City of the Dead

because there would be a judicial inquiry into the death, and on asking what the origin of the inquiry was, was not surprised to hear that it stemmed from Horemheb’s office. In itself that was not unusual, Huy told himself; but he was more determined than ever to look at the chariot.
    As he had suspected, he could find no way to see either body. Both by now were in the initial stages of embalming, and he knew that they would be covered in the white natron salt which dried them, taking out the oil and water which in life fuel a man, but which in death rot him. The Medjay guard which was placed around the stable within the royal complex at the palace where the chariot was kept, and also the embalmers 1 shed, seemed heavier than Huy thought necessary, but under Horemheb the Black Land had become a place where the leaders’ strength made itself felt. In the scant years of the reign of Tutankhamun, the old power of the king, which was absolute, but remote and benign, like the sun, had been replaced by something unsure of itself, less godlike; a power that needed to stress its presence by shows of force, by creating an unvoiced threat to any who would question it. If Akhenaten had broken the shackles by which the gods held the people in thrall, Huy thought, he had also sacrificed their innocence. By encouraging man to think for himself, he had obliged leaders to forge more terrible chains from now on, to control their subjects. A pessimist might think that only Ay’s presence had reined in Horemheb’s great ambitions; but perhaps Ay’s own ambition had grown beyond its natural bounds as he, born a commoner, saw the Golden Chair as a closer possibility.
    Huy had talked to the guards and parted from them on friendly terms, leaving the way open to another approach after his next interview with Ay. Dissatisfied as he was with the means of communication Ay had laid down between them, he awaited the arrival of the old man’s messenger with impatience. But it seemed that Ay was as eager for contact as he was, for his man arrived shortly before dusk, looking furtive, and thus drawing attention to himself, as those do who are thrust without experience into undercover activity. He was a small, sleek man of thirty, with a fat belly, soft shoulders, and a finely oiled and plaited goatee. His black eyes were mistrustful and nervous, and he constantly moistened his lower lip with his tongue.
    ‘Were you watching for me?’ he asked as Huy opened the door to him.
    ‘Yes.’
    The man’s eyes became even more cautious. ‘Why?’
    Huy shrugged. ‘I was expecting you.’
    ‘You didn’t notice anyone following me?’
    ‘If there was, I didn’t see him. But he wouldn’t come into the square. He would stay in the cover of one of the streets and see which house you came to from there.’ Huy was amused. The man seemed to shrink into himself.
    ‘Do they still follow you?’
    ‘Who?’
    The man made a gesture of impatience. ‘The Medjays.’
    ‘Well, I would have thought you’d know more about that than me.’
    ‘I work for Ay, not Horemheb,’ replied the man, with more strength of feeling than he had meant to reveal, for seeing Huy’s expression, he moderated his tone, and added, ‘Normally my work is confined to domestic duties, you see. I am unused to this. My name is Ineny.’
    ‘May the Sun warm you and the River refresh you.’
    The formal greeting pleased Ineny, who relaxed.
    ‘Do not worry,’ Huy continued, it is a long time since the Medjays lost interest in me. I have done little to attract their attention and I suspect that I am thought to be a danger to the state no longer. I imagine that Ay knows this. Of course I shall have to be discreet now.’
    ‘Yes.’
    Do you bring a message for me?’ Huy asked, fetching bread and beer. Ineny drank deeply before replying, looking grateful.
    No. Ay sent me for a report.’
    How much does he expect me to have found out so soon?’ You have a certain reputation, it seems,’ said Ineny, not without edge.
    There is little to tell yet, but I seek another meeting with your master.’
    Ineny was doubtful. ‘I am not sure about that. He wants direct contact with you kept to a minimum. I came to you from my house, for example. He gave me a story to tell if I were stopped. That I was consulting you on a matter of my own.’
    ‘Well, that is quite cunning. But I still need to see him.’
    ‘I will have to ask. Can’t I —?’
    ‘No. I need to talk to him directly. Tell