The more said the more thou shalt have of
which to accuse thyself hereafter."
But she dropped before him, her white robes cumbering his path, her
arms clasping his knees.
"What more have I to do of which to accuse myself, O Rameses? Egypt
knows why I came to court. Egypt will know why I shall leave it. What
have I not offered and what hast thou given me? Where shall I find
that refuge from the pitying smile of the nation? Spare my womanhood--"
"Ah, fie upon thy pretense, Ta-user! Art thou not shrewd enough to
know how well I understand thee? Thou dost not love me. No woman who
loves pleads beyond the first rebuff. Love is full of dudgeon. Thou
dost betray thyself in thy very insistence. Thou beggest for the crown
I shall wear, and if I were over-thrown to-morrow thou wouldst kneel
likewise to mine enemy. Thou hast no womanhood to lose in Egypt's
sight. As thy caprice turned from Siptah to me, let it return thee to
Siptah once again. And if thy heart doth in truth wince with jealousy,
think on Io."
He undid her arms, flung her from him and disappeared into the dark.
CHAPTER XXVI
FURTHER DIPLOMACY
Masanath, suffocating with wrath and rebellion and overpowered with an
exaggerated appreciation of her shame, tumbled down in the shadows of
the narrow passage and wrapped her mantle around her head.
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