I had stopped in to tell Tassos that he'd better start baking his pastries with Akenhotep coming through town but I had barely gotten those words out when I noticed the flury of activity around the inn.
Tassos grinned. 'So business is good then?" I asked with a smile to match.
"Well, it's picking up, good business would be to have rooms full and the price for them paid in full" he said.
I nodded and gazed around. It was then I caught sight of a young girl carrying a bucket down the stairs. She looked to be struggling with the weight of the bucket and balancing the mop also. She was a pretty girl, obviuosly not Egyptian, so what was her story, I thought always eager to hear about someone else's life other than my own.
Tassos was otherwise occupied in serving a guest or else I would have been chastising him about putting the poor girl to work. I made my way over to her just as she had set the bucket down and slopped the mop on the wooden floor in the corner leading to the storeroom scrubbing madly.
"Hi there" I called, but with the noise of the tavern beginning to fill up for happy hour, she didn't hear me. I cleared my voice and called again. This time she turned cautiously and wide eyed.
I smiled, she didn't.
"I'm hemet-netjer Ancksunamun" I said in Egyptian. She looked puzzled, thankfully I knew a little Greek as well, so I tried it that way. She still didn't respond. "Sorry I don't speak your language" I explained.
"It's ok" she said softly and shyly, "I understand you"
"I'm the High Priestess of Mut here, you'll see me around everywhere, feel free to come to the temple"
"I'm Sarah"
"You shouldn't be doing such hard labor, you look tired, is Tassos treating you right, if not you come talk with me" I fired at the poor girl.
She just smiled, "I must get the rooms ready, we are to have important visitors" she said as she pointed out the window at a barge docked in the harbour.
It flew royal sails and as we spoke men were approaching carrying items that looked rather like a chest. Tassos is doing very well I thought to myself as we all prepared to see who was in town.