blackest ebony. A wide,
blood-spattered, white bandage crossed his throat. His hands were bound with cord and his
legs were shackled, but still his eyes blazed defiantly.
Tetisheri stared at the man, horrified -- and began to shriek, screaming in blind terror. He
had come to kill her. She was sure of it.
Trembling, she clutched the harp, toppling it, as she crashed to the courtyard floor.
Nerfi, the household servant assigned to tend to Tetisheri, mopped the singer's sweaty brow
as she lay on her sleeping pallet, unconscious but breathing heavily.
She'd be all right. Nerfi crossed the room and studied herself in the polished metal plate on
the wall. With a quick tug, she adjusted the straight, bright red wig she wore over her
shaved head. It was cooler and more attractive than her own hair, which she'd have liked to
be black and straight but was, instead, a dull red with curls that bent at odd angles. The wig
was highly preferable. She liked the bright redness, anyway. It made her stand out.
Above them was a mural of Isis protecting her baby son Horus from the rival god Set by
hiding him in the reeds of the Nile. Nerfi's eyes wandered up to the mural and she sighed.
No wonder people were treacherous and untrustworthy.
38
Even the gods quarreled, murdered one another, and plotted revenge. How could people be
any different?
But what had this Nubian slave ever done to Tetisheri to warrant such a reaction? How was
it possible that she even knew him? Nerfi had been pouring beer from a large jug when the
commotion began. She hadn't even noticed the Nubian until Tetisheri screamed.
Now the young woman stirred and then bolted up to a sitting position, searching the room
wildly. "Where is he? Is he gone?"
"They took him away," Nerfi assured her. "Why are you so scared? Haven't you ever seen a Nubian before? There are a lot of them in the police force these days. They come north for a
better life up here in Luxor."
"It's not that he's Nubian. It's him, himself." Closing her eyes, Tetisheri shuddered. "He terrifies me."
Renenutet entered the room and stared sternly at Tetisheri. "Good. You're awake. My
husband is displeased with that display. You have upset him greatly. He wants you to leave
at once."
"She thought that slave was a spirit, come up from the world of dead beings, sent by Anubis
the dog-headed god himself," Nerfi rushed to her defense, improvising the best story she
could think of. "Anyone would be frightened."
Tetisheri opened her mouth to protest but Nerfi pinched her hand and she shut it again,
taking the hint.
39
"This is no reason to be troubled," Renenutet told Tetisheri, obviously believing Nerfi's excuse. "The Book of the Dead clearly tells us that the underworld is a place where our lives are judged and evaluated so that we may begin again in another life. That is why our tombs
are so well prepared, so that we can have the things we need for the perilous journey to our
next life. Tetisheri, you need not fear the underworld."
"But it's still frightening. It's a life in another world, isn't it?" Nerfi insisted.
"If you are found worthy you will go directly to the next world. If not, you may have to
return to this one to acquire further enlightenment."
"You come back from the dead?" Nerfi inquired, puzzled by this.
"You are born again as a baby into a new body. Most of the time you are born into the body
of a family member. That is why babies sometimes look like a grandmother or grandfather
or a deceased uncle or aunt," Renenutet explained confidently.
"I'd better get enlightened here and now because I don't want to be some messy baby
again. I'm done with that!" Nerfi laughed.
A servant came into the room and spoke to Renenutet in low tones. At his words, the
woman gasped, tears springing to her eyes. Quickly, she dashed from the room along with
the servant.
40
"I'd better go find out what's happened," Nerfi said, hurrying behind them.
When she was alone, Tetisheri