or they would not be so anxious to drive you away before you can find it.'
The explanation had occurred to me, of course. I had discarded it, however, and now I voiced the objections aloud.
'That would mean that all the villagers are in league with Mohammed. I do not believe that. If you had seen the trembling fear of the old mayor- '
'You ladies always trust people,' Lucas said. 'These villagers are congenital liars, Miss Amelia, and expert at dissimulation.'
'If I really believed such a tomb existed, it would require an earthquake to make me leave,' said Emerson.
'Naturally,' Lucas said cheerfully. 'I feel the same. All the more reason for catching our Mummy before he can do any serious damage.'
'If your explanation is correct, my lord, catching the Mummy will not solve the problem.' It was Walter who spoke. 'According to you, the entire village knows that the Mummy is a fraud. Exposing him will not change their intention of forcing us to leave.'
'But it will give us a hostage,' Lucas explained tolerantly. 'The mayor's own son. We will force him to lead us to the tomb and then dispatch a message back to Cairo for reinforcements. Also, once we have exposed the supposed curse we may be able to enlist the crews of our boats to help guard the tomb. They consider the villagers savages; the only thing they have in common is their superstitious terror of the dead.'
'Another objection,' I said. 'If Michael is a traitor- though I still find it hard to believe- he will have warned the village of our plans for tonight. The Mummy again will be on his guard.'
'What a splendidly logical mind you have,' Lucas exclaimed. 'That is quite true; and it prompts my next suggestion. We must appear to be off our guard, and we must offer the Mummy a lure, in order to entice it into our clutches.'
'What sort of lure?' Walter asked suspiciously.
'I had not thought,' Lucas said negligently. 'I have appeared to drink more than I really have, in order to give the impression that I will sleep heavily. I wish you two gentlemen had done the same, but evidently you failed to follow my reasoning. Have you any suggestions, along the lines I have indicated?'
Several suggestions were made. Walter offered to take up his post at some distance, and then pretend to fall asleep. Emerson proposed to stand out in the open and consume an entire bottle of wine, and then collapse upon the sand as if overcome by intoxication. This last idea was received with the silent contempt it deserved, and no oae spoke for a time. Then Evelyn stirred,
'I mink there is only one object that may attract the creature to venture close enough to be seized,' she said. 'I shall steal out for a stroll after midnight. If I am far enough from the camp- '
The remainder of her sentence was drowned out by our cries of protest. Lucas alone remained silent; when Walter's voice had died, he said thoughtfully.
'But why not? There can be no danger; the villain only wants to catch one of us alone in order to play some silly trick.'
'Do you call this a silly trick?' Emerson asked, indicating his bandaged shoulder. 'You are mad, my lord, to consider such a thing. Walter,' he added sternly, 'be quiet. Do not speak if you cannot speak calmly.'
'How can anyone speak calmly of such a thing?' Walter bellowed, in a fair imitation of his brother's best roar.
'Under any circumstances it is an appalling idea; but remembering what that swine Mohammed said, when we were in the village…'
He broke off, with a glance at Evelyn. 'Lucas does not know that, Walter,' she said steadily. 'But I do. I overheard Amelia and Mr. Emerson speaking of it. Surely that makes my plan more practical.'
Walter sputtered speechlessly. Lucas of course demanded to know what we were talking about. Seeing that Evelyn already knew the worst, I saw no reason not to repeat the statement to Lucas, and I did so, adding, 'After all, Evelyn, you are being vain in assuming that the Mummy is only interested in you. Mohammed looked at me when he spoke; and I mink if you are going to take a stroll, I will make myself available also. We will give him his choice of prey. Who knows, he may prefer a more mature type of lady.'
This time the outcry was dominated by Emerson's bull-like voice.
'Why, Emerson,' I said. 'Do you mean to suggest that the Mummy will not be intrigued by me? You must not insult me.'
'You are a fool, Peabody,' said Emerson furiously. 'And if you suppose I am going to allow any such idiotic, imbecilic, stupid- '
The plot was arranged as I had suggested. As we discussed it, it became more complex. By 'we,' I refer to Evelyn, Lucas, and myself. Emerson's contribution took the form of a low rumble rather like the sound of a volcano about to erupt. Walter's tense silence was almost as threatening. He took Evelyn's behavior as evidence of an understanding between her and Lucas, and reacted accordingly; it was not at all difficult to feign a quarrel, which was part of our plan, in case any spy should be watching. We parted acrimoniously. Walter tried to make a last protest, and Lucas responded by producing a pistol.
'I shall be within ten feet of Evelyn the entire time,' he said in a thrilling whisper, holding the gun so that no one outside our group could see it. 'I think our bandaged friend will be deterred by the mere sight of this. If not, I have no scruples about using it.'
'And what about me?' I asked.
Emerson was unable to ignore the opportunity.
'God help the poor mummy who encounters you, Peabody,' he said bitterly. 'We ought to supply it with a pistol, to even the odds.'
So saying, he stalked away. He was followed by Walter. Lucas chuckled and rubbed his hands together.
'What an adventure! I can hardly wait!'
'Nor I,' said Evelyn. 'Amelia, will you not reconsider?'
'Certainly not,' I said in a loud voice, and walked off with my head held stiffly. I did not like leaving them alone together, but I felt it wise to add to the impression of ill will. It would be helpful later, when Evelyn and I staged our quarrel.
It was a one-sided argument, for Evelyn could not even pretend to shout at me. I made up the deficiency, and ended the argument by storming out of our tomb with my pillow and counterpane under my arm. I carried them down the ledge and into the little tent Michael had been occupying. Any watcher might readily assume that Evelyn and I had had a falling out, and that I had refused to share our sleeping quarters.
I could not strike a light, since it would have been visible through the canvas walls of the tent. It was not an honest English tent, only a low shelter of canvas; I could not stand erect in it. Squatting on the sand which was the floor of the shelter, I thought seriously of the man who had been its occupant. I was not at all convinced that Michael had left of his own free will. Men are frail creatures, of course; one does not expect them to exhibit the steadfastness of women. All the same, I did not like having my judgment of Michael disproved, and I determined to search the tent in the hope of finding some clue. There was just enough light from without to show me that Michael's scanty possessions had been removed; but as I wriggled around, my fingers touched an object buried in the sand. I dug it out. I did not need to see the moonlight sparkling off its metallic surface to comprehend what it was. A crucifix. Part of the chain was still there, but only part. It had been snapped, not unfastened in the usual way.
My fingers closed tightly over the small object. Michael would never have left it; it was the only thing of value he owned, as well as an amulet against evil. The breaking of the chain confirmed my dread. It must have been snapped during a struggle.
Heedless of possible watchers, I crawled around the confined space searching for further clues, but found nothing. I was relieved; I had feared to find bloodstains.
So absorbed was I in the conjectures and suspicions which followed my discovery that time passed swiftly. A sound from without brought me back to myself. Stretching out flat, I lifted one edge of the canvas and peered out.
There was nothing to be seen- literally nothing. I had miscalculated, and I cursed my
