The reunion was so touching, Marika slipped her hand into Jake’s. She squeezed his fingers, sharing in the joy.
But like Nefertiti, Layla was a princess. A slim vein of fury suddenly cracked through her heavy face powder and paint. “We must alert the royal guard. I’ll have Thutmose arrested immediately!”
“And Master Kree,” Nefertiti demanded with equal vehemence. “Along with the rest of his priests!”
Layla headed to the door. She pointed to her sister’s sword. “Keep Father protected.”
She flew out the door with the determination of a hunting hawk.
Shaduf crossed to the bed and stared sadly down at his brother. They had both suffered at the hands of Kree, but Jake knew the true master behind all of this cruelty.
Kalverum Rex.
The Skull King.
Nefertiti joined her uncle. “Will he ever wake?”
Shaduf put his good arm around her. “He will. If only to scold me for dying on him.” Again there was a mad hiccup, but the old man forced it back down.
Bach’uuk rose from the other side of the bed. He’d been down on his hands and knees. His deep-set eyes glowed at Jake from under his heavy brow. Something was wrong, but Bach’uuk did not want to speak it aloud.
Jake hurried to his side, trailed by Marika and Kady.
Bach’uuk drew them down to the floor and pointed under a bedside table. Resting on its side lay a teardrop-shaped black vial, empty now. Upon its dark glass surface, a powdery white fingerprint stood out.
Jake pictured the physician’s face. It had been painted red.
Kady figured it out, too. “Layla wears the same white shade of foundation.”
Jake trusted his sister’s assessment. When it came to makeup, she could distinguish the various shades of red lip gloss from a hundred paces.
He shot to his feet.
All eyes turned to him.
He pointed to the exit. “We have to get out of here! Now!”
As if on cue, the door crashed open. A knot of black-robed figures flooded into the room, followed by a wall of armored palace guards. They parted to reveal Master Kree.
Layla stood at his side, and his arm snaked around her waist.
Jake recalled Shaduf’s earlier story. For Kree’s plan to work, he needed someone with royal blood on his side. Apparently he’d found his someone.
Nefertiti’s sister yelled, “The outlanders have come to poison my father! Arrest them!”
Chaos ensued as the mass of men fell upon the group. Shaduf got knocked down immediately. Guards cornered Bach’uuk and Pindor. Jake heard Kady’s scream, but it was quickly muffled. Jake dragged Marika toward the bedroom, but one of the guards ripped her from his side.
A second later an ax came crashing toward his head. He dove into the bedroom as the blade smashed at his heels. He sprawled headlong on the floor—only to come nose to nose with Thutmose. The doctor lay there with a surprised expression fixed on his face, likely from the dagger in his back.
Clearly Kree was tying up loose ends.
Jake rolled back to his feet, only to collide into a hellcat with a sword. Nefertiti fought off a pair of guards. A third made a grab for her, but Jake blocked him with a chop to the wrist. He followed it with a rabbit kick to a kneecap. The man fell with a shocked cry, knocking into one of Nefertiti’s opponents. She used the advantage to stab the other through the shoulder.
As the two of them backed away, more huge men pushed into the bedchamber. Nefertiti and Jake were forced back to the private balcony.
“Now what?” Jake asked.
Nefertiti grabbed Jake by his cloak and rolled them both over the balcony railing and into open air. As they plunged, tangled together, Jake had one last thought.
Well, death is one way out of this mess.
20
CROOKED NAIL
Jake had forgotten one important detail. It rudely became apparent when his back struck stone, knocking the wind out of him. He’d just been thrown off the balcony of a pyramid, a structure with smoothly sloping sides.
Nefertiti landed on top of him. The sides of the pyramid were steep, too steep for Jake to stop himself. He slid headfirst down the slope as Nefertiti rode on top of him. Only his thick cloak kept his skin from being ripped off by the stone.
But for how long?
“Don’t move!” Nefertiti yelled.
She clutched fistfuls of his cloak and squirmed into a seated position on his chest. She began using her heels like brakes to guide their trajectory.
He suddenly realized what she was doing.
She’s turned me into a human bobsled.
He craned around to see where she was taking him.
“Quit squirming or you’ll get us both killed!”
Like that wasn’t going to happen anyway.
She leaned hard to the left, braking with a heel. Jake felt their course swing farther to the side. Then a frightened yell. “Hang on!”
Suddenly, Jake was flying through the air. Nefertiti became airborne, too. He screamed, not knowing what was happening—then he splashed into a pool of water. Nefertiti cannonballed beside him. He sank deep, then kicked and sputtered back to the surface.
They had landed in a pool built atop a large open balcony. Treading water, he stared up. He spotted faces peering down at them from the royal chambers. An arm pointed. Their escape had not gone unnoticed.
Nefertiti surfaced and waved him toward the steps. Only then did he notice people lounging in the gardens around the pool, fanned by collared servants. Everyone had frozen in place, stunned by their dramatic entrance.
“We must go!” Nefertiti said.
Jake understood. The fast trip down the outside of the pyramid had earned them a good lead. They’d best not waste it. They needed to be gone before word of what transpired in the royal chambers reached the lower levels.
They clambered out of the pool, soaked to the skin. Jake shook like Watson after a bath. Nefertiti merely smoldered, her black hair plastered to her scalp. One look and Jake knew her anger was hot enough to dry her clothes all by itself.
They rushed off.
“Follow me,” Nefertiti said, managing to snag a lounging patron’s abandoned robe. She wrapped herself in it and pulled up the loose hood.
Jake had to run to keep up with her. She moved like a lioness, swift and dangerous. Even without recognizing her, people moved out of her way. Jake followed in her wake.
Minutes later they burst through a side door and out into the open. A warm breeze swept over the stones. The plaza was empty as the sun set, having been cleared by the guards after the prison break. As Nefertiti fled from the pyramid, fear for his friends, for his sister, dragged Jake’s feet.