"They know."
"They know, and I do not."
The prince grew calm on a sudden, but he was pale, and on his young face was depicted terrible hatred. He seized both hands of his favorite, pressed them firmly, and whispered,
"Hear me! By the sacred heads of my father and mother, by the memory of Ramses the Great by all the gods, if there are any, I swear that during my rule if the priests will not bow down before me I will crush them."
Tutmosis listened in alarm.
"I or they!" finished the prince. "Egypt cannot have two lords."
"Formerly it had only one, the pharaoh," added Tutmosis.
"Then Thou wilt be loyal to me?"
"I, all the nobles, and the army, I swear to thee."
"Enough!" concluded Ramses. "Let them discharge the mercenary regiments, let them sign treaties, let them hide before me like bats, and let them deceive us all. But the time will come And now, Tutmosis, rest after the journey; be with me at the feast this evening. Those people have so bound me that I can only amuse myself. Then let me amuse myself. But in time I will show them who the ruler of Egypt is, they or I."