The Lost Pharaoh by Murray Bailey

Author:Murray Bailey [Bailey, Murray]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Graogonzo
Published: 2019-12-09T16:00:00+00:00

TWENTY-SEVEN

The girl shook me awake and I tried to return to the dream.

“Master, you insisted,” she said, shaking me more. Finally she resorted to cold water, and I accepted the dream would have to wait until tonight.

I washed, dressed, prayed and then breakfasted. The whole time I disciplined myself to focus on the court case, and put all other distracting thoughts from my mind.

During the hour I had waiting for the rest of the high court to assemble, an idea struck me and I spoke to Paneb before returning to my throne.

The nomarch arrived before the mayor again.

“Ask lots of questions again, young man,” he said after wishing me a good morning.

“I intend to, my lord,” I said, and he responded with a self-satisfied smile.

I looked over the men on the benches expecting to see the guide from last night, but he wasn’t there. Had he been there yesterday? I didn’t know. If he hadn’t then how did he know? I wished then that I’d asked him who he was working for.

Mayor Renseneb arrived last and looked like he hadn’t slept well. He gave me a curt nod, as though our relationship had frozen. Which seemed at odds with our conversation last evening.

This sense was heightened when the mayor spoke to the court and announced that the judges would not ask questions until after all statements had been made.

I looked at the nomarch, who just raised an eyebrow. I thought there was a small smile on his lips too, but couldn’t be sure.

First on the floor was the police chief again, and we received a recap of the case against the two men and a summary of Passer the coppersmith’s confession.

Next, the Officer of the Guilty came in and the second accused was strapped into the chair. This man was also thin, dirty and had been beaten.

This was Neni the stonemason, and we heard him give the same confession to the crime of disturbing the three tombs. At one point his feet were beaten until he accepted the version dictated by the prison officer.

“We’ll take a break,” the mayor announced.

“With your indulgence, My Lord Renseneb,” I said, “I would like to ask a question.”

Renseneb glowered but Nomarch Userhat made sure I received the rod so that I could speak.

Careful so that I directed the question at the officer, I asked, “How did the prisoner enter the tomb of the old governor Mentu?”

The Officer of the Guilty directed the question at the prisoner, who didn’t look at anyone when he replied, “Through a hole in the roof.”

“Ask him if he could fit in the hole.”

Uncertainty flashed on the prisoner’s face before he responded. “Of course.”

I remembered the doubt on the other prisoner’s face when I’d asked about the interior of the third tomb, so I did the same again.

To the officer, I said, “Ask the man about the necklace in Lord Mentu’s tomb.”

In the corner of my eye, I saw Renseneb tense. Perhaps he thought I was going to question its provenance or somehow link it to the mayor’s wife.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.