Free The Forgotten: Aten's Last Queen by J. Lynn Else

craftsman.”
    On her right arm was the bracelet Meketaten had picked out from the Canaanite stall. It was made up of six gold hoops which hugged her delicate wrist and were connected by a bar on one side. The hoops were decorated with blue-, red-, and green-colored beads. In between the colored beads, there were golden lotus flowers which dangled and made soft tapping sounds as they bumped one another. Mother had always enjoyed bracelets as her favorite piece of decoration.
    I nodded my head and said, “I heard that they have a shop set up here in the Golden City. I would feel honored to accompany you sometime, Mother. Maybe I could get one too?”
    She smiled down at me and then left to stand beside Merytaten. Mother once again looked like the most beautiful woman in all the lands. She wore a garment made of white and trimmed in colorful blue patterns. The top swooped around from her back, across her breasts in one piece, and wound around her left shoulder with the extra material hanging down her arm. Her right arm was left exposed, and the new bracelet stood out among her flawless skin. The lower part of the garment sloped over her large belly and trickled down to her ankles. She stood barefoot, as the rest of us were. Her long neck bent down to Merytaten as she shared a few words in her ear. I had often wished Mother and I were close and spent our days together. Merytaten never showed any affection, but I knew I would have loved to have spent that much time with someone so beautiful and elegant. Mother knew so much about the kingdom.
    As we heard the crowds begin to cheer again outside of the walls, Mother waved her hands about her to gather us together. Finally, Father looked down and nodded for us to join him.
    I stood at the back of the procession with my youngest sisters, carried by their nurses, and Tadukhipa’s daughter. She looked at me quickly and then stared ahead again. We never spoke to her, my sisters and me. We shared a classroom, but Marahkaten was always the outcast of the group. I was not really sure why this was, it just was. My sisters and I gathered together. Sometimes I did not even know she was there as we were so preoccupied with each other. Marahkaten was born the same year I was, but she had no connection with any of us. She usually stayed in her room with her mother when we were not in our classroom.
    She was taller than me. Her face was round, and it almost looked too big for her small body. She also had a youth lock which was much longer than mine. In it were golden bangles shaped as cats. She was a lover of cats and had one in her room that she called Brave One. Like her mother, Tadukhipa’s daughter had brown hair and eyes. Her small nose had freckles about it. Her lips were full and pink. But in my mind, one of her best features was her long eyelashes. She seemed very shy and demure, especially when she was looking through her thick lashes. Her head was almost always tilted towards the ground. I was sure she was nice if one of us would attempt to speak to her, and I resolved to try this next time we were in class.
    The light grew brighter as we got closer to the terrace’s open mouth. I could feel that Aten was powerful even before slipping fully into His gaze. I had retreated to my room for preparations before He had fully risen in the sky. I had forgotten all about Him for a while. Stepping out into the sun, His warm breath surrounded me like a shroud. The people were waving and smiling at us. I looked for the boy, but he must still be at the market helping his father. It was midday now, so they might also have taken shelter from the thick heat.
    My mother stepped up next to Ahkenaten, Tadukhipa on his other side with her father beside her. Watching the sun reflected off their features, my family looked like gods. The jewelry everyone wore was blinding at this height, standing so close to Aten. I instead looked down at the gathered crowd and their excited faces. How strange to think all