They followed the standard exit procedures. Ahead of her, Parrish peeled off to the right so she went left, finding deep shadows in which to crouch. She heard the ramp go up and silence fell on the desert. She couldn’t see much, but they appeared to be alone.

Grint’s voice sounded in her ears. ‘Area checked and secured. Let’s move.’

She tucked herself in behind Anders as they made their way along the floor of the valley, ghosting from shadow to shadow, watching where she put her feet. Several hundred yards along, Grint called a halt. She melted into the dark and looked about her.

The famous Valley of the Kings.

It was nothing like she’d imagined. The whole area was just a jumble of rocks. There were no magnificent entrances. No statues. No decorated pillars. No banners. There weren’t even any obvious signs of construction.

The ground beneath her feet was dark and treacherous with loose stones, making it hard to move quietly. She looked up. The sky above was crammed with stars, as if someone had spilled a pot of glitter across the heavens; providing more than enough light to see by. Around her, officers were lifting their visors. She followed suit.

The air was chilly, but not bitterly cold, and smelled of dust, rocks and a strange, almost spicy smell. She realised Grint was dividing up his team and leaned forwards to pay attention.

‘OK – listen up men. This is our objective. KV62. There’s no one here but us. Our job is to mop up any stragglers and secure the tomb, which is, at present, open to any passing looter. My team will split up. Kohl, take Rossi and go up. Check out the higher ground. Watch your step – lots of loose rocks hereabouts. I don’t want either of you starting a landslide. Anders, you and I will take the lower ground and rendezvous with Ellis’s teams. Keep your eyes open and remember to keep checking your proximities, people.’

‘What about us?’ enquired Parrish.

The embarrassing pause lengthened.

Grint turned and peered into the dark tunnel that was the entrance to what would, in three thousand years’ time, be the most famous tomb in the world.

‘Good point, Parrish. What do you see?’

Parrish lowered his visor and walked towards the entrance, peering down into the darkness. ‘Sand. Everywhere. Half-buried steps leading downwards. Covered in spoil. Looks as if they’ve broken through the door at the bottom – there’s a small hole.’ He looked around. ‘There are baskets everywhere. Full of broken stone and chippings.’ He kicked one with his foot. ‘They’ve just been dropped by the look of it. There’s been no attempt to conceal their presence here.’

‘What does that tell you?’