The Vandemark Mummy Read Online Free
Author: Cynthia Voigt
collection. Mrs. Batchelor felt demeaned, personally demeaned, by what was going on. Mrs. Batchelor was not going to be sweet-talked; her only concern was for the integrity of the library.
Preparations went on regardless of all the meetings. A room in the library cellar was chosen to hold the collection until the new wing had been built. The library cellars were like an underground city, narrow concrete corridors lined with closed, numbered doors. There were no windows, and only one exit to the outside, a door opening onto the parking lot behind the library. There was only one door leading up into the library from the cellar. It was, Phineas thought, the perfect place for storage, like a ratâs maze in a scientific laboratory. For the collection, the largest room, number 015, a room the size of a lecture hall, had been emptied.Dehumidifiers and a self-contained heating system had been set up to maintain the correct temperature and humidity for antiquities. Because all the doors of the library opened to a single key, the door into 015 had been fitted with a new lock, to which only Mr. Hall, Mrs. Batchelor, and Captain Lewis of the College Security Squad had keys.
Mr. Hall had taken charge of these preparations. After about the first hour, he hadnât said anything more about not being qualified for the job. Even when President Blight called up, just after the letter had arrived, Mr. Hall didnât say anything about not being qualified. Phineas and Althea could guess what the president was hinting by their fatherâs side of the conversation. âI understand, sir, but luckily Iâm a quick learner, and I did have a couple of classical art courses, so Iâm not unfamiliar with the field.â He grinned at his children. âIt is a pity, isnât it? Unless the will is ambiguously worded, the old gentleman hasnât given me any choice, and Iâll just have to manage as best I can.â
*Â Â *Â Â *
The morning the collection was due to arrive, a bright Saturday morning, Mr. Hall looked at Phineas and Althea over breakfast. âThe big day. Youâre coming, arenât you?â They were. âIt will be a relief to finish with these interminable arguments with Lucille, so I can concentrate on my classes and the cataloging of whatever the collection turns out to be.â
Phineas thought it would be a relief to have something happen, anything. He was getting bored with solitarybike riding and solitary TV watchingâseriously bored. At least, with the Egyptian Collection, he didnât know exactly what was going to happen.
When the Halls arrived at the big grassy quadrangle of which the library formed one side, there was a small crowd gathered. Mr. Hall turned off to join the reception committeeâPresident Blight and his wife, and standing with them a Westchester woman, as Phineas called the type, looking expensively well groomed and expensively well dressed. âA board member, what do you bet,â Mr. Hall told Phineas and Althea. âI ought to introduce myself. I feel underdressed.â He went toward the presidentâs group, reluctantly.
Phineas and Althea hung back, looking around them. The sky was turquoise blue, and cloudless. The tall leafy trees that grew on the quadrangle cast cool shadows onto the grass. A few students lay around in the sunny patches, talking and tanning and watching the excitement. During the summer only one classroom building, the gym, and the library stayed open. Only those students who lived nearby could take summer classes. Nobody paid attention to Phineas and Althea.
Mr. Hall was standing sort of with the presidentâs group, but mostly aside, ignored. A personâPhineas couldnât tell what sex it was but the way it kept writing things down in a notebook identified it as a reporterâwas talking with President Blight. Phineas moved closer to his sister.
âWhatâs a reporter doing here?â
âI
Preparations went on regardless of all the meetings. A room in the library cellar was chosen to hold the collection until the new wing had been built. The library cellars were like an underground city, narrow concrete corridors lined with closed, numbered doors. There were no windows, and only one exit to the outside, a door opening onto the parking lot behind the library. There was only one door leading up into the library from the cellar. It was, Phineas thought, the perfect place for storage, like a ratâs maze in a scientific laboratory. For the collection, the largest room, number 015, a room the size of a lecture hall, had been emptied.Dehumidifiers and a self-contained heating system had been set up to maintain the correct temperature and humidity for antiquities. Because all the doors of the library opened to a single key, the door into 015 had been fitted with a new lock, to which only Mr. Hall, Mrs. Batchelor, and Captain Lewis of the College Security Squad had keys.
Mr. Hall had taken charge of these preparations. After about the first hour, he hadnât said anything more about not being qualified for the job. Even when President Blight called up, just after the letter had arrived, Mr. Hall didnât say anything about not being qualified. Phineas and Althea could guess what the president was hinting by their fatherâs side of the conversation. âI understand, sir, but luckily Iâm a quick learner, and I did have a couple of classical art courses, so Iâm not unfamiliar with the field.â He grinned at his children. âIt is a pity, isnât it? Unless the will is ambiguously worded, the old gentleman hasnât given me any choice, and Iâll just have to manage as best I can.â
*Â Â *Â Â *
The morning the collection was due to arrive, a bright Saturday morning, Mr. Hall looked at Phineas and Althea over breakfast. âThe big day. Youâre coming, arenât you?â They were. âIt will be a relief to finish with these interminable arguments with Lucille, so I can concentrate on my classes and the cataloging of whatever the collection turns out to be.â
Phineas thought it would be a relief to have something happen, anything. He was getting bored with solitarybike riding and solitary TV watchingâseriously bored. At least, with the Egyptian Collection, he didnât know exactly what was going to happen.
When the Halls arrived at the big grassy quadrangle of which the library formed one side, there was a small crowd gathered. Mr. Hall turned off to join the reception committeeâPresident Blight and his wife, and standing with them a Westchester woman, as Phineas called the type, looking expensively well groomed and expensively well dressed. âA board member, what do you bet,â Mr. Hall told Phineas and Althea. âI ought to introduce myself. I feel underdressed.â He went toward the presidentâs group, reluctantly.
Phineas and Althea hung back, looking around them. The sky was turquoise blue, and cloudless. The tall leafy trees that grew on the quadrangle cast cool shadows onto the grass. A few students lay around in the sunny patches, talking and tanning and watching the excitement. During the summer only one classroom building, the gym, and the library stayed open. Only those students who lived nearby could take summer classes. Nobody paid attention to Phineas and Althea.
Mr. Hall was standing sort of with the presidentâs group, but mostly aside, ignored. A personâPhineas couldnât tell what sex it was but the way it kept writing things down in a notebook identified it as a reporterâwas talking with President Blight. Phineas moved closer to his sister.
âWhatâs a reporter doing here?â
âI
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