Read Online The Deathstalker by Gill Harvey - Free Book Online Page A

Something tells me that you may need this knowledge before long. Let us begin at once.’
    And to Hopi’s fascination and delight, he reached for a scroll of well-worn papyrus.
    .
    Back at the arena, pandemonium had broken out. Guards had brought the prisoner of war before Commander Meref, but the Libyan was not all they had brought. They had come with shocking news, too. It spread among the soldiers like wildfire and they milled around, talking in excited voices.
    ‘The scorpions have gone!’ Isis heard one of them shout.
    ‘The gods have spoken!’ cried another.
    Isis looked up at Nes. ‘What scorpions are they talking about?’ she asked, thinking at once of Hopi. If scorpions had disappeared, he would be the first person she’d suspect.
    The great wrestler looked down at her and shook his head grimly. ‘This is army business. It is not something that a girl should know about.’
    ‘Does it have anything to do with the pit?’ Isis insisted.
    ‘Never you mind about that,’ Nes told her.
    ‘But I need to know.’ Isis was desperate to get to the bottom of it. ‘What’s going to happen to the prisoner who was caught last night?’
    Now Nes looked down at her in astonishment. ‘How do you know about him?’
    ‘We were here when he tried to escape,’ Isis reminded him. ‘He’s the brother of the girl I wanted to help.’
    Nes stared at her for a second, then shook his head. ‘You know far too much,’ he said. He began elbowing his way through the excited soldiers to the edge of the arena, where Nefert, Sheri and Kia were scanning the crowd with worried expressions. Isis knew at once that they were looking for her. She turned quickly to the wrestler.
    ‘Please, take these,’ she said, offering him the bundle of fruit. ‘You know who they were meant for. I can’t take them back home again. Please deliver them for me, if you can.’
    She could see that Nes’s mind was already elsewhere. His gaze had rested on the soldiers who were steadily digging up a section of the arena, and his eyes blazed with anger. Isis persisted, pressing the bundle into his hands.
    For an instant, he glanced down at the fruit, then looked into her eyes. ‘Leave them with me,’ he said. ‘And if you are feeling brave, meet me again, little dancer. Tomorrow at noon.’
    Nefert had spotted Isis now and was beckoning furiously.
    ‘Tomorrow, but . . . where?’ Isis asked, waving back at Nefert.
    ‘On the town side of Ipet-Resyt temple,’ said the wrestler. ‘I’ll be there.’ Then he left her, marching over to confront the digging soldiers.
    Isis ran to Nefert and Sheri.
    ‘Isis! There you are. We must leave at once.’ Nefert looked shaken. ‘I have had enough of this place. These men – they do not treat us with respect.’
    The women had already put on their shawls, while Paneb was trying to get Commander Meref’s attention. It was a hopeless task. The commander was listening to ten soldiers all trying to speak to him at once.
    ‘Where were you?’ whispered Mut, clutching Isis’s arm. ‘And where did Hopi go?’
    ‘I don’t know,’ Isis whispered back. She felt a pang of fear for her brother. Then she reflected: surely if he had been caught, he would have been dragged here by now? She had seen enough of the camp to know that anything unusual was reported to the commander. ‘I think he must have already left.’
    ‘They’re all talking about scorpions,’ said Mut. ‘I bet he has something to do with that, don’t you? Well, don’t you? Tell me, Isis.’
    ‘I don’t know ,’ said Isis. ‘Honestly, I don’t.’
    They watched as Paneb made one last attempt to speak to the commander. It was no good. Commander Meref swatted him off as though he were an irritating fly. Paneb turned away and rejoined the troupe.
    ‘Let’s go,’ he said, his voice full of disgust. ‘This was a bad idea from the outset. Last night we were sent home early. Tonight they are preparing some horrible entertainment that