Amanda Grange & Jacqueline Webb by Pride & Pyramids

Author:Pride & Pyramids [Pride & Pyramids]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Historical, General, Bennet; Elizabeth (Fictitious Character), Romance, Egypt, English, Darcy; Fitzwilliam (Fictitious Character), Fiction
ISBN: 9781402265341
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Published: 2012-01-01T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

The remaining few days in Cairo passed quickly. Paul travelled out to Giza to sketch the head of the sphinx and returned with a tale of having accepted a camel ride back to Cairo, only to be taken deeper into the desert by the camel’s owner, who demanded money of him and threatened to leave him if he did not pay. He returned to the house chastened, and it was a reminder to all of them that they needed to be aware of the dangers all around them and properly prepared for their journey. But at last all the preparations were made, and they embarked on the flat-bottomed boat that would carry them down the Nile.

Their journey was enjoyable, and Elizabeth regretted it when the last night on board arrived. She was dressed in a loose muslin gown. A large hat was shading her face and protecting her eyes from the low rays of the sun. They were all lingering on deck, eager to make the most of it—all but Jane and Margaret, who, tired, had been put to bed.

Elizabeth and Darcy were sitting apart from the others at the back of the boat. As they watched the sun sinking into the water, Darcy dropped soft kisses on her hair. Elizabeth leaned back against his chest, enjoying the view. The graceful palm trees on the banks made intricate silhouettes against the rapidly darkening sky.

“First a sunrise and now a sunset. We have seen some magnificent skies in Egypt,” she said. “It is strange to think of other people watching this same sight, going back for thousands of years.”

“Strange and also humbling to think of other lovers watching the sun go down, even as we are doing now.”

“Yes, love is the one thing that never changes,” agreed Elizabeth as she basked in Darcy’s love and the beauty of the evening. “Although people themselves do. Those lovers in earlier times did not know why the sun sank beneath the horizon every evening. They thought it happened because the sun god, Ra, left the heavens to travel through the underworld, where he would fight the serpent Apophis before emerging again, triumphant, the following morning, bringing with him the new day.”

“I see that Edward has been telling you about the Egyptian myths.”

“Yes, he has. And I am not the only one,” said Elizabeth, looking toward the front of the boat, where Edward was entertaining the children with an Egyptian tale, while Sir Matthew looked on with a kindly air. Edward’s words drifted through the still, calm air toward them:

“…the king did not want to go to war, as it meant leaving all his treasure behind. But at last he had no choice, and so he left his treasure on the island of Elephantine, which was guarded by a powerful magician. As soon as the king left, his relatives tried to claim the treasure for their own—”

“He should have passed a law forbidding anyone to touch it,” said William.

“He should have left some soldiers behind to guard it,” said John.

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