"How strange," she was saying, while her blue eyes gazed as innocently as before, as unconcernedly across at Hugh. "I knew a sculptor once whose name was Amen-het, but he offended the gods by his presumption, and I know not what punishment they meted out to him. Perhaps it was his soul which thou didst meet before the judgment-seat of Osiris, oh, thou who sittest at the foot of His throne!"
"Perhaps it was. In that case the blue charm will save me from Amen-het's presumption, and from the punishment meted out to him by the gods—for that was terrible!"
"Poor Amen-het," she said sweetly, "I spoke to him once or twice. He was a clever sculptor."
"But was too presumptuous, as thou sayest," said Hugh, who seemed suddenly to have grown irritable. "I saw him before he was quite ready to stand before Osiris. His flesh had withered on his bones, his voice was choked within his throat, burning hunger and thirst had made a beast of him, and the carrion had begun to gnaw his living flesh."
"Poor Amen-het," she repeated, and she selected a large juicy date from the dish, and, holding it between her tiny sharp teeth, she called to her white panther, and the graceful, feline creature, as quiet as a kitten, took the ripe fruit from between her dainty lips.
I could see that Hugh was strangely irritated. He remained silent during the rest of the feast, in spite of the fact that the Queen made every effort to rouse him from his silence. As usual, the Pharaoh reclined, surly and silent, on his couch, which had been covered with a cloth of gold; obedient to my suggestion, he was taking only milk and left all the delicious fruit untasted. He avoided looking at the Princess or at Hugh; only
