by C T Cassana
“They’re all here,” said Lisa, alluding to the fact that all the people who had taken part in their adventure in one way or another were there in the exhibition.
“All that’s missing is a Tyrannosaurus,” replied Charlie with a conspiratorial smile.
“We did it, runt,” said Lisa, smiling at him.
“Looks that way.”
At that moment, their parents appeared behind them.
“Well,” said Maggie, “it’s time for us to go.”
The children nodded and accompanied their parents to the coat-check. Once they had their coats, they left the museum together and walked at a leisurely pace back home.
. . .
Max walked several yards behind the Wilfords. Although he couldn’t see their expressions or hear their conversation, he took note of other details, like how Charlie held his mother’s hand or how Marcus’ remarks made the others laugh. Max observed them, reproaching himself for spying on them but without ceasing to watch the scene for a second. He knew that he shouldn’t be there, or have any contact whatsoever with his victims. It would make his task even harder, and also put him at serious risk in the event that their deaths could somehow be traced back to him.
Minutes later, the Wilfords stopped at the front door of their house. Maggie opened her little handbag and took out the key to open the door, while Lisa spoke enthusiastically about the exhibition. Marcus waited behind them, next to Charlie, joking with the boy and mussing up his hair.
Hiding in the shadows down the street, Max continued to watch them until they entered the house and closed the door behind them.
. . .
Marcus opened the door to the microwave oven and took out the bag of popcorn, juggling it so as not to burn himself, while Maggie set out the drinks. Charlie was the first to come down, in pajamas and slippers, as they’d agreed. Predictably, Lisa took rather longer to change her clothes.
“Can you go get the Monopoly set?” Marcus asked him when he saw him.
Charlie nodded and then went into the library, where he walked straight over to the shelf where the board games were piled up. He picked out the box he was looking for and turned to leave.
But then, for the first time in several months, he stopped in front of the portrait of Horatio Conwell. From the day he had first stepped in that house, he’d always had the sensation that the professor was looking down on him from the canvas in disapproval of everything he did, until he reached the point where he didn’t want to know what opinion the old codger had of him. But that night it was different; somehow he felt a need to reconcile with the professor, to know whether he was happy about what he had done since he had found the cape.
The boy raised his eyes to the painting slowly, afraid to receive the verdict. Then his gaze met Horatio’s, and it seemed to him that the old curmudgeon was smiling at him, as if he wanted to congratulate him.
“What are you doing standing there?” asked Lisa when she saw her brother staring at the portrait. “We’re waiting for you.”
“Nothing,” replied Charlie, smiling back at the painting.
The children left the library and went into the kitchen. Once there, Charlie opened the box and spread the Monopoly board out on the table. Lisa began handing out the money, Maggie placed the tokens on the “Go” square, and their father placed the bowl of popcorn right in the middle.
. . .
A sudden gust of wind swept down the street and banged against the front of the red-brick house. It didn’t seem to trouble Max Wellington, who stood contemplating the odd shape of the facade, with one half curved and the other half straight.
After standing hidden in the shadows for a long time, he raised the collar on his cape and turned away. He didn’t want to become the next Grand Master if it meant giving up his ideals. He had determined to reconcile what was right with what was imperative. And he knew just how to do it.
The Grand Master of the Order of the Knights of Time had the power to invite an individual to enter the Order without the express agreement of the Grand Council, although it was a power that was normally not exercised to avoid tensions among members of the society. But Max knew that in spite of his behavior in the past few weeks, Emanuel Gentile loved him like a son. Besides, Max was his only hope because he didn’t trust any other knight to succeed him, nor did he have the time to train an alternative candidate. This meant that he would be forced to do whatever Max demanded, even something as absurd as granting admission to the Order to an eleven-year-old boy. A boy who, fortunately, was unaware of his true identity.
The other members would protest wildly, but his rivals and enemies would end up accepting it, because the admission would give them a perfect chance to eliminate Max, who would have to respond for the boy with his own life. That would surely be the Achilles’ heel that Max’s enemies had never been able to find in him.
Perhaps Charlie Wilford would have a chance, although he would have to hurry and claim his rights before another knight beat him to it. Max only hoped that the boy and his family would be sensible enough to accept their fate, and that the decision he had just made would not cost him his life.
Just when Max turned to leave, Charlie threw the dice onto the Monopoly board. Although he didn’t know it yet, another game had just begun for him, one much more important than the game he was playing in the kitchen that night.
A game that would be played out in faraway places and times, and that would bind him to that stranger outside his house for the rest of his life.
LETTER FROM THE AUTHOR
Dear Reader,
I hope you have enjoyed reading this novel as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it. I am now working on Part 2, in which Charlie will be called on to face new, exciting and dangerous challenges. It will be published in Amazon as soon as it is finished.
Writing is an enthralling job, but it requires a lot of time and dedication. Unfortunately, in my current situation, I can’t dedicate all the time I would like to writing, because as an indie writer I have to juggle this work with my day job, so I hope you will forgive me if Part 2 of the novel isn’t published as quickly as I would like.
I also apologize for any possible errors you may have found in the text. Self-published authors have to proofread and edit the books we write ourselves, without the support of professional editors. We know our novels by heart, which makes it extremely difficult to detect mistakes, because we get to a point where we simply don’t see them.
I would also like to ask you a favor: to write a review of The Mystery of Queen Nefertiti in Amazon, giving the novel the rating that you think it deserves. Reader reviews are crucial for a book to become visible on the Amazon book lists, and they help a lot to boost sales. As you are aware, the price of this book is not very high (2.99 Euros in e-book version, or less if it’s on sale), so I’m not going to become rich on the sales. But selling the book you’ve worked on for years and having it read by more people is a motivation for any writer.
Your opinion will be truly valuable, both to me and to potential readers of the novel. I will be very grateful to you. Also, if you would like to receive notification when Part 2 is available on Amazon, please feel free to email me at: [email protected]. If you’re underage, please inform your parents before sending the email and make sure you have their approval. Just like Marcus, I’m a little bit of an old-fashioned parent.
At the time I write this letter, the Egyptian authorities have just announced that they believe they’ve found a death chamber in the tomb of Tutankhamun that might belong to Queen Nefertiti. Perhaps the mystery of where the legendary queen is buried will finally be solved. I encourage you to follow this in the news, because it could be an important historical event that your children will study in school. As mentioned in the synopsis of the book, history is simply a series of events linked together by the long, slender thread of time. And you form a part of it.
Thank you for joining me on this adventure. I hope to see you on the next one, which you�
�ll be able to find on Amazon.
All the best,
C. T. Cassana