Chapter 3. Resignation

Afhany ran her hand over her swollen lips. What a pity! He is an attractive man... He could win her over in the traditional ways if he wanted to... Perhaps under other circumstances... But what was she thinking? That man was going to rape her! She had to get away from there... There had to be a way... And she had to think of something soon. But what if she couldn't? What if she tried to escape and got caught again? That man was wicked. What punishment could he impose on her in his anger for having defied him with two escapes? She couldn't forget that she was in a faraway land, with no friends she could trust to help her, and without help, it was impossible. The way was to accept her fate resignedly... But she would make him regret what he had done to her! I would make that man's life a living hell! She would discover his weak spot and give him no peace until he sent her back or killed her. But one thing she would already carry forever in her heart, even if she would never admit it to anyone. Her first kiss, though it was taken, was something far better than the poets described. Perhaps they had never experienced a kiss of that magnitude.

A lady entered the room with a tray containing tea and cookies. She placed her on the bed, and silently, as she entered, she left. Afhany was tired, but she ate everything and slept without thinking of anything else.

When she woke up the doctor was in the room, sitting on the chair that was left by Moses at her bedside. He smiled friendly at her when he saw her awake.

"I hope you are better. You were quite sunburned yesterday, and with the ointment I had them apply to your body, almost all the rash is gone." He said and got up. But soon, he was back with a bowl of broth. "Can you sit down to eat? This broth contains roots that will help your recovery and is very nutritious and tasty."

Afhany was not used to being treated so kindly and liked the doctor. She took his advice and sat down to take the bowl he held out to her. She ate it. He did not lie. It was tasty. As soon as she finished, she handed him the bowl.

"You don't even look like you're from here... You're so kind..."

"The people here are all kind. Once you get used to them, you will see them differently, and you will like them. Would you like to learn some of our languages?"

"I think that would be good... I can make them understand me. Will you teach me?"

The doctor then practiced a few sentences with her. Afhany was a fast learner, and her brain was like a sponge that absorbed everything and retained it inside her. The doctor was amazed at the speed with which she learned things and decided to stop that day, as he still had other things to do; he got up to leave but turned to her when Afhany asked in the language he had just taught her, using words he had not passed on to her. That scared him more than what was asked.

"I need you to help me escape. It can be after the ritual, so the Pharaoh won't have a reason to chase me down and bring me back, but after that, I can't stay here anymore."

Alfred turned to her slowly, his gaze wide. He had seen unbelievable things before, but they were always associated with the gods, never with a young woman who, despite her unusual beauty, was no more special than he was. He was facing someone with a gift.

"Who are your parents?" He managed to ask after a contemplative time.

"I don't know, and I don't care. They sold me. Will you help me?"

Alfred felt curious. He needed to know more.

"Will you go back to your land if I help you escape?"

"I don't know where I'm going. I know I'm from some island called Vel, but I don't know where it is. Whichever realm I go to, I will consider my home."

The doctor remembered hearing about manifestations of gods on this island. He looked at her more closely. Her hair was as red as fire, and her eyes as green as two emeralds. The beauty was unusual but expected as the Pharaoh's god had chosen her from among the most beautiful in all the world.

"Then why don't you make your home here?"

"Because I was sold to Pharaoh as a slave, and I want to know that I am free. I need to feel that. Here, that is impossible."

"I can't betray Moses like that. He not only has the blood of gods and is our leader. He is also my friend. I hope you will reconsider and realize that there can be more than just a home. You can make the people of this place your friends and your family." He said and left before she could challenge him. However, Moses never knew about that conversation.

Afhany became restless. She felt frustrated, and even without ties, it was as if she was still bound by chains. There was no escape from there.

She got up and went to the door. It was locked. That was to be expected. That didn't surprise her. She looked around the room more carefully. It looked like she was in an all-wooden room, but she didn't understand how something made of wood could keep the heat of the sun from coming in, for there were no windows, and it was cool as if she were under a tree. There wasn't much furniture. An old cupboard, a grimy bathtub, the bed, and the chair on which Pharaoh had sat. She couldn't help thinking that this would be her home. She went to the closet and opened it. Only nightgowns. From the looks of it, this would be the place where he would wear her, and he believed she needed nothing but old cotton nightgowns. He thought he would live in a more luxurious place. The man who raised her and even Pharaoh himself said he was very rich, but even his room in the house of the man who sent her there, though simple, was luxurious compared to the one there. She went back to bed and sat down. There was no point in feeling sorry for herself. It was done. She thought about going to the door and knocking until someone came to answer. She was hungry. That broth was good, but it wasn't enough. In no mood, she lay down, and after much thinking about her life and the girls she considered her sisters who were left behind and whom she knew she would never see again, she slept.