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A line of light flashes across the gold medallion, highlighting its inscription. As the riddles lead Erica and Matt around the world, the true horror unfolds. They must fight for their own lives and defeat the cultists before an unspeakable plan is unleashed on the world. |
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She Who is Hidden |
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Icasm Press Paperback Ebook |
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Erica waited for a shocked reaction from her listeners, but receiving none, she explained, “It was unheard of. A woman had never been pharaoh before, queen perhaps, but not pharaoh.”
Karen took the bait. “Okay, so what happened?”
“Nothing for about fifteen years. You see, she had more than just her father’s popularity on her side. Along with stating that her father had desired her to be pharaoh, she made a much more significant claim. She also claimed to be the child of a god.”
“Which god?” Karen asked, moving to sit on the edge of her seat.
“Amun. Known as the god of many things, but specifically the creator of all. There was a story of how the god Amun came to Hatshepsut’s mother disguised as her father, with the end result being the divine conception of Hatshepsut. This was enough to secure her position as pharaoh, but she still persisted in strange behavior, wearing false beards and male attire.”
At this point Monroe jumped in, eyes alight with enthusiasm. “She ruled for fifteen years with the primary objectives of peace and productivity, which would have likely continued if not for the coming of age of Tuthmose III. Hatshepsut disappeared suddenly with no public explanation, allowing Tuthmose III to slide into position of pharaoh. It is assumed she did not die of natural causes,” he finished with a meaningful tilt of his brows.
“This is all very interesting, but what does any of it have to do with Erica?” Karen probed.
Again Matt found himself thinking how useful the Marshal would be in the field, but another gun wasn’t what he and Monroe had come for. They needed an intellectual with very specific information programmed into her brain.
He scanned Erica’s stiff posture and serious expression before shifting his gaze to a photo sitting on the table next to her chair. Black tresses and cat-like eyes told him the girl in the picture was a younger version of Erica. She had ponytails in her hair and a skull in her hands. Her smiling father stood behind her as they posed for the camera, and he couldn’t have looked prouder.
A noise drew him back to Dr. Erica Conner. The sharp point of her black shoe tapped on the floor as she waited to be told why the men had come to her.
Silence hung in the air for seconds until Monroe looked pointedly at Erica. “You’ve heard of the discoveries at the Deir-al-Bahri cache?”
“Some mummies and,” she paused to think, “a canopic vase of Hatshepsut’s.” Her face froze before relaxing into a look of anticipation. “Dr. Monroe, are you telling me you have the canopic vase that held Hatshepsut’s liver?”
Monroe smiled as if receiving the correct answer from a pupil. “Yes, in a manner of speaking, but not the one from Deir-el-Bahri cache. That was a decoy.”
Erica pressed her lips together as a tiny wrinkle formed between her brows. “What? But, how do you know?”
“I know because the true container holds a very important clue, one that has been hidden for over two thousand years.”
Erica remained silent, apparently dumbstruck by Monroe’s revelation.
“Tell me, Dr. Conner.” He leaned forward to ask, “How do you fare with riddles?”