Amulet of Doom by Bruce Coville Read Free Book Online

I have to tell you something.”
    I knelt by his side and cradled his head in my arms. I had to struggle to keep from vomiting; a terrible stench rose from his body. My nausea grew when he reached for my hand with his swollen, discolored fingers.
    â€œThe amulet,” he whispered, holding it out to me with his other hand. “I want you to have the amulet.” He smiled. It was pathetic. “I always wanted to give you something special, Zenobia. Here it is.”
    He began to cough, only his throat was so swollen the air could not get out, and he shook with agony.
    â€œGreat power here,” he whispered. “But you must be careful. Be careful, Zenobia.” He tried to cough again. His fingers tightened on mine. “Be careful. And don’t trust Guptas!”
    â€œWhat do you mean?” I asked.
    It was too late. He was dead.
    The details of what happened next—the police, the government, the doctors—aren’t important, though you should know about the box.
    Marilyn, that box was an unbelievable find. I know some archaeology, and the condition, the workmanship, the age of this piece made it the kind of discovery an archaeologist would kill for.
    The Egyptian government has it now, and they’re not talking about it.
    As for myself, I have not spent a peaceful night since then. I have been tormented by the most horrible nightmares, and …
    Well, I think I made a foolish mistake. I don’t want to go into the details—if you are as much like me as I think you are, it would only tempt you to try the same experiment yourself.
    Right now I just need to separate myself from the amulet for a little while.
    I’m tired. Maybe with you tending the thing, I can finally rest.
    I’ll talk to you in the morning. In fact, with any luck, you will never have to read this letter. I will simply reclaim the amulet and dispose of it in some other way. (I did try to destroy it once. It was impossible!)
    One other thing, in case you do read this: Don’t let them get you down. You can be anything you want. Just believe in yourself.
    Your loving aunt,
    Zenobia
    PS: Whatever you do, don’t try to use the amulet!

6
    DEATH DREAM
    Other than the fact that she was totally unable to concentrate, returning to school was not as bad as Marilyn had feared. Her friends were sympathetic, and they spoke to her with a kindness that was often hidden in their day-today banter. Her teachers were willing to overlook her lack of attentiveness. And best of all, Kyle Patterson caught up with her on the way home, putting his baseball cap on her head and pulling the visor over her eyes.
    â€œWouldn’t you rather be with Geoff?” she asked.
    â€œI was thinking about your aunt. Geoff didn’t understand Zenobia. You do.” He blushed, and corrected himself. “Did.”
    Marilyn nodded. “I loved her.” She heard her voice start to crack and turned away. She wasn’t going to cry. Not now. Maybe not ever.
    Kyle put an arm around her shoulder. “I know,” he said. “I did, too.”
    She looked at him in surprise.
    His blush deepened. “That may sound stupid. But I read all her books. I felt as if I knew her. And I wanted to be like her. I never admired anyone so much in my life.”
    Marilyn hesitated. For a moment she wondered if she should show him the letter, which had occupied center stage in her thoughts for the entire day.
    She decided against it.
    He’ll just think Aunt Zenobia was losing her mind and end up feeling disillusioned. And that won’t do anyone any good .
    â€œWhat do you mean, you wanted to be like her?” she asked at last.
    He tightened his mouth for a moment, and she was afraid he wasn’t going to answer. Finally he said, “I don’t usually talk about it, because I’m afraid people will laugh. But I’m thinking of becoming a writer. It’s not the kind of thing you can just study and then go