Soul and Shadow (3 page)

I turned back into the museum after he had gone, but didn
'
t stay much longer. The exhibit seemed anti-climactic now. In a kind of daze, I went out to my car. When I started it up and switched on the radio,
Walk Like an Egyptian
came warbling out at me.

I laughed aloud and drove the twenty minutes to my home. I rented some rooms in a huge old Victorian house. My pet, Cleocatra, was waiting for me as I entered. She swished her long tail as if to ask how the evening had gone.
"
You wouldn
'
t believe it,
"
I said as I bent down to stroke her back. I gave her a treat, then headed straight to the computer. I had some research to do on Dame Ursula Allingham.

Chapter Three

"
Lily!
"

I started as Katy dropped a heavy volume of medieval history on my desk. The thud of the book and the irritation in her voice brought me out of my reverie.

"
What?
"
I asked.
"
Is the coffee maker broken again?
"

This was usually the cause of bad temper in the otherwise affable Katy. But this time, her hostility was directed at me.

"
When are you going to tell me what happened last night? You
'
ve been mooning around all morning, torturing me with wild hints about mummies and handsome English lords. I want details, and I want them
now
.
"

"
I promised I
'
d fill you in at lunch,
"
I defended myself.
"
I have to finish verifying these quotations for Briggs...
"

"
Baloney,
"
Katy said.
"
You
'
re not working, unless staring into space constitutes work. So spill it, and maybe then you can concentrate.
"

She was right. I hadn
'
t gotten very far with the information that Dr. Briggs needed for his latest paper, and he could be an impatient man.

Being a research assistant to a noted Egyptologist was a job I loved, but today it could not hold my interest, no matter what the work. The events of the night before seemed to be taking up all of the room in my brain. I decided that Katy was right, and I needed to tell my story.

"
All right,
"
I said, giving in.
"
But open up that book of yours and pretend we
'
re consulting if he comes by.
"

"
Okay. I need to know about Tutankhamen
'
s influence on Lancelot. Now, come on.
"
Katy had pulled up a chair and was looking at me expectantly.

"
Well,
"
I began.
"
First of all, Kent
'
s not a lord. Ursula
'
s title is honorary, given for her services to archaeology. She
'
s a Dame of the British Empire.
"

"
Oh.
"
Katy seemed a trifle disappointed.
"
But he
is
handsome?
"

Kent
'
s finely boned face and extraordinary eyes rose in my mind.
"
He certainly is,
"
I answered.
"
And tall and dark.
"

"
So we have a storybook couple. Delicate little Lily and tall, strapping Kent. I do hope the children have your coloring. It would be a crime not to pass on those big brown eyes and perfect skin.
"

I ignored her prattling.
"
And he
'
s so nice. Polite, but not in a smarmy way. Very genuine.
"

"
Uh-huh.
"
Apparently this was not high on the list of what Katy considered virtues.
"
And his grandmother found this mummy herself?
"

"
Yes. She and her husband were digging in Egypt in the 1950s and excavated the tomb of Kahotep, a temple priest, and Amisihathor, a priestess. Hathor was the goddess of love and beauty, and also one of the chief funerary deities. She was worshipped throughout Egyptian history. There were some lovely objects buried with her that, unusually, hadn
'
t been plundered. Both mummies were intact, too. Her husband was interred with her. He was a priest at the same temple and the tomb was actually built for him. It was an important find, and Dame Ursula is well-respected.
"

"
Did you find any hints about insanity?
"
Katy asked.

"
Not a word. But I don
'
t suppose it
'
s the kind of thing they normally mention in scholarly articles. Anyway, she
'
s come up with this theory that Amisihathor
'
s spirit is not at rest. Dame Ursula wants me to help it reach the
Beautiful West
.
"

Katy frowned.
"
California?
"

"
Your ignorance appalls me,
"
I said with a laugh.
"
The
'
Beautiful West
'
was the Egyptian paradise. Also called the
'
Field of Reeds
.
'
You couldn
'
t be at peace unless you got there. That
'
s why they had such elaborate preparations. The
Book of the Dead
is full of the spells you needed to reach it.
"

Katy made a face.
"
The
Book of the Dead
? Sounds beautiful.
"

"
The Egyptians actually called it
Book of Coming Forth By Day
. If you couldn
'
t get past the demons and through the right gates of the Underworld, you never came before Osiris to be judged. That meant you had no chance of being found worthy to go on to paradise.
"

"
Hard luck. And what exactly are you supposed to do to help this Amis—Amy—
"
Katy shrugged.

"
Ah-me-see-hath-or.
"
I spelled it out for her.
"
And the answer to your question is, I don
'
t know. Ursula and I didn
'
t get that far. She handed me an envelope full of documents, and then disappeared. While I was looking for her, Kent found me.
"

"
And that
'
s where the story
really
begins.
"
Katy grinned.

"
It would be nice to sell a picture,
"
I mused.
"
There
'
s only been the one lately. I hope he meant it when he said he
'
d like to see some.
"

"
Well, you
'
ll find out when you call him, won
'
t you? When are you planning on doing that? Tonight?
"

"
Maybe,
"
I said, sidestepping her challenge.
"
Right now I actually have to do some work. My art alone isn
'
t going to support me.
"

"
Okay,
"
Katy said, rising from her seat.
"
But you haven
'
t been out on a date in a while. Don
'
t think for one minute that I
'
m going to let you pass up a chance like this.
"

She was as good as her word, and nagged me for the rest of the day. Finally, at four thirty, I gave in. Somehow, calling from work was easier. I composed a few different messages in my head, scolded myself mentally for going to so much trouble, and decided to just speak right off the cuff. Of course, as soon as I heard the voice at the other end of the line, my mind went completely blank.

"
Hello?
"
Kent said, for the second time.

"
Kent. Hi.
"
I really hadn
'
t expected him to answer in person, and I couldn
'
t come up with anything more scintillating than that. But the warmth of his reply banished my reservations.

"
Lily? I
'
m so pleased you called. How are you?
"

I turned my back on Katy, who was watching with unashamed interest.
"
I
'
m fine, thanks. And how is your grandmother doing?
"

"
As right as rain. She really enjoyed talking to you last night. I do hope you
'
re going to let me take you out for dinner.
"

"
That would be nice,
"
I said demurely.

"
Which evening is good for you?
"

Why not throw all caution to the winds?
"
How about tonight?
"
I asked.

"
Lovely. I
'
ll let you choose the restaurant. Just ring and let me know the time and place. And bring some of your drawings with you. Will that be all right?
"

"
Sure. I
'
ll see you later, then.
"

"
Right. Bye, Lily.
"

Katy gave me the thumbs up sign as I replaced the telephone.
"
Good for you.
"

I had some doubt.
"
I hope he
'
s not just being kind. He might feel guilty because he thinks his grandmother bothered me.
"

"
Who cares?
"
Katy dismissed my qualms with a wave of her hand.
"
It doesn
'
t matter what his motives are. You
'
ll both have a great time, and if he buys a picture, so much the better.
"

I couldn
'
t argue with that. The studio displaying my work brought in some extra income, but it was erratic. A ready-made customer like Kent was manna from heaven.

"
You
'
re right, Katy. There
'
s no downside, is there? Unless I fall madly in love with him and he goes back to England and breaks my heart.
"

"
That
'
s the spirit.
"
Katy rolled her eyes.
"
Nothing like getting ahead of yourself. Just have a nice evening, show off your art, and enjoy the adventure. All right?
"

"
Yes, Katy,
"
I said meekly.

Chapter Four

"
Sometimes,
"
Kent said,
"
I feel like I
'
m just going round and round in circles.
"

I smiled at him as he bobbed along beside me.
"
Just make sure not to change horses in midstream,
"
I replied.

"
Mommy, look!
"
A small child ahead of us was shrieking in delight, waving as we passed her smiling parent. Lights glared, music blared, and I had seldom been so happy in my entire life.

I could hardly believe it when Kent had gotten on the carousel with me. Walking through the park after dinner, I had cast a wistful eye on the gaily-colored animals.

"
I loved riding that when I was a little girl,
"
I had told him.
"
My father would bring me here a lot. At first, I sat in his lap in one of the swan chariots. Then I graduated to a cat, and at last to the big horses. The first time he didn
'
t have to stand beside me, I felt as if I was queen of the world. Not even driving gave me the same thrill.
"

"
I
'
ve never seen so many different animals,
"
Kent said.
"
How old is it?
"

"
It
'
s from 1905 and this is its original site. There used to be a huge amusement park here on the beach at the turn of the century.
'
The Coney Island of Upstate
'
they called it. Only the carousel and the bathhouses are left now. Well, and the beach, of course.
"

"
Brilliant,
"
Kent said.
"
Let
'
s take a ride.
"

"
Really?
"

"
Yes, really. If you can face public ignominy, that is,
"
he teased.

"
We
'
ll sit right behind some children and maybe people will think we belong to them,
"
I laughed.

"
Right then, all aboard.
"
He took my hand and we climbed up on the wooden platform.
"
What
'
s your fancy, my Lady? A chariot or a steed?
"

"
I
'
ve always liked the brown horses best. They look friendlier, don
'
t they?
"

"
Good choice. That leaves me the white stallion. I only hope I can keep him under rein.
"
We got on, and as I put my feet in the stirrups, I was overwhelmed by a sense of déjà vu. It was a wonderful feeling.

I looked at Kent as the carousel spun around. He may not have been wearing armor, but he was a knight on a white horse all right. Even as I laughed at the symbolism, I felt a strange knot of emotion in my throat. I knew that I was falling in love with him.

I had begun to suspect that during dinner, where conversation was remarkably easy, and his quirky charm was captivating. But now, seated beside him on a merry-go-round, I was certain. And I could almost see my father smiling with approval.

I had told Kent how my father died when I was only ten. But I hadn
'
t told him how much I missed him. Until tonight, I hadn
'
t even considered the lack of a strong male presence in my life. My mother and two aunts were my only near relatives. I didn
'
t have any close male friends, and only one boyfriend had really meant anything to me. It didn
'
t matter that I had just met Kent. I felt that I could have him around forever.

He loved my drawings as well. I could tell his appreciation was genuine. He hadn
'
t been so crass as to purchase some and then take me out. He
'
d simply asked me to set aside two or three for later. It was understood that there were no obligations.

We hadn
'
t discussed his grandmother except as background information. Kent seemed to adore her, hardly surprising since his parents had traveled extensively and Ursula had filled in as his surrogate mother. Her influence had helped, but it was his hard work and talent that had gotten him a job at the British Museum.

"
Stayed away from Egypt, though,
"
he had informed me.
"
Family
'
s still getting over that disgrace. First archaeologist in three generations not to get wrapped up in mummies.
Etruscan Italy is my love. Fascinating civilization. I
'
ll tell you all about it sometime if you don
'
t run fast enough.
"

His way of talking was like that, full of bad puns and light-hearted self-deprecation. We laughed a good deal. I was extremely comfortable with him. There was no first-date nervousness, a rarity for me. It was as if I
'
d known him for years.

I ruthlessly silenced the little voice in my head that told me,
don
'
t be crazy. He
'
ll be gone soon, back to London and out of your life
. I did not want to think about that. I wanted to revel in the exhilaration coursing through me, and so far I was succeeding.

When the carousel stopped, we hopped off and made our way to the custard stand. Kent was intrigued that you could get it frozen like ice cream.
"
It
'
s a regional specialty,
"
I said.
"
Like white hots and chicken wings.
"

"
You Yanks eat such odd things. Aren
'
t there any stands that sell normal food, like treacle tarts or blood pudding?
"

"
I can
'
t imagine why, but no.
"

Kent sighed.
"
Well, give us one of these cones, then. I
'
ll take a chance that it won
'
t kill me.
"

"
I
'
m proud of you,
"
I said.
"
When in Rome...
"

"
Be sure to visit the Etruscan collection at the museum.
"
Kent finished.

We strolled along the pier as we ate our custard. Darkness had fallen and the lighthouse beacon was flashing. We stood listening to the water slap against the wood and the sound of boat engines humming towards shore.
"
I
'
ve had a lovely evening, Lily,
"
Kent declared.
"
At the risk of being totally overbearing, would you like to do it again?
"

Oh, would I!
"
When were you thinking of?
"
I asked.

"
Tomorrow night? I know it
'
s short notice, but...
"

But I don
'
t have a lot of time
. The unspoken words hovered between us.
"
All right,
"
I said.
"
I think I can manage that.
"

He looked as happy as I felt.
"
Lovely. Perhaps you can introduce me to more of these strange local customs.
"

"
We could go to a baseball game and have popcorn and cotton candy and peanuts,
"
I suggested.

"
Cotton—oh, you mean candy floss,
"
Kent supplied.
"
And drink
cold
beer? I don
'
t think so. Football—sorry, soccer to you—is more my speed. I
'
m a diehard Sheffield Wednesday supporter. What about you?
"

"
The only thing I know about soccer is David Beckham. Is Sheffield Wednesday the name of a team or a player?
"

He shook his head in mock disgust.
"
A team, of course, you lovely little Philistine. What do they teach you in these American schools?
"

A sudden wind gusted off the lake and whipped my hair across my face.
"
Careful,
"
Kent said.
"
You don
'
t want hair-flavored custard.
"
And he reached out and brushed back the strands gently.

I exulted in the touch of his fingers against my cheek. It was such a tender gesture that my heart trembled. The little smile he gave told me that I was not alone in this mysterious madness. I closed my eyes as his lips met mine. I don
'
t know how long we would have stood there in our own private world if a loud explosion hadn
'
t rent the air. Some children screamed happily, and a flash of color streaked across the sky.
"
Fireworks!
"
I exclaimed.

Sure enough, a display was starting. I had forgotten that they were part of the harbor festival, and I blessed my decision to come here. It was the perfect ending to the most romantic date I
'
d ever been on. Such simple pleasures had turned out to be unforgettable. I felt like I was walking in a dream, especially when Kent took my hand in his. We
watched as the lights burst with brilliance, and sparks trailed down into the water. Katy was right. I decided to savor every moment of the present, and let the future take care of itself.