The Amulet of Power - Mike Resnick [48]
“I am surprised that you haven’t become sick yet,” remarked Omar as they put Ed Debba well behind them.
“I was sick when you met me,” answered Lara. “I’m my old self now.”
“I mean because of the water.”
She laughed. “I have been in so many filthy places and drunk such foul water during my life that my stomach probably thinks the Nile is the finest, purest distilled water I’ve ever given it.”
“I keep forgetting,” said Omar. “You are not just some ordinary Englishwoman. You are Lara Croft.”
“Don’t underestimate my fellow Englishwomen,” she said. “The first Elizabeth was a pretty tough old bird, Victoria ruled the world, and Maggie Thatcher could have reconquered it if she’d felt like it.”
“I meant no offense,” said Omar quickly.
“None taken.”
“Have you given any thought to the Amulet?”
“Of course I have. Frankly, between you and me, I wish I’d never heard of it.”
“That was not precisely the kind of thought I was referring to,” said Omar.
“I know,” said Lara. “I don’t know enough yet to have any serious thoughts on where to look. I’ve been to Khartoum a couple of times, but it’s a very large, very old city. Chinese Gordon could have hidden it anywhere.”
“Chinese?” repeated Omar. “You are mistaken. General Gordon was British.”
“It was a nickname,” she explained. “The press gave it to him after he’d conducted a successful series of campaigns in China. Anyway, he’s the key to it. Obviously Colonel Stewart was in Edfu for some other reason, so the Amulet stayed with Gordon. I have to learn more about him, see where he lived and where he worked, read his writings, walk the city where he walked it. In short, I have to become Gordon. I have to learn to think as he did—and once I do that, I’ll know where I would hide the Amulet, which means I’ll know where he hid it.”
“And you will bring all your training and experience to bear,” said Omar.
“I’m not sure how useful my experience is going to be.”
“I do not understand. You have found many lost treasures. Everyone knows this.”
“It’s not the same,” she said. “You find ancient artifacts by studying ancient peoples—but much of the time, the reason the artifacts are lost is not because anyone hid them, but because the society no longer exists. You study their history, their culture, so that you can figure out where to dig, where they kept their most valuable treasures.” She sighed deeply. “But we’re not talking about that. We’re talking about a man who lived little more than a century ago, who was a serving officer in the British army, who knew that hundreds, perhaps thousands of men would be searching for the Amulet the instant Khartoum fell—and he didn’t want them to find it.” She looked at Omar. “Do you see the difference? No one set out to hide an artifact like the Rosetta Stone. It became lost in the mists of time. That’s not the case with the Amulet. Gordon actively hid it, and I have to figure out where, which is why I have to learn exactly how his mind worked. It’s not much, but it’s all I’ve got. If I were laying bets, I’d put my money on Kevin finding it, not me. He’s the Gordon student.”
“If I had put my money on Kevin Mason instead of you, all four of us would have died five days ago,” said Omar, referring to the incident with the five riflemen. “We have more faith in you than you have in yourself.”
“I’ve never been plagued by self-doubt,” said Lara. “But you have to understand that you’re asking me to find a century-old needle that’s hidden in a haystack a third the size of Europe. That’s quite a daunting challenge.”
“If it was easy, we wouldn’t need your expertise,” responded Omar. “So I ask again: What are your thoughts concerning the Amulet?”
“Just that it’s very well hidden.”
“Come now,” said Omar. “You knew General Gordon’s nickname. You are not totally ignorant of him. Doubtless