The Alexander Cipher Page 0,85

out and squinted at the faded writing. “A petition to the gods,” he said.

“So this is a temple? A temple to Kelonymus?”

Knox shook his head. “To Alexander. That’s his cult statue upstairs. But Kelonymus must have been the founder or chief priest or something.” He crouched down. “So what have we got?” he asked rhetorically. “An old man in Mallawi writes about his childhood in Lycopolis. He reveres Alexander, Akylos, and Kelonymus and despises the Ptolemies, dismissing them as liars and frauds. And why were Epiphanes’ men so ruthless when they stormed the citadel? Everyone was slaughtered or taken for execution.” He glanced at Rick. “Doesn’t that smack of more than an ordinary uprising? I mean, the southern rebels were granted amnesties. So why did these people all have to be killed?”

“They knew something,” suggested Rick. “They needed to be shut up.”

“The holder of the secret,” nodded Knox. “Must have been one hell of a secret.”

“Any ideas?”

Knox frowned at the glimmer of a possible answer. “The Ptolemies were never really taken into Egyptian hearts,” he said. “They were only tolerated because of their direct succession from Alexander. That’s why they tried so hard to associate themselves with him. They spread rumors that Ptolemy One had been Alexander’s brother, you know, and they built his great mausoleum in Alexandria partly so they themselves could lie next to him. Imagine what would have happened if the legitimacy of that succession came into question.”

“I’ll imagine it later, if you don’t mind,” said Rick, tapping his watch. “We need to scoot.”

Knox nodded. They hurried up the steps, then back along the walkways and the corridor to the wooden ladder. Rick climbed it first, going for haste rather than quiet, Knox struggling to keep up. “Okay,” murmured Rick, when they reached the top. “Let’s do it.” He opened the steel door, ushered Knox out, and padlocked it behind them. Away to their left was a flutter of lamplight and the growl of a dog. “Perfect timing,” grinned Rick. But then the second guard stepped out from behind a tree directly in front of them, zipping up his pants. They all looked at each other in shock.

“Run!” cried Rick. “Run!”

Chapter Twenty-seven

KNOX AND RICK fled headlong into the trees, forearms up to protect their faces from slapping branches. “Stop!” cried the guard. “Stop or I shoot.” A shot cracked out. “Stop!” he shouted again. But they kept running, bulling their way through the woods until they reached a tilled field, then running across it in the direction of the Subaru, their feet plunging deep into the moist soil, their boots growing heavy with accreted mud. Behind them, the German shepherd was barking crazily with excitement. A stitch began in Knox’s side. He wasn’t as fit as Rick, and began to fall behind. He glanced back. They’d gained good distance on the pursuers, but that damned German shepherd had their scent. “Keep going,” called out Rick from ahead, sensing that Knox was flagging. “The car’s not far.”

They ran on for another minute before he looked around again. The night had grown overcast, but he could just make out the guards silhouetted upon a low ridge. One of them stopped to aim at Knox, snapping off a couple of rounds that cracked past, making him stumble on the heavy soil, his thighs protesting as he pushed himself back up, finding the running really hard labor now, fighting for every breath, the stitch stabbing brutally in his side, Rick getting farther and farther ahead of him.

The guards must have realized they wouldn’t catch him themselves, so they unleashed the German shepherd instead, then stood and urged it on. It came bounding over the soft earth, panting as it raced up behind him, snarling and snapping at his leg. Knox twisted to kick it away, but he tripped and fell, and immediately the dog sprang on top of him, going for his throat, saliva drooling, sharp teeth snapping an inch from his face. The two guards were closing, wheezing heavily after their long chase. Knox thought he was done for, but then he heard the roar of an engine, headlights flashed on, and the Subaru raced up beside him. Rick jumped out and charged screaming at the bewildered dog, which leaped off Knox and cowered away just long enough for both men to scramble back into the car. The dog regained its nerve quickly, however, jumping up at Knox’s door, barking furiously. The guards were almost on them. Rick thrust the