An Egyptian Affair (Cheryl Bolen Regencies: A Mystery and a Match Book 4) by Cheryl Bolen

Author:Cheryl Bolen [Bolen, Cheryl]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harper & Appleton
Published: 2015-12-15T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 10

Jack somehow flung himself into the debris in the funerary chamber. Powdery particles from fallen stones clouded his vision and momentarily choked him. “Rosemary, are you all right?” he called frantically.

In the split second before she responded, he saw that she was in an opposite corner, standing, Maxwell in front of her, his knife unsheathed.

“I . . . I think so,” she managed in a shaky voice. She had also managed to hold on to her candle.

“What in the devil happened?” From behind him, he heard the soft fall of his wife’s feet and whirled to face her. “Did I not tell you to stay back there?”

He could now see Daphne plainly. What a sight she was! Her white belted costume was covered with so much dirt that its original hue was unrecognizable. Everything—from her spectacles to her knees—was covered with dirt. Her hand holding the candle was shaking violently. She squinted madly at him. “I’ve told you before, if you’re going to die, I’m going with you.”

He yanked her away from the site of the accident. “Have a care. Right where you were standing is where that heap of stones came tumbling down.” He turned back to Maxwell. “I thought you said this place was safe.”

“I’ve never heard of the stones becoming dislodged. And it’s not as if either Lady Rosemary or I could be so heavy that our weight coming down would cause the stones to fall.”

“Go over there with your sister,” Jack commanded his wife. Then he took his own candle to examine the entry corner where Rosemary or Maxwell could well have been killed. He held his candle high into the inky depths of the ceiling’s corner.

His blood curdled at what he saw. “Someone has set a trap here.”

Maxwell rushed forward to survey the upper corner. “By God, someone constructed a bloody lever to send the stones crashing when one of us entered this chamber!”

Jack’s attention had transferred to the floor. Something there must have triggered the lever which released the volley of stones. Then he saw it. A length of string which reached from the floor all the way up to the lever near the ceiling. The pressure of one’s foot would send the stones crashing down upon them.

He stood there in silent contemplation for some moments. Who had known they were coming here today? Briggs and Arbuthnot, naturally, had knowledge of it, and since there was no reason for secrecy, either of them could have told others. There were the eight new Egyptian servants. Everyone associated with their hotel knew.

Someone who knew their plans had come here—or sent a hired cutthroat—earlier to either kill them or scare them away from this inquiry. It wasn’t even as if they’d learned anything of value. Yet someone was nervous. Were they getting close? Damned if Jack could figure out how.

“Did any of you see anyone who was not with our party?” he asked.

The three others answered in the negative.

Jack came to stand in the center of the chamber and drew a breath.

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.