He must retrieve the gold before dawn. At the sun's first rays, the next police shift would arrive. Priests would be performing morning ablutions, tourists gawking, families picnicking. Acolytes would be anxiously reporting for their first day and vendors setting up their tables to sell cheap straw hats. The girl of ivory had worn so much gold! But if she could wear that much, he could carry or hide that much.

Pankh slipped among the minor pyramids to find the second shaft.

He regretted that the girls would not yet be dead.

In a way, he reasoned, it would be an act of generosity to speed them on their way. Less suffering. Yes, he was being kind.

ANNIE

Annie and Renifer were holding each other so tightly she could not tell whose heart was pounding so loudly: her own, Renifer's, or the intruder's.

It was the dark that was so very terrible. Although she had looked around carefully when there was still torchlight, and knew how small was the room in which they were trapped, higher than it was wide, now that it was utterly dark, she did not know. She could not bring herself to reach forth in the pitch black and touch a wall or a floor and the ceiling was far too high to be touched.

And then, through her fear, she became aware of something most odd. She felt a strong draft. There should not be fresh air in a sealed tomb, let alone a breeze.

Somehow, somewhere, an airway had been opened. Only the hand of man could move rocks and let in a draft. So … the scrapes—could those be rocks as they were dragged away? The grunts—from a living man's chest? The rasping—soles of shoes sliding down stone?

Could this be rescue?

But who would rescue them?

She understood now that Pharaoh had ordered their deaths. His soldiers would not march back to retrieve the sacrifice. The priests had been proud to participate. In the faces of all assembled, Annie had seen reverence.

That left Pankh and Pen-Meru. Had Annie misjudged them? Were they good people after all? Helpless to act when surrounded by Pharaoh's finest soldiers? Had they returned, at hideous risk to themselves, to save Renifer?

If it is them, thought Annie, they'll save Renifer, but they won't save me. I'm the sacrifice. They'll leave me here.

The draft lifted her hair. Whoever was coming had opened a considerable airway.

And I'm climbing up it, she told herself. Pankh buried me alive; I have the right to smash him in the head.

She still wore the gold sandals. She slid one off and gripped it firmly in her hand. It was a good solid weapon. She'd knock him out in the dark and shinny out of her tomb.

There was a long scraping drag as stone was pulled over stone.