The Last Camel Died at Noon - Elizabeth Peters [180]
“Quite right, my dear,” said Emerson, prying Ramses off her camel’s leg and tossing him into a saddle. He was as limp as a stuffed doll. “Ready, Peabody? Good. It is a pleasure to have you with us, young lady. What did you use to hook that bas—— er—that rascal’s arm so neatly?”
From the folds of her robe Nefret took a strange object. I had to look twice to recognize it—the crooked scepter of the pharaohs of ancient Egypt, and of the god Osiris in his capacity of king of the dead. “I brought all the artifacts I could gather up,” she said coolly. “I thought you might be interested in studying them.”
Bereft of speech, Emerson beamed at her in silent admiration. That made two of them. I gave my camel a sharp blow. With a grumble and a lurch it moved forward. The others fell in behind me. The great rocks that hid the entrance rolled aside, and the caravan turned into the winding path that traversed the outer ring of the cliffs. Fantastic rock formations lined the way, but overhead the stars shone bright, and a keen night breeze caressed my cheeks. Free! We were free! Ahead lay the desert with all its perils, and civilization—with even greater perils. The strange foreboding that had seized me had nothing to do with perils of either kind. There was one consolation, though. Nefret was the only individual I had ever met who could strike Ramses dumb. One could only hope that state of things would endure.
* The Mummy Case
* Crocodile on the Sandbank
* The Mummy Case
* Deeds of the Disturber
* The Mummy Case
* Lion in the Valley