The House of the Rising Sun

Chapter Thirty-Nine: Be Okay

Chapter Thirty-Nine: No Fleeing Yet

Selene

We walked to Amenemhet’s house briskly, and I could hear Alexander cursing Octavian’s name under his breath. My heart was thumping. This night would probably be my last in Egypt, if we even made it out. I squeezed Alexander’s hand. We had come all this way, loved without stopping, and now it could all end.

When we reached Amenemhet’s house, I knocked on the door quickly but quietly. Ra was now below the horizon.

“Selene?” Amenemhet said when he opened the door. He opened the door wider and let us in.

“Amenemhet, please forgive us for coming in on such short notice,” Alexander apologized in a hushed tone.

“I’m sure you’ve heard about the battle now,” I said. Yocheved was sitting on a chair sewing a tunic for her son, and she glanced up. Her face was pale and I could tell she was worried as well.

“I have,” Amenemhet replied gravely. “And the fact that it’s not going well for Egypt.”

“Amenemhet,” Alexander said. “Our freedom is in question. The freedom of all of Egypt. Octavian”—my husband stopped mid-sentence.

Alexander and Octavian had always been friends. From what Alexander had told me, since the death of Julius Caesar, Octavian was never the same. He was an angry man. Mark Antony and Octavian fought against each other mercilessly, and because Alexander had been Mark Antony’s apprentice, the two had grown apart and were now enemies.

“Octavian is going to seek revenge,” I finished. Amenemhet clenched his fists and Yocheved stood, dropping the tunic.

“Do you need a place to stay?” she offered, alarm on her face.

“Momma,” called Issachar, and he ran into the living space. His face was pale. “Soldiers are coming.”

“What are they?” Alexander growled.

Issachar swallowed. “Roman,” he breathed.

“Oh my gods,” I whispered, and my eyes began to well up. I placed my hand on my stomach, fearing for the life of my little one.

“Are they coming here?” Alexander demanded. Issachar shook his head.

“But they’re in the city,” he said. “I saw them.”

Alexander placed his arms around me.

“We came to tell you that we were going to leave the city,” I announced.

“We would be one of the first people Octavian would take revenge on,” Alexander explained. “We’re fleeing the city now, as soon as we go to the temple for a quick offering.”

Amenemhet and Yocheved were in shock. Issachar stood quietly, not knowing what to do.

“Selene…” Amenemhet was pained; I could see it on his face.

“We have to flee,” I whispered, a tear rolling down my cheek. “As soon as we can.”

“Are you just going…by foot?” he asked incredulously. I looked at Alexander.

“Unless you have an animal we can borrow,” Alexander muttered. “Escaping the more concentrated part of the city, however, would be easier on foot.”

“Selene, you can’t do that with child,” Amenemhet argued.

“We have no choice. We must leave tonight,” I said. Amenemhet thought.

“Amenei, my old master, has a camel. While you two go to the temple, I can ask him to give you the camel, so when you are ready, you can go to Amenei’s home and escape Alexandria on camel back.”