Chapter 12
CHAPTER TWELVE
Oliver didn’t sleep much that night. When his brain did allow him to drift off, he woke a short time later, his dreams evaporating before he could remember them, but leaving him unnerved.
At five, he gave up. Dave breathed deeply on his side of the bed, and Oliver took a moment to study him in the dim light. His expression was peaceful, his dark brown beard full and neatly trimmed, and a warm rush filled Oliver’s chest. He was truly fortunate.
Easing the bedroom door shut behind him, he made a stop in the bathroom before heading to the kitchen.
He set up the coffee maker then sat at the table with Samira’s notebook.
Later that morning when he returned to campus for class, he’d see if Robin could get Samira’s number from Beryl.
He hoped she was okay, but the fact she’d left this important possession behind made him uneasy.
The coffee maker gurgled to a stop and Oliver poured himself a cup. He and Dave had talked about getting one of those pod machines, but Oliver liked being able to control the strength of his brew. Today he definitely needed something stronger.
Returning to the table with his coffee, he picked up the sealed sandwich bag he had transferred the scrap of material to the night before. There was no doubt in his mind it had come off Amenmose. But how it had ended up in the bushes outside the library was still a mystery.
Okay, he had some idea how it had come to be there. But it was crazy for him to even contemplate. And even if it was true, how would he convince Detective Carter?
He sipped his coffee and inspected the fabric. What had awakened the mummy? And why was it murdering the people who had opened his coffin?
An idea came to him, and he sat up straight. He rubbed his thumb across the pads of his fingers, recalling the feel of the material and the hard line of bone beneath. But he also remembered the slightly tacky substance that had coated them all once they’d opened the coffin.
Had they all been exposed to some kind of pollen or spore? Could that same substance have brought Amenmose back to life? Was he angry at being resurrected in such a debilitated state and taking revenge on the people responsible?
A hand on the back of his neck made Oliver jump and shout in surprise. Heart hammering, breath locked in his chest, he swiveled and planted his feet, ready to launch himself out of the chair.
Dave stepped back, wide-eyed. “I’m sorry. I thought you heard me come up behind you.”
“Holy fucking hell.” Oliver’s body went limp. He put a hand on his chest, heart galloping beneath his palm. “You scared me.”
“I’m so sorry. I should have said your name. Are you okay?”
“I will be. Give me a minute.”
Dave poured himself some coffee and sat across from him. He had both hands around his cup and stared into it, avoiding Oliver’s gaze.
“I’m okay. I know you didn’t do it on purpose.” Oliver gave him a shaky smile. “I’m just jumpier than usual.”
“I know. And I apologize once more. I should have considered it.”
“Thanks.” He was surprised to see his hand shake slightly when he lifted his coffee cup.
“Find out anything new?” Dave asked.
“Not really. I haven’t read through Samira’s notes very thoroughly yet. I was thinking back on the timeline of events.”
“Want to talk it through?”
“Yeah.” He slid the plastic bag across the table. “Take a look at that. Can you see the slight discoloration?”
Dave picked it up and studied the fabric inside. Oliver liked how Dave traced a finger along the length of the material and then pinched it between his fingers like Oliver had done himself.
“Yeah, I see it. It’s this part here.”
“Right. I’m trying to figure out what caused it.”
“Could something from that time period have caused it? Like when it was first woven or cut into strips?”
“It’s possible. But I was wondering if it might have happened when we all lifted the lid.”
Dave slid the bag back to him. “Like when the air touched it?”
“That might have done it. Or maybe it’s from that stuff that got all over us.”
“Oh.” Dave sat back in the chair and drank some coffee. His eyes widened and he set the cup back down. “Wow, that’s strong.”
“Oh, yeah. I didn’t sleep well so I made a stronger batch.”
“This’ll keep you up today for sure.”
Oliver idly spun the bag on the table. He wondered how many people had worked to create this fabric, how far it had traveled since it had been woven into life.
“What else is on your mind? I can see the wheels turning.”
“We talked about it a bit last night, but it seems so crazy.”
“A mummy waking up after thousands of years, climbing out of its coffin and walking around a college campus systematically murdering the people who were in the room?” Dave shrugged. “Just another day in Parson’s Hollow.”
Oliver chuckled. “True, but it’s happening in Glenmont.”
“Right.” Dave took another sip. “You still think the mummy has been reanimated?”
“Maybe it’s because of our background with so many cryptids, but it’s the best explanation I can come up with. And isn’t that a bunch of weirdness?”
Dave cocked his head. “Is a mummy a cryptid?”
“No. I mean, I wouldn’t classify it that way. Cryptids are things that have no physical evidence and are more urban legends, like Bigfoot, Loch Ness Monster, Mothman, those things. A mummy would be more of a monster.”
“We’ve been dropped into the horror section of the Universe’s big bookstore.”
“Felt like that yesterday when Detective Carter laid out those crime scene photos. There was so much in each one. I wish I’d been in a better frame of mind to see details, but…
” Oliver shuddered. “The doors were practically destroyed, and Lucien and Dominic had been so…broken. Not only were their arms and legs twisted, but they showed deep scratches on exposed skin, like gouges from long nails. And on top of all that, there was bruising around their necks, which makes me believe they were eventually strangled.”
“Christ, that’s awful.”
“It is. And all of that points to either someone psychotic and incredibly strong who holds a murderous grudge against them all, or…”
“Or,” Dave said, “Amenmose the mummy got up and is walking around. Which explains how the body disappeared from the coffin with no clues. Do you know if those doors open from the inside even if they’re locked?”
“I don’t. I could see if the rooms are available again and check it out.”
“Only if you think you won’t get in trouble.”
“Don’t have to tell me twice.”
“Didn’t think I would. So, what’s your plan today?”
“I plan to read through this notebook and see what Samira may have learned from that scroll. When I get to campus, I’m going to try and track down Vera to ask her if she’s made any progress on figuring out what go all over all of us.
I may see if Dylan or Dr. Brennan will talk with me, though not sure if that’s a smart way to go. ”
“That’s a lot of investigating along with attending class.”
Oliver groaned and put his head in his hands. “Oh, crap. I might have a paper due in each class in the next few days.” He released a long, slow breath. “Why did I decide to go back to school?”
Dave smiled. “To make yourself more marketable.” He sipped his coffee. “It’s working. The Glenmont police can’t stay away from you.”
Oliver shot him a glare. “Ha ha. Very funny.”
Samira had made good progress with the scroll, but the translation was far from complete.
From her notes, Oliver learned the scroll appeared to be an overview of Amenmose’s life, most likely written by the scribe himself.
He and Isry had known one another from childhood.
When she had wed Rameses the second, she had brought him along as her scribe.
Samira’s translations indicated Amenmose had possibly been in love with the scribe of another of Rameses’s wives, a man named Mery.
He sat back, wondering if Amenmose’s affections had been returned. Glancing at the time, he tucked the notebook into his bag and hurried down the hall to get ready.
Arriving earlier than usual to campus, he parked in his usual lot.
It was another beautiful spring day, the sun warm when it managed to get out from behind big puffy white clouds.
Despite having poor sleep and being the focus of murder investigations, his mood bumped up a bit as he crossed the quad toward the student union.
When he got in line for coffee, he was surprised to see Robin sitting at their usual table by the windows.
They wore headphones and stared intently at the screen of their laptop.
When Robin saw him approaching, they smiled and pushed the headphones down around their neck.
“Hi. Good to see they let you go.”
“Yeah, about that.” Oliver provided a short update, ending with finding the notebook outside the library but no sign of Samira herself. Since taking it could already be seen as tampering with evidence, he kept to himself the discovery of what he suspected was a piece of fabric from Amenmose’s body.
“Oh, shit,” Robin said.
“Exactly.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Not sure. I would like to track down Vera and talk with her. I’m hoping Samira is somewhere safe so eventually I can give her back the notebook.”
“I can text Beryl and see if she’s heard from them.”
“That would be great, thanks.” Oliver watched Robin’s fingers move in a blur as they typed. Once the message had been sent, he nodded to Robin’s laptop. “What are you working on?”
“That paper for our journalism class. It’s due the beginning of next week.”
Oliver grimaced. “I knew something was coming up. I’ll have to work on that over the weekend. The last couple of days have put me behind.”
“At least.” Robin’s phone buzzed. “Beryl hasn’t heard from Samira since yesterday morning.”
“That’s not good.”
“But she says Vera should be in the room with the coffin.”
“Oh?” Oliver sat back and took a drink of coffee. “Are you at a stopping point in that paper?”
Robin shut their laptop. “Yep. Let’s go.”