Michael Belmont and the Tomb of Anubis (The Adventures of Michael Belmont) (5 page)

Michael looked Liam straight in the eye.
 
He could usually tell when his friend was joking around or trying to get him to fall for something, because Liam got a great sense of satisfaction from his own pranks, and usually gave things away by the look on his face.
 
Michael didn't see that now.

"When we get back home, I'll have Finnegan tell you the story.
 
I haven't heard it in years, haven't really thought about it until now," said Liam.

"Well I didn't hear anything last night," Abigail stated with a frown.
 
She didn't appear to be too keen on the idea of strange things happening at night while she was sleeping in a large, dark castle.

Liam could see the concern in her eyes.
 
"Its just some silly story Mr. Finnegan told me when I was a kid," he told her.
 
Liam had always liked Abigail, and although he wasn't particularly pleased with her due to the morning's events, he didn't want to scare her with ghost stories.

"Well, what about that corridor with all the horrible paintings, like the one with the werewolves?" asked Michael.

"Werewolves?" retorted Liam.
 
"Maybe you
have
flipped your wig after all.
 
We've no paintings of werewolves in McGinty Castle."
 
He squinted his eyes, as if trying to read his friend's thoughts.

"Sure you do, I was there last night.
 
It's where the bagpipe music led me.
 
As far as I could tell it was coming from down that corridor."

"Right," Liam nodded sympathetically.
 
"The corridor with horrific paintings and its own special soundtrack.
 
Where
exactly
is this place?"

"It's just down the hall past Abigail's room, before you get to the stairwell which leads down to the Great Hall."

Liam stared at him doubtfully, trying to take it all in.

 
"Oh, I see," Liam said with a chuckle.
 
"You're trying to pull a fast one on me.
 
Getting me back for all those times I've had you going, are you?"
 
He slapped his friend on the back.

Michael let out a short, nervous giggle and nodded halfheartedly.
 
He wondered if he
was
going a little crazy after all.
 
It didn't make any sense for Liam not to know about an entire wing of the castle when he'd lived there his whole life.
 
Could all the events of the night before really have just been some uneventful nightmare?
 
He'd never had a dream that felt so real before, but maybe he was just tired from traveling; maybe his mind was playing tricks on him.

He wanted to change the subject.
 
"Well, lets get going.
 
We can't sit around here all day.
 
Are you ready to ride, Abby?"

She nodded and got back on her bike, and then the three of them continued on down the long rocky path.

Abigail felt as though she could hardly continue standing after the long bike ride along Loch Lomond.
 
Michael was proud of her, because he could see how tired she was, but she hadn't complained or asked for mercy even once.
 
He would make sure they went a little easier on her next time.
 
He wondered if he was the only big brother in the world who saw qualities that he envied in his little sister.

Michael and Liam helped her get situated for a rest on the couch, put some cartoons on for her, and then went on a search for Mr. Finnegan.
 
They wanted to ask him about the Piper of Argyll, but he was nowhere to be found.

 
Mr. MacDonald was in the kitchen preparing lunch.

"Hello, boys.
 
The haggis will be ready momentarily."

Michael winced.

"I'm only joking, Michael.
 
Not to worry.
 
You like steak don't you?" he said and gave him a wink.

"Yes sir, that sounds a little better."

"Well it's not quite ready.
 
But don't run off too far."
 
Then he held up his finger as he always did when getting an itch to proclaim an order.
 
"On second thought why don't the two of you go and fetch Mikey's parents and tell them that lunch is nearly ready."
 
Michael gave him a thumbs up.

"Da, have you seen Mr. Finnegan?" asked Liam.

"He went to the market to stock up on groceries," his father responded.
 
"Why do you ask?"

"No reason, just had a question for him," said Liam as he pulled Michael out of the room.

"What about your dad, does he know the story?" asked Michael.

"Maybe, but he won't give us as much information as Finnegan.
 
We can talk to him later when he gets back from the market and he will tell us everything we want to know.
 
Sometimes he pretends like you're bothering him, but it's all an act."

They started off down the hall to fetch Michael's parents.

"Now you can show me that mysterious corridor with all the gruesome paintings," Liam said, patting his friend on the shoulder.

"Right," said Michael, and he gave Liam a timid grin.

They soon reached the stone staircase that led up to the guest bedroom wing.
 
"After lunch, I'll show you the oubliette," Liam told him.

"Oubliette, what's that?
 
Sounds girlish to me."

"Oh yeah, well you wouldn't think so if you'd ever been put in one, tough guy," Liam retorted. "Its kind of like a small dungeon where they used to keep prisoners.
 
Well, sent them to die more often than not.
 
There's a trap door off the old throne room that opens into a shaft down to the cell.
 
Used to be some spikes at the bottom sticking up out of the ground, really ruin the day of anyone unlucky enough to land on one of them."

Michael got a visual image of this and winced in sympathetic pain.

Liam noticed.
 
"I agree," he said.

They got to the top of the stairs and soon came to the section of wall that had been opened up the night before.
 
Solid stone was all that Michael saw.
 
He quickly turned his gaze back in front of him so as not to alert Liam, who seemed to have forgotten about the corridor in his excitement over telling Michael about the oubliette.

"Da just had the thing cleared out a few months ago, you wouldn't believe the amount of bones they pulled out of there.
 
Pretty gruesome business."

They arrived at the Lords and Ladies chamber, and Michael knocked on the large wooden door.

"Come in," called his mother.
 
Michael opened the door and the two boys entered the room.
 
His father was sitting at a table with some maps of the excavation site spread out before him.
 
His mother was standing at the other end of the room looking out of the window with her hands behind her back.

Liam moved excitedly to the table to take a look at the maps, but Michael walked over to his mother.

"Hey guys, did you enjoy your bike ride?" she asked them.

Michael nodded.
 
"Abby did great, we wore her out pretty good though."

"She's a pretty tough little gal," said his mother.
 
"It's nice of you and Liam to let her tag along.
 
I know she can be a pest.
 
Just keep in mind that she takes it pretty hard when your father and I travel."

"I know," he said.
 
"She was being a kind of mean to Liam earlier today.
 
He got a little upset actually."

"What happened?"

He quietly told her about their walk through the hedge maze, and how Liam had reacted to the valley of the Fianna Barrows.

"Yes," she said softly, nodding her head up and down slowly.
 
"Liam believes that place is cursed, because he believes the barrows to be located on a faery path."

"A faery path?" he questioned her.
 
"What the heck is a faery path?"

"Exactly what it sounds like," she responded.
 
"It's a kind of trail, or road used by faeries.
 
Liam's father told us that he believes his mother was cursed by the creatures that live in those woods, because she broke their rules by entering unwelcomed into their territory."

"That's one of the most ridiculous things I've ever heard," said Michael with a frown.

"And that's why Liam didn't want to tell you about it.
 
His mother was American, and she didn't believe the old stories, so he probably thinks you wouldn't believe them either."

"He'd be right.
 
Do you believe them," he asked her.

"No, Michael.
 
Liam's mother died because she got cancer, not because she was cursed," she said with a sad smile.
 
"But, I do believe that there are many strange and beautiful things in this world.
 
And I know for a fact that Liam's mother believed that too."

Michael thought about all this for a moment in silence.
 
He knew that many of the people in this country were superstitious, but he had a hard time wrapping his mind around something as strange as a belief in faeries.

"So what are you up to," asked Michael, "prepping for the trip to Egypt?"

She nodded, and putting her hand on his shoulder, she led him over to the table where her husband was pointing out some things to Liam.
 
"Take a look at these maps of the excavation site.
 
It's amazing just how big the necropolis is."

Mr. Belmont took out one of the maps from the bottom of the pile and moved it to the top.

"Here is the city of Edfu, the home of the Temple of Horus."
 
Then he moved his finger across the map to a location miles outside of the city.
 
It looked like nothing more than a small area of rock and rubble.
 
"The original entrance to the necropolis was found here.
 
However, from the way the chamber is constructed, I think there may be another way in from the Temple of Horus itself, someplace that hasn't been discovered yet."

"Wouldn't it be obvious?" asked Liam.

"No, not really, you'd be surprised how well a few thousand years worth of sandstorms can conceal things.
 
Besides, the entrance from, or underneath the temple would most likely be kept a secret to deter thieves.
 
It would probably be easier to discover it from within the necropolis, if it does indeed exist."

He then took out a detailed map of the catacombs.
 
Michael was astonished at how big the place was.

His mother put her finger to the map.
 
"This is the first level.
 
The other maps detail the chambers that go deeper underground.
 
In terms of sheer scale, this is one of the biggest discoveries that exists in regard to ancient Egypt."

The boys were impressed, but they were also hungry.
 
"Oh, Mr. MacDonald wanted us to tell you that lunch is just about ready."

"Great, I'm starving," said Mr. Belmont.

"Right, Mark," said his wife.
 
"Sitting on your butt looking at maps all morning must have really taken its toll on you."

He looked at the boys and rolled his eyes.
 
"Let's go eat."

Declan MacDonald turned out to be a pretty good chef, at least when it came to grilling.
 
Like any man with pride, he took steak very seriously.
 
He had spent some time in Texas during his college years, where he had learned the fine art of grilling.
 
In fact, he considered these skills just as important as any other aspect of his college education.

 
Declan had met his wife Linda in Texas, and the two of them spent hours in the kitchen.
 
Both loved to cook and spend time together.
 
While Linda enjoyed baking and experimenting with new recipes, it was grilling that Declan enjoyed the most, and the sounds and smells of the grill always turned his thoughts to his beautiful wife and the time they had enjoyed together.

Before her death, nearly seven years ago, she had moved back to Scotland with him.
 
Living in McGinty Castle had been a dream for both of them, and he was glad that she had gotten to experience it for at least a little while before her passing.

Declan had once again become lost in his own thoughts while thinking of her.
 
The memories were always bittersweet; waves of happiness and lament breaking over him like the tide when he remembered her like this.
 
A single tear ran down his cheek as he flipped over the steaks and sprinkled on some lemon pepper.

"It smells delicious," called Aiden Osiris, clapping his hands together and snapping Declan out of his daydream.

They were all seated outside in a picnic area near the entrance to the garden.
 
Michael's father had brought some of his maps down and was going over them with Mr. Osiris.
 
His mother and sister had just brought some plates and silverware from the kitchen.

"You two go and help the Calderwood sisters bring out the side dishes," his mother said to him and Liam as she set down the plates.

Most of lunch consisted of more discussion about the trip to Egypt, and although Michael was interested in the details, his thoughts kept turning to bagpipe music, the corridor, and the story of the piper.
 
These were mysteries that needed to be solved, and he wouldn't be happy until he had some answers, even if it turned out that nobody else believed him.