“This.” He removed the strange cross from his neck. “It’s the Egyptian symbol of everlasting life. See, the circle represents the female sexual organs and the cross represents the male. Put them together and you have a key to unlock everlasting life. Isn’t it marvelous? I found a man in Huntsville who can make them. Here, put it on. You can wear mine until your hand gets better.” He lifted the chain and put it around my neck.

“My goodness,” Mother said, and stopped the car before Irise’s driveway.

“He loves old things and cultures,” Irise said. “Egypt is his favorite now. He knows everything about Egypt.”

“It’s getting late,” Mother said. “Rhoda better get to bed.”

“I was interested in the Greeks,” Charles William added, getting out of the car and giving me a kiss on the cheek. “But then I moved into the Egyptians. Good night, Ariane, thanks for bringing Dee here. We’ll see her in the morning.”

Mother backed the car across the street and pulled into our driveway. I was sitting in the seat with my bandaged hand in my lap and the other hand holding the ankh.

“I wouldn’t wear that pagan thing if I were you,” she began, but I got out of the car and walked away.

“Shut up, Mother,” I called over my shoulder. “Please mind your own goddamn business.”

Chapter

5