The Mummy Case - Elizabeth Peters [22]
He broke off, catching my skeptical eye upon him; and after a moment his great hearty laugh boomed out across the dining salon, stopping conversation and making the crystal chime. Emerson’s laugh is irresistible. I joined him, while Ramses watched with a faint smile, like an elderly philosopher tolerant of the antics of the young. It was not until after we had returned to our room that I discovered Ramses had taken advantage of our distraction to conceal his fish under his blouse as a present for Bastet. She enjoyed it very much.
Three
Though I attempted to conceal my feelings, I was exceedingly put out. It seemed hard indeed that I should have to suffer from Emerson’s blunder, for it was nothing less. De Morgan had dug at Dahshoor the year before. It would have required considerable tact and persuasion to convince him to yield the site to another excavator, and Emerson’s methods of persuasion were not calculated to win over an opponent. Though I had not been present, I knew only too well what had transpired. Emerson had marched into de Morgan’s office, unannounced and uninvited; rested his fists on the director’s desk; and proclaimed his intent. “Good morning, monsieur. I will be working at Dahshoor this season.”
De Morgan had stroked his luxuriant mustache. “Mais, mon cher collègue, c’est impossible. I will be working at Dahshoor this season.”
Emerson’s response would have been an indignant shout and a crash of his fist on the table; de Morgan would have continued to stroke his mustache and shake his head until Emerson stamped out of the door, annihilating small tables and miscellaneous chairs as he went.
I looked through the reference books we had brought with us in a vain attempt to find something about Mazghunah. Few of the authorities so much as mentioned it, and if there were pyramids at the site, that fact was not widely known. If Emerson had not confirmed their existence, I would have suspected de Morgan of inventing them, to taunt Emerson.
Emerson exaggerates, in his humorous fashion, when he says I have a passion for pyramids. However, I admit to a particular affection for these structures. On my first visit to Egypt as a tourist I had fallen victim to the charm of their dark, stifling passageways, carpeted with rubble and bat droppings. Yet, since taking up the practice of archaeology I had never been able to investigate a pyramid professionally. Our interests had taken us elsewhere. I had not realized how I yearned to explore a pyramid until I found I could not.
“Abusir,” I said. “Emerson, what about Abusir? The pyramids there are much decayed, but they are pyramids.”
“We will dig at Mazghunah,” said Emerson. He said it very quietly, but his chin protruded in a manner I knew well. Emerson’s chin is one of his most seductive features. When it jutted out in that particular fashion, however, I had to repress a desire to strike it smartly with my clenched fist.
“The remains of the pyramid at Zawaiet el ’Aryân,” I persisted. “Maspero failed to enter it ten years ago. We might find the entrance he missed.”
Emerson was visibly tempted. He would love to do Maspero or any other archaeologist one better. But after a moment he shook his head. “We will dig at Mazghunah,” he repeated. “I have my reasons, Amelia.”
“And I know what they are. They do you no credit, Emerson. If you intend—”
Crossing the room in a few long strides, he stopped my mouth with his. “I will make it up to you, Peabody,” he murmured. “I promised you pyramids, and pyramids you will have. In the meantime, perhaps this…”
Being unable to articulate, I gestured wordlessly at the door connecting our room to the next. Ramses had retired thither, purportedly to give John an Arabic lesson. The murmur of their voices, broken now and again by a chuckle from John, bore out the claim.
With a hunted look at the door, my husband released me. “When will this torment end?” he cried, clutching his hair with both hands.
Ramses’ voice broke off for a moment and then continued.
“John should be able to resume his duties tomorrow,” I said.
“Why