ALI VARESE STOOD AS Lord Grover entered and waved him to a seat. The director’s face was stern, but his manner seemed friendly enough. Of course, that meant nothing with Egyptians; they could smile sweetly as they ran you through.
“I am interested to meet you at last,” Varese said carefully.
Lord Grover nodded and waited.
“The association between England and Egypt in archaeological work is a long and honorable one,” Varese said.
Lord Grover lit a cigarette.
“It has been marked by honesty and fair dealing on both sides.”
What the hell? Grover thought. He smiled and said, “I have always believed that the tradition should be upheld.”
“Precisely.”
Varese shifted papers on his desk.
“What I have to say does not concern you directly,” Varese said. “But it concerns your associates. I must speak in the strictest confidence. No word of what I tell you may pass this room.”
“You can count on me.”
“Today, I received some remarkable news. It arrived, oddly enough, in an anonymous letter.”
“Hmmm.”
“You will be quite surprised to hear this,” Varese said.
A boy came with tea.
“Sugar?” Varese asked.
“No, thank you,” Grover said, patting his stomach, trying to hide the fact that it was churning nervously. “I must watch calories.”
“Yes,” Varese said. “I must also. The curse of old age. Old men become cautious and timid in all respects, I fear.”
Grover said nothing. He tried to relax, to loosen his taut muscles, to keep his face calm. He could not be sure what Varese knew, but clearly he knew something.
“However, I was telling you the news,” Varese continued. “In a sense, it is bad news. In a sense, good news. It seems that a band of robbers have discovered a new pharaonic tomb in the region of the Valley of the Kings.”
Grover sat upright. “No!”
“Indeed,” Varese said mildly. His eyes were watchful. “I said you would be surprised. You will be more surprised when you hear the rest.”
“I can…I can hardly believe it. Robbers? Astonishing.”
“Frankly, I have difficulty myself. But Egypt is a land of surprises, particularly where the ancients are concerned.”
“Yes.”
“And we have corroborative evidence. You see, we know who the robbers are.”
“Excellent! Well done!” As he spoke, Grover felt a twisting pain in his stomach.
“Thank you,” Varese said, sipping the tea. “We move swiftly. In fact, justice has already been meted out.”
“Oh?”
“Yes.” He glanced at his watch. “Those who attempt to steal our national treasures will always receive harsh punishment. The robbers were executed by firing squad ten minutes ago.”
Grover wanted to speak but found he could say nothing. Nothing at all.