The Cult of Osiris

Shaban didn’t share his levity. ‘Khalid! She has been working against us from the start, but now she suddenly turns round and abandons her own husband to come here? Do you really think she wants to help us? It’s a trick.’

‘I’d be pretty damn stupid to come here on my own if I wasn’t being genuine,’ Nina countered. ‘Considering that you and your snakeskinned buddy want to kill me.’

‘I’m afraid Sebak and his men can be a little . . . over-zealous in protecting the Temple’s interests,’ said Osir. ‘I hope you will accept my apologies. I never wanted anyone to get hurt. All I wanted was to get the zodiac out of the Hall of Records before the IHA opened it, so I could find the Pyramid of Osiris without interference.’

‘Why are you trying to find the pyramid?’ she asked. ‘What’s in it that’s so important to you?’

He finished his coffee and stood, holding out a hand to Nina. She hesitated, then took it. ‘I will show you.’

‘Khalid!’ Shaban hissed, a clear warning.

Osir glared at him. ‘You may be my brother, but I am in charge of the Osirian Temple, Sebak. Remember that!’ Shaban’s fury was now so great that he was visibly shaking with rage, but he forced himself to remain silent as Osir turned back to Nina. ‘Again, I apologise. Do you have a younger brother? Or sister?’

‘No,’ she said. ‘But Eddie - my husband - he’s a younger brother.’

‘Then you know something about sibling rivalry.’

‘You could say that.’ She had only met Eddie’s sister a few times, but even though the two formerly antagonistic Chases had gone through something of a reconciliation, their relationship still had a spiky edge.

Osir grinned. ‘It is the eldest son’s job to take charge of his brother, to look after him when he needs support. And sometimes, to fix his mistakes when his temper overcomes him.’ This last was pointedly directed at Shaban, whose face again contorted in silent anger. ‘But come,’ he said, directing Nina to the door. ‘See for yourself why I am searching for the Pyramid of Osiris.’

13

With Shaban following, Osir led Nina through the keep to the courtyard. She had passed the black glass pyramid and nearby helipad on the way in, but only now was she able to give the structure her full attention. From its base, its blank, sloping face and converging sides threw off her sense of perspective, making it hard to judge its true size. But it was taller than any of the castle’s towers, around eighty feet high.

‘A pyramid in Switzerland?’ she said as they approached. ‘A bit out of place.’ To say the least; unlike the glass pyramid at the Louvre, Osir’s edifice was grossly out of proportion with its surroundings, dominating the castle.

‘I think it fits well with the scenery,’ Osir replied. ‘One of the many fine things about Switzerland. Though I admit the one which brought me here was the tax system.’

‘I thought religions were tax exempt?’ She almost said ‘cults’, but opted not to antagonise him.

‘They are, in most places - once they have been accepted as legitimate, which takes a lot of time and effort. I founded the Osirian Temple fifteen years ago, but it’s only in the past five that it has truly begun to grow around the world. But I have other interests, which unfortunately are not tax exempt . . . not without a headquarters in Switzerland and some very clever and expensive accountants.’

The open area of courtyard before the pyramid, empty when she arrived, was now occupied by some thirty men in black shorts and T-shirts performing callisthenics. Diamondback, for once without his snakeskin jacket, issued commands like a drill instructor. Shaban diverted to exchange brief words with the American, who glowered at Nina; while Shaban spoke, the men all stood to attention.

‘Looks like you’ve got your own little private army,’ said Nina.

‘Sebak’s idea,’ Osir replied as his brother re-joined them. ‘For protection. The Temple sometimes attracts trouble - as you may have noticed.’ He smiled.

They reached the pyramid, glass doors in its face sliding open to reveal a stylish lobby area within. The people inside bowed their heads respectfully as Osir directed Nina to an elevator. Disconcertingly, the front and rear glass walls sloped to match the pyramid’s face, the elevator’s cross-section a parallelogram with its shaft ascending at the same angle. It was a very inefficient use of space, the cabin able to hold far fewer people than a conventional design, but Nina suspected her host was more interested in form than function.

Shaban followed them into the elevator, watching Nina coldly as they ascended. The glass walls gave her a view of parts of the pyramid’s interior as they rose, the most impressive being a huge chamber: a temple. Unlike the room she had seen in Paris, though, the decorative hieroglyphics here were laser-etched on glass panels, the tall statues of Egyptian gods glinting in chrome.

‘This is the headquarters of the Osirian Temple,’ Osir announced proudly. ‘It is also the headquarters of Osiris Investment Group, SA. There are more ordinary offices in Geneva and elsewhere, but they are all run from here.’

‘You run a religion and a business from the same building?’

‘The two are more alike than you might think,’ he said, smiling. ‘Customer loyalty, market share, return on investment . . . all crucial.’ The high hall dropped out of sight, two floors of offices passing before the elevator stopped.

Nina caught a strong and distinctive scent in the air: yeast. ‘Smells like you run a bakery as well.’

Osir laughed. ‘Not quite. But bread has been an important part of my life - my father was a baker, you know. I grew up making bread.’ He seemed momentarily wistful as they stepped from the elevator. ‘He thought I would carry on his business.’

‘Yes,’ said Shaban sarcastically, his anger having subsided, ‘I’m sure you would much rather be kneading dough than living in a Swiss castle.’

‘Fate had other plans. This way, please, Nina.’

She followed Osir through a door, the pungent smell of yeast growing stronger. The far wall of the room they entered was reinforced glass, giving her a view of what looked like a cross between a kitchen and a laboratory occupying the pyramid’s apex. Several people wearing white overalls and face masks were at work, some at computers and microscopes, others tending to ovens and large gleaming steel vats. ‘Okay,’ Nina said, lost. ‘This is . . . ?’

‘This is why I am searching for the Pyramid of Osiris,’ said Osir. ‘What do you know about telomeres?’

She blinked, surprised by the conversation’s total change of direction. ‘Uh, apart from them being something to do with cells . . . nothing,’ she admitted. ‘I’m an archaeologist, not a biologist.’

‘Oh, Nina,’ he said teasingly, shaking his head. ‘You shouldn’t put limits on the boundaries of your knowledge. Look at me. I was a baker, who became an actor, who became a businessman and then a religious leader . . . but I’ve also become, in my own small way, an expert in the study of life extension.’

‘Life extension?’ Nina said, trying to conceal her doubtfulness.

‘Yes. Ultimately, that is what the Osirian Temple is about - avoiding ageing, avoiding death. Becoming as immortal as Osiris. My interest - my obsession - began when I was an actor. A star, rather. I may not have been as famous around the world as the stars of Hollywood,’ a smile of false modesty, ‘but certainly everyone in Egypt knew my face when I was younger.’

‘And you wanted to keep it looking young.’

‘Of course! Wouldn’t you?’

‘I dunno,’ said Nina, ‘I was . . . kinda chunky when I was twenty. I prefer how I look now I’m older.’

‘Then you are a very lucky - and unusual - woman!’ Osir laughed. ‘But all that means is that you are happy as you are now. With every passing moment, you are moving beyond that - and your own body is working against you. Every cell in your body is slowly destroying itself, and there is nothing you can do about it. Unless,’ he said, making a sweeping gesture towards the vats, ‘you can stop your body’s self-destruct - and reverse it.’

‘That’s what this is?’ she asked. ‘You’re making an . . . immortality drug?’

This time, she couldn’t keep the scepticism from her voice. ‘I’ve heard that tone before,’ said Osir - not accusingly, but with resignation. ‘But yes, that is what I am trying to do. I love my life - and I want to keep on loving it! I started with simple treatments, like diet and exercise plans, then moved on to vitamins, antioxidants,