Secret of the 7th Scarab by Nathaniel Burns

Author:Nathaniel Burns [Burns, Nathaniel]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2014-10-15T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

Neti pulled the fabric hood farther over her eyes, thankful for Desa's foresight. They had only recently reached the edge of the desert and the guards were still traveling with them, although they had distanced some since having exited the valley.

The sand was not yet deep enough to slow them down, although the glare from the sun and the heat rising from the ground cast mirages in the distance. The uniformity of the landscape was disconcerting, for she had no idea as to where they were going. Even looking back, the river valley was well beyond the horizon. She had never before needed to cross the desert, her experience being limited to the trips she had taken with her father, to the west bank, when they had needed to tend to men killed in the quarries. Those paths were familiar to her; she knew the landmarks, where the vast bareness of the desert overwhelmed her.

Moses and Khabo seemed to be following some invisible trail, yet how they determined it she remained uncertain. The sun was already approaching its zenith and would soon enough mark the end of the morning's journey, the heat of the day needing to dissipate and the sun needing to lower on the horizon to prevent them from moving in the wrong direction before they continued.

"There!" one of the guards exclaimed, pointing to a pile in the sand.

Even from the distance they were, Neti could make out the remains of a body, although badly disfigured, the jackals and hyena having already picked most of the flesh from the bones. They came to a halt next to it and Neti glanced over it, reciting a chant as she lowered herself next to it. Moses and Khabo patiently waited for her to finish her assessment, while the guards seemed reluctant to remain within the immediate area.

"I cannot tell you why he died," Neti finally said, rising, "but he is Egyptian."

"How do you know?" one guard asked, chancing a glance.

"He has paler skin than the Nubians," Neti said, pointing to a piece of skin.

"That's not to say he is not a Hebrew," another said.

Neti looked toward Moses and then to one of the guards before speaking, "Hebrews do not shave, do you see any hair?" she asked, gesturing to the area around the body.

The guard looked and then shook his head.

"We will move off some distance and wait for the heat to pass," Moses said, turning to the main guard accompanying them. "You can then return to Thebes."

The guard made to speak, although Moses lifted his hand in order to silence him. "We will continue from here. You will only draw attention to us when we approach the watering wells,"

The guard finally nodded in agreement.

* * *

Once Neti had settled in the shade of one of the camels, Khabo approached her, "You think it will haunt the desert?" he asked, indicating the body.

"I cannot determine the cause of death and his heart was taken, possibly by a jackal," Neti replied looking in the direction of the body, her heart feeling heavy for whomever it was.

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