Book excerpt: A jealous Egyptian queen. A lascivious Galilean governor. How can one servant girl possibly make a difference? An orphan since birth, Lydia lives in the palace at the demand of Cleopatra and her royal child, the son of Julius Caesar. But Lydia’s beauty is becoming a liability to the aging queen, and the visiting Herod’s undisguised interest in Lydia only makes matters worse. When Lydia’s mentor is murdered, the handmaid inherits a daunting task. An ancient set of sealed scrolls, the secret writings of the prophet Daniel, must be returned to Jerusalem–before those who killed her mentor destroy the scrolls as well. Lydia joins Herod the Great’s retinueand soon becomes absorbed in the machinations of his Jerusalem palace. But dark forces, older than Jerusalem itself, are at work. And Lydia has no idea of the true nature of her destiny.