The Pharaoh’s Favorite novel Chapter 5

“Neferet, please.” He reached for my hands when I stepped back. His voice was hesitant as he stepped closer. “Please speak to me”

The next morning brings Sahety to my door.

His presence was a reminder of everything I wanted to forget. He looked the same as he always had: beautifully brutal, tall, broad-shouldered, his features strong and commanding. But now, his face carried a shadow of guilt that dulled the confidence I had once admired.

“What is there to say, Sahety?” I asked, my tone cold. “You’ve already said enough with your actions.”

He flinched, but pressed on. “I know I’ve hurt you, and I’ll never forgive myself for it. But what happened with Kiya… it was a mistake. A moment of weakness.”

“A mistake?” I repeated, my voice rising. “You call betraying me with my own sister was a mistake? You’ve humiliated me, shamed our families, and now you expect me to listen to your excuses?”

“Please, Neferet,” he said, taking another step closer. “I still love you. I want to make things right. I want to be your

I laughed bitterly, the sound harsh even to my own ears. “You think love excuses what you’ve done? You think I could ever trust you again, knowing how easily you were swayed?”

“But that is the truth, you’re the only one I’ve ever loved.”

Laughter bubbles up, bitter as poison. “You call that

“We can still have everything we planned.” His voice drops, honeyed with false promises. “I’ll refuse to marry Kiya. We’ll tell your father – ”

“Tell him what? That you’d rather have the sister you didn’t rut with in the sacred reeds?” The words taste like ashes. “That you love me so much you couldn’t wait one day to bed my sister?”

“Neferet – ”

“No.” My voice comes out stronger than I feel. “You made your choice. Now we all live with it.”

He opened his mouth to argue, but I held up a hand, cutting him off. “Whatever you’re about to say next doesn’t matter anymore. And wouldn’t change either. Father has already made his decision. You will marry Kiya, and I… I will be sent to the Golden House.”

Sahety’s eyes widened in shock. “The harem? Neferet, you can’t…”

“I have no choice,” I said, my voice trembling. “None of us do. Father has made sure of that.”

And Kiya as well.

Father announces their engagement the next day. Set the wedding date close – too close, perhaps. Everyone knows why, though no one speaks about it. If Kiya’s already carrying Sahety’s child, the timing will hide their shame.

I watch it all like a shadow, drifting through preparations for my own fate. The Golden House – the Pharaoh’s harem – was no longer an abstract concept but a reality I was hurtling toward. Its mysteries haunted me, darker than the spaces between stars.

The lessons began immediately.

My days were consumed by the intricate rituals of beauty and grace. Servants bathed me in perfumed oils, braided my hair into elaborate styles, and painted my face with kohl and ochre until I scarcely recognized the reflection staring back at me.

They draped me in sheer linens embroidered with gold, and my wrists jingled with jeweled bangles that felt like shackles. They taught me how to walk, to move, to speak in the presence of the Pharaoh. Every step, every gesture was choreographed to perfection.

Through it all, Kiya’s presence was a constant thorn.

She was the picture of charm and sweetness around others, offering smiles that could melt the sternest hearts. But in private, her mask slipped to reveal the venom beneath.

She constantly interrupted my lessons, knocking over ink pots, scattering carefully laid-out scrolls, and loudly mocking the instructors until their patience frayed.

She spilled oils onto my ceremonial linens and once loosened the threads of my sandals so that I tripped during a walking exercise.

The worst came one night when I sat in my room, trying to focus on a scroll under the dim light of a flickering oil lamp. The door creaked open, and Kiya stepped inside, a knife glinting in her hand. My heart stopped.

“What are you doing?” I demanded, rising to my feet.

“Just a precaution.” Her smile was chilling, her voice a venomous whisper. “After all, you’ve ruined my plans. Why shouldn’t I ruin yours?”

“Your plans?” I repeated, incredulous. “You think this is about you? You’re the one who destroyed everything, Kiya. You’ve brought this upon yourself.”

“Do you think I wanted this