Free Wicked by Shannon Drake Page B

him!”
    “Yes,” she murmured. She refrained from telling Sir John that it had nothing to do with the fact that he looked forward to her company.
    Sir John frowned. “Camille, are you aware that this man is the Earl of Carlyle? Frankly, I’m flabbergasted that a man with such a pedigree would deign to ask a commoner anywhere. No insult intended, my child. It’s just that…well, we English do have our society.”
    “Hmm. Well, as we’ve all agreed, it is the age of enlightenment, is it not?”
    “An earl, Miss Montgomery. Even with his face hideously scarred, such a thing is unheard of!”
    The man was not intentionally being cruel, but he continued to stare at her, and she felt as if she had grown some strange appendage. She was in no position to explain that she sincerely doubted the Earl of Carlyle had revitalized his interest in the museum, aside from continuing his quest to find the presumed murderer of his parents. And it didn’t matter a whit to him whether she was noble or as common as dirt, as long as she served his purpose.
    “Are you afraid of the man? Because of the scarring, or even his reputation?” Sir John demanded.
    “No.”
    “You are not repulsed.”
    “A man’s manner and conviction in life can be far uglier than his face, Sir John.”
    “Well-spoken, Camille!” he applauded, beaming. “Come along, then! We’ve work to do. As you are transcribing, I’ll be happy to tell you more about the find they made. Naturally, the tombs of pharaohs are thought to have been the most magnificent. But sadly, most of those were plundered long ago. The very great thing about the Stirlings’ discovery of the tomb of Nefershut is that, though the man was a high priest, he was regarded with awe, was wealthier than Midas, and his tomb had not been disturbed. And so many were buried with the man. The Egyptians did not require that a great man’s wives and concubines be buried with him, yet look at this array of sarcophagi! And then there was the matter of the curse.” He waved a hand impatiently in the air. “Apparently, according to popular belief, no tomb discovered can be without a curse. A love of the mysterious, perhaps. We have opened many tombs with no severe warnings at the entry. But in this particular instance—as in some others—there was a curse just insidethe tomb. ‘Let he who disturbs the New Life of the blessed one be cursed upon this earth.’ And sadly, the Lord and Lady Stirling died.”
    “Did anyone else associated with the dig die?” Camille asked.
    Sir John slowly arched a brow with something of a troubled countenance. “I…I don’t know. Certainly no one of the renown of the Stirlings.”
    Camille started to turn, thinking she had heard a scraping sound just behind her, where the mummies and their sarcophagi lay.
    “Camille! Are you listening to me?” Sir John demanded.
    She was amazed that she had been so easily distracted. And it was evident that Sir John hadn’t heard any kind of noise. She was afraid that she was beginning to hear things—taking the small-scale drama that had suddenly invaded her life to greater heights. She loved ancient Egyptian history and all the stories that went with it, but thus far, she had never fallen victim to silly romanticism. She didn’t believe that mummies would rise from their tombs to stalk the living.
    “I’m sorry. I thought I heard something.”
    “Camille. We’re in a museum. Many people are walking over our heads.”
    She smiled. “No, I thought I heard someone in here.”
    He sighed with exasperation. “Do you see anyone?”
    “No. I just—”
    “There are others with keys to the vaults, Camille. We are not the only department in the museum!”
    He sounded indignant, and she realized that he was angry he didn’t have her full attention on a very important topic.
    “Asps! Camille. Dangerous creatures. Anyone who venturesinto Egypt is aware of certain dangers. Though heaven knows, the common tourist is forever