by Scott Peters
"I thought—" Zet began, and broke off.
Senna's eyes glittered, fixed on his face.
Zet swallowed. Was Senna testing him? "Wait." He dug through his pack and produced the tube. "Here, my papers."
Senna took the tube, opened the lid and tipped the scroll into his gnarled hand. He broke the seal and unrolled the document. He could read quickly, that was obvious. Under his strange exterior was an aura of intelligence. Maybe that's what made him a good architect—a crazy mix of wisdom and eccentricity.
Still looking at the page, Senna spoke in a non-committal voice. "Interesting."
"I also have this," Zet said, pulling the cord with the Queen Mother's ring from around his neck.
Hui gasped. "Where did you get that?"
A smile lit Senna's wrinkled features. "Well now. I'd say the chase is on!"
Zet blew out a huge sigh of relief. "Good. I hope it's okay if we get right to it? I have a lot of questions. Mostly, I want to know how Princess Meritamon disappeared. Wasn't she guarded?"
"Hush!" Senna said, waving his arms wildly. "Don't say her name!"
"Sorry," Zet said, wincing.
"Sound carries over water," Senna said.
"Who else knows besides us?" Hui asked.
"Ari, of course," Senna said. "Her closest servants, and one or two medjay. As for the rest of the medjay, they think they're searching for a priestess. So does everyone in the camp. And it's vital we keep it that way."
"What about the Captain of the boat we came here on?" Zet asked. "Does he know who she is?"
"Definitely not."
Zet frowned. His mind flashed back to the conversation he'd overheard between the Captain and his brother. The Captain had asked about the Princess. But maybe Zet had heard wrong. Maybe he'd said Priestess. The words sounded similar, and they'd been whispering.
"Got something to say, spit it out," Senna said.
"It's nothing. Go on," Zet said.
At that moment, a ruddy-faced woman entered bearing a tray of delicious scented sweetmeats and a large cake. She set the tray down, left and returned with a steaming pot of tea. Then she fussed around, serving out generous slices of cake to Zet and Hui. Zet, who was starving, took his plate gratefully.
"Need some meat on those bones," she told him, her cheeks dimpling as he dug in.
"What about me?" Senna crowed.
She set a plate down in front of the scrawny architect. "You'll get indigestion eating this late."
"Oh good," Senna said. "Some excitement to look forward to."
She ignored him. To Zet and Hui, she said, "Try my glazed apricots. They're delicious."
"We will," they assured her as she bustled out the door, humming a tune.
"Indigestion, indeed," Senna said. "Now. Where were we?"
"You were telling us what happened when the . . . Priestess got here."
"Excellent. Yes. Thoroughness, that's what we need. A top to bottom telling of events. Let's see, she arrived by boat six days ago with half a dozen servants. She docked three boats down." He pointed to the wall, as if they could see through it. "I wanted her next to me, but others had arrived first, and since no one knew who she was, she couldn't claim precedence. But that's no matter." He waved his hand. "After she got settled, she came right here. A bright girl! And interested, too. We went over the drawings of her father's temple. She wanted to know what had been done, and what was still left to do. Of course, we're only early in the temple construction." He rambled on about columns and mud bricks, and how they'd moved blocks to the site for use, which had taken nearly a year in itself.
Zet finished his cake. Hoping it wouldn't be rude to take another slice, he did.
"But you don't want to hear about all that," Senna scolded, "Why are you letting me ramble?"
"Er—sorry!" Zet said, glancing at Hui.
"We're interested in all of it!" Hui cried. Being an artist, he clearly meant it.
Zet, however, did his best to shift topics. "Where was she kidnapped from? Her boat?"
"No." Senna took a long sip of tea. "Since you've just arrived, I should explain the layout here. To get to the temple, you must walk inland fifteen minutes. That's why I need a runner. I work from my boat. Doctor's orders." He toyed with his cake. "For three days in a row, she set out on a little mule to visit my construction site. The distance is too far for her."
"But it's only a fifteen minute walk," Zet said. Princess Merit, with her bright, laughing face, didn't seem like the type to insist on some old mule to get around.
"Why would she ride an old donkey?" Hui said.
Senna said, "How the healthy scorn the weak!"
"Weak? What's weak about her?"
Senna drummed his bony fingers. Then he cleared his throat. "Here's a little known secret, so keep it to yourselves. That bright young girl has a deformed spine. She was born with a back that curves like a disobedient old tree." He nodded, watching their faces. "Not only is she in continual pain, it affects her health greatly."
Zet's jaw dropped. "But that's—"
"Impossible!" Hui said, finishing Zet's thought.
"Oh, she takes great pains to hide it. You never see it in her face. She's livelier than anyone. Maybe that's why. She doesn’t want people to know. And if you care for her, you'll keep it to yourselves. I only tell you for the sake of this investigation."
"You don't need to worry," Zet said. "Her secret's safe."
"So now you see why she went by mule."
"She must be in agony, wherever they're keeping her," Hui said, looking as furious as Zet felt.
"How long have they had her?" Zet said, fists clenched.
"Four days." Senna smoothed his brows with a shaking hand. "I told her to take more attendants. Stubborn girl. A priestess is not surrounded by attendants, Senna. People will wonder! Her words. She didn't take one man with her. Just two girls. I should have insisted."
Zet wanted to say it wasn't Senna's fault, but was it?
Senna stared at his barely touched piece of cake. He sighed and pushed it away.
Chapter Thirteen
Consequences
Questions raced through Zet's head as he stared across the table at the architect.
"Where was she kidnapped from, exactly?"
"A partially constructed chapel."
"With so many workers, someone must have seen something," Hui said.
"We're not working on the chapel at present, and it backs onto unused land. Shrubs and tall grasses. It's easy to go there without being seen."
"Whose idea was it to go there?" Zet said.
"Hers, I assume."
Zet wasn't so sure. "What about her attendants? The girls? What happened to them?"
"One was kidnapped. The other's here."
"Here? How did she get away?" Zet said, stunned.
"By pure luck. The Priestess had sent the girl to investigate a loud crash. While the handmaiden was gone, the kidnappers moved in."
"A crash?"
"There was a construction accident. The girl returned to the chapel, found them missing and raised the alarm."
"And that was four days ago?
"Yes."
Zet rubbed his face. "Four days. She could be anywhere by now."
"Well, don't forget the ransom, and the agreement. If there's to be a handover, she can't be too far away."
"True."
Hui said, "What exactly do the Hyksos want?"
"They want Pharaoh to remove our army's blockade at Avaris. We're winning by preventing the Hyksos from getting reinforcements."
"How did the kidnappers even know the Priestess was you-know-who?"
"Khamudi, the rebel leader, must have spies here."
The cake in Zet's stomach felt heavy. "Would Pharaoh remove the blockade?"
"Canaan warriors would more than double the Hyksos army. We'd be sorely outnumbered. Everything we've fought for the last twenty years would be lost."
"Then that's not going to happen. We'll find her
," Zet said.
"Don't make promises you can't keep." Senna unfolded his ancient limbs and got to his feet with a grimace. "It's late. Ari is constructing a tent for you boys. As to whether he's capable, I'll let you find out."
Zet still had questions, but it was obvious the interview was over.
He and Hui scrambled up.
"Be here first thing tomorrow," Senna said.
"Wait," Zet said, "I was wondering, what happened to your original runner? The one who worked for you before we got here?"
Senna put his bony fists on his hips. "Ill."
Zet frowned. "He's ill?"
"That's what I said. Now good night."
Outside, Hui said. "Ill? I don't believe it for a minute. What a strange thing to say."
"What do you think happened to him?"
Hui made a slicing motion across his throat.
"Don't be stupid," Zet said with a nervous laugh.
The cook appeared on deck and told them where to find Ari.
The tent was leaning ominously to one side when Zet and Hui reached it. A roar came from inside. A long arm shot out, and then a foot, and then the whole thing tumbled into a heap.
"Flea dung!" shouted Ari from inside.
Zet and Hui hurried to rescue him. Ari appeared from the folds, his face red and his hair damp with sweat.
"Hey," said Hui. "Should be easy with three of us."
Fifteen minutes later, they stared at their lopsided creation scratching their heads.
"I thought you said this would be easy," Zet said.
"Yeah, well." Hui raised his shoulder, sheepish. "It's a roof. It's windy out here and calm in there. I'm beat, and I'm going to sleep."
"Good idea."
"Excellent idea," Ari said. "Allow me to bid you good night." The tall man bowed and made a hasty retreat. Clearly, he didn't want any more to do this evening.
Neither did Zet.
Yawning, he crawled inside with his pack. Bedding had been provided. Zet barely registered the soft coverings. He lay down, rested his head in the crook of his elbow, and dozed off.
The next morning, Zet woke later than planned. He shook Hui. "Wake up!"
Hui fought him off with a few slugs.
Ducking, Zet said. "Quit it, it's me!"
Hui rubbed his eyes. "So it is." He grinned. "Nothing like a bad dream to get me out of bed."
"Thanks. Speaking of bad dreams, you have drool on your face."
"Explains why I'm so thirsty," Hui replied. "I must have drooled myself dry."
"Gross." Zet grinned and crawled out of their crooked tent.
In broad daylight, the mysterious shadows of night had disappeared. He went still, taking in the spectacular view.
Rosy dawn splashed the circular bay with sparkles and streaks of colored light. The water undulated with soft movement. Boats rocked here and there. Their tie ropes, dripping with water, rose and fell with the creaking vessels. In the distant shallows, ibis birds poked around where the bay met a sandy shore.
"We're not in Thebes any more," Hui said.
"That's for sure." Zet's family and home seemed an impossible distance away. "I wonder how my mother and Kat are doing?"
"I wonder if Kat's still mad at me. Do you think she's still mad?"
"She's probably found another boy to crush on," Zet said.
Hui's mouth dropped open. "What? Really? No! Do you think so?"
Zet groaned. "It was a joke. Not to change the subject, but it's late. Let's split up—grab us breakfast and I'll find out what Senna wants us to do."
"Good idea," Hui said, rubbing his belly. "I'm starved." With that, he took off for the mess tent.
Back on board the architect's boat, Ari and Zet bid each other good morning.
"He's waiting for you," Ari said.
Zet crossed the sun-warmed planks and let himself through the door.
Senna sat at his desk, buried up to his elbows in scrolls. The old man looked up. He wore a beaded wig, which might have made him look more dignified. Except that the wig was slightly off kilter. His white brows were feather-like as ever, and shot up at the sight of Zet.
"There's no explanation for it," Senna said. "It's a waste!"
Chapter Fourteen
Trouble
Zet hovered in the architect's doorway. "Er . . . can I help, sir?"
He remembered belatedly that Senna asked him not to call him sir, but Senna seemed too distressed to notice.
"Not unless you can make me a new obelisk!" He glared at Zet. "It'll take weeks to bring a new stone here. And have it carved and . . . oh, never mind!" He waved a hand as if to bat the subject away.
Zet shuffled his feet. Finally, he said, "I came for my orders?"
"Of course you have." Senna scrubbed his forehead, shoving the wig further back. He blew out a sigh. "Can you draw?"
"Not well."
Senna's lips curled down. "That's unfortunate." He shuffled through the piles on his desk. Then he moved to the baskets. Finally, he pulled out a scroll, held it aloft and shouted, "Ha! Here it is. My original drawing plan. Well, don't just stand there with your mouth hanging, come!" Senna spread the scroll across the low table. "Hold that corner down."
Zet put his fist on it.
"Here," Senna said, tapping the drawing with a bony finger. "The spot where she disappeared. When I'm done, that chapel will house a great shrine, and only the High Priest will be allowed to enter."
"I'll go there right now," Zet said.
"Yes. Good. The medjay have searched it, of course, but it's best if you see the sight for yourself."
"Definitely. Can I take this with me?"
"Take it, mark it. Clues and all that. Anything unusual, mark it down for me. Then bring it back."
"All right." Zet doubted there would be any clues left at this point. What he wanted to do was start asking people questions. "What should I mark it with?"
Senna produced a stick of charcoal. "Can you manage with this?"
"I can't write, but I'll do my best."
"Good enough." Senna frowned, as if noticing something. "Where's your partner?"
"Fetching breakfast."
"Late rising, hey? Go outside and find Ari. He has your uniform. Get changed, drag your friend from the old feeding trough and have him report in."
"No disrespect, but I can tell Hui our instructions on our way to the site."
"Hui won't be joining you. I still need a proper runner. Hui's it."
Zet tried to mask his disappointment. He saw no point arguing. Hui could still ask questions while running messages to and fro, couldn't he? In fact, spread out, he and Hui could cover more ground.
On deck, Ari handed him a tunic with the architect's mark stitched across the chest and back. Over the tunic went a belt with loops and pouches. Zet buckled it and tucked the drawing plans into one loop. Then he went to find Hui.
There was no sign of him on shore. Zet headed for the mess tent, wondering what could have held him up.
"Let go of me!" shouted a voice.
"Hui," Zet groaned. What in the name of the gods was he up to?
He soon caught sight of the scuffle. Three medjay were jumping around a small, struggling figure. One medjay got a kick in the shins; another pinned the boy's arms back.
A crowd had formed. It grew larger by the minute. Zet sprinted toward them.
"Stop struggling!" shouted one medjay.
"I found it," Hui said fiercely. "Tell the stupid girl it was there already!"
The girl in question was probably Zet's age. Her thin arms clutched a large, leather bag. The bag was wet, and drops pooled at her beaded sandals. Clearly she didn't enjoy being called stupid. Her cheeks were red, offsetting the deep black color of her hair. Her eyes were striking, large and lined with kohl. Despite her anger, she was very pretty.
"He was stealing them!" she shouted. "He's a thief!"
"I am not a thief!" Hui shouted back.
"Then what were you doing with this bag?"
>
"Don't worry, miss," a medjay said, fastening Hui's wrists with rope. "He'll be dealt with."
Zet stared, stunned as the medjay hauled Hui off. Hui kept struggling and hadn't spotted Zet in the crowd.
Flea dung! This was the last thing they needed.
"What happened?" Zet demanded, turning to face the scowling girl.
Her flashing eyes raked over him. "It's none of your business."
Hui might be a joker, but he would never steal someone's stupid bag. The idea was ridiculous. Not that she'd understand.
"We both work for the architect. I'll have to explain to my boss why he's lost a runner. Could you please at least give me an idea of what happened?"
Patches of color appeared in her cheeks. "I found him crouched along the river, holding the bag."
"Maybe he was just washing his hands?"
She put her fists on her slim hips and leaned forward. "He wasn't. I saw him with it!"
"Maybe he found it?"
"Found it?" Her cheeks flushed deeper and she stomped her foot. "Just like a boy to not believe me! He was tying the bag to a branch so it wouldn't float away. I caught him doing it! I saw him! Do you have any idea of the value of what's in here? No, of course you don't. That's why you don't understand."
"You're right, I don't," he said stiffly so as not to laugh. Which was ridiculous, because this was horribly serious. She reminded him of his favorite cat, clutching some feline prize.
She held the bag tighter. "They're my mistress's jewels."
"Jewels?" His throat constricted. "Uh, and who, exactly, is your mistress?"
"The Priestess who was kidnapped four days ago."
Zet felt like he'd been crushed flat by a giant boulder. This girl was Princess Merit's handmaiden. And Hui had been found with a bag of royal jewels.
"This is terrible," he choked out.
She sat down on a weathered stone. "You have no idea."
Zet sank down beside her. "Why, by the toes of Bastet, did she bring something so valuable here?"
It was more of a lament than an actual question. The girl, however, said, "She wanted to wear them to a special event. After we left."
Zet nodded, thinking that one minute the Princess had been looking forward to her fourteenth birthday party, and the next she was caged in some horrible place, wondering if she was going to die.
