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The three of them followed O'Connell through the passage, torches blazing. A skittering sound disturbed the silence. All of them looked around in a panic. After all this time, not even insects should still be surviving down here, but … Evelyn supposed it was possible. She imagined a scholarly paper on the longevity of insects in ancient ruins.

"What was that?" Jonathan asked.

"Sounds like … bugs," O'Connell said.

Evelyn turned back, whispering loudly to the men behind her. "He said bugs."

"What do you mean, bugs? I hate bugs." The warden whirled about, staring at the walls.

They kept going, a bit more slowly than before, O'Connell remaining in the lead. He kept his gun out, although Evelyn couldn't imagine what he thought he might need to shoot at down here, where everything, with the possible exception of some bugs, was dead. Perhaps he was more like the other Americans than she had given him credit for.

At last, they came into the chamber she had known must be there. With no small sense of satisfaction she recognized their goal. "The legs of Anubis." No one had seen these in hundreds of years, and here she was, Evelyn Carnahan, standing in front of them. "The secret compartment should be hidden somewhere inside here."

She squinted at the carvings along the base of the statue, hoping they would give her a clue.

Behind them came a series of noises, like people moaning somewhere underground. O'Connell handed Evelyn his torch and gently pushed her behind him, all of them pressed against the base of the statue. The sounds were getting louder, and closer.

O'Connell cocked his weapon quietly, sliding along the base toward the corner, and drew his other gun from its holster. With a sudden movement, he turned the corner, both guns out and ready to shoot. Jonathan and the warden came alongside him, both of them with guns pointed as well, and found themselves face-to-face with …

The Americans and their party, all of them also pointing guns. Men, Evelyn thought with some disgust.

"You scared the bejesus out of us, O'Connell," said one of the Americans as they all put their weapons away.

"Likewise." O'Connell uncocked his guns, but didn't put them down.

The tall American with the glasses, Burns, Evelyn thought his name was, took a step forward, staring at Evelyn and the bundle she held. "Hey. That's my tool kit."

She felt a warm glow. So O'Connell really had stolen it for her.

Grimly, O'Connell said, "No, I don't think so," and pointed his guns in Burns' face. Alongside him, Jonathan and the other Americans all raised their weapons again.

"Okay," Burns said, holding his hands up in a gesture of surrender and stepping back. "Perhaps I was mistaken."

As O'Connell slowly lowered his weapons, everyone else following him, Evelyn said firmly, "Well, have a nice day, gentlemen. We have a lot of work to be getting along with."

"Push off!" the Egyptologist snapped. "This is our dig site."

Evelyn narrowed her eyes. "We got here first." Fair was fair, after all.

Immediately, all the guns were out again, pointed at one another.

"This here's our statue, friend," said the shortest of the Americans.

"I don't see your name on it … pal," O'Connell countered.

O'Connell's little friend sneered at him. "Yes, well, there's only four of you … and fifteen of me."

Looking down, Evelyn saw a crack in the floor. Gently, she brushed some sand into it, listening to tiny rocks fall below. Fair might be fair, but if it got someone killed, what was the point? They could withdraw, find what lay under this chamber, and then come up between Anubis's legs and steal a march on the Americans just when they least expected it.

"Your odds are not so great, O'Connell."

Pointing his guns straight at his friend, O'Connell bit off, "I've had worse."

"Yeah, me, too," Jonathan echoed.

O'Connell frowned at him, and Evelyn decided this was her cue. Jonathan was more than capable of creating utter chaos out of this situation. "Oh, look, for goodness sake, let's be nice, children." She pushed herself between the two lines of guns. "If we're going to play together, we must learn to share." She gently nudged one of the Americans' guns down, turning to O'Connell, hoping he understood her meaning. "There are other places to dig." She put a hand on his arm. He immediately uncocked his guns and lowered them, offering the Americans a fake smile.

"Very well, then, be off with you," the Egyptologist said.

Evelyn wanted to hit him. But she had learned long ago how to deal with men like him, so she merely offered him a sweet smile. "Good luck to you, then."

"Much obliged," Burns said.

O'Connell's little friend grinned at him. "Try not to get lost."

"Oh, I don't think there's any danger of that." As soon as they were out of earshot, O'Connell turned to Evelyn. "There isn't any danger of that, is there?"

"No, definitely not. All we have to do is find a passage leading to the lower level."

"Is that all? Nothing to it," Jonathan said cheerfully.

Evelyn wasn't sure she felt quite that confident, but O'Connell was looking at her as though he would follow her anywhere, and for that look—and for the chance to get back at that beastly Egyptologist—she would be sure. "Yes. Nothing to it at all. It's this way." She set off, but O'Connell put a hand on her shoulder and gently held her so he could go ahead of her.