Children of the Storm Elizabeth Peters

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.""Hmph," said Emerson.When the children joined us for luncheon, Nefret readily agreed to my suggestion, though, like Emerson, she was of the opinion that we were not likely to learn anything about the stolen jewelry."I need to buy things for the twins," she said."They are growing like weeds and they are very hard on their clothes."Ramses and his father exchanged conspiratorial glances.They were trying to come up with excuses for not accompanying us.I didn't want them along anyhow; Emerson always stood by shuffling his feet and grumbling under his breath, and Ramses always wore an expression of exaggerated patience which was even more trying."You needn't come," I said."Nefret and I will shop for the twins and for other boring necessities such as sheets and pillowcases, which you seem to believe appear out of thin air.Shall we go, Nefret? Emerson, I expect you and Ramses to behave yourselves.No hobnobbing with thieves and spies, no orating.""The same to you," Emerson grunted."Take your parasol," Ramses added.I did, of course.My parasols have become the stuff of legend in Egypt.They were no longer fashionable but I always carried one since I had found them to be invaluable, serving as sunshade or walking stick, and sometimes as a defensive weapon.A good hard whack over the head or across the shins will bring down most assailants, and mine were specially made, with a heavy steel shaft and-in one case-a concealed sword.Thanks to Daoud's preposterous stories, superstitious persons had become convinced that the parasols had additional magical powers.In some quarters the mere sight of that deadly object was enough to bring a miscreant to his knees.Since I had no reason to fear danger, the one I carried that day was not one of the heavy black instruments, but a delicate saffron in color to match my frock.Nefret and I had a successful shopping trip.I do not enjoy buying bed linens any more than certain other people do, but when a task is necessary I complete it efficiently and thoroughly.Purchasing little garments for the twins provided greater pleasure, though Nefret firmly vetoed most of the frilly frocks and miniature coats and trousers I would have selected.She was undoubtedly correct; even Fatima had balked at ironing the dozens of frocks Charla got through in the course of a week.After taking tea at Groppi's, we returned to the hotel to find that the merchandise we had ordered had been sent on.The suffragi had placed all the parcels in the sitting room, and we were going through them to make certain all was in order when Ramses returned."Did you get everything you wanted?" he asked, taking a chair."Yes, my dear, thank you for your interest," I replied."Where is your father?""Isn't he back yet?""No, he is not.I thought you two were going somewhere together.""Were we supposed to?""Stop that," I ordered.Shopping does leave one weary (which is one of the reasons why men make women do it) and Ramses's habit of answering questions with additional questions was, I did not doubt, designed to tease."Yes, Mother.Father went off on some errand of his own; he declined my offer to accompany him, nor did he mention what it was.""Hmmm," I said."And what did you do?"Ramses's amused smile faded.There was no way he could avoid a direct answer this time."I called on Rashad."Nefret dropped the little shoe she was inspecting."Not alone!" she exclaimed."Except for several hundred tourists, vendors, merchants, and miscellaneous citizens of Cairo," said Ramses."I thought he might have the same rooms he occupied several years ago, when I crawled through his window from the back of a camel.Such proved to be the case.He wasn't at home, though.""Why did you want to see him?" I asked.Ramses leaned back and lit a cigarette."I wanted to know why he has come back to Cairo and where his former leader has got to.If Wardani is planning some new stunt, he may try to recruit David again.""But surely he knows that David betrayed him once before," I said uneasily."He wouldn't be likely to trust him again, would he?""One never knows," Ramses replied."Wardani is a pragmatist.If he believed David could be useful, he might be willing to overlook past indiscretions.""We cannot permit that," I said."However, I see no point in anticipating trouble.Have you had tea, my dear? Nefret and I took tea at Groppi's, but I will send the suffragi to bring it if you would like.""Thank you, I'll wait for Father."We had to wait some time.Emerson finally turned up, in an unusual state of dishevelment even for him.He had not had a hat to begin with-he lost them so often that I no longer insisted on his wearing one-and his hair was standing on end.His tie was undone, his coat open, and his shirt streaked with some dark oily substance."Good heavens, what have you been up to?" I inquired."That looks like oil.Did you fall?""What?" Emerson glanced down at his chest."Oil? Fall? No.Yes [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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