Meren woke without opening his eyes. There was no light against his eyelids. It must be dark still. He remained unmoving, breathing evenly, and waited. The click of the rings holding the curtains to the frame surrounding his bed had disturbed him immediately. Years of sleeping in the midst of campaigns against barbarians, years of going to bed knowing he could be attacked by a jealous courtier, these had made him a light sleeper.
There it was-that slightest of air movements. He rolled to the opposite side of the bed like a crocodile wrestling its prey, landed on all fours, and snatched a dagger from beneath the cushions. Shooting to his feet, he searched the darkness for the intruder.
"Well done," said an admiring young voice. "Karoya, put down that sword and go away. He's awake now, and yes, you were right to tell me to be wary."
Meren lowered his dagger and squinted in the darkness in the direction of the voice. "Majesty?"
Behind him he heard a click, and the flare of a lamp wick. Darkness receded as the king's giant Nubian bodyguard handed him the lamp. As the man vanished, Meren was left staring, his jaw slack, as the living god of Egypt grinned at him and sat on his bed. Tossing the dagger on the sheets, Meren knelt and bowed his head.
"Please, can't you leave ceremony aside?" Tutankh-amun asked.
"I think not, majesty."
"It is my wish."
Meren lifted his head and gazed at the king. Tutankhamun had lost his air of daring and mischief and regained that weary, sad expression Meren had come to know well. He should have been more perceptive. Smiling at the king, he rose and sat on the edge of the bed.
"Were you my son, I would thrash you for risking your life in such a foolish manner. I could have killed you."
The king's bright laughter rewarded him for this transgression.
"I have been cursed with assessing the year's harvest for the entire kingdom. I've wrestled with figures for weeks without end." Tutankhamun sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose with thumb and forefinger. "The High Priest of Amun is cheating me as usual, and still expects me to give him electrum obelisks and limitless access to my granaries. You, however, have been free to visit possible murderers and go among vendors and merchants in the market. Free, Meren. And in return for this freedom, you must tell me all about the murder in the Place of Anubis."
The king emphasized his words with a jab to Meren's shoulder. Meren grinned back at him, all the while searching Tutankhamun's face. The king's eyes were large and, when unguarded, expressed his feelings as a bronze mirror reflects light. He could see in them now traces of a young lion bound in chains, a life-loving monkey sealed in a pyramid. Without further protest, he related all he had discovered to the king. Tutankhamun listened eagerly, then shook his head in wonder.
"I thought my family cursed with evil."
Meren said, "Hormin and his family aren't like most of us, majesty. Still, I have yet to find one of them more suspect than the others. The wife, the sons, the concubine, his coworkers-any of them had reason to kill Hormin. And then there are the tomb workers."
"The High Priest of Anubis has begged an audience," the king said. "No doubt he will complain to me about your lack of diligence in finding the killer and laying to rest the demons aroused by the crime."
"He's worried, majesty. Such a thing has never hap pened in the Place of Anubis."
"Aye, but I will still have to listen to him complain." The king paused, giving Meren a sidelong glance. ','Um, there is another matter. There are-there are rumors of visitors to your house, Bedouin, Hittites, a bandit or two."
"The High Priest of Amun must have heard that you touched me."
The king's shoulders slumped. "I'm sorry. I know I must be circumspect, and I wouldn't endanger you, but sometimes-"
"He has spread rumors before, majesty."
Tutankhamun glanced at the portico, where darkness was fading into the gray light of dawn. "He still hates me for what my brother did. Akhenaten should never have tried to destroy Amun and the other gods. The high priest, he liked not living in obscurity and going hungry and having his priests killed." The king rose and rubbed his upper arms as if chilled, then met Meren's gaze. "He's beginning to see that I won't be guided like a blind donkey. Meren, I'm sure he had my brother killed."
At the desolation in the king's voice, Meren slid off the bed to stand beside him. Trying to ignore his own guilt, he dropped an arm about Tutankhamun's shoul ders. Startled, the king looked up at him, then relaxed into the embrace. Akhenaten's death had robbed Meren forever of peace, but he could still ease Tutankhamun's suffering.
"Listen to me," Meren said. "Every day, every mo ment, in darkness or in light, my eyes are upon you. The servant who empties your chamber pot, the boy who holds your bow, the chamberlain who announces your guests, the guards who stand beside you, I know them all. Were I to question their loyalty, they would be dead."
The king's head dropped onto his shoulder for a moment. After a while the boy straightened, and Meren dropped his arm. The pyramid stone of guilt resting on his heart lifted. Tutankhamun held out his hand, and Meren grasped the boy's arm above the wrist, one warrior acknowledging another.
"It's just that I know how many enemies Pharaoh has," the king whispered. "There are so few I can trust. I wish my brother hadn't died."
"Majesty."
Meren couldn't help but wince, but the king hadn't seen or heard him. Meren could see that he was lost in old and sad memories.
"Majesty." This time the king looked at him. "For a long time now I have felt that I had two sons-Kysen, and you."
He bore Tutankhamun's searching gaze without ap prehension, and at last the king smiled a genuine, carefree smile. It faded a little as he glanced at the growing light.
"I must go," the king said. "If anyone discovers that I've been here, you'll be in more danger than you are already. But you must come to me soon, for I'm anxious about this business in the Place of Anubis. After all my work restoring order to the kingdom, I won't have some criminal disturbing the harmony and balance of Egypt with this sacrilege."
Meren nodded gravely, suppressing a grin at the king's peremptory tone. Much as he longed for the freedom of boyhood, Tutankhamun understood governance in ways that eluded the many spitting vipers who called themselves his courtiers. Meren preceded the king through his house, taking care that they met none of his household who might have risen early. At the front gate he watched Tutankhamun slink down the street in the direction of the palace, Karoya at his side. The boy would steal over the palace walls with ease. Having trained the king himself, Meren could hardly complain if he used his skills now; he could only hope that Pharaoh's visit had been indeed secret.
Calling to his steward, he readied himself quickly for a visit to the house of Hormin. It was time to descend upon the family and frighten them, now, before they were fully awake. Taking with him several charioteers and his aide Abu, he burst upon his victims as they dined. Striding swiftly into the house, he came upon Imsety and his mother sharing a small table laden with beer and bread. Servants scurried out of his path when he crossed the threshold. Meren glared at Selket.
"Mistress, your sons are thieves, and most likely murderers."
Selket's mouth was full; she gulped, then choked. Imsety remained quiet and pounded his mother's back. Selket grabbed her cup and took several swallows. Gasping for breath, she shook her head.
"You deny my words," Meren said. He squeezed his eyes almost closed and stared at her. "Perhaps you have been behind this evil all along."
Imsety rose, causing his chair to tip backward and land on the floor. "No!"
Two charioteers brushed past Meren, drawing their scimitars. Imsety held his hands away from his body and stepped back a pace. At a word from Meren, the charioteers halted midway between their leader and Imsety.
"Please, lord, my sons are innocent." Selket had dropped to her knees.
Meren glanced about the room, then stalked out with out a word. He remembered the way to Djaper's chamber. Thrusting the door aside, he charged into the room. At once he caught the stench. Behind him Abu sniffed and cursed. Meren felt his aide's hands on him. He was hefted bodily out of the chamber. Abu darted inside, weapon drawn. Meren prayed to Amun for patience while Abu searched the chamber, for he wouldn't be allowed to enter until his aide was convinced there was no threat to him.
"Enter, lord."
The chamber's high windows cast a vague and dif fuse light. Opposite the door lay the bed, and on the bed, sprawled and still, lay Djaper. Beside the bed, a chamber pot had been removed from beneath its accompanying stool. Djaper had vomited in it.
Abu stood beside the bed. "He is cold, lord."
"Send for my physician and more men."
Meren examined the body. Its stiffness told him that Djaper had been dead at least several hours, but not longer than a day. He'd learned long ago that the body protested the passing of the ka in this manner, as though death had frightened it into rigidity. Eventually the muscles became flaccid, and he'd often wondered if this signaled the arrival of the soul to some place of shelter. Djaper's soul had not arrived, it seemed. He'd died sometime during the night-too suddenly and conve niently, before Meren could speak to him.
Glancing at the fouled chamber pot, Meren noted that Djaper had emptied his stomach. From the congealed state of the contents, he would guess this had happened before midnight. His attention was drawn to the floor beside the bed, where a glazed cup lay on its side next to a small amphora. He picked up the cup. It had been drained, and only a few drops of beer remained. Meren sniffed and wrinkled his nose. Not the best-quality beer. He lifted the amphora from its stand. As he did so, a clay seal dangling from twine brushed his fingers. He smelled the contents of the amphora. Half full, it contained the same tart beer left in the cup, but the bitter smell was stronger.
Meren dipped his finger in the beer and touched it to his tongue. Grimacing, he set the amphora down. As he stood, a wave of dizziness lapped over him, followed by a sensation of floating that caused him to sway. He hissed as he drew a deep breath. Stepping away from the bed, he braced himself by placing his palm against the nearest wall. He waited, chastising himself for his dangerous curiosity. Gradually his body returned to its normal state except for a strange lethargy and a feeling of elation.
Folding his arms over his chest, Meren gathered his wits, then surveyed the room. Little had changed since he'd last been in it When he felt better, he lit a lamp and directed his gaze at the bed, the shelves of papyri, the chests. These he opened and found clothing, toiletries, jewelry. There was Djaper's scribe's kit, but he found nothing to indicate that the dead man had written anything.
Having searched the chamber, Meren returned to the room where Imsety and Selket were being held. Taking the master's chair, he regarded them silently. Imsety had relapsed into his habitual state of muteness. His mother, however, bit her lips in an apparent effort to contain her alarm and curiosity. She twisted her brown hands together unceasingly.
"Mistress, describe to me the happenings of yesterday and last night."
"My son, he asked to be left alone and keeps to his chamber still."
Meren didn't answer, and, given no choice, she went on. "Yesterday was like any other for me. I have the household to run, meals to supervise, weaving and mending, making of bread, ointments to prepare, the cleaning. The slut Beltis gave no help, as is her wont." Selket paused. Her gaze drifted away from Meren. "The concubine quarreled with Djaper."
"Explain."
"She invaded his chamber!" Selket's ire turned her brown face a ruddy hue. "She invaded his chamber yesterday morning, the harlot. He rejected her, and she screamed at him and clawed at his eyes. And she threw a bowl at him, which hit his head. Imsety and I came to see what has happening. Poor Djaper was on the floor holding his head, so Imsety grabbed Beltis and tossed her out of the room. She fled to her own chamber, and later she packed herself off to the village of the tomb makers. Poor Djaper had a headache for the rest of the day."
Meren snapped at Imsety, "What was the fight about?"
Imsety shrugged. "She'd found out about the broad collar yesterday. She wanted it."
"Eloquent as ever, Imsety. How did she discover it?"
"She climbed the palm outside Djaper's chamber and spied on us when he told me to take it to the market for repairs."
"A sentence of over five words," Meren said. "You amaze me. So, you battled over the necklace. Then obviously she discovered that it was you and your brother who had robbed your father's office."
"She wanted the necklace," Imsety said reluctantly. "She claimed he gave it to her before he fetched her from the tomb-makers' village the last time."
"And was she telling the truth?"
Imsety glanced at his mother, whose color had returned to normal. She nodded stiffly.
"Aye, lord," Imsety said. "She came home dangling it from her fingers and was furious when Hormin took it from her to keep in his office."
"And later?" Meren asked.
Selket spoke up again. "Djaper went to the office of records and tithes while Imsety-"
"I know what happened to Imsety," Meren said.
"And that evening Djaper came home complaining of his head," Selket said. "When he spoke to Imsety and learned of your wrath, he became distraught. By nightfall he was so bothered by his head, he asked to be left alone and retired. Does his head still hurt?"
"Mother," Imsety said while staring at Meren, "Djaper should be here. Lord, where is my brother?"
"He's dead."
Imsety blinked at him as Meren darted glances from the man to his mother. Although her son remained quiet, Selket shook her head, turned, and tried to rush from the room. One of the charioteers caught her. Meren remained seated, keeping watch as the woman struggled and her voice rose to screams. The sound nearly destroyed his ears, and as she wailed Meren decided that his news had indeed been a surprise to her.
Imsety was still blinking at him when he returned his attention to the man. To Meren's disbelief, a tear appeared at the corner of one of Imsety's eyes and rolled down the side of his nose. He heard a choking sound. Stolid Imsety began to cry, his face crumpling and folding into grooves and troughs of grief. All the while he remained standing in front of Meren as if it mattered little where he was or in whose presence he wept.
Meren had a choice. He could believe that the mother and son possessed the ability to deceive him as far more experienced intriguers did not, or he could believe they hadn't known Djaper was dead and truly grieved. As he watched Selket collapse on the floor, tear at her hair, and wail while her son cried silently, he was struck with the contrast between their reactions today and the morning after Hormin's death. Djaper had been loved. Hormin had not.
Had the mother sacrificed one son to save the other from suspicion? Was he meant to believe that Djaper had taken his own life in remorse for his crime of patricide? Perhaps he'd frightened Imsety far more than he had realized, thus stampeding him into another crime.
Or perhaps, during his fight with Beltis, Djaper had threatened her with banishment again. He could easily imagine Djaper trying to suborn his father's will and casting Beltis out of the house forever. Still, if such had happened, he didn't think Beltis would have left the house with Djaper in residence. Unless she knew he wouldn't be living there much longer.
The physician arrived, out of breath and sweating. With him came his staff, whom he set to work reexamining the dead man's room and the rest of the house. Meren could do no more himself, so he returned home to send a message to Kysen; as he sat in his office penning it, Meren felt another twinge of apprehension.
The boy must be on his guard. He was much afraid that, having gone to the tomb-makers' village as his father's servant, Kysen was in even more danger than before. Beltis was there, and the artisans themselves hadn't been removed from suspicion. No doubt by the morning's end Kysen would have sent word of the results of his own inquiries.
How difficult would it be for a tomb maker to slip out of the village and make his way over the desert hills and across the river to Hormin's house? It could be done if one were desperate enough to take the risk. If one were forced to go in secret, hiding and skulking all the way, one might still reach the destination in an hour or two. The trip to the Place of Anubis could be made by foot in that amount of time as well, perhaps faster if one braved a night journey by skiff.
Meren laid aside his reed pen and blew on the ink forming his signature. He folded the paper, sealed it with clay, and impressed it with his signet ring. Calling for a messenger, he entrusted the letter to him, then sat back in his chair to resume his worrying.
Too many were dying. Hormin, Bakwerner, Djaper. He'd given orders for a close watch on Selket and Imsety. Most likely one of them was the murderer. Kysen was to watch Beltis closely as well. Now he wished he hadn't sent Kysen to the tomb-makers' village. Concerned as he was for Kysen, however, he must allow the boy to do his own work.
Meren reached across the table and grasped the obsidian embalming knife that had killed Hormin. Someone feared neither him nor the judgment of the gods. Anyone that desperate or that stupid was dangerous in deed. If he didn't solve this mystery soon, he would cause all of those suspect to be brought to him and examined without mercy until one of them confessed. He
would have no choice, for the High Priest of Anubis would soon howl for vengeance and blood. His adversaries at court would begin to spread word that he no longer pursued Pharaoh's enemies with diligence. The moments passed, and as they did, the risks grew.
Rubbing his eyes with his fingertips, Meren lay the embalming knife aside and reached for the stack of pa pyri containing the summaries of the inquiry for the past few days. Somewhere among all the recordings was the knowledge sought. Somewhere.