Liezel Hasenkamp looked exhausted as she emerged from the path that led to the workmen’s makeshift campsite. She carried a worn suitcase. Daoud followed her, laden with von Raubritter’s luggage and paraphernalia. I beckoned to her, and when she joined me, said, “I hope Daoud did not disturb your rest, but it is imperative that you begin the ordeal of paperwork at the police station in Minya this morning.” It did not seem prudent to add that decomposition was a major factor. “The authorities here are unlike their German counterpoints; they move ponderously and require everything to be done in triplicate. I have asked my daughter Nefret to accompany you.”

“Danke,” she said dispiritedly. “I was unable to sleep last night. What happened to my dear Eric was so vile, so pointless. He would never have done anything to harm another person. Why would someone do such a thing to him?”

“We are doing our utmost to bring the villain to justice,” I said. “Why don’t we sit down in the shade so that we can talk about it?”

Liezel blotted her eyes with a sodden handkerchief. “I fear I can be of little enlightenment. Eric asked me to come here, so I did as soon as I could. I envisioned romance under the starry sky.” Tears inundated her eyes. “I did not envision this tragedy, Mrs. Emerson.”

I took her arm and steered her toward an oblong of shade from the wall of a semicollapsed building. “Would you like a drink of water?” I asked as I offered her my canteen. After she had done as I suggested, I replaced the cap. “Dehydration is dangerous, even when the temperature is moderate. I am sure that you are aware of this, since you are a scientist. Precisely what field are you in? Scientific specialties range from agronomy to zoology.”

“I am a research chemist, as was Eric. We met at a laboratory in Darmstadt and became friends. Very close friends. We discussed marriage, but my parents were concerned because of my age—twenty at the time. I came here to this desolate place to tell Eric that I was ready to accept his proposal.” She bowed her head and began to sob.

She was highly emotional, I thought irritably. I would have preferred at least an element of Germanic stoicism rather than this propensity for weeping. I waited until she had calmed herself and proffered my little flask. “Would you like a small sip of whiskey, Liezel? It might help you retain your composure.”

“Nein, danke. I must maintain a clear head at the police station. Since Eric and I were not married, I do not know if I have the legal right to have his body transported to Cairo and then Germany.”

“Surely the German embassy will be of help.”