“I’m sorry you’ve been troubled by all this.” Abbas’ severe, stoic glare softened for a split-second. He seemed to appreciate Baahir’s apology, even though none of this was his doing. It was all bad luck and bureaucratic protocol. Baahir decided to throw the Abbas a bone. He motioned to the entrance. “If it makes you feel any better, you’re about to become a very famous man for finding all of this.”
Though there were protocols to follow, this was Egypt. There was plenty of money to be made in situations like this, not by selling the site but by selling
For a fee, of course.
It had been a common, age-old tradition. Unless met with a show of force from the Egyptian military, this temple would effectively become a tourist attraction before Baahir’s team could even get it marked on a map.
Talk of money seemed to perk Abbas up a bit. He fell in stride with Baahir and turned on his flashlight, directing its beam at the crumbled opening. The Egyptologist added his own light. The top two-thirds of the sealed entrance was missing. Only the bottom portion was still present and intact. Baahir stopped and studied what was left of the blockade.
“Was there any kind of writing or artwork carved into this section?”
Abbas shrugged. “I don’t believe so. Why?”
Baahir stood and shook his head. “No reason, though, sometimes the Ancient Egyptians would warn us of what awaited those who entered sacred places like this.”
“Like what?” Abbas asked. He sounded nervous.
“Oh, you know, just your run-of-the-mill curses and boobytraps.”
Abbas paused mid-stride and gawked at the Egyptologist.
Baahir glanced over his shoulder and gave the guy a sly smile. He was kidding, of course. Abbas’ reaction was priceless. He huffed in annoyance and flared his nostrils. Baahir dipped his head inside the quaint doorway. As he lifted his left foot to step over the threshold, he could hear the foreman cursing under his breath in Arabic. What he said wasn’t very nice at all.
Baahir mentally translated the curse, and thought of his reply.
Deep down, part of Baahir understood that it wasn’t his father’s fault that his mother had died when he was just a boy. He even recalled her saying that it was her family that had been after them. Still, George should have been able to protect her better than he did. Plainly, Hanan Kane should still be alive today. It was because of Baahir’s love for his mother, and his equally strong disdain for his father that he had changed his last name to her maiden name when he was old enough to do so. Then, on his eighteenth birthday, Baahir left England forever and moved to his mother’s homeland, Egypt. Happily, he had not seen or spoken to his father since. The only person he stayed in regular contact with was his older sister, Zahra.
“Ghazzi!” Abbas bellowed back the other way. “With us!”
The punitive man fell in behind his boss, without so much as a word.
“I’m coming too.”
And so did Mr. Rahal.
Baahir and Abbas gave each other a look of aggravation. Already, the Egyptologist and foreman had seemed to have fashioned a semi-comfortable rapport. Baahir respected the foreman to a degree, and he knew Abbas did not like having the government agent along for the ride.
After two minutes of traveling like old hermits bent over at the waist, Baahir’s flashlight, which had been swinging back and forth from wall to wall, found… nothing. He stopped and knelt, giving his lower back a much-needed respite. There, while inspecting the tunnel exit, he kneaded his spine with the knuckles of his left fist.
“Why did we stop?” Rahal asked.
Baahir shook his head, even more annoyed than before. “You in a hurry to be somewhere? Whatever is here, it has been here for centuries. I think it can wait a little while longer.”
Abbas softly chuckled behind Baahir. If there was one single thing the two men had in common, it was their joint contempt for the pushy government agent.
“Dr. Hassan,” Rahal countered, “I’m on a tight schedule, and—”
“Well,” Baahir interrupted, “I’m not. And as the only person present who’s qualified to be here, I will be moving at the pace I see fit.” He turned and leaned around Abbas’ hulking mass. “You are welcome to go outside and wait if you prefer.”
