Star of Egypt (20 page)
Authors: Buck Sanders
“And as for my pseudonym, my apologies to you and the Professor,” he added, lightening. “I quite like Rademacher, the more
I think of it. I may use it again someday.”
“When you check into a hotel with a strange woman?”
“Not a strange woman. An enigmatic one.”
Her eyes were downcast. “The
tour
part of the tour commences next week. A couple of months from now it all winds up, in Los Angeles. And that’ll be it.” She
ran her finger contemplatively around the lip of her own wineglass. “I have no idea what my life will become after that. The
tour is the resolution of the whole thing that began with Willis’ discovery of the tomb, the
dénouement
. Scientifically, after that, it’s all repetition.
“But right here, right now,” she said, abruptly, “you and I have a night, and beyond that, a week. And beyond that, in the
future somewhere, I suspect we may have a few more.”
Like the dancer in the long-ago Tangier cabaret, her eyes now pooled darkly and invitingly. “And I’m satisfied with that.
Those in the domain of the gods paid particular attention to the times of twilight, and dawn, and dusk. The divisions and
distinctions between darks and lights were finely drawn. The folks in charge now are Nephthys, the evening, and Set, the night.
Here, this is for you.”
She came up from her bag with a small charm of solid 24-karat gold. “It’s an
ankh
, a life symbol. The corniest Egyptian thing I could think of.”
Ben Slayton very often had to graph his life in terms of violence and respite. Now it was life’s turn. He accepted the little
ankh
. “I take it this is not from Seth-Olet’s inventory,” he said, turning it over and over, pleased with the gift.
“Actually it’s from a local department store,” she said. “In America, they’re practically pop. Like pyramids. And now, I want
to go for a long, slow walk in the cold.”
“And check into a hotel using a phony name?” He clasped the
ankh
tightly in his hand.
“Something like that.” She smiled.
After a traumatic week, Slayton and Shauna were battered and disillusioned, yet very much alive. Slayton kept the
ankh
in his grip, as they walked out into the chill Washington night.
| THE GOLD CREW | |
| by Thomas N. Scortia & Frank M. Robinson | (B83-522, $2.95) |
| The most dangerous test the world has ever known is now taking place aboard the mammoth nuclear sub Alaska . Human beings, unpredictable in moments of crisis, are being put under the ultimate stress. On patrol, out of contact with the outside world, the crew is deliberately being led to believe that the U.S.S.R. has attacked the U.S.A. Will the crew follow standing orders and fire the Alaska’s missiles in retaliation? Now the fate of the world depends on what’s going on in the minds of the men of THE GOLD CREW. |
| DOORS | |
| by Ed McBain | (B91-937, $2.50) |
| Meet Alex Hardy. He can plan and execute a robbery with consummate skill. He can seduce a woman with equal skill. But now he is faced with the most beautiful woman and the most difficult job he has ever encountered. Bone-chilling tension. |
| THE FRENCH ATLANTIC AFFAIR | |
| by Ernest Lehman | (B95-258, $2.75) |
| The S.S. Marseille is taken over in mid-ocean. The conspirators are unidentifiable among the 2,000 other passengers aboard. Unless a ransom of 35 million dollars in gold is paid within 48 hours, the ship and the passengers will be blown skyhigh. A first-class ticket to excitement. |
| YESTERDAY’S SPY | |
| by Len Deighton | (B31-014, $2.50) |
| Two friends who spied together. But that was in another time and another place—now they fight on different sides. A spellbinding tale of deceit and terror in a world where political reality destroys the most hallowed allegiances. |
| RECOVERY | |
| by Steven L. Thompson | (B93-482, $2.95) |
| The year is 1982. Max Moss—a daring ex-racer on a specialized American rescue team—is perfect for the death-defying chase in a superspeed car for the recovery of a secret U.S. plane forced down in East Germany by Russian fighter pilots. Everyone is against Max and his partner as they use their wiliest resources to bring the plane’s super-secret, biocybernetic device back to safety. |
DIRTY HARRY
By Dane Hartman
He’s “Dirty Harry” Callahan—tough, unorthodox, no-nonsense plainclothesman extraordinaire of the San Francisco Police Department…
Inspector #71 assigned to the bruising, thankless homicide detail…A consummate crimebuster nothing can stop—not even the ‘law!
Explosive mysteries involving racketeers, murderers, extortioners, pushers, and skyjackers; savage, bizarre murders, accomplished
with such cunning and expertise that the frustrated S.F.P.D. finds itself without a single clue; hair-raising action and violence
as Dirty Harry arrives on the scene, armed with nothing but a Smith & Wesson .44 and a bag of dirty tricks; unbearable suspense
and hairy chase sequences as Dirty Harry sleuths to unmask the villain and solve the mystery. Dirty Harry—when the chips are
down, he’s the most low-down cop on the case.
| #1 DUEL FOR CANNONS | | | (C90-793, $1.95) |
| #2 DEATH ON THE DOCKS | | | (C90-792, $1.95) |
| #3 THE LONG DEATH | | | (C90-848, $1.95–Coming in December) |
THE HOOK
By Brad Latham
“The Hook” is William Lockwood, ace insurance investigator for Transatlantic Underwriters—a man whose name derives from his
World War I boxing exploits, whose hallmark is class, whose middle name is violence, and whose signature is sex. In the late
1930s, when law enforcement was rough-and-tumble, The Hook is the perfect take-charge man for any job. He combines legal and
military training with a network of contacts across America who honor his boxing legend. He’s a debonair man-about-town, a
bachelor with an awesome talent for women—and a deadly weapon in one-on-one confrontations. Crossing America and Europe in
pursuit of perpetrators of insurance fraud, The Hook finds himself in the middle of organized crime, police corruption, and
terrorism. The Hook—gentleman detective with a talent for violence and a taste for sex.
| #1 THE GILDED CANARY | | | (C90-882, $1.95) |
| #2 SIGHT UNSEEN | | | (C90-841, $1.95) |
| #3 HATE IS THICKER THAN BLOOD | | | (C90-986, $1.95–Coming in December) |
seething with hate for western democracy
are enroute to the United States
with blueprints for deadly bombs.
They intend to train American student radicals
in the fine art of terror, develop malcontents
into full-blown assassins.
Warning: Do you know where your children are?
is a self-made millionaire, a sportscar
enthusiast, a widower women long to love—
and a secret agent relentlessly
fighting the enemies of America.