Dancer of the Nile (Gods of Egypt) Read Online Free Page B

to get at you without fighting their way through me, and I won’t die easily.”
    Hearing the whooping war cries of the Hyksos warriors, Nima scrutinized the oncoming chariots. “Four to one? Kamin, you can’t possibly—"
    He stopped her with a kiss, tugging her body against his for a brief moment, his heat warming her chilled limbs before she pushed him away, wiping her lips.
    Kamin laughed. “If I’m fighting for a beautiful girl like you, I can. And they want us alive, remember? Now get under there.”
    Dropping to her knees, she crawled as far under the chariot as she could get. It wasn’t much in the way of shelter, but it was at least better than standing in the open, where the enemy could outflank Kamin and seize her. If I could be any help to him, I wouldn’t be hiding in here. Nima drew the knife from her belt and held it at the ready. She swallowed hard, fingers clenched around the carved bone hilt . When— if —the enemy gets past Kamin, I’m not surrendering. The knife would find her heart.
    Leaning forward she peered through the opening. The Hyksos chariots pulled up with a great flourish, but Kamin skewered one of their number through the heart with his last arrow, before dropping the bow and drawing the sword. Shield in one hand, blade in the other, he took a warrior’s defensive position, right side toward the enemy, knees slightly bent, weight centered, and waited for them to come to him.  
    The drivers stayed with their chariots, leaving two Hyksos to carry the attack to Kamin. With a great yell and an oath, Kamin charged forward, taking them by surprise. Nima gasped as he slashed the sword arm of the first man, nearly severing it, and then moved in a blur to parry the stroke the second soldier made. He and the enemy fought desperately on the hard-packed earth in front of the chariot. Kamin sliced the other man’s round, wooden shield in half and barely missed decapitating him as his opponent made a fluid sidestep, saving himself. Heart pounding, Nima watched as Kamin pursued his advantage, raining powerful slashes on the other man’s broken shield and sword, fighting with intensity and total concentration. The Hyksos could barely manage to stave off the assault as Kamin drove him to one knee. She’d never seen actual mortal combat, and the violence and speed of the blows were terrifying.
    Only the young officer was left on his feet, visibly reluctant to engage in combat. He had his sword drawn but stayed on the sidelines, yelling instructions at his soldier as the man tried to fend off Kamin’s assault. He took tentative steps toward the two combatants but hesitated and raised his shield even though Kamin wasn’t making any moves in his direction.  
    Yet.
    In his death throes, the soldier fell. A bloodstained Kamin, baring his teeth in a feral grin, whirled to face the officer.  
    Swallowing hard, the young Hyksos lifted his blade as Kamin advanced. “So, it seems you’re not just a craven spy, Egyptian. You have some fighting skills. Be warned, for I’m an officer, trained by the best in our army.”
    Laughing, Kamin swung a massive blow against the man’s upraised shield, easily parrying the man’s first slash, forcing him into a stumbling retreat. “Brave words, Hyksos, too bad your training yielded such paltry results!”
    Not much of a contest there. Easy prey for Kamin. A furtive movement drew Nima’s attention to the two remaining chariot drivers. One was on the ground, setting an arrow to his bow, waiting for an opening to shoot Kamin and cripple him.  
    “Oh, no, you don’t,” she said through her teeth, slithering forward in the dirt to leave her shelter.  
    As she stood to throw her knife, the two drivers spotted her. The archer retargeted, but before he could release the bow string, she’d launched her deadly weapon, hurling it with all the force in her body. The blade buried itself in his heart. A surprised expression on his face, he toppled over, the arrow