The Hippopotamus Pool - Elizabeth Peters [74]
‘May as well wait till we have the steps up,’ Emerson said, visibly relieved. ‘Very well, then. Abdullah and Daoud after Ramses and Carter. Abdullah, tell the men to hold off working while we are on our way up there; the whole structure is extremely unstable and I don’t want anyone mashed by a falling rock.’
It had seemed to me that very little had been accomplished, but now I realized why Emerson was proceeding so slowly. Whether the entrance had been deliberately blocked (and I felt sure it had been, despite Emerson’s dogmatic statement to the contrary) or closed by an accidental avalanche, the rocks were unstable; the removal of the wrong one could bring others tumbling down.
Emerson slung the rope ladder over his back, grasped the end of the rope and began to climb. Standing close to me, Nefret remarked, ‘Why do we need the ladder, Aunt Amelia? The slope cannot be steeper than forty-five degrees, and with the rope –’
‘It is not so easy as Emerson makes it appear, my dear,’ I replied, watching uneasily as darkness engulfed my husband. ‘You are young and agile, but you have not his strength in the arms and shoulders. When he –’ I broke off, shielding my face with my arm, as a shower of broken stone rained down.
‘Look out below!’ Emerson called – somewhat belatedly. ‘My apologies, my dears; this cursed stuff crumbles at a touch.’
It was not crumbling rock I feared. Desperate men had awaited us the night before, and Emerson’s position now was even more vulnerable. A missile falling from above could loosen his grasp; a sharp knife severing the rope would have the same effect, inducing a fall that would almost certainly be fatal. And the most dangerous moments would be the last, when he neared the entrance. I believe I did not draw a deep breath until I heard him repeat his warning, and the rope ladder came tumbling down the slope, accompanied by a rattle of stone. Needless to say, my foot was on the lowest rung as soon as it was within reach.
As soon as my head passed through the narrowest part I saw Emerson. He had lighted several candles and stuck them onto the rock face. Leaning over, he grasped my wrists and lifted me onto the ledge.
‘Proceed, my dear, but watch out for bats. They were stirring uneasily.’
‘You have already entered the chamber?’
‘Before ever I let down the ladder, Peabody. Do you suppose I would allow you and Nefret to venture here until I was certain there were no uninvited guests? You will have to feel your way, I did not want to leave an open flame unattended.’
Many archaeologists would have considered Emerson’s concern about fire unnecessary, and few men would have sent their wives into a pitch-black tomb chamber filled with bats and bits of mummy. I agreed with his precautions; and his unquestioning confidence in my abilities was the firm foundation on which our marriage rested. As I crawled along in the dark, with sharp edges of rock jabbing into my knees and hands, I acknowledged, as I had so often done, that I was the most fortunate of women.
My entrance into the chamber irritated several of the livelier bats and I had to speak sharply to them before they settled down again. I lit a candle. When Nefret and Emerson joined me I was still staring in disbelief at the object that had immediately engaged my attention.
I interrupted Emerson’s introductory remarks.
‘Look. I did not see it last night. Was it there when you entered the room just now?’
‘Was what where?’ Emerson demanded irritably. ‘I didn’t carry out a detailed inspection, Peabody, I only made certain no one was . . . Oh, good Gad.’
The statue was approximately two feet high and carved of black basalt. It had been placed next to the door leading to the burial chamber. Jaws parted to display its formidable teeth, swollen abdomen framed in bands of reflected light, it depicted the grotesque hippopotamus goddess, Taueret.
By the time everyone had had his or her turn in the tomb, it was mid-afternoon, and even Emerson conceded that we had better return to the dahabeeyah. However, as we jogged on side