"Why should it?"

"What if there is something in this Curse?"

"My dear Judith you don't believe that."

"If anyone else was leading this expedition I would laugh the idea to scorn. But this is you."

He laughed in the darkness.

"My dear Judith," he said.

And that was all.

I was longing for the days to pass. What dark ones they were before Christmas. There was a great deal of rain and the fir trees glistened and dripped; the soft-scented southwest wind blew through the trees and moaned outside the windows. Whenever I saw the Egyptians their eyes seemed to be fixed on me, half sorrowfully, half hopefully. I saw Nanny Tester but only in the presence of Tabitha for she kept mainly to her own apartments and only rarely emerged.

Theodosia and Evan came to stay at Keverall Court for Christmas, and Tybalt and I and Sabina and Oliver were invited for Christmas Eve. Hadrian was there too; he was going to stay until we left for Egypt.

It had long been a custom to sing carols in the Keverall Court ballroom on Christmas Eve and many of the people from the neighborhood joined the company. Oliver officiated as the Reverend James Osmond used to and it was a very impressive occasion for there was a torchlight procession from the church to Keverall.

After the singing Lady Bodrean's chosen guests went to the hall where we had a supper consisting of the various pies which had been popular for centuries—squab, mutton, beef; and, of course, hot Cornish pasties. These were all eaten with mead and a beverage known as Keverall punch which was made in an enormous pewter bowl—the recipe, known only to the steward of Keverall, had been handed down through the last four hundred years. It was rather potent.

I was amused by Lady Bodrean's attitude towards me. When she did not think herself observed she regarded me with a sort of suspicious wonder, but she was all charm when we stood face to face.

"It is a pleasure to see you, Lady Travers," she said. I felt myself giggling inwardly as I graciously acknowledged her greeting.

After we had partaken of the pies and punch we went to the church for the midnight service and strolled home in the early hours of Christmas Day. It was all as we had done it many times before; and I felt it was good that all the friends of my childhood were gathered together at such a time.

Christmas Day at the rectory was pleasant too. It was amusing to see Sabina presiding at the table where once Alison had sat. There was the turkey with the chestnut stuffing and brandy butter which I remembered used to cause Dorcas and Alison such concern. Sabina showed no such anxiety. She chattered away making us all laugh as we teased her. The plum pudding was ceremoniously carried in with its flaming brandy jacket and followed by mince pies shining with their coating of castor sugar.

Theodosia and Evan with Hadrian were not with us, of course, they being at Keverall Court; so the conversation for once was not of the coming expedition; for this I was grateful because I was sure that Dorcas and Alison would not have enjoyed it.

Afterwards we played charades, miming scenes and childish guessing games at which I excelled and Tybalt did not. Dorcas and Alison looked on and applauded my success, which exasperated while it touched me.

In the early hours of the morning as Tabitha, Tybalt, and I walked the short distance from the rectory to Giza House, I found myself wondering whether there would always be the three of us together. I was fond of Tabitha, but there were times when the old saying seemed very apt: Two's company; three's a crowd. Was it because when Tabitha was with us Tybalt's attitude towards me seemed to change? Sometimes he seemed almost formal as though he were afraid to betray to her that affection which more and more he was beginning to show when we were alone.

January was with us. There was a cold snap, and the hoar frost glistening on the shrubbery trees gave them a look of fairyland.

Tybalt at the breakfast table going through the mail, frowned and made an exclamation of disgust.

"These lawyers!" he complained.

"What's happened?"

"Sir Ralph's will is taking a long while to settle. It's a clear example of procrastination. It seems as though it's going to be months before everything is clear."

"Does it matter so much?" I asked.

"You know he has left this trust. We were relying on it. It will make a great deal of difference to the expedition. We shall be less restricted for funds with this additional income. You'll discover, Judith, how money is swallowed up in expeditions like this. We have to employ possibly a hundred workmen. Then of course there are all the other workers. They have to be paid; they have to have living quarters. That's why one cannot begin such an undertaking until all these tiresome financial matters are taken care of. We're almost always frustrated by a question of expense."

"And you can't touch this money or the interest, or whatever it is, until the will is proved?"

"Oh, it will be all right. With such a sum made over to us we shall be able to anticipate. But there will be formalities. I daresay I shall have to go to London. I should have to in any case, but later."

"So it is only a minor irritation."

He smiled at me. "That's true, but minor irritations can mean delays."

He then began to talk to me in the way I loved and he told me that he believed his father had discovered the way into an unbroken tomb.

"He was so excited. I remember his coming to the house. He had rented a house from one of the most influential men in Egypt who was interested in our operation and allowed us to have his palace, which was a great concession. It's a very grand and beautiful residence with magnificent gardens and a band of servants to look after us. It's called the Chephro Palace. We pay a nominal rent—a concession to independence; but the Pasha is really very interested in what we are doing and eager to help. We shall use this palace again."

"You were telling me of your father?"

"He came in from the hills. It was night. There was a moon and it was almost as light as day. It's impossible, of course, to work in the heat of the afternoon and those moonlit nights were made full use of. He was riding a mule and as he came into the courtyard, I saw him from my window, and I guessed something had happened. He was a man who rarely showed his feelings, but he showed something then. He seemed exuberant. I thought I would wait until he had washed and changed and had had a light meal which Mustapha and Absalam always prepared for him. Then I would go down and wait for him to tell me. I knew I would be the one he would tell first. I said nothing to anyone for it might have been something he wished kept secret. I knew that a few days before we had been in despair. It was several months earlier that we had discovered the door in the rock; we had penetrated through a corridor only to be led to a tomb which had been rifled probably two thousand years earlier. It had seemed then as though we had come to the end of our quest and all the work and expense would lead to nothing. But my father had had this strange feeling. He would not give up. He was certain we had not discovered all. I was of the opinion that only some tremendous discovery could have made him excited on that day."

Tabitha had joined us.

"I am telling Judith about my father's death," he said.

Tabitha nodded gravely; she sat down at the table and propping her elbows on the table leaned her chin on her hands. Her eyes were misty as Tybalt went on:

"I went down when I thought he would be refreshed and then I found him ill. I did not believe it was serious. He was a man of immense physical as well as mental vitality. He complained of pains and I saw that his limbs trembled. I suggested to Absalam and Mustapha, who were very upset, that we get him to bed. This we did. I thought: In the morning he will tell me. That night he died. Before he did I was sent for. As I knelt by his bed I could see that he was trying to tell me something. His lips moved. I was certain he was saying 'Go on.' That is why I am determined."

"But why did he die at precisely that moment?"

"There was talk of the Curse which was absurd. Why should he be cursed for doing what many had done before him? He had merely been to the site on which we were working. It was not as though he had violated one of the tombs. It was ridiculous."

"But he died."

"The climate is hot; he may have eaten tainted food. That, I can assure you, has happened more than once."

"But to die so suddenly."

"It was the greatest tragedy of my life. But I intend to carry out my father's wishes."

I put out my hand and pressed his. I had forgotten Tabitha. Then I saw that there were tears in her beautiful eyes; and I thought peevishly I must admit, why are there always the three of us!

During the cold spell Nanny Tester caught a chill which turned to bronchitis, as in the case of Dorcas. I was quite useful nursing her, having had experience with Dorcas. The old woman would lie in bed watching me with her bright beady eyes; I think she liked to have me there which was fortunate, for she had what seemed to me an unreasoning dislike for Tabitha. It was really most unfair because Tabitha was considerate in the extreme, but sometimes she would become really restless when Tabitha was in her room.

In February Tybalt went to London to make further arrangements about supplies and to see the lawyers; I had hoped to go with him but he had said that he would have so much to do that he would be able to spend little time with me.