The Egyptologist (49 page)

him to raise money to pay back his debt. O'Toole and Kovacs had played along,
even loaned him
more
money to buy his share of the expedition, when his credit
should've been long exhausted. What's more: "We put money of our own into this
venture," O'Toole said. But now, to their "vast disappointment," Mr. Finneran
had departed for points unknown, leaving only a very vague word that he would
repay everything as soon as he'd returned, a very vague date. This far I under•
stood everything, and I was expecting a simple tracking job for us, Macy: they
were going to ask us to find an address for their frightened and empty-handed
Mr. Finneran-in-Hiding. Off the angry debtor had run in desperate hope of find•
ing his wretched son-in-law-to-be, somehow squeezing money out of the rocks,
and now after him would follow the irritable creditors, in the person of Tailor En•
quiries Worldwide, Sydney Branch. Not a new story, a case I'd handled a hundred
times before, though the details of this edition certainly intrigued. A simple
enough task, and not inconvenient, since my itinerary was bound for Egypt any•
how, and one did like to have multiple clients paying expenses.

All correct, but I'd missed one wrinkle. "The man abandons his own home
and daughter," warbles O'Toole, "to run off and spend his ill-gotten gains all
alone. Quite a wretched thing to do, you'll be quick to agree."

"Ill-gotten gains?" I must've sounded a bit thick.

"Quite. We're owed most of what the professor found, that's all square and
legal, in writing, nothing mysterious about it."

"It's in god damned legal writing!" bellows Kovacs, flecking saliva every•
where, the only six words he spoke the whole meeting.

"First, Mr. Ferrell," continues O'Toole, unaffected, "you'll discover with preci•
sion what amount our friend Mr. Finneran has already received by way of pro•
ceeds from the professor's digging and you'll report it to me discreetly. You'll let
me know by cable where Mr. Finneran is, and where the gold is, and you'll await
my instructions, which will be explicit."

This I hadn't seen coming, had almost forgotten the possibility: O'Toole and
Kovacs were entirely convinced by Trilipush's cables reporting great finds and
their share in them. They were sure there
was
treasure all right, and Finneran had
already pocketed his dividends from it, which he should've used to pay back his
debts, not to mention O'Toole's and Kovacs's dividends as well. But instead
Finneran had run off to steal it all for himself, they thought. Until this moment,
I'd been rather undecided on the question of an actual treasure: either Trilipush
had found it and was planning to run off with it, or he'd never found it and had

just taken Finneran's money to burnish his appearance to find some new victim
to steal
more
money from in turn, to pay for his deprivations and his English es•
tates. The question of
actual
treasure hardly mattered to my murder case, but
O'Toole and Kovacs were believers. Did they think Trilipush was in on it with
Finneran, the two of them were off stealing the gold together? "Don't be daft,"
O'Toole said. "Why would Trilipush wire us the news if he means to cheat us? No,
the professor's on the up and up." O'Toole and Kovacs feared worse than that: ei•
ther Finneran had already received money he'd no right to and now had sailed off
with it never to be seen again, or he'd gone to Egypt to steal even more of O'Toole
and Kovacs's winnings by ambushing Trilipush and lifting the whole load. "We
don't care one way or the other what becomes of the Englishman," admitted
O'Toole. "However, if as a result of anything untoward happening to him, then
the number of partners is reduced by one, and our percentage of the final haul
grows accordingly. But, to give our Chester the benefit of the doubt, he may be
going over to secure the entire pie in some fashion that should not offend us silent
partners. I could certainly understand this in his situation, and so be it, since this
would mean he could acquit more of his responsibilities to us. And if that's the
man's honourable intent, then that's cheering and fine with us, and he can come
home in perfect confidence. Tell him that from me, detective."

We'd a peculiar brief, Macy, and things unsaid hovered, thick-like.

I set off to New York on the 3rd and caught the steamer for Alexandria on the
12th. I felt refreshed and daily stronger. Leaving America was just the ticket, and
I remember standing on the deck, despite the swirling snow in New York Har•
bour, looking out to sea and knowing that we were coming to the end now, the
end of ambiguity, the end of lies and hidden truths, of wealth protecting evil.

Finneran had taken his partners' money into his own accounts to send to
Egypt. What had happened to it? He told me he never sent it. Did he lie? Either
he'd wired that money to Trilipush or he hadn't. Meanwhile, either Trilipush had
found his treasure or he hadn't. If he had, either Finneran was going to steal it or
Trilipush already had and Finneran was trying to stop him. Either way, Trilipush
was in immediate lethal danger from none other than Finneran, and ironically,
I
was Trilipush's best hope for protection. I hoped I wouldn't be too late. Finneran
wanted revenge or treasure or both—I'd seen that clear enough. But I didn't want
any more death in the desert, Macy, not I. Your aunt deserved better, and besides,
the murders of Hugo Marlowe and Paul Caldwell, murders of which I no longer
had the slightest doubt, were still to be accounted for, and I would not be

thwarted. Justice and truth in the person of an Australian detective and his young
American assistant were closing in on the malefactor. Would they arrive before
petty vengeance and greed (in the person of a Boston businessman) reared their
ancient and immortal heads?

Saturday, 2 December, 1922

WALL PANEL B: "THE MAGNIFICENT RISE TO POWER OF
ATUM-HADU, FINAL LORD OF THE TWO KINGDOMS"

Text:
Atum-hadu—may he live mingled with the body of the god
and in the company of Isis for one million years—was strong and
brave. He made himself a soldier in the army of the old king Djedne-
ferre Dudimose, who had seen the Lower Kingdom consumed by ene•
mies as the young of a turtle are consumed by even an extremely lazy
crocodile. Foreigners from the north and east plundered. Little men
near the mouth of the Nile dressed themselves as kings just as children
do but killed those who would not play with them. The few victories in
these days came from the bite of Atum-hadu's arrows. All who saw him
knew that Montu [the god of war—RMT] favoured him.

When at last General Atum-hadu seemed to have stopped the mil•
lion enemies, the old king called for this son of Seth. Atum-hadu came
to Thebes. The court was full of animals and acrobats, but there was
not food. The people had their heads upon their knees, and had no de•
sires. There was fear.

Atum-hadu [entered] the palace. He was beautiful and strong and
bloodied from battle. He was rubbed with oils, given food and drink,
and he took a young woman whose limbs pleased him, and no one
knew if they should tell him that she was the old king's newest queen.
Behind a curtain she showed Atum-hadu the colour of her limbs, and
he was pleased. A messenger brought Atum-hadu to the king.

Illustration:
The animals are not bad, it must be admitted, and
show a certain improvement in style over Wall Panel A. The vast illus-

trations must have taken hours if not days to complete, and the artist's
skills progress over the course of the wall; he controls his materials bet•
ter, with less dripping. I would draw the tourist's eye to the depiction of
the young Atum-hadu, embracing a woman with a warrior's hunger,
then feeding dates to a giraffe. I would point out the tenderness dis•
played in his obvious love for the animals of the dying king's menagerie.
The court of Djedneferre Dudimose is depicted with great care, and the
array of statuary, furnishings, flower-garlanded pillars, and other trap•
pings of royal power is elegantly achieved. The couch with the carved
lion-head footboards, upon which Atum-hadu takes the reigning queen
(with her remarkable birthmark), is a marvel of decorative arts, both

as a painting and as it must have once appeared (and perhaps still does
in an unopened chamber, or a nearby tomb annex elsewhere in Deir

el Bahari). The broad lapis necklaces on the court's women are jewellery
depictions of the first order.

Analysis:
We have confirmation of Atum-hadu's historical context,
as he comes after Djedneferre Dudimose, until now recognised as the
last king of the XIIIth Dynasty.

Journal:
Tired from my translation and transcription. Wedge my
door into place and hobble down to the ferry. No post. Bank closed—a
pity, as I am hoping that O'Toole and the other partners might take up
the responsibilities CCF has so far fumbled. Feed the cats, though now
I must approach the villa with as much discretion as I do the tomb. Re•
turn to my work after a sad and prolonged farewell to Maggie and the
Rameses.

WALL PANEL C: "ATUM-HADU IS CHOSEN BY
THE DYING KING DJEDNEFERR E DUDIMOSE"

Text:
The old king, Horus resident in the palace, could not rise.
He said, "General Atum-hadu, I have lived 110 years. All around me
are those that hunger to be king, though I cannot say why, as there will
never again be joy in the black land. I do not fear death, Atum-hadu,

but I fear that all that we have received will be lost. Guidance must be
preserved for those who might someday restore our land. I pray there
is time for scribes to write the glory of our past and hide the texts. This
is all one can hope the next king might achieve, and even for this
strength will be necessary. No man who is clever would wish to be
king, but only a man who is clever can succeed. My ministers are not
clever, and so they scheme for the throne. Atum-hadu, will you take my
grand-daughter's daughter? Take that girl and our two kingdoms and
our palace and our land and all the people of the land." And Atum-
hadu said, "I will have them, King, though long will you still rule in
health and life." And Djedneferre Dudimose said, "Oh, yes, of course,
and crocodiles will fly. But now in seriousness, will you vanquish the
priests and ministers who would see you fail?" "I will." "And will you,
with your strength, preserve what can be preserved of the story of our
land before night falls?" "I will." "And will you forsake all other tasks
and pleasures to preserve and hide our glories?" "I will. I will do all
that and more, King. I will drive out the invaders. I will defeat the
rebels in the Delta. I will make the two kingdoms whole and strong to
the sea. I will see the gods worshipped correctly as they have not been
for many years. I will give to you many descendants, and I will assure

your name is sung by all." And Djedneferre Dudimose said, "Do not
exhaust yourself before you have taught my pet monkeys to shoot bows
and arrows. Now stop talking. You have been surrounded by enemies
from the moment you entered my chamber. Except for your queen-to-
be and my Master of Largesse, who will support you. Forsake glory, it
is too late. Only strive to preserve the memory of our great land." And
the king was seized in the doom of death.

Atum-hadu called for the court. "The king has been seized in the
doom of death," he said. "And behold before you Horus resident in the
palace." And he slew the treacherous ministers. He called for papyrus,
and he wrote a verse, and he told the scribes that they were to write
about all of the land but only Atum-hadu would write about Atum-
hadu. Then the Master of Largesse fell to his knees and swore fealty.
Then Atum-hadu took as his queen the daughter of the daughter of the