The two pressed themselves flat to the floor and waited. Voices drifted into the room, and then footsteps could be heard as the watchmen made their rounds of the Reading Room. Shadows leapt from the stacks as one of the guards paused and shone his lantern into the room with a practised sweep. Then the footsteps receded and the voices resumed. The watchmen were moving off.
“That’s better,” sighed Douglas. “Back to work.”
The two returned to their respective places and began again. Midway through the 1500s, Douglas found the book he was looking for-exactly as he had pictured it from his researches. One glimpse of the strange cipher writing and he knew he had it.
“Come to me, my pretty,” he whispered, carefully placing the light on the shelf beside him. With trembling fingers, Douglas opened the book to reveal page after page of tightly ordered script in the most fanciful-looking letters he had ever seen. “You little beauty,” he mused, brushing his fingertips lightly over the script. He might have spent a happy hour or so paging through the old curiosity-and he would-but now was not the time. He slipped the slim volume into an inner pocket of his cape, retrieved the lantern, and hurried to fetch Snipe.
“I’ve got it. Come away-time to make good our escape.”
They climbed out the window, closing it carefully behind them, and retraced their inward journey, replacing the ladder at the rear of the town house opposite before walking back down the alley to Montague Street. Douglas’ mind was so filled with the book and the treasures it was certain to yield that he failed to see the policeman standing in the pool of light under the streetlamp. Emerging from the darkness of the alley like the guilty thieves they were, the pair naturally drew the interest of the policeman, who, raising his truncheon, called out, “Well, well, what have we here?”
“Oh!” gasped Douglas, spinning around to face the officer. “Good evening, constable. You quite gave me a start.”
“Did I now!” He looked the pair up and down, his expression suggesting he did not care for what he saw. “Might I ask why you were lurking in that alley at this time of night?”
Douglas’ hand went to the gun in his pocket. “Is it that late?” he asked affably. “I hadn’t realised. Yes, I suppose it is.” He glanced at Snipe beside him. The boy’s lip was curled in a ferocious scowl. “It’s the lad here,” he offered. “He ran away earlier this evening, and I’ve been looking for him ever since-only just found him a few minutes ago.”
The constable, frowning now, stepped closer. “That your son, then?”
“Good heavens, no,” replied Douglas. “He’s a servant. I’m taking him home with me.” As if to underscore this fact, he put his hand to Snipe’s collar.
The policeman’s brow furrowed as he caught a glare of almost pure hatred playing over the boy’s pallid features. Certainly, there was something odd about the youth that he could never have been mistaken for anyone’s beloved son. “I see,” concluded the police officer. “Does he run away often, then?”
“No, no, never before,” Douglas hastily assured him. “There was a bit of a kerfuffle with the housekeeper, you see, and the lad took umbrage. A simple misunderstanding. I think I’ve straightened it out.”
“Well,” said the policeman, “these things happen, I suppose.” He returned the truncheon to the hook on his belt. “You best get yourselves home. It’s high time all respectable folk were abed.”
“Just what I was thinking, constable. A pot of cocoa and a biscuit wouldn’t go amiss either, I daresay.” Douglas released his hold on the pistol, but maintained his grip on the boy’s collar. “I will wish you good night.” Douglas started away, pulling the glaring Snipe with him.
“G’night, sir.” The policeman watched them as they moved away. “Mind how you go,” he called. “There are thieves and such about. It’s weather like this brings ’em out.”
“You’re not wrong there, matey,” murmured Douglas under his breath. “Come away, Snipe. Tonight we let him live.”
CHAPTER 2
Kit stood staring down the Avenue of Sphinxes feeling very much alone. It was early yet, and there was no one else around. He drew the clean, dry air into his lungs. Deeply relieved to have been rescued from looming death by Wilhelmina’s unexpected yet timely intervention, he nevertheless could not help feeling slightly bruised by her brusque manner. In fact, she had socked him on the arm as soon as they were free of the wadi and the tomb that had held them captive to Lord Burleigh’s whims.
“Ow!” Kit complained. He had not seen the smack coming. “What was that for?”
“That was for abandoning me in that alley back in London,” she told him. “That dark, stinky alley in the rainstorm-remember?”
“I remember, but it wasn’t entirely my fault.”
She smacked him again. “It wasn’t very nice.”
“Sorry!” Kit rubbed his upper arm.
“I forgive you.” She smiled, then hit him once more for good measure.
“Yikes! Now what?”
“That is so you remember never to do it again.”
“Right. Okay. I get it. I’m sorry, and I won’t desert you ever again, I promise.”
“Good. Now pay attention. We’ve got some ground to cover, and we don’t have much time.” She had then told him about Luxor and what he was to do there.
He had been instructed to go to the Winter Palace Hotel and ask for a Mr. Suleyman at the front desk. Upon presenting himself, he would be given a parcel and a letter with further instructions. Wilhelmina had been very precise: don’t stop to think or look around, hit the ground running, get to the location, secure the parcel. “It is imperative that you retrieve the package and follow the instructions to the letter.”
“Why can’t I go with you?” Kit had asked.
“We have to split up,” she told him. “The Burley Men will soon be on our trail, and they’ll follow me. If you peel off now they won’t know-they’ll think we’re all still together.”
“What about Giles?”
“He’s going with me. If they catch up with us, I’ll need someone to help me fight them off.”
“I could help,” Kit insisted. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to get separated. Where are you going anyway?”
“It’s best if you don’t know.”
“But if I-”
She had put a hand to his face. “Do you trust me, Kit?”
“Of course I trust you, Mina. It’s just that-I mean, we only just met up. I don’t see why-”
“If you trust me, then believe me when I say”-she pinched his cheek between her thumb and finger-“we don’t have time for this discussion. The ley is active now, and any minute Burleigh and his goons will learn of your escape. When they do we must be as far away from here as possible.”
“But I’m not going very far,” Kit pointed out. “You said I was just to go to Luxor-that’s only a few miles away.”
“If you do exactly what I told you, you’ll soon be in a different time zone,” she said, pinching his cheek harder. “Now, stop fussing and just do what I say.”
“Ow! Okay, okay! I’ll do it.” He rubbed his cheek. “I don’t like it, but I’ll do it.”
“Good.” She released him and gave him a pat. “We can talk about all this once I’ve given them the slip and done what I have to do.” She smiled. “Relax, it’s going to be fine.”
She started down the broken pavement towards Giles, who was standing guard at the end of the Avenue of Sphinxes. “Just pick up the package and do what you’re told,” she called, half turning back as she walked. “If all goes well, it’ll only be a few days-your time. You’ll be busy enough, don’t worry.”
“A few days,” said Kit. “Right.”
“No more than a week or two,” she hedged.
