“Yes, and when he returned to Amarna and surprised us at breakfast, he was fine. Then he took up residence at the dig house, and soon after that began to display bizarre symptoms again. That blasted schnapps!” I forced myself not to dwell on the unwise camel ride into the Eastern Desert. “I am beginning to feel confident that Dullard is the culprit, but I cannot think why or how he got his hands on the stolen MDMA. What could be his motive for such sabotage?”

“To acquire the bust of Nefertiti, but he claimed to be an amateur enthusiast. On the other hand, Morgenstern might have chortled about its value on the black market. Dullard took a vow of piety. He may not have taken one of poverty, and he clearly did not take one of abstinence.”

“Or celibacy,” I added tartly.

Nefret’s cheeks reddened. “You don’t believe that he and Miss Smith . . . ? I shudder to imagine it.”

“No, I do not, but their relationship was deepening, and might have led to an engagement. I cannot predict what might have occurred had that disastrous scene not taken place last night. This morning Dullard pleaded for my forgiveness for his inebriation. Miss Smith attempted to visit Morgenstern, but was thwarted and has remained in her mud hovel. I dearly hope she has been packing her belongings in order to depart to Minya and await the next steamer—or take the earliest train to Cairo. I have no problem with either of those options. She has been a source of headaches from the moment of her arrival.”

“Perhaps I should offer to help her pack,” Nefret murmured.

“In the morning, while I coordinate transportation across the Nile. She need not depart on a camel. Mahmoud and Abdul can carry her trunks to the pier, cross the river with her, and settle her into a hotel. It has been a while since she has had the opportunity to bathe in hot water and sleep on a mattress, even if it might be riddled with bedbugs. When she is back in her cozy cottage, her cat settled in her lap, she can write of her thrilling adventures in the desert, living among the wild and exotic Arabs and Bedouins.”

“If you will excuse me, I would like to see the serdab. I will drag the Professor back here when it is too dark to continue work. Selim can post guards at the site overnight.”