Page 29 of The Immortal's Trick
I look at Lome. This stranger. This foreigner. Thisgod. Ican’tmarry him. Ishouldn’t. It’s madness.
I search for words, some gentle refusal, but as if reading my intent, Lome’s head lifts sharply. His expression changes. He knows.
“All your mortal troubles will be gone, Eshe. I will love and cherish you forever. I will take care of you. I will take care of your family.”
Each sentence tests the cracks in my resolve, but the last one splits me wide open. “My family?” I whisper.
He rises and nods. “You will marry into a wealthy family, Eshe. Your family will not want for anything if you are my bride.”
Hope bursts up inside me like a spring after drought.Nebet.I can save Nebet.
Lome steps toward me, slow and deliberate, and takes my hand. He raises it and presses a soft kiss to the back, never breaking eye contact.
“I will do anything to make you happy, Eshe. All I ask in return is that you agree to be mine.”
I study everything about him—his eyes, his lips, his strong jaw, the way he swallows nervously, waiting for my answer. I’ve known him for days.Days. And still, I can’t name a single thing about him that feels wrong, aside from the most obvious.
He isn’t human.
But he’s been nothing but kind. Gentle. Respectful. And he hasn’t used his power to force me, though I now know he easily could have. He’s offering, not demanding.
And if I say yes, Nebet will be safe. My family will be free.
I look at him—reallylook.
And with my heart thundering like a storm, I know what I have to do.
12
One MonthLater
The villain the heart of Alexandria is a world apart from the one I knew. Polished marble tiles cool the soles of my feet as I pace the length of the chamber. Sheer linen curtains, pale as morning mist, float like ghosts in the warm breeze slipping through carved windows high above the city streets.
Outside, the clatter of amphorae being arranged in the gardens and the soft murmur of servants preparing for the feast reach me. Everything smells of fresh herbs, crushed citrus, and roses.
I perch on the bench beside the window, back straight, hands folded neatly in my lap to stop them from trembling. I try to appear calm, composed… like a girl not moments away from marrying an immortal.
Lome’s proposal still plays in my mind every day. His voice, his eyes, the way he knelt before me as if I were the divine one in the room. Since that night, everything has moved at a dizzying speed.
After I gave my answer—my hesitant, breathless yes—Lome took me straight to my father.
Theshan Akil, ever the practical man, blinked only once when I told him I had accepted the foreign suitor’s marriage proposal.
Father’s eyes had slid to the stranger beside me, took in the fine fabrics of his tunic, the polished sandals, the quiet power in his stance, and nodded.
That was it.
No questions.
But later, in the hush of night, when I lay on the mattress beside Nebet and stared at our bedroom ceiling, I wondered if Father would’ve reacted differently if he knew the truth—if he knew that Lome’s blood was older than the pharaohs, and that his heartbeat had echoed through centuries?
Would he have clung tighter to me then? Would he have protected me?
I don’t think so.
Not when Lome reached into his cloak and withdrew two heavy bags of gold. They were a gift—a peace offering for taking me when Nebet was already promised to another.
My father accepted the coin with silent reverence, like a blessing from the gods. He didn’t know I intended to use that gold to free Nebet from her betrothal to Benipe.
