Page 69 of Ancient Obsession

“Instigator is more like it,” Cody said.

Demetrius went on without missing a beat. “And she’s got a lot of knowledge about these kinds of things, plus a bunch of contacts in the community.” He returned his attention to Oliver. “She was able to get more translations done based on the words Samira had completed already. From what she deciphered, the word mery is used as both a name and the word ‘beloved.’”

Oliver stopped in his tracks. He met Dave’s eyes, and they said together, “The mummy really is gay.”

“So Amenmose is searching for Mery?” Robin said. “And he’s killed the others because they aren’t him?”

“Maybe…” Oliver’s thoughts were racing. He stared at the Earth Sciences building, just a few yards away now. “Or Amenmose is angry about being awakened. Maybe he was happy with Mery in the afterlife, and when he awoke, he was torn away from him.”

“That’s awful,” Demetrius said.

“And it found the others because of the gross fungus that got all over everyone?” Cody said.

“Probably,” Oliver said.

“And it hasn’t gotten to either of you because you live even further away from campus than the others,” Dave suggested.

“But you all had to have showered,” Demetrius said. “Wouldn’t the spores wash off?”

“Not if we inhaled them,” Robin said, then they turned to Oliver. “Bruh, we should have been masked up.”

“No kidding.” Oliver paused, thinking. “Vera said from what she could tell, the spores came from a pouch inside the sarcophagus. I wonder if that was just part of the ritual or if it was some kind of intentional placement for him to be reanimated in the future?”

“But for what purpose?” Dave asked.

Cody raised a hand. “A few questions, if I may.”

“Will I regret saying yes?”

“Hey, I can be serious.” Cody counted them off on his fingers. “One, where is this mummy hiding out in between all his murdering? Two, what is he ultimately searching for? If you can figure that out, you’ll have something to use as bait. Three, even if you breathed in those spores, wouldn’t you have, I don’t know, expelled them by now?”

Oliver shrugged. “Not sure. I’m not familiar with fungal spores. They could have a limited lifespan, long enough to keep a connection between us and Amenmose. As for the first two questions, maybe we’ll find something today to help us narrow down where the mummy is taking shelter. And I have no idea what Amenmose might be trying to track down.”

The memory of touching Amenmose made Oliver rub his thumb and forefinger together. The linen strips, stiff with preservative and sand, and the hard bone beneath. A chill went through him as thin filaments of connections began to come together in his mind.

“Or someone,” he said.

“You think it’s searching for one specific person?” Dave asked.

“Maybe Dr. Brennan,” Robin suggested. “Or Dylan. They were both there in Egypt when the tomb was opened, and they oversaw the removal and transport of the coffin.”

“Maybe,” Oliver said, but he was distracted. “Has Clarabell found any descriptions of Mery? Other than Amenmose referring to him as his beloved?”

“I don’t know,” Demetrius replied. “Do you want me to call her?”

“Not yet,” Oliver said. “Maybe later tonight, I’ll pay her a visit myself.” His brain continued to replay the opening of the coffin and the sensation when he touched the mummy. “Let’s go back to where all of this started.”

Four doors provided access into and out of the Earth Sciences building. The group split up at the main entrance facing the quad. Demetrius and Cody went to the left, and Oliver, Dave, and Robin set off right. Around the corner, they came to the side door that opened onto the hall where the control and examination rooms were located.

“The room where we opened the coffin is just inside this door.” Oliver gestured toward the entrance.

Dave pulled on the handle. The door opened easily, and he peered inside. “No cameras that I can see.”

“It’s locked at night,” Robin said. “But people can still leave.”

“Or mummies,” Oliver said. He inspected the three-story brick wall, interrupted now and then by a window. “I don’t see any exterior cameras, either.”

“Has this university not heard about campus security?” Dave approached some low shrubs planted to either side of the door. “These shrubs are very dense and too close to the building to offer convenient hiding places.”