by C T Cassana
“It was easier when we were looking for the annuli,” remarked Charlie. “At least then we had the clues in the professor’s poems.”
“Look at those folders,” said Lisa, pointing to a shelf. “They’re like the ones we saw at the Egypt Institute that had the papyrus scrolls in them.”
She picked up one of the folders, put it down on the floor and opened it up, turning the pages gingerly. A series of prints, arranged with the loving care of a collector, passed before their eyes, showing different places like Egypt, Naples, Venice and Florence. The children looked through all the pictures carefully, page by page, folder by folder, but didn’t find a single papyrus scroll.
They put the folders back in their place and scanned the bookshelves, where they found a set of smaller folders. They checked these too, but only found more prints, this time of people of different cultural backgrounds and social classes.
“I don’t think the papyrus scroll is here,” said Charlie. “Maybe Denon has got it stored in the Louvre. I think it was a good idea to come a month later than Helen told us so we can go and ask him.”
But Lisa didn’t answer, which was unusual for her when somebody had just told her she was right. Charlie looked at her and saw that she was studying a series of framed prints hanging around the fireplace. Next to the door there was another small group of four pictures and a row of six more on either side of the window.
“Maybe he’s framed it and has it hanging somewhere in the house, like the living room or the dining room,” she suggested. “We’d better go check it out.”
“What about the maid?” asked Charlie.
“She’s in the kitchen; if we’re careful, she won’t see us.”
Lisa opened the door again and crept down the hallway, followed by her brother. They tiptoed up to the corner where Lisa had seen the maid moments earlier, in order to confirm that she was still ironing. But some noises behind them told them that she had finished and was now in another part of the house, working on something else.
Suddenly, they heard footsteps coming toward them. Charlie grabbed hold of his sister and raced off in search of a place to hide. They slipped into the kitchen, but the footsteps continued to draw closer, so the boy pulled his sister into a small room to one side. It was the pantry.
“We have two options,” he whispered.
Lisa turned to face him, silencing him with a gesture. The footsteps were right behind the door. The maid was back in the kitchen and might come into the pantry at any moment. Charlie looked his sister in the eye and then brought his lips up to one of her ears. They had to come up with a plan before the maid discovered them.
. . .
Charlie took out the flashlight and shone it around the pantry.
“I don’t know what to take,” he whispered.
“This basket with eggs,” suggested Lisa.
“I don’t know; she might recognize it.”
“The sack of vegetables?”
“It looks too heavy,” objected the boy. “I think I’ll take these packages here.”
Charlie pointed to a pair of objects wrapped up in what looked like large green paper sheets and tied up with dried out stalks. Lisa picked one of them up to see what it was.
“Yuck! It’s cheese!” she exclaimed and dropped it in disgust. “I hate cheese!”
“Well I think it smells great,” said Charlie. “Alright, so I’ll distract her and you search the house. We’ll meet in the library in five minutes.”
“Set these coordinates, change your clothes and hide the cape in the bag,” said his sister. “And make sure nobody sees you.”
Charlie nodded. Then he adjusted the dials on the bracelet, turned the clasp and disappeared. Moments later, the sound of a bell announced that someone was at the front door. When the maid stopped what she was doing and went to open it, Lisa sneaked out of the pantry and began her search for the papyrus scroll.
The servant opened the door confidently without a second thought about who might be calling; they lived inside the museum, so it couldn’t possibly be an intruder. But when she saw the unexpected caller, she couldn’t help but feel moved by his appearance. It was a boy of around eleven years of age, pale and terribly thin, although his expression was cheerful and lively. His clothes revealed that he was of very humble origins, but they were clean and well-kept, as was the boy himself. His poor mother evidently did all she could to look after his appearance, but it was obvious that she couldn’t do much to fill his stomach.
Although it was the first time she had seen him, she deduced from the blocks of cheese he was holding that he was one of the boys that Monsieur Leblanc employed to deliver orders to the homes of his customers.
“Good afternoon,” said the maid warmly. “How may I help you?”
“Good afternoon, madame,” said the boy. “I’ve come with these cheeses for you.”
“Tell Monsieur Leblanc that it must be a mistake,” she replied. “I didn’t order anything from him for today.”
Charlie stood stock-still for a moment, trying to come up with some way to continue the conversation and buy more time so that Lisa could finish inspecting the house.
“They’re a gift,” he said. “For being such good customers.”
The maid looked him up and down; if anyone in all of Paris needed a gift of food, she thought, it was this emaciated looking boy.
“You see, we’re doing a promotion to reward the loyalty of our top customers,” explained Charlie, imitating the commercials he saw on TV. “Because we value your business.”
Charlie kept his eyes on the maid’s befuddled stare, while his sister tiptoed past behind her and made signals to him to keep her busy a little while longer.
“But I can assure you that the quality of our products is the same as always,” he added, waving his index finger and regaling her with his finest salesman skills.
“Of course, Monsieur Leblanc’s cheeses are said to be the best in all of France,” replied the maid. “But... you’ve never tried them yourself, have you?”
“No, ma’am. But they smell delicious,” said Charlie, smiling and shaking his head, quite oblivious to the significance of the question.
The maid, however, was moved all the more by his reply. It must have been a terrible torture for a boy in such need to spend all day delivering food to the richest houses in the city.
“And would you like to try some?” she asked, bringing her face closer to the boy’s and tapping him affectionately on the nose with her finger.
Charlie raised his eyebrows and shrugged his shoulders. He had been in too much of a rush that afternoon to stop for a snack, and to try a bit of that delightful-smelling cheese seemed quite an appealing idea.
“Alright!” he replied, offering one of his best smiles.
The servant invited him in and led him into the kitchen. Meanwhile, Lisa slipped into the elegantly decorated living room furnished with a piano, several armchairs and a sideboard with a pair of bronze clocks. Hanging on the walls were more prints, but not a single papyrus scroll. She inspected the room thoroughly while she listened to her brother talking to the maid. It was amazing: Charlie had just broken his own record by winning the young woman’s heart in less than three minutes. She had always been mystified by her brother’s extraordinary knack for charming people so quickly, but that afternoon his seductive powers were proving truly incredible.
In the kitchen, the maid was enjoying the sight of the boy gobbling down the pieces of cheese she had cut for him. It was obvious that the poor lad had been starving, and the young woman felt pleased with her little good deed.
“What’s your name?” she asked, smiling at him.
“Charles,” he replied, while he swallowed down the piece he had in his mouth.
“So I suppose everybody calls you Charlot, don’t they?” suggested the maid, convinced that a boy so skinny would surely be called using this diminutive form of his name.
Charlie didn’t know what to say, so he simply sm
iled and shrugged his shoulders.
“My name is Colette,” she added.
“Thank you very much for the snack, Colette. It’s delicious.”
“Would you like a little more?”
“No, thank you. I really must be going,” replied the boy.
The maid led him to the service entrance.
“Next time, use this door. Don’t go to the front door. It’s reserved for Monsieur Denon and his visitors.”
Charlie opened his eyes wide and slapped his hand over his mouth, as if wanting to make it clear that he hadn’t been aware of his mistake.
“I hope I didn’t make him mad,” he said.
“Don’t worry. He’s working in the museum, so he doesn’t know,” replied Colette. “It’ll be our little secret. But next time, make sure you come this way.”
“I will,” replied Charlie. “Thank you, Colette. Have a nice day.”
“Goodbye, Charlot. See you later,” said the maid with a wave.
The boy began walking away, but as soon as the maid had closed the door he put on his cape and set the bracelet for the coordinates of the library to meet up with his sister.
“Oh my God, Charlie! You’re terrible!” said Lisa when she saw him appear dressed far more humbly than he had been when he left. “No wonder that woman gave you something to eat. In those clothes and as skinny as you are, you look truly pathetic.”
“Have you found the scroll?” asked the boy.
“It’s not here. Maybe Monsieur Denon has got it in the museum like you said,” replied Lisa. “Change your clothes and let’s go; we’re going to try paying him a visit.”
. . .
Monsieur Denon’s secretary looked the visitors up and down. Their attire suggested that they belonged to a very wealthy and distinguished family. The boy looked as ordinary as a boy could be, although the black velvet cape he wore was rather somber for his age. The girl, however, was breathtakingly beautiful and elegant, but there was something strange about her that he couldn’t put his finger on. Perhaps it was the way she had introduced herself, with her very polite request for an audience with Monsieur Denon but without giving her Christian name or family name, as would be expected of a person of her station. And then there was the intense, quite inexplicable smell of cheese.
“And whom shall I say is calling?” he asked, unable to keep from admiring the young woman’s radiant appearance.
Lisa stared at him blankly. Before they arrived, she had gone over what they would say with Charlie, the story they would use to try to get Monsieur Denon to reveal where the papyrus scroll was. She had also shaken off the flour that her dress had been stained with in the pantry, and had cleaned her brother’s face and even lectured him not to say any more than was absolutely necessary. But, incredibly, she had forgotten to think about what name she should introduce herself with. And now nothing came to her mind, while she gaped at the man who was staring at her unyieldingly, waiting for her answer.
“D’Artagnan,” announced Charlie suddenly, with great pomp and ceremony. “Isabelle and Charles D’Artagnan. We would like to speak to Monsieur Denon about papyrus scrolls.”
Lisa went pale when she heard him speak. Only her brother could come up with such a ridiculous name.
“What are you doing?” she demanded as soon as the secretary had left to announce them. “Why did you give him that name?”
“Did you want me to tell him my name is Charlot? It sounds like a joke! Charles is alright, but Charlot?”
“I’m not talking about your given name, I mean the surname! D’Artagnan?” replied Lisa in exasperation. “They’ll realize the whole thing is a sham!”
“It was the only thing that came into my head, Lisa,” answered the boy. “Apart from the surname of the guy who sells the cheese, and Bonaparte. And I figured D’Artagnan was the least suspicious of the three.”
“Oh for God’s sake, Charlie!” exclaimed his sister. “I told you to keep quiet!”
“One of us had to say something and it was clear that you didn’t have an answer ready. Besides, he probably hasn’t even read the book, because he didn’t say anything.”
“Maybe Dumas hasn’t written it yet; I hope not, anyway,” replied Lisa, trying to calm down.
The man came back a few minutes later to inform them that Denon would see them and he led them into an office. When they entered, a refined gentleman with gray hair and a friendly expression rose to his feet to greet them. He was the spitting image of the portrait that Miss Rotherwick had shown them.
“Mademoiselle D’Artagnan,” said the gentleman courteously, bowing to kiss Lisa’s hand.
“Monsieur Denon,” she replied, blushing.
“Young man,” he added, turning to Charlie and nodding to him.
“A pleasure to meet you, monsieur,” replied the boy with a brashness that alarmed his sister.
“Thank you for seeing us,” said Lisa at once, in an effort to take over the initiative in the conversation. “I hope you will forgive us for arriving like this without prior notice, but our visit to Paris has been somewhat unexpected.”
“My dear mademoiselle, you honor me with your visit, and for that I can only be grateful,” responded Monsieur Denon, while he took in the young woman’s beauty. His secretary had not exaggerated in the slightest; on the contrary, his description of her loveliness had fallen short of the mark.
Charlie, meanwhile, was wondering why the man spoke only to his sister while ignoring him completely, as if he weren’t even in the room.
“Tell me, how can I help you?” asked Denon while leading Lisa to a chair, before turning back to his desk and taking a seat in his own.
Charlie looked at him, and seeing that he had no intention of offering him a seat as well, went to pull up a chair from one corner of the room so that he could join them.
“You see, monsieur,” replied Lisa, raising her voice above the noise her brother was making, “our dear father will soon turn fifty and wishes to celebrate his birthday in fine style. To mark this most happy occasion we would like to give him a very special gift, something truly unique. An object of art from ancient Egypt, of which he is a great enthusiast. Perhaps a statuette, or a piece of papyrus.”
“I see,” said Monsieur Denon.
“However, as we ourselves are not very knowledgeable on the matter, I have thought to make use of our visit to Paris to seek your advice. My father is a great admirer of yours, monsieur. He says that you are an expert on the subject, that nobody has seen or knows as much about ancient Egypt as you,” added Lisa fervently.
“Thank you, mademoiselle,” replied the man, visibly flattered. “I was fortunate enough to be able to accompany our Emperor to that distant land so that my eyes could delight in its many wonders.”
“So then, could you help us, monsieur?” asked the girl, with calculated flirtatiousness. “I know that you are a great art collector and I thought perhaps you would be interested in selling us one of your pieces.”
“Oh, well, actually, Egyptian art does not feature significantly in my personal collection, my dear mademoiselle,” replied Denon amiably. “However, we have prepared a section in the museum with some interesting objects.”
“Perhaps you could show it to me and offer me some tips...” suggested Lisa sweetly, while she toyed with the ribbon on her hat. “I have no experience in the subject, and a sly dealer might seek to take advantage of me.”
Monsieur Denon sighed, captivated by the young lady’s charm and grace. He could hardly resist seizing the chance to impress her with his knowledge.
“The fact is that I’m awaiting a guest. The Intendant of Crown Buildings is coming to discuss some affairs with me,” replied Denon, in a voice that lacked enthusiasm.
“Oh, monsieur! We leave Paris tomorrow morning. I beg you, if you could just give us a moment of your time,” pleaded Lisa.
“Very well, young lady,” he acquiesced, as if he had decided to give into her pleas before she had even made them.
“Would it be alright if my brother waits here for us?” asked Lisa nonchalantly. “That way I won’t have to worry about him and I can give all my attention to your explanations.”
Charlie gaped in disbelief at his sister’s words.
“Not at all, my dear mademoiselle,” replied Monsieur Denon, hypnotized by the girl’s charm, while he walked out of the office to give some instructions to his secretary.
Lisa rose to follow him, but before she left she turned to Charlie.
“Be a good boy and don’t touch anything. I’ll be right back,” said the girl in a loud voice so that Denon and his secretary could hear her, while signaling to her brother to take advantage of their absence to search the office for the scroll.
Charlie understood Lisa’s strategy and gave her a conspiratorial wink. She smiled and then left the room to catch up with their host.
“When the Intendant arrives, show him into my office,” Monsieur Denon told his secretary. “Tell him that an important matter has required my attention, but that I shall return at once.”
He then opened the door gallantly for Lisa and they walked out together.
. . .
Denon strolled through the rooms of the museum, pointing out the objects on display to his lovely companion and offering her detailed explanations of each one. While she listened to him Lisa soon realized that his fame as a scholar was more than warranted. He appeared to know everything about the great artists of past and present, about the use of proportions in painting and sculpture, the different types of perspective, the application of drama and theatricality to create the desired effect on the viewer, the role of light, and the use of symbols and mythological figures in art... However, his knowledge of ancient Egypt seemed to be much more limited, going little further than rather general appraisals of its architecture.
While they examined the pieces of the very limited Egyptian collection, Lisa recognized the two statues they had seen in the Institut d’Égypte. Evidently, the French scholars had managed to get them to Paris. Luckily for Lisa, when Monsieur Denon saw them, his explanations took an unexpected turn onto the subject of his adventures with General Desaix on their expedition through Upper Egypt.