Part 11 (2/2)
Emerson, twitching impatiently under Nefret's attempts to bandage a few of the deeper scratches on his arms and knees, said, ”She's always getting involved with lame ducks and hapless lovers.”
”It was Ramses who got involved this time,” I retorted. ”The poor lad had one of his fits on the corniche in Luxor, and Ramses-quite understandably-misunderstood Francois's efforts to restrain him. He is too young to be a lover, hapless or otherwise.”
”I don't know about that,” Lia said with a knowing smile. ”He could hardly take his eyes off Nefret. Boys of that age sometimes develop violent attachments.”
”There isn't a sc.r.a.p of violence in the lad,” I said. ”And he thinks of Nefret as a G.o.ddess-Hathor, perhaps. He seems to have got it into his poor confused head that she manifests herself here in her temple.”
Selim, who was waiting for instructions, looked up. ”He is not the only one to think so, Sitt Hakim. Two of the men of Gurneh say they have seen a white lady, veiled and crowned with gold, standing before the temple.”
The description struck a chord of unpleasant familiarity. ”Why didn't you tell me about this, Selim?” I demanded.
Selim shrugged. ”Such tales are common, they spread quickly among superst.i.tious persons. The men prowled here after nightfall, looking for something to steal; they saw a moonbeam or a shadow and wished to make themselves important by telling lies . . .”
His eyes moved from my frowning face to that of Emerson, and widened in sudden comprehension. ”Are you thinking of the woman in Cairo? Surely it is only a coincidence. This was a vision, a dream, a lie.”
”My grandfather might have said that the old G.o.ds still linger in their holy places, for those who have eyes to see,” David said. ”It would make a good subject for one of my popular romantic paintings: the temple ruins by night, dim shapes in the darkness, and between the pylons, s.h.i.+ning in her own light, the veiled and crowned G.o.ddess . . .”
”Well, it is cursed unlikely that one of the old G.o.ds would pop up in a Cairo tenement,” I said. ”You are right, Selim, it is only a coincidence.”
”Are you going to tell Ramses about Hathor?” Nefret asked.
I said in surprise, ”If the subject arises. Why not?”
”Because he will want to see for himself. What if-”
”Nonsense,” I said firmly. ”You are too sensible to talk of 'what ifs.' Has everyone finished eating?”
”Back to work,” Emerson exclaimed, jumping up. ”That little episode cost us over an hour.”
”Goodness, yes,” I said, looking at my watch. ”You had better run along, David.”
”Run along where?” Emerson demanded indignantly. ”I need him to-”
”I promised Cyrus he could have David during the afternoons. We will see you at the house at teatime, David.”
Emerson's jaw set. ”And you, Emerson, ought to change your clothing,” I went on. ”You are even more unkempt than usual.”
”I am not modeling proper archaeological attire for the admiration of the cursed tourists,” Emerson declared.
David left, and Nefret very kindly offered to give me a hand with my sifting, for the rubbish heap had piled up. She seemed somewhat pensive. After a long silence she spoke.
”That fellow Francois does not seem a suitable attendant for a boy like Justin. Should we speak to his grandmother?”
”Emerson would call both of us interfering busybodies.”
”That has never deterred you from interfering.”
”Certainly not. I am the judge of my own conscience and my own behavior. That idea had occurred to me,” I admitted, picking a small piece of broken pottery out of the sieve and setting it aside. ”But interference might do more harm than good. Old people are set in their ways and dislike criticism. And, to be fair, we don't know what is wrong with the boy. He is a strange mixture of innocence and savoir faire, of reasoned discourse followed by unexpected non sequiturs.”
Nefret sat back on her heels and wiped her perspiring forehead with her sleeve. ”Some of his symptoms are characteristic of grand mal seizures. Most epileptics are of normal, even superior, intelligence, however. He seems childish for his age. Of course I am no authority on mental disorders. I've always wanted to study the subject.”
”In addition to surgery and gynecology? My dear girl, you have enough to do-your husband and children, the hospital-to say nothing of Emerson dragging you out to the dig every day.”
I had meant it as sympathetic commendation, but she did not return my smile. ”I've done almost nothing at the hospital for two years, Mother. It's in good hands, but sometimes I miss it. As for the clinic I meant to open here in Luxor . . . Well, you know what's happened to that.”
”You have your instruments and ample s.p.a.ce for consulting and operating rooms,” I said. ”Now that the children are older, there is no reason why you cannot proceed with your plan for a clinic.”
”I've become very rusty, Mother. Like some of my instruments! All I've done is a.s.sist at a few difficult births and set a bone or two.”
”All the more reason to hone your skills again. I had no idea you felt that way, Nefret. You ought to have confided in me. I will take steps immediately to have the rooms made ready.”
Her brow cleared and she let out one of her musical chuckles. ”Mother, you are incomparable. I didn't mean to complain. Please don't trouble yourself. You have enough to do managing the rest of the family!”
”Compared with managing Emerson, it will be a pleasure,” I a.s.sured her.
I CANNOT IMAGINE HOW I missed the signs. Excuses do not become me, so I will not mention that I had been extremely busy making the arrangements for Nefret's clinic. I had had such a scheme in mind when I had the house built, so the s.p.a.ce had been provided-three smallish but adequate rooms, set off from the rest of the house, with a separate entrance. They had lain dusty and unoccupied for two years, so every surface had to be scrubbed, whitewashed, and disinfected before the necessary furnis.h.i.+ngs could be installed. We were able to obtain basic supplies from the chemists in Luxor, and I suggested the names of several girls whom I considered possible candidates for the position of nursing a.s.sistant.
Nefret had already settled on someone. ”Kadija's granddaughter Nisrin came round as soon as she heard about the clinic. She has always been interested in nursing and Kadija has taught her a great deal.”
”Ah, yes, I remember her. A pleasant but rather-er-plain young woman.”
”She's only fourteen, and already betrothed,” Nefret said, with the bite in her voice that marked her disapproval of the Egyptian custom of early marriages.
”You mean to 'rescue' another one, do you?”
”If she does as well as I expect and wants to continue-yes. It's her father who is set on the marriage, but if Daoud and Kadija back me up, he'll have to give in.”
Since Daoud was putty in Nefret's hands and Kadija was one of her greatest friends and admirers, I did not doubt they would back her up. I interviewed the girl myself. Nisrin had, for some reason, always been rather shy of me, but I managed to overcome her diffidence and concluded that she would do.
What with one thing and another . . . Suffice it to say that I did miss the ominous signs, so that the disaster came upon me with the violence of a bolt of lightning out of a clear sky.
Later, I realized that Emerson had been behaving oddly for several days. I attributed his fits of preoccupation to concern about his confounded stratigraphy, which was proving to be more complicated than he had expected. His unusual interest in the post could have been explained by his concern for his half-brother; there had been as yet no reply to our telegrams. Selim, who, as I later discovered, had been in on the plot all along, was wise enough to keep out of my way. Not until I went looking for him one afternoon did I realize I had not set eyes on him all day. I went immediately to Emerson.
”Where is Selim? I want to ask him about-”
”Yes, yes,” said Emerson, in a strange, high-pitched voice. ”I know where he is.”
”Emerson, what is the matter with you?”
Emerson's bronzed countenance widened into a broad, terrifying grin. ”I have a surprise for you, Peabody.”
”Tell me,” I implored in a voice that resisted my attempts to keep it steady. ”Do not leave me in suspense. What-”
”No, no, I will show you. I will show everyone!” He took out his watch, glanced at it, and then raised his voice to the shout that could be heard throughout the West Bank. ”We are closing down for the day! Everybody come with me!”
And not another word would he say. It was early afternoon; the cessation of work at such an hour was unheard of. Bewildered, and, in my case, exceedingly apprehensive, we mounted our steeds and set out for the house. I asked Ramses, I asked Nefret, I asked Lia; one and all claimed to be as ignorant as I.
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