"By the power given me of God, I crown thee King of Egypt," Merira said, placing it on Tuta's head.
"Long live the King!" they all cried, prostrating themselves.
Merira's face was suddenly distorted.
"The cat again!" he whispered, looking into a dark corner of the room.
"The cat? Where?" Tuta asked, looking quickly about him.
"There, in the corner, do you see?"
"There is nothing there."
"No, there is not. I must have fancied it."
He moved his hand across his face and smiled.
"Zahi, Heheki—they are winged panthers, with a falcon's head, a human face on the back, a budding lotos instead of a tail and a belly covered with sharp teats like the teeth of a saw. They say there are a lot of these unclean creatures prowling about at night.... But perhaps they don't exist? Old women's tales .... Heheki, heheki," he laughed suddenly, with a laugh so dreadful that Tuta felt a shiver running down his back.