'How strange.'
'Indeed.' Bethesda nodded gravely.
'And was more silver missing?'
'Yes.'
'Then there must have been another thief with him,' I deduced.
'Perhaps,' Bethesda said shrewdly. 'But King Rhampsinitus was no closer to solving the mystery.
'Then it occurred to him that perhaps the hapless thief had relatives in Memphis, in which case they would want to have his body back so that they could purify it and send it on its journey to the afterlife. Naturally, no one could be expected to come forward to claim the body, so Rhampsinitus decided to have the headless corpse put on display before the palace wall. This was announced as a warning to the thieves of Memphis, but the true purpose was to capture anyone who might know the truth of the thief's strange fate. The king's two most trusted guards- big, bearded fellows, the same ones who usually protected the seals at the treasure house-were assigned to stand watch over the corpse day and night and to seize any person who broke into weeping or lamentation.
'The next morning, as soon as he had risen, King Rhampsinitus hurried to the palace wall and looked over the edge, for the mystery of the missing silver had come to dominate his thoughts, whether sleeping or awake. And what should he see but the two guards lying fast asleep, each of them with half his face clean-shaven-and the headless body gone! 'Rhampsinitus ordered that the guards be brought before him. They stank of wine and their memories were muddled, but they did remember that a merchant passed by just as the sun was going down, pushing a cart full of wineskins. One of the wine-skins had sprung a leak. The guards each seized a cup and caught some of the flowing wine, thanking their good luck. The merchant had been outraged-for no good reason, since it was hardly the guards' fault if the wineskin had broken. They managed to calm the merchant with some peaceful words, and he paused for a while by the palace wall, explaining that he was weary and irritable from a long day's work. To make up for his rudeness, he offered each guard a cupful of his very best wine. After that, neither of the guards could quite remember what happened, or so they both maintained. The next thing they knew, it was dawn, King Rhampsinitus was screaming down at them from the palace wall, their faces had been half-shaven, and the headless body had vanished.'
'Bethesda,' I interrupted, giving a slight start at the sudden leap of a cricket amid the yew trees, 'I do hope that this will not turn out to be one of those Egyptian horror stories where dead bodies go walking about on their own.'
She reached over and playfully danced her long nails over my naked arm, giving me gooseflesh. I batted her fingers away. She leaned back and laughed a low, throaty laugh. After a moment she continued.
'When it came to describing the wine merchant, the guards were vague. One said he was young, the other said he was middle-aged. One said he had a beard, the other insisted he had only stubble on his jaw.'
'The wine, or whatever was in it, must have befuddled their senses,' I said. 'Presuming they were telling the truth.'
'However that may be, Rhampsinitus had all the wine merchants in Memphis rounded up and paraded before the guards.'
'And did the guards recognize the culprit among them?'
'They did not. King Rhampsinitus knew no more than he had before. To make matters worse, the two sleeping, half-shaven guards had been seen by some of the merchants opening their shops that morning, and word had quickly spread that the king's chosen guards had been made fools of. Rumors about the headless corpse and the pilfered treasure spread through the city, and soon all Memphis was gossiping behind the king's back. King Rhampsinitus was very displeased.'
'I should think so!'
'So displeased that he ordered that the guards should remain half-shaven for a month, for all to see.'
'A mild punishment, surely.'
'Not in the old days in Memphis. To be seen half-shaven would have been as shameful as for a Roman noble to be seen in the Forum wearing sandals instead of shoes with his toga.'
'Unthinkable!'
'But fortune is a blade with two edges, as you Romans say, and in the end it was a good thing for the king that this gossip spread, for it quickly reached the ears of a young courtesan who lived over a rug shop very near the palace gates. Her name was Naia, and she was already privy to whisperings about the mystery within the palace walls, as not a few of her clientele were members of the royal entourage. Mulling over all she had heard about the affair, and everything she knew about the treasure house and the manner in which it was built and guarded, she believed she saw the solution to the mystery.
'Naia might have gone straight to the king and named the thieves, but two things gave her pause. First, she had no real proof; and second, as I've already told you, the king was not famous for generous rewards. He might have merely thanked her and given her a silver bracelet and sent her on her way! So when she went to Rhampsinitus, she said only that she had a plan for solving the mystery, and that to implement this plan would cost her time and money; if her scheme came to nothing, she would pay her own losses-'
'A terrible idea! I always demand expenses and a fee, no matter whether I solve the mystery or not.'
'— but if she was able to identify the thieves and explain how the silver had been stolen, then Rhampsinitus would have to pay her as much silver as her mule could carry and grant her a wish besides.
'At first this struck the king as too steep a price, but the more he thought about it, the fairer it seemed. After all, more silver than a mule could carry had already vanished from his treasure house, and would go on vanishing until the thieving was stopped. And what sort of wish could a courtesan make that the king of all Egypt could not grant with a mere wave of his hand? Besides, it seemed unlikely that a young courtesan would be able to solve the mystery that had confounded the king and all his advisors. He agreed to the bargain.
'Naia made a few inquiries. It did not take long to discover the name of the man she suspected and where he lived. She sent her servant to watch his movements, and to alert her immediately when this man should next pass near her window.
'A few days later the servant came running to her chamber, out of breath, and told her to look out the window. A young man wearing new clothes and sandals was looking at some expensive rugs displayed outside the shop below. Naia took a seat in her window and sent her servant to give the man a message.'
'She accused him then and there?' I said.
'Of course not. The servant told the young man that his mistress had noticed him from her window and perceived him to be a man of taste and means, and wished to invite him up to her room. When the young man looked up, Naia was posed in the window in such a way that very few men could have resisted the invitation.'
'This Naia,' I said, 'is beginning to remind me of a certain other Egyptian woman I know…'
Bethesda ignored me. 'The young man came straight to her room. The servant brought cool wine and fresh fruit, and then sat outside the door, softly playing a flute. Naia and her guest talked for a while, and soon it became evident that the young man desired her greatly. But Naia insisted that they play a game first. Relaxed by the heat of the day, his tongue loosened by wine and desire, the young man agreed. This was the game-that each of them should reveal to the other two secrets, beginning with the young man. What was the greatest crime of his life? And what was his cleverest trick?
'These questions gave the young man pause, and a shadow of sadness crossed over his face, followed by a laugh. 'I can answer you easily enough,' he said,' but I'm not sure which is which. My greatest crime was cutting off my brother's head. My greatest trick was putting his head and body back together again. Or perhaps it's the other way around!' He smiled ruefully and looked at Naia with desiring eyes. 'And you?' he whispered.
'Naia sighed. 'Like you,' she said, 'I'm not sure which is which. I think my greatest trick was discovering the thief who has been robbing King Rhampsinitus's treasure house, and my greatest crime will be when I hand him over to the king! Or perhaps it will end up being the other way around…
'The young man gave a start and came to his senses. He rose and ran toward the window, but a great iron cage, like the one that had trapped his brother, came down on him from the ceiling. He could not escape. Naia sent her servant to fetch the king's guards.
' 'And now,' she said, 'while we wait, perhaps you can explain to me what I don't already know about the plundering of the king's silver.'
'The young man was at first furious, and then he began to weep, realizing the fate that awaited him. Death was the sweetest punishment he could hope for. More likely he would have his hands and feet chopped off and
