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The rows of spears that crested the edge of the hill were the first hint that this could be much worse than expected. Amelia hadn’t actually thought that King Piggy and his men would attack.
Seeing them now, she realized she might have been wrong.
She wished she was with Luther and Dave, using the sundial to go back to Grandpa Joe’s house right then.
Luther and Dave looked just as worried when they joined her. She saw that most of the people who lived here looked as scared as she felt.
“Should we use the sundial?” Luther asked, holding it up.
“Not yet,” Amelia replied, pushing down her fear. “I think we need to stay and see what happens. Both King Iarbas and King Piggy seem terrible and I think we need to help if we can. Grandpa Joe would want us to.”
“I don’t feel great about that, but I think you’re right,” Dave said.
Luther nodded as a small knot of guards formed around Queen Elissa. It was far fewer than the soldiers with King Piggy. Amelia could see King Piggy’s men now. They all had armor made from leather and metal disks. They each carried a round shield. King Piggy strode at their front, Heth and Hadad on either side.
Amelia’s heart started to thunder in her chest. It was not for fear of the men. Something else was in the back of her mind. King Piggy made her queasy. He had said something important about Queen Elissa, but Amelia just could not recall it. Whatever it was left her feeling sick at the sight of him.
King Piggy and his men came to a stop on the far end of the hill, just outside the ox hide. He was still wearing his bedsheets, but now he also had a huge hammer and an angry look on his face as he stood across from Queen Elissa.
Even from here, Amelia could see King Piggy’s scowl. She was sure Queen Elissa had the same look.
“I’m here, Elissa, to take back what belongs to me,” King Piggy said. He was loud enough for them all to hear. “And then you’ll return with me to Tyre to stand trial and face justice.”
Everyone stood in silence, waiting for Queen Elissa to say something. As they did, something tickled the back of Amelia’s mind as she tried to work out what King Piggy had said about Queen Elissa around the fire that was bothering her so much.
Justice, Amelia thought, It was something about justice, but what?
“Stand trial?” Dave asked. “She didn’t do anything.”
Dave was right, Amelia knew, Queen Elissa hadn’t done anything, but King Piggy had. He’d done something terrible and had not been brought to justice himself.
Dave kept talking. “She just took back what was hers and her husband’s.”
“Her husband!” Amelia exclaimed. “That’s it!”
“What’s it?” Luther asked, but Amelia was already running towards Queen Elissa. She had to get there before it was too late.
There was a crowd around King Piggy and Queen Elissa. King Piggy was still going on about taking her back to the city of Tyre.
“You took the gold from me and tried to steal the throne too,” King Piggy said. “Now you will pay.”
Amelia saw that a lot of the local people were nodding like they believed him. They were the same people who had not looked happy that Queen Elissa was trying to start her own city. Amelia pushed her way to the front of the circle around King Piggy and Queen Elissa.
“Wait!” Amelia said, loud enough for them all to hear.
Everyone looked at her, even King Piggy. His big, round face turned red and then he gave a mocking laugh. “Who’s this? And why’s she dressed like that?”
Amelia tried to open her mouth but found she could not get it to move. She was frozen by everyone’s stares. She realized that every eye on the hilltop was on her, and suddenly she felt very small. She had something that everyone there needed to hear, but the words wouldn’t come out. She stood there, not moving, her heart hammering in her chest.
Finally, King Piggy threw up his arms and snorted. “Enough games, sister. Are you going to make things hard just like you did last time?”
Queen Elissa seemed to melt under his arrogant words, but King Piggy’s snort had sounded so much like a pig’s that Amelia had to hold back her laughter.
“Queen Elissa!” Amelia said, loud enough for them all to hear. “How did your husband die?”
Queen Elissa blinked, like she was waking up. “In—in his sleep. He became sick one night after dinner and passed away.”
“Did he often get sick after dinner?” Amelia asked.
“No, he was one of the healthiest people I knew,” Queen Elissa said. “Why are you asking?”
Amelia threw a glance over her shoulder at King Piggy and could tell from the startled look darkening his face that she was on the right track. “And who was that dinner with?”
“It was with Pygmalion,” Queen Elissa said slowly as her eyes began to widen.
“Did anything strange happen during that dinner?” Amelia asked.
Queen Elissa raised a stunned hand to her mouth. “It did. I remember, Pygmalion insisted we try a new dish the cook made. I was too full, but my husband, he was the only one who ate it. Pygmalion never did that before. I had not thought about it at the time.”
King Piggy’s eyes were wide with surprise and his mouth moved soundlessly like a fish, but it was the looks of shame on Heth and Hadad’s faces that gave it away.
Queen Elissa held out an accusing finger, pointing at her brother. “You. You poisoned him! I cannot believe I never realized it.”
Terror played on King Piggy’s face for a moment before it was gone. “Me? What are you saying? I had nothing to do with that.”
“Yes, you did!” Queen Elissa said, her eyes wide. “I never saw it before, but she’s right! My husband is gone because of you!”