Ramses ignored him. “What a fool this apprentice must be to have replaced the missing black iris in her left eye. Father had noted its curious absence most particularly. Yes, we will take it with us after you tell us who sold it to you.”

“A boy, he did not tell me his name. He was very nervous and afraid that he was followed. After I paid him, I let him leave through the back door. I am so sorry I cannot be of more assistance.” He clumsily wrapped the bust in brown paper and string, all the while reasserting his “good intention” and stressing that he would accept no payment for that which deserved to be placed in the Egyptian Museum.

Once they were on the street, David said, “So what are we to do with this blasted forgery? I don’t fancy hauling it around all day. Sethos is sure to be nearby, watching us. He might appreciate an early Christmas gift.”

“That he can sell as the original to some greedy collector,” said Ramses as he shifted the heavy parcel to his other arm. “I would prefer to smash it to pieces, but I think we should keep it until circumstances dictate otherwise. Sethos does not know it is just the work of another inept apprentice from Harun’s workshop. That may prove useful, somehow. Let’s find a hotel where we will not be recognized and consider our next move.”

“Lord Cavendish, I presume.”

“And as my lowly assistant, you get to carry this damnable thing.”

“The honor should be yours, sire.”

“Bugger,” Ramses said, laughing.

The hotel they chose would not meet the standards required of anyone with a distaste for strange odors, insects and rodents, questionable hygiene, or a modicum of security. The lock on the hotel room door consisted of an interior deadbolt to prevent intrusion when guests were present, although a strong kick would thwart it. The minimal furnishings did not offer an adequate hiding place for Nefertiti in their absence.

“I suppose we could ask the hotel clerk to store it in a locked room,” David said dubiously, “but he is susceptible to bribes like his brethren in the same trade.”

“Why couldn’t it have been an ushebti?”

When they left the hotel, dressed in gentlemen’s apparel, David was carrying a lumpy canvas bag. The clerk’s eyebrows were raised as he called a faint farewell. They hailed a carriage to take them to the German embassy, and were greeted by the guard. Ramses brushed him aside with a curt word in German, and they walked up the drive to the front door.

“We are here to see the ambassador,” he said to the elderly butler. “Inform Herr Gunter that we will wait as long as necessary.”

“Herr Gunter is not here at this moment. The ambassador left several weeks ago for a conference in Berlin.”