Guards were posted as on the previous night. Excitement ran higher than ever. They worked, and the Arabs worked, under the direction of Hassan es-Sugra, like men whose lives depended upon their speedy success. But the eight o’clock shift had returned to quarters and the twelve o’clock shift were near to their time of departure, before the great lid was raised high enough to enable them to explore the interior of the granite coffin. Not one of the party was wholly master of himself. Barry experienced an unfamiliar desire either to laugh or to cry. But, composure regained, light was directed into the interior.… It contained a magnificent wooden sarcophagus, highly gilded and painted. The lid, which was in relief, represented the figure of the occupant--a girl, clad in a gauzy robe, her hands clasped upon her bosom and holding a Lotus flower. The Ankh--symbol of life--was at her head and her feet. The presentment was wonderful--uncanny. Barry’s mood changed. He felt suddenly sick. He believed that he was likely to swoon. The eyes, the hair, the full lips, the slender, cloudily clad figure! This was madness! He stood upright, his hand on his brow. Perspiration was dripping into his eyes. It was _she!_ It was the girl of his dreams! More, far more than a coincidence, this was a miracle--or a delusion! CHAPTER XIX. THE VOICE IN THE VALLEY The hours that followed were feverish hours. They were marked by at least one strange event. Barry’s excitement grew so intense that the mere idea of sleep was out of the question. If he had had his way, the wonderful painted lid would have been torn off and the occupant revealed within a very few minutes of its discovery. But Danbazzar sternly took command. The tomb was cleared; the triumphant workmen were sent off to their quarters; all operations were suspended until morning. And on this point Danbazzar proved adamant. In view of the advanced state of the work, and of what interference at this critical step would mean, he determined to supplant the ordinary guards. It was arranged that John Cumberland and Barry should take a dog-watch (two hours) at the high and low ends of the valley; then Hassan and Danbazzar; and finally Professor Blackwell and Mahmoud. All would be armed. “It’ll take me right through the first spell,” said Danbazzar, “and most of the third, to collect up the stuff I want to get along. Maybe I’ll make more than one journey each time, and Hassan can help.” “Don’t forget the signal!” Professor Blackwell warned. “We are all tuned up above concert pitch!” And so, beneath a glorious moon that painted the Valleys of the Kings and Queens with silvern mystery, Barry and his father began the first watch. Wholly animated now by the spirit of adventure, they tossed for positions--and Barry got the low end.