Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13 Irina held on to the railing. She couldn't risk stumbling on these steep stairs. She'd seen the Cahill kids leave the tomb, and she knew something must be here. A small explosive blew the lock, and she was in. Good thing she wasn't seen. Egyptians could get so touchy about their precious sites. Irina came to a small antechamber. Those flat Egyptian figures— all the same, they were— surrounded her, some with a bird's head, some with crowns, some holding staffs curved like snakes. She poked her head into the side room. More of the same. But the colors… She wrenched her attention back to the task. More stairs. She descended carefully, glad she was

第十三章伊琳娜抓住栏杆。 她不敢冒险在这些陡峭的楼梯上绊倒。 她看到卡荷尔家的孩子们离开坟墓，她知道这里一定有什么东西。 一个小炸弹炸开了锁，她进去了。 幸好没人看见她。 埃及人可能会对他们珍贵的遗址如此敏感。 伊琳娜来到一间小前厅。 那些扁平的埃及雕像——都是一样的——围绕着她，有的拿着鸟的头，有的戴着王冠，有的拿着像蛇一样弯曲的杖。 她把头探进了侧屋。 还是老样子。但是这些颜色……她把注意力拉回到任务上。 更多的楼梯。她小心翼翼地下了楼，心里很高兴

wearing her Nikes. Those Americans knew how to make athletic shoes. She'd give them that. Irina kept her brain on sneakers because she was feeling a bit dizzy. It was a trick she used while on a job if she was tired or exasperated, any time her emotions threatened to overtake her. Concentrate on the trivial. But why was she feeling overwhelmed? To her left, a black jackal was offering something to an Egyptian queen person. It must be Nefertari. Irina didn't know anything about Egyptian art, but somehow she knew this: The beautiful queen was being welcomed to the underworld. She would leave behind her life. Sunshine, river, palace, husband, child. All would be taken from her. She stepped inside the burial chamber. Here the queen had been laid, between the pillars. Those flat figures, all the same, like cartoons, with their black hair and their opaque eyes. She'd never realized before… How beautiful they are! These paintings… she imagined artists here,

穿着她的耐克。那些美国人知道如何制造运动鞋。 她会给他们的。伊琳娜一直在想着运动鞋，因为她觉得有点头晕。 这是她在工作的时候，如果她累了或生气了，当她的情绪要压倒她的时候，她就会用的伎俩。 专注于琐碎的事情。 但她为什么会感到不知所措呢？ 在她的左边，一只黑豺正在向一位埃及女王献礼。 一定是奈菲塔里。伊琳娜对埃及艺术一无所知，但不知怎的，她知道这一点：美丽的王后被欢迎来到阴间。 她将放弃她的生活。 阳光、河流、宫殿、丈夫、孩子。 她的一切都会被夺走。 她走进了墓室。 女王就躺在这里，躺在石柱之间。 那些扁平的人物，都是一样的，像卡通人物一样，黑头发和不透明的眼睛。 她以前从未意识到……它们是多么美丽！这些画，她想象这里的艺术家，

dipping their brushes into pots of gold and green and blue. They weren't just painting the story of one queen's death. They were painting every life. Every death. Every joy, every loss. Dazzled, Irina slowly revolved, drinking it all in. She felt something odd on her face, something so foreign she didn't recognize it at first. She felt it like a draft, a coolness in this stale air. A tear. What was happening? Grace, what are you doing to me? Because she felt her, she felt Grace suddenly, her presence, right here. Her briskness, her intellect, her impatience… her kindness. You were kind to me, she told Grace. When you told me I was a fool, there was no harshness in your tone. There was kindness in your eyes. Who can't I forgive? You… or myself? Irina stared ahead at the wall. Rebirth, she realized. This chamber wasn't about death at all. It was about rebirth. Could that happen? After a life lived, after choice after choice after choice led you someplace

用画笔蘸着金色、绿色和蓝色的颜料。 他们不只是在描绘一个女王之死的故事。 他们在画每一个生命。 每一个死亡。每一次喜悦，每一次失落。 伊琳娜眼花缭乱，慢慢地旋转着，把一切都喝了进去。 她感到脸上有什么奇怪的东西，一种如此陌生的东西，起初她没有认出来。 她觉得这是一股清风，在这污浊的空气中有一股凉意。 一滴眼泪。发生了什么事？ 格蕾丝，你在对我做什么？ 因为她突然感觉到格蕾丝，她的存在，就在这里。 她的敏捷，她的智慧，她的急躁……她的善良。 你对我很好，她对格蕾丝说。 当你说我是个傻瓜时，你的语气一点也不严厉。 你的眼中充满了善意。 我不能原谅谁？你还是我？ 伊琳娜盯着前方的墙。 重生，她意识到。这个房间跟死亡一点关系都没有。 它是关于重生的。这种情况会发生吗？ 在经历了人生之后，在一次又一次的选择把你带到了某个地方

small and dark… could you… change?

又小又黑，你能换吗？