"They"re not going to appear again, Andy," Anna put in quietly. "For the simple reason that I left the bottle on the island. It"s buried in the sand. Gone for ever." She looked at him quizzically. "Luckily for you, no one will ever see it again. Nor will they see whoever it was who guarded it, so let that be the end of it. Please." Her head was aching again. As she stared at him a gauze seemed to be lying across in front of her eyes. She blinked desperately.
Andy laughed. "I knew you"d end up losing it. The stupid thing was a fake anyway. "It is not a fake, Andy." Serena suddenly turned on him. "You"re 359.
the fake around here. An opinionated, stupid boorish loudmouthed oaf! I cannot tell you how tired I am of hearing your voice, your opinions, your mockery!" She reached down at her feet and fumbled for her bag. "For your information, Anna didn"t lose the bottle. I picked it up and I brought it back with me. It deserves better than to languish in the sand!" She was groping around inside the bag. "And if anything can prove just how stupid you are, this can. You are ignorant. You know nothing about antiques. This is over three thousand years old!" She pulled out the little bottle and waved it at him.
"Serena! I had given that back to the G.o.ds!" Anna was furious. "Give it to me!" "Why? You don"t want it, you threw it away! I am going to make sure that it is preserved safely."
"No, Serena! That bottle has caused the death of dozens of people, perhaps hundreds -"
"Only because they didn"t know what it was. We know! We will treat it with the respect it deserves. We"ll look after it."
"Three thousand years old? That?" Andy sat down heavily. He s.n.a.t.c.hed his arm away from Ben with a petulant shrug.
"Yes, Andy. This." Serena cradled it in her palm. "This is so sacred. So special." She sat looking down at it, aware of at least a dozen pairs of eyes on her as the crowded pa.s.sengers around them waited to see what would happen next. The note of the engine changed as the man at the wheel altered course and for a moment a trail of diesel fumes blew across them, then it was gone and cold clear wind knifed across the boat again. Serena shivered. She looked up at Andy. "If I give this to you, do you know what will happen?" She was shouting over the noise of the engine and the slap of water against the planking of the boat.
"What?" Andy grinned. He held out his hand. "Show me."
"If I give it to you, a cobra will appear, here in the boat. A deadly poisonous, evil snake." She smiled. "And it will kill you!"
"That"s enough!" Anna leant forward and s.n.a.t.c.hed the bottle out of her hand. "This has gone on long enough."
"Show me!" Andy stretched his hand out towards her. "Go on. Show me the magic snake! I want to see it! Don"t you want to see it?" He gestured round the other pa.s.sengers. "That would be exciting, wouldn"t it?" He stood up once again and balanced unsteadily in front of Anna, holding out his hand.
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"Andy, you"re a fool!" Anna had to raise her voice to make herself heard.
"Give it back!" Serena grabbed Anna"s wrist.
"No. No, Serena, I"m sorry. Anna edged away from her. "This belongs to another age and to other people. They want it for their G.o.ds. Louisa tried to give it to the Nile. Now it"s my turn!"
Standing up she turned to face the water.
"No!" Serena"s scream echoed across the river. "Don"t throw it away!"
"It"s all right, I"ve got it!" Andy lurched forward, lunging at Anna as she raised her arm and with every ounce of strength she possessed hurled the bottle out into the boat"s wake. Andy missed her arm, staggered off balance and as she fell back into her seat, winded, he clutched at the rail, swayed for a moment, overbalanced and plunged head first over the side.
"Andy!" Serena"s scream was echoed by others on the boat as the crew looked back, realised what had happened and threw the gears, dragging the wheel round in a small circle.
"Can you see him?" Toby and Ben were staring at the dark water.
"Torches! Has anyone got torches?" Toby kicked off his shoes and was already standing on the seat, scanning the surrounding river. As several feeble beams. .h.i.t the water simultaneously behind the now drifting boat, he dived in.
Ben reached over the side, struggling to free one of the old cork lifebelts hanging on the side of the boat. "Here you are, Toby!" He threw it as Toby"s head reappeared. Two other belts followed, hitting the water near him.
"Andy! Andy, where are you?" Serena was leaning out over the side as one of the Egyptian crewmen jumped into the water near Toby.
Suddenly other boats were appearing out of the darkness, circling round them, dozens of pa.s.sengers craning over the side, staring out into the dark. There was still no sign of Andy as a fast launch appeared and a spotlight suddenly shone out over the scene. Two, then three other men were in the water now, all of them diving.
"The water"s pitch-black!" Toby reappeared, shaking droplets out of his eyes. "You can"t see a thing." He was treading water, turning slowly round, scanning the reflections around him.
Anna turned away from the rail and sat down. She put her head 361.
in her hands. "He"s dead, isn"t he. And it"s my fault! The G.o.ds have taken him! I"ve killed him!"
She looked up at Serena"s white face and there were tears pouring down her cheeks.
Serena turned to stare out across the water. "If it was anyone"s fault, it was mine," she whispered. "I wound him up. I produced the bottle."
Several men were swimming with Toby now, diving around the boat. Beyond them another launch had appeared and this time they could see that the men crowding around the bows were dressed in police uniform.
"They"ll find him!" Ben sat down next to Anna and put his hand over hers. "He"s a strong swimmer, which I"m not or I"d be over there with them."
"But he was so drunk!" Serena shook her head.
"I know. But it"ll take more than a dunking in the Nile to defeat Andy." Ben did not sound as though he believed his own rea.s.suring words. For a moment he sat where he was then he stood up again and joined the others desperately scanning the water.
"They won"t find him." Anna looked at Serena. The boat was strangely silent now, without the engine or the cheerful slapping of the water against the bows.
The other pa.s.sengers were sitting quietly, staring around, numb with shock. Serena shook her head. "As you say, the G.o.ds have taken him away. He mocked them, Anna, and he paid the price." She bit her lip.
A slight shock ran through the boat as a launch came alongside and two tourist police officers climbed on board. There was an excited exchange with the boat"s captain, then they made their way aft to where Anna and Serena were sitting. One of the officers sat down next to them. "This gentleman had been drinking alcohol?"
Both women nodded.
"He was very drunk?" The taller, obviously senior man"s English was heavily accented but fluent.
Anna looked up. "Yes, he was very drunk. He had brought a bottle of vodka with him for some reason. He stood up and," she paused, feeling the tears returning, "he went in head first."
"The water is very cold." The man shook his head. He stared gloomily over the side. "Could he swim?"
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"Yes." Ben had joined them. "He swam well."
"Then it is not good news. He should have come up and shouted." The officer shrugged. "Yallah!" He turned to his companion and after a quick exchange in fast, eloquent undertones, the two men made their way back to the captain who was standing at the wheel of the boat, shaking his head, wiping his hands again and again on an oily rag.
One by one the swimmers were hauling themselves back onto their boats. Anna saw Toby treading water again, looking up at one of the men in the police launch. He shook his head but the man leant over and proffered an arm and she saw Toby hauled out of the water. A few minutes later he was delivered back to their own boat, wrapped in a rug. He was shaking with cold as he made his way towards her.
"He just disappeared. The water is like ink in the darkness. You can see the lights if you look up, but nothing below you. Nothing!"
"It was very brave to go after him." Anna leant forward to touch his hand. It was like ice.
He shook his head. "I didn"t stop to think. I should have waited. Seen where he came up.
"He didn"t come up, Toby." Serena had tears streaming down her face. "We were all watching."
It was a long time later that the pa.s.sengers rejoined their ship. The crew met them, solemn-faced, and they were urged to go at once to the dining room. While Toby was whisked away by Omar to be seen by a doctor after his long cold immersion in the Nile, the others trooped obediently to the dining room and sat down. No one had much appet.i.te and it wasn"t long before in twos and threes they began to make their way to their own cabins. Serena followed Anna to hers and they sat side by side on the bed.
"It was a stupid accident, Anna." Serena put her arms round her companion. "He was drunk."
"It was our fault. We both wound him up. If I hadn"t thrown away the bottle it wouldn"t have happened." Anna was squinting at the wall. There was something wrong with her eyes. She could see the sun again; the sand, the endlessly moving fronds of a tall palm tree.
"No. It could have happened at any second. It could have happened here, off this boat! Andy was like that!" Serena shrugged.
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"He was a fool. A great big, stupid, malicious, lying fool. . ." Suddenly she was sobbing violently.
Anna stood up. She shook her head and rubbed her eyes. "i"ll get us something from the bar." She hesitated, then she went to the door and out into the deserted corridor.
Ibrahim was behind the bar. There were several people in the lounge talking in subdued voices in groups on the sofas around the edge of the room. He looked up as Anna came in and frowned.
"You wore the amulet?"
She nodded.
Ibrahim shrugged. "The G.o.ds are still powerful, mademoiselle. I am sorry for Monsieur Andrew but these things happen. Inshallah"."
"He didn"t deserve to die, Ibrahim." She climbed onto a stool and leant wearily on her elbows.
"That is not for us to decide, mademoiselle."
"Could I have saved him?" She looked up and met his eyes.
He returned her gaze steadily. "Not if it was written that this was his fate."
"I keep thinking we"ll hear his voice; that he swam under water and crawled up on the rocks somewhere. That they"ll find him alive."
Ibrahim inclined his head slightly. "All things are possible."
"But not likely."
He shrugged. "It is the will of Allah, mademoiselle."
"What will happen? Will they cancel the cruise?"
Again he shrugged. "The police will come tomorrow. And the tour company representative. Omar will meet them. I expect they will ask for you. This is a very small boat. Everybody knew Monsieur Andrew. Everybody is sad."
She nodded slowly. "I just want to curl up and go to sleep.
"You want to take a drink to bed?"
"Yes please. And one for Serena."
He nodded. "I bring them to your cabin. You go." He turned to the shelf behind him, then he glanced quickly back at her. "Mademoiselle, do not take off your amulet. Not even for one second. There is still danger near you."
She frowned. Her hand went automatically to her throat. She wanted to ask why he had said that. But he was busy with his back to her and she realised suddenly that she did not want to know. Not now. She couldn"t cope with any more.
364.
Serena was lying on her bed with Louisa"s diary in her hands.
"I hope you don"t mind. You"d left your bag lying open on the side table and I wanted to read the last few pages. I thought it would help to take my mind off things."
Anna sat down beside her. "Good idea." She sighed. "Ibrahim is bringing us a drink to the cabin. I suspect he is going to mix a knock-out concoction." She smiled wearily. "So, what happened to Louisa?"
Serena sat up and swung her legs to the floor. "I think you should read it yourself." She c.o.c.ked her head at the sound of a gentle knock and opening the door took a tray from Ibrahim.
"There you are. Your knock-out drink." She put a gla.s.s on the table next to the bed for Anna and sniffed cautiously at her own. "For a Muslim and a teetotaller he mixes a fairly hefty c.o.c.ktail. Years of catering to the habits of the infidel no doubt." She paused with a wistful smile. "Don"t dwell on things, Anna. It is absolutely not your fault. It was his for getting stupidly drunk."
Anna nodded. She could feel the tears very close.
"I"ll leave you to read," Serena whispered. "We"ll talk again in the morning."
Anna sat without moving for several minutes after she had gone then she reached for the gla.s.s. Kicking off her shoes she lay back against the pillows and picked up the diary. Serena was right. There were only a few pages of the close-packed writing left and it would serve to take her mind off the present through what would inevitably be a sleepless night.
The three boats remained at their moorings for several days after Katherine"s lying in. Then when she was sufficiently strong to transfer back to the Lotus the Fieldings and the Forresters set off once more in convoy on the long journey north, leaving the Scarab behind. There had been no sign of Lord Carstairs since Louisa had 365.
left his boat before dawn on the day of the birth. Sir John"s questioning of the reis on the boat had produced no more than a shrug and an eloquent glance towards the heavens. A search had produced no signs of a snake of any size at all.
It was at Luxor that Louisa made her decision.
"I shall take the steamer back to Cairo," she told the Forresters after dinner on the night they took up their moorings. "You have been so kind and so hospitable, but I want to see my little boys again."
In her cabin she began to pack away her painting things. Treece would deal with her clothes, but these were special. They had been packed and unpacked by Ha.s.san. She opened one of her sketchbooks and stared for a long time at his face, the dark loving eyes, the gentle mouth, the hands which were so strong and yet so sensitive. It was very hot in the cabin and she had pushed back the shutters. On the far side of the river a line of dahabeeyahs were moored against the palm-fringed sh.o.r.e. Most were pointing north. The season had turned for most Europeans and the time had come to make their way down the Nile towards Cairo and on to Alexandria and the Mediterranean coast and the routes back to Europe.
She put down the sketchbook and went to stand looking out at the dusk. The sun hung, a crimson ball, low over the Theben hills, throwing a wash of red across the water.
There was a sound in the cabin behind her, a feeling, no more, that she was not alone. Without turning she knew what it was. "I have tried to return the bottle to your G.o.ds," she said quietly. "Each time it comes back to me. What would you have me do?" She wasn"t afraid. She went on staring out across the water. Somewhere out there where the mountains turned the colour of blood before they cloaked themselves in darkness lay the temple where these priests had worshipped the G.o.ds to whom they had dedicated their eternal souls.
The bottle, still wrapped in its water-stained silk was lying somewhere amongst the paints and brushes on the table top behind her. The cabin was growing dark as the sun slipped behind the hills and the first breath of night air whispered across the water. She closed her eyes.
Take it. Please take it.
The words had echoed so strongly in her head she thought she had shouted them out loud.
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Across the river, lamps were being lit on the boats strung out along the sh.o.r.e; the mountains had vanished and one by one the stars were beginning to appear. Behind her there was a loud knock on the door and Treece came in with a branch of candles. She banged it down on the table. "Shall I help you dress, Mrs Sh.e.l.ley?" The woman"s face was sour. Angry. Within seconds, Louisa knew why.
"Sir John says the steamer is fully booked. There are no cabins available until next week so you"ll have to stay with us that bit longer." She sniffed her disapproval and turned to fetch a ewer of water.
Louisa stood staring after her in dismay. She wanted to leave Egypt. She wanted to close this chapter of her life where every breath of desert air made her think of the man whom she had loved and who had died because of her.
Her gaze fell on the table. For a second her heart missed a beat. She thought the bottle had gone. Then she saw it, small, scruffy in its wrappings, half hidden by a box of charcoal. As Treece had banged the candles down a shower of wax had fallen across the table. A small lump hung from the dirty silk like a minature stalac- t.i.te, looking already as ancient as the gla.s.s beneath its wrapping.
As she stared at it she knew what she had to do. The next day she would get Mohammed to take her back to the Valley of the Tombs and she would bury the bottle there in the sand beneath an image of the G.o.ddess, and she it was who must decide on its fate.Anna"s eyelids drooped. She took another sip from the gla.s.s. Ibra him had put brandy in the drink, but also other things. Strange, bitter things she could not identify. The diary was suddenly heavy in her hands and she let it fall onto the covers, staring sleepily towards the window of her cabin. Even with the lamp beside her 367.