Page:Orczy--the gates of Kamt.djvu/285

 abject criminal—within the great hall of Men-ne-fer, there, on the very spot where thy slave Kesh-ta died, slain by his hand, so that she might ecsape the just and awful punishment of her crime, he—the son of Ra—will stand, and as the priests of Isis, one by one, with loud voice, will accuse him of the murder of the holy Pharaoh, one by one the lotus blossoms will drop out of the hands of the judges, and I, Ur-tasen, will pronounce judgment upon him. Then, after that—in the early morning …"

The bald old reprobate was evidently enjoying himself amazingly over the recapitulation of all he had prepared for Hugh, but here, suddenly, Neit-akrit interrupted him, and her voice sounded curiously hard and calm.

"And hast no fear, Ur-tasen, that after that, in the early morning, the very gods will arise and kindle the flames of heaven and hurl down the mountains and the rocks over Kamt, in order to bury her and her shame?"

"I do not understand thee," said the high priest, amazed. "Why speakest thou of shame?"

"Because already I see thy hands stained with his blood, and my very soul turneth in abhorrence from thee."

"Nay, Neit-akrit! his blood shall not stain the soil of Kamt; the vultures of the wilderness alone will see if it be red. Remember, thy kinsman, the holy Pharaoh, died because his mother felt that he was the stranger's enemy. Remember that he set himself upon the throne of Kamt, which by right should be thine. Remember …"

"I remember," she interrupted again, speaking slowly and dreamily, "that he came to us and visited Kamt. He said he came from the foot of the throne of Osiris: well! that is as it may be; surely he is so good