“Why so cruel, young Master Flint? Have a heart… Wait a minute, why don’t I have yours?”
Suddenly, the woman disguised as a lioness released her grip on Doogie. “I can’t be part of this any longer,” she said, her hands lifting off her heavy metal mask and throwing it to the ground. “I don’t care what you do to me, I’m out.”
It was Lady Tiffin’s unhelpful housekeeper, Mrs Whisker! Charley recognized her immediately. She never forgot a hairy lip.
“Mrs Whisker!” said Cowley, glaring at her. “Put your mask back on at once.”
The snivelling crocodile also removed his headpiece and let it clatter to the floor. “I’m finished too.”
“Harris,” said Billy, remembering how those cold eyes had looked down on him when they first met. “What would Lady Fitzpatrick say?”
“‘You’re fired,’” said Harris, hanging his head in shame.
Billy stared at Cowley’s final follower and his detective brain told him who was hiding behind the jackal mask. It could only be Lord Wintersfall’s servant. The butlers did it! “Come out, Mr Humble. I know you’re in there.”
“ENOUGH!” Cowley bellowed. “If you miserable dogs don’t have the courage to stand with me, then you are against me.” He turned to the mummy. “Kill them all!”
The mummy raised both arms and lurched forwards. Harris and Whisker almost fell over each other in a scramble to climb the three stone steps that led to the door. They were quickly followed by Humble, who ditched his jackal mask and hitched up the hem of his robe. “Wait for me!”
Together they put their backs to the stone door. With their combined strength, multiplied by their adrenaline-fuelled fear, the huge slab began to shift.
Looking out through the open door, Charley got a first sense of their location. From the rows of stone crosses and headstones outside, it seemed that the tomb they were in was situated in a gloomy graveyard. Harris, Whisker and Humble blundered through the gravestones and ran as if their lives depended on it – which they did.
Charley wanted to get out too, but the only way she would leave this chamber was with Billy and Doogie at her side. The mummy marched towards her with surprising speed, as if the withered muscles were growing stronger – perhaps it was Cowley’s power as a magician that was growing instead. Charley wheeled backwards as fast as she could, positioning a pillar between her and the mummy while searching for something she could use as a weapon to fight the creature off.
“God save me!” yelled Queen Victoria.
Me too, thought Charley.
“Quick,” Charley whispered to Doogie. “Have you still got that knife tucked down your sock?”
“Aye,” said Doogie. “A true Scot always knows where his dirk is.”
“Well get it out quick,” she hissed, “and get Billy free!”
While Doogie headed towards Billy, Charley did what she could to distract Cowley and keep the mummy at bay.
The mummy had got closer than she’d realized and she had to duck as its massive fist swept over her head and buried itself in a pillar, sending up a cloud of dust. Charley spun her chair round and weaved between the pillars on the left-hand side of the temple…while Doogie made his way towards Billy on the right.
Cowley, meanwhile, was starting to panic as his schemes began to crumble around him. “Kill her!” yelled Cowley to his mummy servant. “Kill them all!”
The mummy followed Charley relentlessly, and she had no doubt she would be the one to get tired first. But Charley also knew that mummies had their brains removed by having a metal hook inserted up their nose. Her brain was very much where it should be. She should be able to outwit it!
Charley made a feint to the left, and when the mummy lurched in that direction, she darted to the right. She edged towards one of the flaming braziers filled with burning coals. It was just low enough for her to reach. Using her blanket to protect her hands from the scorching heat, Charley picked up the dish, and hurled it at the mummy like a discus.
Cowley roared in anger as he saw the missiles fly towards his bandage-wrapped slave. Queen Victoria shrieked as she flapped frantically to avoid the hailstorm of fire.
But the mummy was too quick. It swatted the spinning dish out of the air, sending it clanging against the temple wall. A few coals did strike home however, peppering the creature’s bandages with red-hot embers. A dozen points or more on the mummy’s body were on fire; but still it did not stop.
In all the confusion, Doogie scrabbled over to Billy and began to cut through the bandages. “Quicker!” hissed Billy.
Cowley was heading for them, his face full of thunder, dagger raised. “Oh no you don’t!” he yelled.
“Last one,” said Doogie, using his knife to saw through Billy’s bandages. Billy leaped free from the coffin just as Cowley was upon them. The butler lashed out with his foot, sending the cauldron flying. Billy and Doogie threw themselves clear of the hot wave of wax which came bubbling and blistering across the floor towards them. A thousand drops of liquid pain splashed out. Billy glanced into the coffin, now a fatal bath of molten wax. If I’d still been in there…
Back on his feet, Billy’s thoughts immediately went to the weapon rack next to the throne. Unfortunately Cowley read his mind.
“You want this, do you?” He lifted a brutal-looking double-bladed axe. “Come and get it, boy. But I warn you, I’ve been practising.” Cowley twisted his wrist and began to spin the axe expertly. “All work and no play makes the butler a dull boy.”
“Dull boy! Dull boy!” echoed Queen Victoria.
Without warning, the parrot swooped down towards Cowley. He flailed at the bird furiously, trying to fend it off. But Queen Victoria was quicker. With a triumphant caw, she snatched the Eye of Horus talisman that hung on a gold chain around his neck. There was a brief tug-of-war, the chain snapped and Queen Victoria flew off, the source of the Sandman’s magical power held firmly in her beak.
“Get the Eye of Horus, Duchess!” Billy yelled. “It’s how he controls the—”
Billy didn’t get to finish his sentence. Cowley’s axe whistled towards him, slicing the air. Billy flung himself face down and felt the whisper of the blade as it just missed his head.
Still following Cowley’s last command to kill them all, the mummy was now relentlessly stalking after Doogie. Though the lad had his knife ready, he was paralysed with fear. The mummy swept Doogie’s blade aside with one blow and grabbed him in a death grip.
Cowley swung his axe again, but Billy managed to snatch a hook-bladed sword from the rack and block the blow. Sparks flew as Cowley’s axe clanged against Billy’s sword.
“This is going to be fun,” sneered Cowley, raising his axe and raining down blow after blow. It was all that Billy could do to fend them off.
Doogie, meanwhile, was turning a shade of beetroot red as the mummy squeezed the life out of him, the bandaged arms crushing the lad’s ribcage.
Charley had set her sights on Queen Victoria and the Eye of Horus, but the stupid bird had found a place to perch near the top of one of the pillars. The parrot was fascinated by the talisman and showed no sign of wanting to come down.
“Sorry, Your Majesty,” said Charley, dragging her shoe off her foot and then throwing it straight at the bird. Queen Victoria dodged her missile but she also dropped the pendant. Yes!
Cowley saw it fall too and dived for it. Billy grabbed Cowley’s legs in a rugby tackle and they fell in a tangled heap. But Cowley’s grasping fingers were nearly there… “It’s mine I tell you. MINE!”