“I believe so….” Zia’s voice became hoarse. “And I believe my old mentor, Iskandar, was trying to protect me when he put me into that tomb. It was not a mistake that he let me hear the voice of Apophis in my dreams. It was some sort of warning—one last lesson. He hid the crook and flail with me for a reason. Perhaps he knew you would find me. At any rate, Menshikov must be stopped.”
“But you just said I couldn’t go to Brooklyn,” I protested.
“I meant that you can’t abandon your quest. I think Iskandar foresaw this path. He believed the gods must unite with the House of Life, and I trust his judgment. You have to awaken Ra.”
Hearing Zia say it, I felt for the first time like our quest was real. And crucial. And very, very crazy. But I also felt a little spark of hope. Maybe she didn’t hate me completely.
Sadie picked up the senet sticks. “Well, that’s sorted, then. At sunset, we’ll open a portal at the top of the Great Pyramid. We’ll follow the sun boat’s old course down the River of Night, find Ra, wake him, and bring him out again at dawn. And possibly find someplace for dinner along the way, because I’m hungry again.”
“It’ll be dangerous,” Bes said. “Reckless. Probably fatal.”
“So, an average day for us,” I summed up.
Walt frowned, still holding his phone. “Then what should I tell Amos? He’s on his own?”
“Not quite,” Zia said. “I’ll go to Brooklyn.”
I almost choked. “You?”
Zia gave me a cross look. “I am good at magic, Carter.”
“That’s not what I meant. It’s just—”
“I want to speak with Amos myself,” she said. “When the House of Life appears, perhaps I can intervene, stall for time. I have some influence with other magicians…at least I did when Iskandar was alive. Some of them might listen to reason, especially if Menshikov isn’t there egging them on.”
I thought about the angry mob I’d seen in my vision. Reasonable wasn’t the first word that came to mind.
Apparently Walt was thinking the same thing.
“If you teleport in at sunset,” he said, “you’ll arrive at the same time as the attackers. It’s going to be chaos, not much time for talking. What if you have to fight?”
“Let’s hope,” Zia said, “it doesn’t come to that.”
Not a very reassuring answer, but Walt nodded. “I’ll go with you.”
Sadie dropped her senet sticks on the floor. “What? Walt, no! In your condition—”
She clamped her mouth shut, too late.
“What condition?” I asked.
If Walt had had an Evil Eye spell, I think he would’ve used it on my sister just then.
“My family history,” he said. “Something I told Sadie…in confidence.”
He didn’t sound happy about it, but he explained the curse on his family, the bloodline of Akhenaton, and what it meant for him.
I just sat there, stunned. Walt’s secretive behavior, his talks with Jaz, his moodiness—all of it made sense now. My own problems suddenly seemed a lot less significant.
“Oh, man,” I mumbled. “Walt—”
“Look, Carter, whatever you’re going to say, I appreciate the sentiment. But I’m through with sympathy. I’ve been living with this disease for years. I don’t want people pitying me or treating me as though I’m special. I want to help you guys. I’ll take Zia back to Brooklyn. That way, Amos will know she comes in peace. We’ll try to stall the attack, hold them off until sunrise so you can come back with Ra. Besides…” He shrugged. “If you fail, and we don’t stop Apophis, we’re all going to die tomorrow anyway.”
“That’s looking on the bright side,” I said. Then something occurred to me: a thought so jarring it was like a tiny nuclear reaction in my head. “Hold up. Menshikov said he was descended from the priests of Amun-Ra.”
Bes snorted disdainfully. “Hated those guys. They were so full of themselves. But what does that have to do with anything?”
“Weren’t those the same priests that fought Akhenaton and cursed Walt’s ancestors?” I asked. “What if Menshikov has the secret of the curse? What if he could cure—”