"Is that true, sir?" Rumpf glanced sideways at the scouts. "Are we working with these men now?"
"Yes, it's all true, and have I got a whopper of a story to tell you." Major Grindle rubbed his hands together in anticipation.
"Yes, well, before you do, I need to let you know that we've found where the Serpents of Chaos are hiding."
A slow smile spread across Major Grindle's face, and he turned to Khalfani. "Which means they have also found the boy."
The men dismounted and Jadwiga clucked and removed his coat, placing it around my shoulders. "Why do they have you running around in your petticoat?"
If I hadn't had my arms full of purring cat, I would have hugged him. "It's not a petticoat—it's a ceremonial shift. I'll explain later. How is Mother?" I was worried for her and how she was taking my disappearance.
He tried to protect me from her misery, but it simply wasn't in his nature to be cheerful. "She is doing all right. She visits the police station and the consulate offices twice a day, haranguing that they should do more to find you."
"She notified your father right away," Rumpf said. "I believe he left the next morning. He should arrive in Luxor soon."
Before I could ask for more details, we were all pulled into the great swirling commotion that surrounded the newcomers' arrival and the announcement of the wedjadeen's newfound alliance with the Brotherhood.
Jadwiga looked down at me. "Are you ever going to let go of your cat?" he asked. I couldn't be certain, but I think his mouth held the faintest hint of a smile.
"No," I said, looking down to where Isis was purring contentedly and kneading in my lap. Her tiny claws pricked at my stomach through the thin material of my dress, but I didn't mind—I was too happy just to have her back. The truth was, I refused to let go of Isis the entire time, even when Sefu came to see what was going on. I decided that if the wedjadeen and the Chosen Keepers could learn to get along, so could the monkey and my cat.
Once all the wedjadeen had been told of the new developments, they were dismissed and Major Grindle, Jadwiga, Rumpf, and I were summoned to the mudir's tent with the soldiers and Weret Hekau. Khalfani and the mudir were already poring over a map. Khalfani looked up as we entered the tent. "Can you show us on this map where the followers of Set are?"
"Ja," Jadwiga said, stepping around me and going to the table. The rest of us followed, eager to see the exact location. Jadwiga peered at the map a moment, then plunked a thick finger down on an intersection of streets in Luxor. "Right here."
Major Grindle looked at him. "Right in the middle of the black market. It makes sense, as most of those men either have worked for Chaos in the past or benefit greatly from their traffic in stolen antiquities."
"How do you know this?" Khalfani asked.
"That is part of our work in the Brotherhood, keeping an eye on cursed artifacts and preventing the dangerous ones from falling into the hands of Chaos," Major Grindle explained. "Many of the black-market men are your people. Do you have any idea how many are sympathetic to Chaos?"
"Most likely all of them," Khalfani said. "There are not many occupations here that pay what selling antikahs to tourists pays. You cannot blame them. They have families to feed. It makes no difference to them who takes the treasure from their land."
Major Grindle met Khalfani's accusing gaze steadily. "No, I do not blame them."
"But don't they fear the Eyes of Horus?" I asked. "Aren't they afraid of what you'll do to them for siding with others?"
"Not if they think the others will win," the mudir said.
Honestly, you'd think the leader of an organization would show a little more confidence than that!
"So how many are there?" Major Grindle asked.
Rumpf shrugged. "It was hard to get an exact count because there was so much coming and going," he explained to the others.
"And the boy? Did you see a young boy?" Khalfani asked.
Rumpf shook his head. "There is something else you should know. The British officials are blaming the locals for the girl's disappearance. They are rounding up your people and questioning them, rather roughly. This has stirred up quite a bit of resentment."
Fenuku slammed his hand down on the table. "I say we storm the area," he said. "Bring destruction down on their heads." I wasn't sure if he meant the heads of the Serpents of Chaos or the British officials.
Khalfani threw him a wry glance. "I fear they will slit the boy's throat at the first signs of attack. Even if they do not, there is too great a chance he could be harmed in the fighting."
Major Grindle studied the map. "We need to be more subtle than that."
Khalfani looked up. "What are you thinking?"
"We need to eliminate their home-field advantage."
"And how do you suggest we do that?" Fenuku challenged.
The major looked up and met his gaze. "By luring them out." He turned to the mudir. "They have no doubt learned that the tablet we gave them was a fake. Its magic only lasted until the moon set that night. Send them a message saying that the girl and I were not the ones they needed to deal with in order to retrieve the tablet. That you are the ones who hold it in your possession and that they must deal with you. You offer them a second chance at the tablet, in exchange for the boy."
Khalfani nodded slowly as the plan took shape in his mind. "Yes, that would draw them out. And the best time to strike would be when they are transporting the hostage to the exchange point. That is when we will strike."
"Exactly," Major Grindle said.
"Very well. We move out tonight, under cover of darkness. We will take ourselves to the stronghold at Karnak and plan the rest of the operation there, where we will have greater access to their comings and goings."
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
On the March
WE LEFT QERERT IHY as the moon reached its zenith, its silvery glow spilling across the landscape and giving us some light to travel by. I tried to coax Isis up into my lap to ride on my horse with me, but she was having none of it. She insisted on traveling behind us on her own four paws. The wedjadeen's blood was running high and they were filled with rising hopes that they could retrieve their pharaoh. And if hope failed them, they had plenty of grim determination to see them through.
We had timed it so we would arrive in Luxor under the cover of nightfall. Our horses slowed as the city drew near, and Khalfani had us detour around the city proper and any possible scouts Chaos might have posted. We came in through the East Gate of the Karnak Temple and silently filed past the sacred lake to the small Temple of Osiris that abutted the south girdle wall.
Hashim dismounted, then came over to speak to me. "We leave our horses here," he explained, helping me dismount. "A handful of servants shall lead them just out of sight. They will set up a Bedouin camp, which will explain our presence should anyone notice."
"Are we going to camp here in the temple grounds?" I asked, looking around for signs of habitable space.
He flashed me a quick grin. "Not exactly."
The wedjadeen unloaded their horses and gave last-minute instructions to those charged with setting up the decoy camp. As that group disappeared out the East Gate, the rest of the wedjadeen drew apart to let Khalfani and Baruti come forward. They entered the small Osiris temple, and the rest of the men followed them. As they disappeared inside, I turned to Hashim in surprise. "We're going to sleep inside the temple?" I asked, faintly shocked at the idea.