And then?"
"We took a look together, they examined the mark and most said it was a birthmark, while others were sure that Nefera will die if we don't get rid of her left arm. But it were just a few who said that. They then began debating. Most ended up claiming the mark to be harmless."
"And what about the priests?"
"They arrived soon after, and took a look as well."
Dedyet tried to picture it in her head. "And the advisers were…?"
"The advisers were there with me, and listened to what the doctors said. They were concerned and still are."
"All of them?"
"Yes?"
"Are you really sure, Ramses?"
"If anyone does not feel empathy for the pharaoh, I will throw them right out!"
Dedyet rolled her eyes and repeated her question. "When you spoke to the doctors, were all the advisers there?"
Ramses seemed sceptic. "Well, one of them wasn't."
"Where was he?"
"I think he was already speaking to the priests as they arrived. They were in the background while the doctors were still discussing."
"Who was it?"
"You mean the doctors? Well, only the best ones in the king-"
"No! Who stood behind when all of you were with Nefera?"
"The priests."
"And with them?"
"My chief adviser."