41.
The tomb explodes in gunfire and
bright, instantaneous gunpowder flashes.
I take out the flashlight, drop
onto my right side, pour all nine rounds into Mustached Man and his bandits.
The show only takes a few seconds from start to finish. When it’s over, I shine
the Maglite behind me. I see that the two guards are dead, what’s left of their
heads spread all over the stone floor like raspberry jam.
Sameh in still lying on the floor,
his baseball cap having fallen off.
Andre is lying beside him.
I call out to them. But no one
makes a move or a sound.
Lifting myself onto my knees, I
shoot a look at Mustached Man and the bandits. He is lying on his back, his
mouth and eyes wide open. He’s more dead than the stone that surrounds him. As
I attempt to stand, I see movement com
