‘Your eyes are keen,’ said Gallia.
We halted to take stock of the situation. We had been moving slowly so as not to kick up any dust that would betray our presence and as the wind was blowing from the west we were downwind of our quarry. But gazelles are intelligent, nervous beasts and require patience and excellent horsemanship to bring down.
Rasha wrapped her reins around her left wrist and pulled the bow that had been a gift from Gallia from its case; young Spartacus did the same.
‘Come Gallia,’ said Haytham, ‘let us show these youngsters how it should be done.’
She grinned and followed him as he walked his horse left.
‘You are with me, young prince,’ Rasha said to Spartacus, urging Asad to the right. He moved his horse forward to be adjacent to me and stopped, his face pleading with me for permission to join the desert princess.
‘Off you go, then,’ I told him, ‘and make sure she does not come to any harm.’
He flashed a smile and followed Rasha. I turned to Scarab.
‘That leaves just you and me.’
Our escort waited in their saddles as we walked our horses forward to form a wide circle around our prey. In such a hunt there are never more than two riders together so as not to alarm the gazelles.
Gallia and Haytham and Rasha and Spartacus walked their horses to each flank and then began to slowly decrease the circle as Scarab rode parallel to me as we moved forward.
I could see the gazelles clearly now — four of them — and they had spotted us. As one they bolted a short distance, stopped, changed direction, darted forward again and eventually broke into a canter.
‘Keep by me, Scarab,’ I said as Haytham and Gallia urged their horses into a fast walk.
As we closed in on the gazelles we resisted the urge of our horses to break into a canter until our prey decided on the direction of their escape route. I pulled my bow from its case and strung an arrow in the bowstring as the other two groups continued to close in on the gazelles. The latter then broke into a fast run and raced right, towards Rasha and Spartacus who screamed at their horses and dug their knees into their flanks to intercept the prey. Their horses bolted and both riders leaned forward in the saddles with their bowstrings drawn back. As the gazelles ran across the front of them they released their arrows.
Two of the gazelles immediately collapsed in a cloud of dust as the missiles found their mark. Rasha then whipped another arrow from her quiver, nocked it and released it, the missile hitting the hindquarters of a third beast and sending it crashing to the ground. The fourth gazelle raced away as Spartacus put more arrows into the wounded prey to kill them. Haytham looked pained as he and Gallia came alongside me and shoved his bow back in its case, while the youngsters whooped with joy and grinned at each other like idiots.
That night I gave a feast in honour of Haytham and his daughter at which the gazelles were roasted and served to the guests. The king returned to Palmyra the next morning but his daughter remained at Dura for another week. During this time she spent the mornings training with the Amazons and the afternoons in the company of Spartacus, Scarab and Peroz. Because Dura was her second home Haytham did not feel compelled to leave a bodyguard behind, as he knew she would be safe and I would give her an escort back to Palmyra, though usually Gallia and the Amazons took her back.
On the third day of her stay, in the early afternoon after I had spent a tedious two hours in the weekly council meeting, I saw Rasha and Spartacus leading their horses from the stables, Scarab and Peroz following behind. They were holding hands and looked like two young doves, gazing into each other’s eyes. Domitus and Gallia were chatting behind me when I stopped and bellowed across the courtyard.
‘Spartacus! Come here at once.’
Stable hands, servants and guards all turned to look at me as Spartacus stared in bewilderment, then at Rasha.
‘Now!’ I ordered.
Domitus and Gallia came to my side as Spartacus ran over while Rasha held the reins of his horse and her own. Peroz followed him. Spartacus halted in front of me.
‘Uncle?’
‘What are you doing?’
‘Going to the archery ranges to train with Scarab and Peroz,’ he replied, smiling at Gallia, who smiled back and shook her head.
‘Not that,’ I snapped. ‘You must not touch Rasha.’
‘We were only holding hands, uncle.’
‘She is a princess of the Agraci,’ I told him, ‘not some servant girl to be seduced and tossed aside. You are not to see her anymore.’
My nephew looked most upset at this command and just stared at me.
‘A little harsh, Pacorus,’ said Gallia.
‘Is it?’ I hissed. ‘Every time Rasha comes to Dura Haytham entrusts her wellbeing and safety to us. Imagine what he would think if he learned that his daughter had been pawed by a squire.’
‘He would not like it at all,’ gloated Domitus, smirking at Spartacus.
My nephew bristled at Domitus’ words but did not respond. He may have been at least six inches taller than my general and almost as broad, but he had learned the hard way that Lucius Domitus was not a man to be tangled with lightly.
‘I am a prince,’ he corrected me.
‘Well, prince,’ I said slowly, ‘I am a king and I order you to report to the commander of the guard in the headquarters building. I am sure he can find you some floors to clean.’
Spartacus was going to protest but gave me a surly bow of the head, turned around and with sunken shoulders walked back to Rasha. He spoke a few words to her, kissed her on the cheek, took the reins of his horse and trudged back to the stables.
‘It is entirely my fault, majesty,’ apologised Peroz.
‘It is not your fault at all,’ I assured him.
‘It is no one’s fault,’ said Gallia, looking at me. ‘Spartacus is a handsome young man and Rasha is a beautiful young woman. It is obvious that they would find each other attractive. Sometimes Pacorus you are such a fool.’
‘I do not want to be standing before Haytham in his tent explaining why his daughter is carrying the child of a Parthian,’ I replied.
‘I do not think anything untoward has happened, majesty,’ said Peroz gravely.
I looked at him. ‘What? No, of course not. But we must take precautions to see that nothing does happen, lord prince.’
‘Agraci war party approaching,’ said Domitus, nodding at Rasha striding across the flagstones. Behind her Scarab was now holding the reins of three horses and finding it difficult to control them. ‘Do you want me to form a testudo you can hide in?’
‘Back me up on this matter,’ I pleaded with Gallia.
‘You are on your own,’ she replied flatly.
Domitus was chuckling. ‘It is so hurtful when allies desert you on the eve of battle.’
Rasha halted before me, her brown eyes narrowed and her nostrils flared.
‘Why have you forbidden Spartacus to see me?’
I sometimes forgot that she was Agraci, a people noted for their bluntness as well as their savagery. I placed my hands on her arms and smiled.
‘When you are at Dura you are my responsibility, Rasha. I am sure that your father would not approve of such familiarity with a Parthian.’
She fixed me with her eyes. ‘You have forbidden him to see me but am I allowed to go where I wish within these walls?’
I smiled again. ‘Of course, this is your home.’
Out of the corner of her eye she saw my nephew walking towards the headquarters building. She smiled back at me disarmingly, and then turned to Peroz.
‘I would like to stay here in the Citadel, lord prince.’
Peroz stepped back and bowed to her. ‘As you wish, princess.’
He really was getting more like Orodes every day.
Rasha kissed me on the cheek. ‘Thank you, Pacorus.’