Sands of Time (Out of Time #6) (31 page)

Despite the tension of their mission and the fact that someone who hated their actual guts was nearby, Elizabeth was excited. She was about to see the opening of an ancient tomb. She was about to step into a room, into dusty footprints, made three thousand years ago.

Anticipation being almost too much to handle, she wriggled in her seat. They couldn’t be far now. She leaned out to see for herself, and got a faceful of dust for her trouble. Coughing, she tried to wipe the dust from her eyes when she saw Simon’s hand holding out his handkerchief.

Simon smiled at her as she took it, only briefly though, before turning his attention back to the road. He’d been in a state of hyper-focus since they’d gotten up that morning. She could see it in his posture, rigid and controlled, in the set of his jaw, the way his eyes moved, scrutinizing everything around them, leaving nothing unnoticed.

He was right to be on alert, of course. They weren’t the only ones after the watch, not to mention, crazy didn’t need a reason to do things. Reining in her excitement, she wiped her face and meticulously folded his handkerchief, dirty side in, before handing it back to him.

Their carriage turned and she could see the white tents of Henri’s dig.

She took Simon’s hand. “Ready?”

Simon was about to say something when his expression hardened. Elizabeth turned and saw the reason. Katherine Vale stood by her car talking with Henri. Elizabeth’s excitement was replaced with a healthy dose of fear. She took a deep breath and her fight response told her flight response to stuff it.

As their carriages pulled up, Henri greeted them. “So pleased you could join me. All of you.”

Once everyone had disembarked and the carriages retreated to wait in the shade, Henri turned to address the small group. “I hope today will be one to remember.”

Vale smiled at the assemblage, her eyes landing on Simon and Elizabeth. Her mouth curled a little tighter. “I am sure it will be.”

He gestured toward the entrance, letting Vale precede him. He waved to the rest of the group, ushering them toward the stairs.

Elizabeth looked anxiously at Simon. He clenched his jaw but nodded that they should follow Jouvet.

Simon held her arm as they made their way down the steep, narrow steps and into the first corridor. The hum of the small electric generator was drowned out by the hum of excited voices that echoed in the narrow chambers.

Elizabeth squinted in the dim light. They’d spent the better part of last night going through possible scenarios. What if the watch was sitting out in the open? Surely, Jouvet would notice the blatant incongruity. He’d probably take it immediately to his rooms or the press. That was if, as Simon said, always a ray of sunshine, Katherine Vale didn’t shoot him first. While that was possible, it didn’t seem probable. Vale had kept a low-profile so far and if they were right, getting the watch wasn’t her true end game. She wouldn’t risk it all just for the sake of expediency. She’d try to swipe it later, just as they would.

It was also possible the watch was buried in the midst of hundreds of other artifacts. King Tut’s tomb had thousands of things in it. If that were the case here, they’d have to come up with a way to beat Vale to it.

The last possibility was one Elizabeth didn’t want to think about. What if the watch wasn’t there at all? They would have to start over from square one and neither of them had any idea where the heck that square was.

“If you will stop here, please?” Henri said, bringing the chatter to a halt.

“These walls are quite unstable,” he continued. “Please do not touch or disturb the bracing struts as we descend into the ante-chamber.”

“How unstable?” Trevor Everett asked.

“If these were to give way,” Henri said, waving his hands toward the broad support beams, “we would be crushed beyond recognition.” He smiled. “So, do not touch them, eh?”

Trevor looked up at the rough ceiling of the tunnel and paled. “I don’t know, darling. What’s another dusty old tomb?”

His wife seemed to have the same idea. “Yes,” she said. “You’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all.

“Quite.” Trevor turned around. “We’ll see you out there,” he said, trying not to sound like a man who had just taken the chicken exit.

He and Constance shouldered past the others in the narrow corridor, nearly pushing people out of the way in their haste.

“Anyone else?” Henri asked.

Whiteside looked at his daughter.

“Don’t be silly, papa,” she said.

He smiled. “That’s my girl,” he said, but then cast a concerned look at the wooden beams. “But do be careful.”

When no one else had any more objections, Henri continued down the sloping corridor to the doorway Elizabeth had seen on their first visit to the tomb. Remembering how that had gone, she made sure to walk in the middle of the path, as far away from the walls as she could.

“The ante-chamber itself appears quite safe.” Henri stopped at the bottom of the corridor at the mouth of the doorway. He extended his arm. “Entrez.”

One by one the group filed into the large chamber, perhaps fifteen by fifteen. There were no electric lamps, but two workers held aloft large lanterns bright enough to illuminate the brightly painted walls.

Elizabeth looked at the art, and when she turned, the back of her neck tingled with the undeniable sensation that she was being watched. She knew before she looked who it was. She glanced over and saw Vale simply watching her, a small smile on her lips. Elizabeth looked away. She wasn’t going to let her get into her head. Stay focused, Elizabeth, she told herself. Don’t let her get to you.

“As you can see,” Henri said. “The walls are quite elaborate. We thought at first this was the burial chamber.”

He took one of the lanterns and lifted it to better light some of the detailed reliefs. “These are from the Book of Gates. It is a guide for the soul through the trials one must face to reach the next life.”

“Each represents an hour of the sun’s journey through the underworld during the night,” Arthur said, pointing. “The Gate of Teka-Hra, and here the fifth hour, the Judgment of Osiris.”

Each section was incredibly detailed with dozens and dozens of figures acting out parts in a complex play.

“These are beautiful, Henri,” Diana said. “The colors are still so vivid.”

“You thought this was the burial chamber, but…” Elizabeth asked.

Henri smiled and walked over to the far end of the room. “Until we found this.” The light from his lamp lit another doorway and a dark corridor beyond.

They all gathered near.

“This is why we were delayed,” he said. “It is as though the hand of God pushes down on this place. It was difficult to secure, as you can see.”

The corridor had multiple protective struts and cross beams. At the end of the ten-foot tunnel was a doorway with two handles and a rope wound between them.

“This is the seal,” Henri said, as he knelt down next to one of the handles and pointed at a wax blob formed over one of the ropes. “Unbroken for thousands of years.”

His smiled. “Until today.” He held out his hand and one of the workers handed him a small tool.

Butterflies finished their pre-flight checks in Elizabeth’s stomach and took off as she and the others waited.

Carefully, Henri broke the seal, trying to preserve as much as he could, but it crumbled at his touch. He sighed and set to work on the rope.

It only took a few minutes, but the anticipation was agonizing. Finally, he unwound the ropes and gripped one of the handles. He nodded for one of his workers to take the other. They both braced their shoulders against the stone. “Un, deux, trois.”

Together, they pushed the heavy doors forward. Elizabeth glanced up anxiously at the ceiling to see if any of the struts gave way, but it seemed solid enough. Once the doorway was opened, the first thing she noticed was the horrible stale air. It fled the chamber in a wave. She coughed and raised her hand to cover her mouth and nose and squinted to see into the darkness.

“Merde,” Henri whispered.

Elizabeth didn’t need a translator for that and craned her neck to see.

Henri took a deep breath and stepped into the empty chamber.

Like the outer chamber, the walls were filled with detailed reliefs, but there was nothing else. No golden thrones or ivory headrests. No royal beds, no chests filled with jewels and, worst of all, no sarcophagus. And no watch.

Elizabeth’s heart sank and she and Simon shared a look of disappointment and frustration. They’d been hurtling toward this moment and it ended with a whimper instead of a bang.

Henri stood in the middle of the empty chamber, a look of such utter defeat on his face, it was all Elizabeth could do not to comfort him.

“You were right about this being for Akhenaten, Henri,” Whiteside said. “These reliefs were designed for him and no other.”

“And here’s his cartouche,” Christina added excitedly.

“Yes.” The despondency in Henri’s voice was palpable.

“It’s still an amazing find,” Diana said. “These paintings are priceless.”

Henri forced a smile to his face and nodded. His eyes were downcast as he looked toward the doorway where Katherine Vale stood. “I am sorry, it is not what you hoped for.”

Vale glanced at Simon and Elizabeth and her lips curled into a smile. “Isn’t it?”

Elizabeth felt the usual chill that came with the Katherine Vale smile and watched as the woman nodded once to Henri and then left the room.

“What was that?” Elizabeth whispered to Simon.

He shook his head. “More theatrics.”

Elizabeth looked around the chamber. Maybe there was a hidden panel or another door. After all, the one to this room had been hidden. She slowly walked the perimeter of the room looking for some sign, some unnatural edge, but she didn’t find anything, although it was still very dark and she couldn’t exactly look thoroughly without drawing attention.

She saw that Simon was doing the same thing as she was, and with the same success.

“Well,” Henri said finally. He looked about to say more when he decided against it. With one last forlorn look around the empty chamber, he gave a curt order to one of his men. “Do not linger too long,” he said. “The air is unfit.”

With that he walked through the doorway and disappeared.

“Poor chap,” Whiteside said. “I wish there’d been something. Anything really. Even just one thing.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

Elizabeth did her best to look casual, but knew the harder she tried the more awkward she looked. She leaned against one of the large columns and tried to look like she wasn’t about to have kittens right there in the lobby of the Winter Palace hotel.

“He’ll be here,” Simon assured her, but he looked as anxious as he ever allowed himself to be in public.

She and Simon had spent most of the evening trying to figure out what the heck to do. The tomb was empty. Or at least, it looked empty. They all knew that looks could be deceiving though, and they had to be sure. They planned to meet Jack in the lobby at midnight and sneak back into the tomb for one more look.

Elizabeth looked at the grandfather clock in the corner. He was late.

With midnight come and gone and no Jack, Simon went off to find him. Elizabeth waited at the appointed spot in case he showed up while Simon was off looking for him.

She crossed and uncrossed her arms. Trying to look blasé was impossible. She decided to try sitting down instead and found a rattan chair nestled next to a large potted palm.

Despite the hour, the lobby was busy with people. The nightlife in Luxor centered around the Winter Palace and a few other posh hotels. Just as it had been in Cairo, the not-yet-jet set partied well into the night and early morning. Groups of revelers streamed in and out of the large front doors.

Elizabeth watched them a few minutes until she finally saw Simon heading toward her from across the lobby. But he was alone. He caught sight of her and quickened his pace, a deep frown on his face. In his haste, he bumped into a little man with a pencil mustache, nearly knocking him over. Simon apologized brusquely and hurried over to her.

Elizabeth stood up and met him half way.

“Not in his room,” he said, his frustration plain on his face.

Elizabeth felt a lump settle into her stomach. If something happened to Jack…

“Damn it,” Simon said under his breath.

“Let’s give him a few more minutes,” she said, leaving out the “and then we’ll” part because she had no idea what that would be.

Simon nodded curtly and they lingered near the doorway. After a few incredibly long minutes, Jack appeared and Elizabeth let herself breathe again.

“I’m sorry I’m late,” he said, holding up a hand to stave off the dressing down Simon had poised and ready. “I couldn’t find Diana.”

Simon grunted and ground his teeth, but didn’t say anything more than, “We’ll just have to go without her then.”

Jack’s eyes darted toward the lobby, clearly hoping to somehow see her appear there.

“I’m sure she’s fine,” Elizabeth said, hoping she sounded convincing.

Jack nodded again, unconvinced, and glanced once more around the lobby. “She can take care of herself,” he said, but Elizabeth could hear the worry in his voice.

With an effort, he shook that off and looked to Simon, his focus entirely on the matter at hand. “Everything’s ready.”

“Good.” Simon nodded his head toward the front doors. “Let’s get this over with. Hassan’s waiting.”

~ ~ ~

“Are you sure you know the way?” Elizabeth whispered.

“We’ve driven it three times,” Jack said. “I think we’ve got it.”

They had been down the road three times now, but she couldn’t remember the way if her life depended on it. She shook off that thought and hoped it wouldn’t come to that.

She sat back in the carriage Hassan had hired and tried to pay attention to the route, but they were nearly there.

Hassan pulled the carriage up to a spot in a nearby ravine and they quietly climbed out.

“We’ll have to walk the rest of the way,” Jack said.

They’d suspected there might be a guard on duty. Even though the tomb was empty, it was still an important find.