Free The Desert Princess by Jill Eileen Smith Page B

and I was being childish. “What can we do?”
    â€œPray to Solomon’s God to spare the king’s life until Solomon’s coronation. Your life and the life of your child depend on it.”
    I put a hand to my belly where the slight swell of a child had started to show. I had proudly shown Solomon just hours before, and he had held me close. “I had not thought of that.” In all of my worry, the danger had always been for my husband and his mother. I had not seriously thought that the life of my child could also be a threat to Adonijah or any other of Solomon’s older brothers.
    â€œWell, it is time you did.” Inaya stopped pacing and sank to her knees on a lambskin rug in front of the plush couch. She bowed low, and I recognized her intent.
    I slipped from the bed and came to kneel beside her, bowing low on the floor as well. I closed my eyes, my thoughts swirling, incoherent. I did not know how to pray for this! Please, Unseen One, spare my husband. The prayer became a mantra in my heart until I heard Inaya begging God to save the king’s life. Fear still held its grip on my heart, but slowly, haltingly, my prayers included the king and Solomon’s mother and the babe. I did not ask for myself. It seemed too selfish a prayer, but as the night wore on, I pleaded with Him to save the king’s life until my husband was king and King David could hold his grandson on his knees.
    A knock on my door startled me, but I could not get up from kneeling fast enough to open it. A servant relieved me of the need, and I had just regained my bearings when Bathsheba’s maid Tirzah approached me.
    â€œWhat news do you bring?” I continued to move to coax my legs to cease their tingling.
    â€œThe king is quite ill, but they believe he will recover.”
    I paused in my pacing. “They are quite sure of this?” Relief filled me, and my head felt suddenly too light. The room moved, though I was standing still.
    Tirzah, seeming to sense my wooziness, steadied me and guided me to my couch. “As sure as anyone can be about life and death, mistress.”
    A servant brought me water and I greedily drank. “This is good news. Thank you for telling me.”
    Tirzah smiled. “As always, mistress.” She bid me farewell, and Inaya helped me to my bed, where I crawled beneath the covers to finally sleep. But the trauma of the night brought fitful dreams.

    Throughout the coming weeks, King David’s condition improved only slightly. The danger of his imminent death had averted, but the ailment had left him perpetually cold. Not even Bathsheba’s body beside him could relieve him of his distress.
    â€œThe king’s counselors have decided, with the king’s permission,” Bathsheba told me one afternoon, “to send for a virgin to warm the king’s bed. Perhaps this will help him.”
    I looked sharply at my mother-in-law, trying to read her thoughts. “Are you happy with this decision?” The king had taken few wives since Bathsheba, and she was his obvious favorite of them all.
    Bathsheba shrugged one shoulder and gave me a reassuring smile. “The king has assured me that the woman will remain a virgin. She will be a wife in name only.” She smoothed a wrinkle in her robe. “The king would appease his counselors.”
    I nodded, but as the news settled inside me, realization dawned, making me feel suddenly sick. A king’s wives passed on to the future king. If King David kept this girl a virgin, then whoever reigned after him would marry her as a true bride. Solomon still expected to rule after his father.
    â€œDo they have a woman in mind?” I could not smile, but I had learned through years of training to hide the turmoil roiling within me.
    â€œThey have searched throughout the kingdom and have brought several candidates to Jerusalem. I will visit with each of them and choose the one best suited for the job.”