Durin found the servant he had sent to look after Farida waiting for him outside the meeting room, looking anxious and happy. He didn't need to ask, to find out, but he didn't want to take away from the servant's joy and asked:
"Is there a problem?"
"My Pharaoh, Farida has asked the Majesty to visit her tonight, as soon as you've finished the meeting." She said quickly, as if she had replayed that message many times in her mind.
"Thank you. You don't have to go back to looking after Farida tonight."
The maid skipped off to the kitchen and Durin knew that before he finished climbing the steps, everyone in the palace would already know what was going to happen that night, but the eyes he wanted to see receiving that news were brown. They were Tykar's eyes. He re-entered the meeting room and saw that among the common drinks on the table was a bottle of acerola brandy, his favorite. He had drunk almost the entire bottle when he decided he had waited too long.
He climbed the stairs and entered Yuki's room without knocking.
He wasn't prepared for what he saw. Yuki was wearing a white silk kimono, her hair was loose, and she was wearing the diamonds he had left for her. She was as beautiful as he had ever seen her. She smiled at his surprised look. She looked different, but he couldn't understand the reason for this uncomfortable realization.
"You don't look so bad yourself." She said, approaching him and before she reached him, she let the kimono slip down her body, leaving only her lingerie on, and stopped in front of him, seductively.
"Are you expecting me to put a bag over my head?" She asked, showing him a bag, which she had brought in her hand.
Durin pulled her to him and kissed her passionately.
Tykar held Yuki tightly from behind, as he covered her mouth and felt her hot tears on his hands and allowed her to watch what was happening in the room. He brought his mouth close to her ear.
"Don't you think it's curious what a few drops of maradeira in wine can do to a person's perception?" He gazed enraptured at Durin indulging in pleasures with his servant. "I think it must be flattering, Yuki. He repeats your name believing he's lying with you." Tykar sucked in her perfume. "As soon as he leaves the room, you can go visit Selytha, and say goodbye to her for good, if you dare tell Durin a single word of what happened here. Can you understand me?" He whispered in her ear.
Yuki nodded.
Tykar made her watch until the end, holding back laughter as he saw Durin put on his clothes with a disappointed face.
"Have I done something wrong, Great Pharaoh?" The servant asked, sitting down on the bed.
"No, Yuki. You're perfect. I just... I thought it would be different."
"You didn't like it?"
"Yes, I did. It's just... It was too ordinary. I fantasized that a night with an ice queen would be something more... exciting."
"Can I wait for you again tomorrow night? I promise I'll make it more exciting."
"Of course." He said and giving her a kiss on the forehead, he left.
Tykar released Yuki and approached the servant.
"You've done your job well. Come back tomorrow night. Come back until his child is in your womb."
The servant bowed and left. Tykar turned to Yuki, who was staring at him, furious and puzzled.
"Why did you do all this? You said you needed me to stay with Durin."
"Yes. But when I heard the kitchen maids talking about the performances of ancient Pharaohs and expecting you to experience it, I couldn't accept it. I had to act."
"And now? Is he going to lie with another woman forever, believing that she's me? Are you going to make him drink..."
"A few drops of maradeira."
"Yes. Are you going to make him drink it forever?"
"No. Just until the young woman gets pregnant, then he himself will need to hide the fact that all this time he hasn't been lying with Farida."
"I thought you and I were friends."
"I can't allow you to be with another man, Yuki."
"You're a few years too late, Tykar."
He turned to Yuki and appraised her for a while.
"I'm not so sure about that." He said and walked away.
Yuki waited for Tykar to disappear down the corridor and ran off, avoiding the people she met on her way from seeing her face, as her clothes wouldn't allow them to see her black hair, as she hid it under a scarf, similar to the ones the women of the harem wore and as soon as she stepped out onto the street, she felt like never stepping foot in the palace again, but although this idea had been simmering in her mind all the way to the hospital, the sight of her daughter made her give up on that idea. Tykar would take revenge if she disobeyed and she couldn't forget that she was in a strange country. She still didn't understand Tykar's real reason for preventing her from consummating her marriage, but she knew she needed to warn Durin as soon as she could get Selytha to safety. Perhaps removing her from the hospital and taking her to the palace would be the best decision, but she couldn't keep the girl there without someone's help.
She played and told stories to Selytha and when the little girl went to sleep, she also decided to rest and when she woke up, the sun was already high in the sky. She ran out, called a cab and returned to the palace. The feeling that she was late and would be found out stayed with her until she reached the palace and realized that the only noise was the clanging of pots and pans coming from the kitchen. The palace was asleep. She ran up to her room, showered and put on clean clothes. She went downstairs to find the kitchen and have some coffee, but as soon as she reached the last step, Durin came to meet her and escorted her to the dining room.
Tykan and Celesty were there. Just them. Durin made Yuki sit next to him and let his hand rest between her legs, with an intimacy that bothered her. She thought about refusing his hand, but remembered in time that he believed they had spent the night together.
"You look haggard, Yuki." Durin said, watching her face intently.
She felt herself blush.
"I'm fine."
Durin moved his hand forward boldly in his caresses, and Yuki instinctively slapped his hand away and looked disapprovingly at him.
Durin looked at her with eyes shining with understanding and smiling, withdrew his hand and concentrated on the coffee being served by the maids.
"You can't leave your harem women without attention, Durin." Celesty warned in her slurred voice, which Yuki would learn to hate.
"Surely you don't expect me to leave my Farida's bed, right? We're still getting to know each other." He said and winked at Yuki.
"She'll understand that you have many obligations. I hope you don't make the same mistakes as your father and spend your whole life without having children."
"He fathered me and Tykar." Durin replied, starting to get annoyed.
"He's not a good example of a father, is he? You ran away from home and Tykar is an illegitimate child. And yet we must thank the gods, for after twenty-five years married to his mother, he decided it was time to have children and for a Pharaoh... I think you know that we expected you to beget at least fifteen gherderoos."
"He'll have all the children he needs with his pharaoh." Yuki said to provoke the woman. He didn't like her commanding tone.
"And you think you can give fifteen children to our Pharaoh?" She asked and looked insinuatingly and contemptuously at Yuki. "Of course, Durin will enjoy seeing you try, the first few times, but looking at the small and fragile constitution of your body, I'd say you won't be able to bear even one gherderoo."
"What's that?"
"Gherderoos? They're the sons of the Pharaohs. They're big and powerful. And they need strong wombs like them to be born." She answered and looked debauchedly at Durin. "Where did you get a woman who doesn't know the traditions of the Pharaohs? She won't be any good if she opens her mouth and shows all her ignorance. Please gag her in front of our people and avoid further embarrassment for everyone in the royal family."
Yuki stood up to make a move on the woman, but Durin grabbed her by the wrist and made her sit down again. Tykar watched the whole thing with an amused look on his face.
"Celesty, Yuki is your Farida. I demand that you respect her as your superior. I won't object if she decides to punish you mercilessly."
Tykar stood up.
"I'll leave you alone for these matters... Conjugal."
"Tykar!" Durin called out and he stopped, looking debauched at him. "Wait for me in the office. There's an urgent matter I need to discuss with you."
"As you wish, Your Highness." He said and bowed exaggeratedly as he left.
Durin left the two women gloating and went to meet Tykar. He had poured himself a brandy and was looking at the entrance to the palace through the glass.
"You look particularly happy this morning."
"Don't tell me that the Great Pharaoh, after many years, has decided to care about the life and happiness of his less fortunate brother."
"Let me guess... Maradeira? It was a dirty trick, even for you."
Tykar turned around with his eyes shining with amusement.
"You didn't notice the exchange."
"And how could I? I've never held Yuki in my arms. I can't tell you what she's like as a woman."
"She has a wonderful natural perfume that intoxicates my senses in such a way that there's no other scent in the world capable of confusing me..."
"We'll have the chance to prove that in the future."
"I'm counting on it, brother."
"Now I need you to announce a meeting with all our people."
"Will you tell me about it?"
"Yes. As of today, I will no longer be Durin and neither will you be Tykar."
Tykar looked proudly at Durin.