"What will happen afterward?"
"The Bald One will not be happy that you are giving away a treasure he wants so badly. He will make a move to block this trade off, I think. We will pit two opposing forces on one another and use the ensuing chaos"—he permitted himself a small smile at the joke—"to step forward and retrieve the tablet from under their noses. The Black Sun will be no match for the Serpents, and the chase will be on. However, your place in the exchange will be over. You will have handed it over to Sopcoate as he demanded and fulfilled your part of the bargain."
"But how will both of you get it from the Serpents of Chaos? There will be many of them, and there are only two of you."
He gave his formal little bow. "I am a magician, Little Miss. I will have many tricks up my sleeve. Although it would not hurt if you brought the Orb of Ra with you."
We were both silent for a long moment as we imagined how this plan might play out. Finally, I sighed. "I suppose it's our best shot."
"So I believe, Little Miss. Once Kimosiri and I have gone, do not say anything to anyone about the Eyes of Horus. It is a most secret organization, and I have risked my life by bringing you into my confidence."
"Then why do it?"
"Because I quickly learned that by allowing you only half-truths, you were becoming too dangerous. And because the mark of Isis is upon you."
"Oh, please, let's not start that again."
Awi Bubu grabbed my shoulders with his wiry hands. He gave me a gentle shake. "Little Miss must accept this. You were born in the Temple of Isis, at the foot of the great goddess, on a most auspicious day. She has accepted you as her gift, and you must be respectful of that. Even now, her servants tend to you—"
"What servants?" I scoffed. Maybe if I sounded scornful, the whole thing wouldn't be so terrifying.
"Your cat. The jackal. By whose power do you think they live? Whom do you think they serve?"
"Y-you're talking nonsense. Please stop."
"No, Little Miss. I am not talking nonsense. This is one of the reasons I agreed to help your parents regain their firmin in the Valley of the Kings. Little Miss must go with them. You must return to the land of your birth."
"I'd be only too happy to return to Egypt, but why is it so important to you?"
"Because I feel certain that Little Miss has a significant role to play. The goddess has marked you for a reason, and that reason will not be found here in London. And there is one more thing." He paused for a moment, the air in the room growing even more solemn. "If something goes wrong tomorrow and I do not emerge triumphant, Little Miss must promise to return the tablet to Egypt on my behalf."
"Don't be silly, nothing is going to happen to you!" My voice sounded the tiniest bit shrill. I cleared my throat and tried again. "You yourself said you're a magician, you can make this work."
"But if I don't," he repeated doggedly, "I want Little Miss to promise. Your parents' request for permission to dig will be approved. I have already arranged this. Now I just need your promise."
When I hesitated, he took a step toward me. "Kimosiri cannot do it. A hulking foreigner who cannot speak? He would be questioned at every turn. No, it is you that must go. The information in the tablet cannot fall into the wrong hands. The artifacts it leads to, they would cause untold destruction, even open the boundaries between life and death. You must promise me that you'll return it to Egypt if I cannot." His black eyes bored into me until finally I had to say, "Yes! Yes, I promise already!"
His face relaxed and he bowed. "I am most grateful. And now you must go. I have much to prepare for tomorrow's rendezvous."
"This is goodbye, isn't it? There won't be time tomorrow, not if you're trying to snatch the tablet from Chaos."
"Yes, it is goodbye. At least until you return to my homeland. Then I will find you and we will meet again." He nodded his head at Kimosiri, who came over to escort me to the door. My mind was so full of questions and emotions that I hardly knew where to begin. I turned to look back at Awi Bubu, whose slight figure was limned by the faint light in the room, and I was suddenly struck by how very much I would miss him. Even though he and I had appeared to be at odds for the last weeks, I somehow trusted him.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
The Grand Opening
IT WAS ALL HANDS ON DECK beginning early Friday morning. Father had us up and out of the house at the crack of dawn with hardly a moment spared for bolting down some toast.
It was a long, painful day, which I spent feeling as if I were tiptoeing across hot coals. Not only were all the adults frantic with last-minute details, but I was utterly consumed by my upcoming appointment with Sopcoate.
Father was barking, Mum was soothing, Weems was prancing, and Fagenbush skulked silently. Stilton was a twitching, flinching, shuddering wreck. I tried to get him alone on three different occasions that morning, but he evaded me each time.
Henry was heartily sick of all of us and had retired to the family room with yet another book. Even Isis grew impatient with me when I tried to pet her and ended up squeezing just a bit too tightly. She gave a yowl of protest and left.
I finally decided to make myself useful by going to the reading room and researching the curse on the Sekhmet statue. I also wanted to see if I could find a mention of a temple dedicated to Thutmose III. I had no luck with either of those but did manage to stay out of everyone's way until it was time to get dressed for the reception.
At ten minutes to four, Father tracked me and Henry down in the family withdrawing room; we had both changed into our Sunday best. Father looked quite dashing himself in his frock coat. "Both of you stay out from underfoot now," he reminded us. "And for heaven's sake, don't create a scene." He gave me a pointed look before heading back to the foyer.
At four o'clock on the dot, the small string quartet struck up the first note, a long vibrant sound that echoed throughout the entire museum. The show had begun.
Without a word between us, Henry and I took up positions on the second-floor balcony overlooking the foyer where we could watch the entire goings-on.
Vicary Weems stood at the front door (the idiot man was even wearing his ridiculous spats!) and checked people's invitations before he allowed them inside. Honestly! He was as bad as that librarian at the British Museum.
His face had been scrubbed even shinier than normal, and his hair was pasted so smooth and flat it looked as if someone had taken shoe polish to his head. His ears, however, still stuck out rather jauntily, as if they were determined to listen in on every conversation that took place that evening.
It was hard to be a dandy with ears like that.
The board members were among the first to arrive, all looking quite posh in their frock coats and striped trousers. Grandmother arrived shortly thereafter and immediately asked for me.
Henry smirked, and I gently elbowed him in the ribs before getting to my feet. I brushed off my knees and motioned frantically for Henry to come with me as I made my way to our waiting grandmother.
I dodged a server balancing a tray of champagne flutes and nearly trod on Grandmother's silk slipper. I braced myself for a scolding, but she simply said, "There you are. Where have you been hiding yourself?"
"Henry and I are doing our best to stay out of the way, Grandmother," I explained. "I think I've had enough of parties for quite a while, thank you."
She looked at me sharply to see if I was being fresh. When she was satisfied I wasn't, she gave a brief nod. "Excellent. It's nice to see you beginning to develop some sense, even if your parents aren't."
It took enormous effort to bite back a retort, but I managed it, then quickly retreated to our hidey-hole before I could change my mind. Henry joined me a moment later, only he'd had the good sense to pilfer a number of canapés. He further surprised me by offering to share them.