The Eye of the Pharaoh Page 3

  ‘My dear fellow, how good of you to come to my little soirée.’ beamed at the elderly High Priest and radiated good cheer and bonhomie. ‘Come in, come in. Make yourself at home. I’m delighted to have such an honoured guest.’

  Theoman smiled. ‘Well, I must say, Ahketnan, I’m intrigued by your invitation. I’ve never thought of you as someone who had much time for priests and our “mumbo jumbo” as I believe you call it.

  Ahketnan patted Theoman gently on the shoulder. ‘Ah, well, that’s where you’re wrong, old chap as you are about to discover. Here, let me introduce you to my other guest.’

  Theoman was completely taken aback to see his chief acolyte, Salen perched on the edge of one of Salen’s luxurious couches sipping from a goblet of wine. He couldn’t for the life of him imagine what his secretive, not to say morose, second in command had in common with Ramenha’s dandyish uncle. The truth was, apart from their priestly calling, he didn’t feel he had very much in common with Salen either. The two priests nodded to each other.

  ‘You see, I have of late developed an interest in the life to come and Salen here is, purely out of the goodness of his heart, instructing me in the intricacies of the spirit world.’

  Theoman couldn’t help thinking that Salen’s teachings hadn’t had much effect as yet, but he banished that thought as uncharitable.

  ‘But I’m neglecting my duties as a host. We can have a jolly good talk about saving my immortal soul later. First, let me offer you a drink.’ Ahketnan handed him a goblet of purple wine. He looked fondly at the High Priest. ‘Theoman, old chap, I take my hat off to you. You must be absolutely dehydrated after today’s desert excursion.’

  Theoman took the proffered goblet. ‘Well, my throat is rather parched,’ he said.

  ‘Of course it is,’ said Ahketnan. ‘Now it’s a custom in this house that the first goblet of wine must be swallowed down in one go.’

  Theoman looked alarmed. ‘But surely…’

  ‘I insist,’ said Ahketnan. ‘Come on, do it to please me.’

  Theoman put the goblet to his lips and slurped the wine. When he was finished his wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and belched.

  ‘Sorry!’ he muttered. ‘It’s just that …’

  ‘No need to apologise, a belch is a sign that you enjoyed the wine,’ said Ahketnan. ‘Here have some more.’ He refilled the goblet.

  Theoman muttered his thanks. He cast around in his mind for something to say then he blurted out, ‘I say, this wine is strong stuff. My head’s starting to spin. The whole room is going round. I …’

  Theoman staggered and lurched towards the door. Ahketnan and Salen grabbed him and held him upright.

  ‘Careful, my friend. We can’t have you passing out on us, can we?’ Ahketnan winked at Salen as Theoman made an ineffectual attempt to push them away.

  ‘S’all right. I’m not drunk, you know.’ He giggled then tried to look serious but he kept snorting with barely suppressed laughter.

  ‘Of course you’re not. Now Salen and I are just going to ask you one or two little questions.’

  Theoman’s face lit up. If he had been a puppy his tail would have been wagging enthusiastically. ‘Oh good. Riddles. I like riddles. Lemme go first.’

  ‘Shut up, you foolish old man and listen to us.’ Salen wasn’t good with over enthusiastic puppies.

  Theoman’s eyes filled with tears. ‘But, s’not fair. I wanna go first.’

  A muscle in Salen’s cheek began to twitch. ‘Now look here …’

  But Theoman was having none of it. He turned to Ahketnan and said petulantly, ‘I don’t like this game. Gimme ’nother drink.’

  Ahketnan smiled and in a fatherly fashion put his arm around Theoman’s scrawny shoulders. ‘Now come on, old chap. Just tell us where …’

  Theoman stamped his foot and squawked. ‘I wanna ask a riddle!’

  ‘Oh this is getting us nowhere. Let me slap him,’ begged Salen.

  ‘No!’ snapped Ahketnan. Then in a softer voice he said, ‘Go on then, Theoman. What’s your riddle?’

  ‘What walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon and three legs at evening?’

  Ahketnan pursed his lips then replied, ‘‘I have absolutely no idea.’

  Theoman sniggered. He poked Salen in the chest. ‘Salen, do you know?’

  ‘I neither know nor care,’ he said icily.

  Theoman hopped clumsily from foot to foot. ‘It’s a man.’

  Ahketnan’s cobra like eyes glistened. ‘Is it really? How fascinating. You certainly had us fooled with that one, Theoman. But now it’s my turn. Where is the hiding-place of the Eye of the Pharaoh?’

  Theoman scratched his head and looked totally puzzled. ‘Er…… er …… I give up. Where is it?’

  This almost proved too much for Salen who screamed, ‘You’re supposed to tell us, you fool. Please, Ahketnan, let me hit him.’ His fist was bunched and ready to strike but Ahketnan pushed it away.

  ‘No, not yet!’ He glowered at Salen and then turned back to Theoman. ‘Now try again, Theoman. Where is the jewel hidden?’

  But Theoman was upset by Salen’s threat and refused to say anything. Ahketnan begged and pleaded but to no avail. He was just about to unleash Salen when he had a brainwave.

  ‘Look,’ he said, ‘let’s play “A secret for a secret”. If you tell us where the jewel is hidden, we’ll tell you what Ashkala and her coven of witches are planning.’

  For a moment, Theoman’s cloudy eyes cleared. He had always had a grudging respect for Ashkala, but she led a rival sect and so couldn’t be trusted. If she and her priestess were plotting something it was his duty to find out it was. He tried to force his befuddled brain to concentrate. ‘Tell me.’

  ‘I will – just as soon as you’ve told me what I want to know.’ Ahketnan shook Theoman gently. ‘Come on man. Spill the beans.’

  The clouds rolled back across Theoman’s eyes and his knees started to buckle. ‘I think I’m going to be sick,’ he mumbled. He stumbled into Ahketnan’s arms.

  ‘Not on me you’re not,’ squealed Ahketnen as he pushed Theoman away. Theoman fell backwards and cracked his head on the floor. He lay there unconscious.

  ‘You idiot,’ snarled Salen. ‘There goes our chance to find out where he hides the Eye. You put too much of the drug in his wine.’

  Ahketnan shot him a vicious look. ‘Maybe, but at least we can have the key to the casket.’ He kneeled down and thrust his hand inside Theoman’s robe. He pulled out the key, nearly decapitating the priest as he did so.

  Salen shrugged. ‘And a fat lot of good that will do us if we don’t know where the casket’s hidden.’

  But Ahketnan wasn’t listening. He was studying the key closely. ‘Wait a minute,’ he muttered. ‘What’s this?’

  Sensing that Ahketnan had made a discovery of some importance, Salen stepped quickly over to his side. ‘What’s what?’

  Ahketnan glanced at him. ‘There are hieroglyphs engraved on the key.’

  A muscle in Salen’s cheek began to twitch like a beetle on its back. ‘Here let me see!’ He snatched the key and peered at it. Then he made a strange wheezing noise. Salen was laughing.

  ‘What’s so funny?’

  Salen stopped laughing. ‘The gods are with us,’ he said. ‘These hieroglyphs reveal the jewel’s hiding place.’

  Ahketnan rubbed his hands together. ‘So the key is the key in more ways than one.’

  Salen nodded. ‘It certainly is. Oh I knew the gods wouldn’t fail me. Now come on, let’s go before Theoman wakes up.’

  ‘Oh, don’t worry. He’ll sleep for hours now. But we need to make this thing look right. Help me put him on the couch. When he wakes up he’ll have the mother and father of a headache - which he’ll blame on too much wine. And that’s a notion I shall encourage him to believe.’

  The two men easily lifted the unconscious body of the High Priest up onto the couch.

  ‘Are you sure he won’t remember what happen
ed?’

  Ahketnan shook his head. ‘He won’t remember a thing. Now we have business elsewhere.’

  The two conspirators left the room together, but each was thinking his own thoughts about a future that held no place for his companion.

  Chapter Seven

  A short while after the two villains had departed, Kaheb and Ashkala came down the corridor outside Ahketnan’s apartments. They were arguing furiously. When they reached Ahketnan’s door, Ashkala grabbed Kaheb’s sleeve and swung him round to face her.

  ‘Listen to me, you chucklehead. You must do something. I’ve sacrificed to the Goddess again and the signs show clearly that something evil is about to happen. I insist you inform Ramenha at once!’

  Kaheb took a deep breath before replying. His voice was strained and edgy.

  ‘Ramenha is asleep. He’s had a tiring day.’

  Ashkala clenched the muscles of her face in a supreme effort to remain calm. ‘How many more times must I say it? Something evil …’

  ‘Is about to happen.’ Kaheb finished her sentence for her. ‘Yes I know. And if I wake Ramenha up just to tell him about your half-baked suspicions something evil will happen to me – I’ll get the sack.’ He held his hand up to stop Ashkala interrupting him. ‘But obviously if something does happen to Ramenha and people find out I had advance warning and didn’t do anything about it then I’ll be in even bigger trouble. So that’s why I’ve brought you here to Ahketnan’s quarters. You can tell him all about it and he can take the responsibility for deciding what to do. I mean he is Ramenha’s uncle while I am only Ramenha’s secretary.’

  He looked so unspeakably pleased with himself that Ashkala was severely tempted to punch him smack on the end of his nose. Kaheb grinned at her and went to knock on the door. When no one answered, Kaheb pushed it open and stepped inside. Ashkala followed hard on his heels. They were both astonished to find that the apartment was deserted. Then they saw Theoman’s body lying on one of the couches.

  They rushed over and Ashkala knelt by his side. She touched the side of his throat with her fingers. ‘The goddess be praised. He’s not dead.’

  Kaheb picked up the goblet from the low table by the couch and sniffed it. ‘Oh yes he is. He’s dead drunk. Theoman’s obviously overdone it with this wine.’ His face lit up. ‘Actually, I could do with a drop myself.’

  ‘Don’t touch it!’ Ashkala’s voice snapped like a whip.

  ‘Why?’ queried Kaheb sarcastically. ‘Did your mother warn you about drinking with strange men? Well, I may be odd but …’

  ‘I think it may be drugged.’

  Kaheb groaned. ‘Here we go again. Read this in the tea-leaves, did you?’

  Ashkala, who had been examining the sleeping priest, straightened up and said gravely, ‘No, but someone has stolen the golden key of the High Priest. Theoman always keeps it on a chain round his neck, and now it’s gone! Look, see for yourself.’

  ‘How do you know he always kept a golden key on a chain around his neck?’ asked Kaheb.

  ‘It’s my business to know what the opposition is up to,’ answered Ashkala enigmatically. ‘Now, give me the goblet.’

  She took it from Kaheb and ran her finger around the rim and down to the bottom of the goblet. She grunted with satisfaction. ‘I thought so.’ She held her finger up, thick white sludge was sticking to it. ‘See? Not all of the powder has dissolved.’

  Kaheb scratched his head and looked puzzled. ‘But why would anyone want to drug Theoman and steal the key? It’s not all that valuable, is it?’

  ‘It’s immensely valuable to anyone who wishes to steal the Eye of the Pharaoh.’

  Kaheb was struggling to be convinced. ‘But who would wish to?’

  Ashkala stared at him. Her eyes were bright with excitement. She could feel her blood racing and her heart pounding like a drum. Oh, she thought, if only the Goddess had seen fit to have sent her a more suitable companion for the adventure that she was certain lay just ahead. Then it occurred to her that perhaps the Goddess had a role for this arrogant milksop to play. She would have to wait and see but, even so, she didn’t intend to suffer this fool gladly.

  ‘At the risk of stating the obvious, Kaheb, if we hurry to the Tomb of the Kings we may still be in time to find out. I don’t think the thief has much of a start on us.’

  Kaheb stood there dithering. ‘But shouldn’t we go find Ahketnan and tell him what’s happened?’

  Ashkala shook her head. ‘We don’t have time for that. Now come on, let’s go!’ She moved towards the door but Kaheb still didn’t move; the colour had drained from his face.

  ‘No, wait a minute. The Tomb of the Kings is protected by a curse. Anyone who enters there without Theoman’s protection is doomed.’

  Ashkala spun on her heel and gave him a withering look. ‘We will all be doomed if we don’t stop the thief,’ she growled. ‘Anyway, I thought you didn’t believe in curses.’

  ‘I don’t but …’ Kaheb’s words died on his lips and he stood irresolutely shuffling his feet.’

  Ashkala marched back to him and gripped his hand. He winced. She had a grip like the jaws of a desert lion. ‘Look, are you a man or a mouse?’

  Kaheb knew when he was beaten. ‘All right I’ll go, but if you hear any squeaking behind you, don’t worry – it’ll be me.’

  Chapter Eight

  Ahketnan and Salen tiptoed silently down a dimly lit corridor that led to the Tomb of the Kings. When they reached a particularly imposing statue of a crocodile headed man they paused. ‘According to the hieroglyphs, the secret passageway lies just to the right of our reptilian chum,’ whispered Ahketnan.

  ‘Sebek.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘Its name is Sebek. It is a powerful figure in the world beyond. It is not to be spoken of as “our reptilian chum”.’

  Ahketnan groaned but Salen was firm on the point.

  ‘You’ve never found not having a sense of humour a handicap in your chosen profession have you?’ replied Ahketnan sourly.

  ‘It is a mistake to mock forces of which you know nothing,’ said Salen. ‘As you soon discover,’ he added darkly.

  However, Ahketnan was too occupied in fumbling along the stone wall behind the statue to listen. Suddenly his hand made contact with a concealed lever and a section of the wall slid back to reveal an ill-lit passageway.

  ‘Grab a torch from the tourist section, Salen,’ he burbled excitedly. ‘You and I are going to see the sights the locals like to keep to themselves.’

  Salen did as he was told and, holding the flickering light above his head, he gingerly led the way down into the murky depths of the ancient tomb. The secret entrance slid shut behind them, effectively cutting them off from the world of the living.

  The passageway, though cold and musty, ran straight on for some considerable distance. However, the torch sent shadows swaying onto the walls, and cobwebs brushed against their faces in a way calculated to get on the nerves of even the most unimaginative person – which Ahketnan most certainly was not.

  ‘Can’t you stop that light from flickering so?’ he demanded peevishly. ‘I swear you’re doing it deliberately just to rack up the tension.’

  Salen spun round and thrust the torch into Ahketnan’s shaking hand. ‘Here you are then. Let’s see you do better.’

  Ahketnan dropped the torch.

  ‘Idiot!’

  ‘Oaf!’

  They both scrambled about on the floor pushing each other frantically in their efforts to retrieve it before it went out and plunged them into darkness. In fact, so engrossed were they in their struggle that they failed to notice that they were no longer alone.

  Chapter Nine

  ‘Who dares to trespass in the scared Tomb of the Kings?’

  ‘Only death awaits you here.’

  The voices echoing around the walls seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere. Ahketnan felt that his backbone had suddenly been eaten by maggots. He risked looking up and immediately wished he hadn
’t. Towering over him were two unearthly figures swathed from head to toe in rotting bandages. The reek of the grave emanated from them in a noxious, invisible cloud.

  ‘You talk to them, Salen,’ he whispered. ‘This is your line of work.’

  Salen leapt to his feet while Ahketnan did his best to hide his considerable bulk behind Salen’s skinny body.

  ‘Be gone creatures of the dead,’ he intoned in a suitably sepulchral voice. ‘We have the golden key.’

  However, the protectors of the tomb did not seem inclined to take anything on trust. They advanced menacingly. Salen and Ahketnan took a step backwards. ‘Give me the key, you fool,’ squealed Salen. Ahketnan thrust it into Salen’s trembling hand and he held it up for the two creatures to see. The creatures howled, the sound battering Salen and Ahketnan’s ears. Then, just as suddenly as they had appeared, they were gone.

  ‘Welcome to my world, unbeliever,’ snarled Salen. ‘How does it feel to come face to face with your worst nightmares?’ His eyes reflected the bright red glow from the torch he now held.

  Ahketnan didn’t reply, but his mouth gaped open foolishly and his robe suddenly seemed several sizes too big. At last he gasped weakly, ‘Who were your friends, Salen?’

  ‘The guardians of the Eye. I told you that such a treasure would be protected.’

  ‘Yes, well, I’m afraid that, effective as they no doubt are at their chosen profession, I’ve just crossed them off my dinner party guest list. Another fright like that and the laundry bill for cleaning my under garments will be prohibitive.’

  Ahketnan’s polished voice now had an edge of hysteria but he was determined not to give Salen the satisfaction of seeing him lose complete control.

  ‘Lead on, my friend,’ he said, ‘and let us hope the neighbourhood improves drastically from here on in.’

  Chapter Ten

  Ahketnan and Salen had only taken a few more steps when the passageway they were following turned sharply to the right and opened out into a large burial chamber. Discarded coffins were piled everywhere. Some were broken and displayed the disintegrating remains of their long dead occupants.