by Tom Hunter
“Although my family is Muslim, we’re not exactly devout,” she continued. “If I’m honest, I’m not even sure what I really believe, so I’m absolutely fascinated with those who live their lives according to their religion, especially when that religion has caused so many of history’s great changes. This whole experience is an opportunity in seeing history come to life right in front of me. In the end, I couldn’t give that up.”
“Why would I think that was silly?” Samuel frowned. “Come on. You’re speaking to a man who digs around in the dirt for a living just to find a fragment of the past. I completely get where you’re coming from, although for me, I’m not so interested in religion as I am in geography. You know, following the movement of different cultures across the globe and see how they interacted with each other. We seem to have a stereotypical image of the past as being one amorphous mass with individual peoples keeping to themselves and doing their own thing, yet cultural appropriation is far from a modern phenomenon. It goes back to the Pharaohs and beyond. I love seeing how that impacts on the artifacts I unearth. I mean, you can trace the expansion of seafaring nations by the architecture in the places where they landed, for example, although there are some real controversies around the subject.”
“Such as?”
At that moment, the waiter returned with their food, but neither Shafira nor Samuel reacted as he placed their plates in front of them, such was their excited focus on their conversation.
“For example, have you heard of Celtic New Zealand?” asked Samuel.
“No. I thought that the Maori were the indigenous people,” Shafira replied.
“Because that’s what most of the evidence points to,” Samuel confirmed. “However, there are those who believe that they weren’t the first to land there. There is a theory that they were predated by the Vikings.”
“The Vikings?” scoffed Shafira. “You’ve got to be kidding me!”
“Well, if all the theories are to be believed, the Vikings certainly got around,” Samuel told her. “They’re alleged to have been the first to discover America as well, long before Christopher Columbus set sail.”
“So do you believe that the Vikings went to New Zealand? They were a long way from home if they did.”
“I like to keep an open mind and err on the side of caution,” Samuel replied. “The overwhelming evidence points to the Maori being the first to colonize New Zealand. However, it can’t be denied that there are definite Celtic influences on their artwork and architecture that would suggest that they weren’t as isolated as we believe. What’s more, due to Maori religion and customs, any human remains that are discovered in an archaeological dig are automatically assumed to be Maori and are given the appropriate Maori burial to show respect, meaning that no one can study them to see whether there are any Viking skeletons. That would silence the critics once and for all, but it’s considered more important to defer to Maori tradition. If there are any Vikings buried in the Land of the Long White Cloud, we’ll never know.”
“Wow,” breathed Shafira. “That’s incredible. How beautiful that they honor Maori belief like that, even if it does mean that the world of academia misses out.”
“Well, it’s the least they can do, given the way the Maori have been treated in the past,” Samuel pointed out.
“Have you ever worked on a dig in New Zealand?” Shafira asked.
“Sadly not.” Samuel shook his head. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. There’s something very intriguing about a country that didn’t have any native mammals until humans arrived. But the opportunity hasn’t come up and over the years, my career has gone in a more Egyptian direction. I can’t complain. It’s not as though I haven’t had the chance to work in plenty of other amazing countries.”
“See?” said Shafira. “This is why I wanted to have an adventure of my own. There’s a whole world out there waiting to be discovered. I want a chance to see some of it before I grow old.”
“Well you’ve got that and then some,” grinned Samuel as he took a bite of the casserole Shafira had ordered for him. “Oh my goodness! This is divine.”
“I knew you’d like it,” smiled Shafira, as their conversation turned to the various delicacies Samuel had sampled across the globe in the countries he’d worked in. For once, they didn’t have to worry about the Bruard. They stretched the time out as long as they could.
Thirty-Two
“Remind me again why it is that we were the ones to draw the short straw and had to come all the way out here?” moaned Josh, as he plopped down on a bench next to Basile in the main reception hall at Cairo airport.
“Because Shafira and Samuel needed to talk and Waleed…” Basile shrugged. “Well, Waleed’s Waleed. I don’t think we’ll ever get him to do something he doesn’t want to do. On the upside, at least we’ve both been able to freshen up at the hotel and those pastries we had at lunch were almost good enough to be French.”
“It must have been fun showering round that thing.” Josh indicated the bandage on Basile’s arm. “How long do you have to keep it on for?”
“That doctor’s a miracle worker,” Basile replied. “I don’t know what was in that cocktail of drugs she injected me with, but I can feel my arm getting better every second. I won’t need to be wrapped up like a mummy for much longer. I should be able to take it off in a day or two.”
“Good. You had us worried there for a moment,” Josh told him. “Only a moment, mind.”
“Anyway, let’s get on with what we came here for,” Basile said, not wanting to dwell on his health. “The sooner we get these flights sorted out, the sooner I can get back to my comfy bed. I might be healing quickly, but it comes at a price. It’s going to be an early night for me, mon ami.”
“Fair enough.” Josh pulled out a little notebook from his jacket pocket. “I went to all the agencies on my side of the airport and the only option I could find involved multiple connections, one of which was only half an hour, so if any of the earlier flights are delayed, we’ll be stranded. On the upside, we can leave this afternoon, but it’ll take us almost two days to get there because we have to go through so many different stops and if we miss that tight connection, we could be looking at four days. Who knows what Pin and his men could do in that time?”
“Luckily, I did a little better than that.” Basile took out a crumpled piece of paper from his jeans with details of his research. “Like you, I couldn’t find any direct flights, but there’s one that departs tomorrow with a layover in Tripoli. At the moment, they’ve still got enough seats for all of us, but they did warn me that that might not be the case for much longer so we’re going to have to make up our minds quickly.”
“What do you think we should do?” Josh asked. “I can maybe try some of my contacts, see if I can make alternative arrangements, but there’s no guarantee that I could sort something and that might make us even more delayed.”
Basile tutted, making a little clicking sound with his teeth as he thought. “I think our best bet is to go with the Tripoli flight. As you say, if you can’t arrange something, then it’ll cost us even more time and we haven’t got much to spare. I think we’re just going to have to suck it up and go via Libya.”
“Okay.” Josh nodded. “Did you happen to catch how much this little junket is going to cost us?”
Basile passed over his notes, and Josh whistled when he saw the numbers.
“Who’s going to be covering that?” he gasped. “I’m semi-retired. The flight contracts I pick up from the Ministry don’t pay as much as you might think. This is going to put a dent in my retirement fund.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll pay for it,” Basile offered. “I’m sure Samuel will see me right later.”
“And if he doesn’t?”
“He will.” Basile shrugged.
“Wow.” Josh shook his head. “I’m impressed. I’ve known Samuel a long time, but I don’t know that I trust him that much. Why are you so loyal to him given everything that
’s happened and all the things that are likely to happen?”
“There’s something about Samuel that tells me he’ll always have my back,” Basile replied simply. “It goes right back to our first dig together. We were working on a funerary tomb down in Luxor. I was a junior engineer, still figuring out if I wanted to work in the field of archaeology or go in a different direction. It was Samuel who showed me how exciting archaeology could be and how incredible it is to be part of something that furthers our understanding of the ancient world–not to mention all the priceless treasures we uncovered. He didn’t treat me as a flunky, the help that should be ignored. Instead, Samuel took time out to lecture me on the history behind the tomb we were excavating and told me a little about the meaning behind the hieroglyphs we were unearthing. His kind patience ignited a fire in me that made me want to do the best work possible. Ever since then, I’ve always tried to be placed with him. I’ve found that other archaeologists don’t value my input in the same way. Samuel makes me feel that I’m a valued member of the team. I like to show him the same respect he shows me.”
“I can get behind that,” nodded Josh. “Even if I still think you’re crazy that you’re willing to come to Libya with us, what with getting shot and all. I don’t know if I’d put myself straight back in the line of fire.”
Basile winced as he rubbed at his arm. “Don’t remind me. You’ll make me change my mind if you’re not careful.”
“Well in that case we’d better go and grab those tickets before they sell out. And since you’re feeling so generous, I might even let you buy me a beer to celebrate afterwards.”
“Don’t push your luck,” warned Basile, as they went to book their flights.
Thirty-Three
“Yes! Another round to me, gentlemen.” Waleed gathered up the crumpled notes on the ground, adding them to the growing pile in front of him, ignoring the grumbling discontent of his opponents. It didn’t matter where in the world he went, there was always someone willing to give him their money. In a dark alley off a back street in Cairo, an illegal dice game was the perfect opportunity to let him accrue some much needed funds, after his attempt to rob Samuel had taken such an unexpected turn.
“It’s a tough life being this lucky,” Waleed grinned as he reached forward to pick up the dice for another round.
“Your luck’s just run out.” A large fist slammed down on the dice, narrowly missing crushing Waleed’s hand as he snatched it back. “You’re cheating. There’s no other explanation for your success.”
“Me? Cheat?” Waleed’s face was a picture of innocence as he faced down his accuser. A muscly brute of a man, the faded scar down one cheek suggested that he wasn’t afraid of a fight, but Waleed wasn’t so easily intimidated. “I can assure you, my friend, that I would never dream of doing such a thing. Now if you would be so kind as to let go of the dice so that I can throw them again, maybe it will be your turn to be lucky. You don’t know until the dice are cast.”
The man dropped the dice on the ground, forcing Waleed to stretch out to pick them up, but as he did so, his opponent slashed out with a knife he’d concealed in his other hand, cutting open Waleed’s sleeve to reveal a hidden compartment containing the original dice from the game.
“There!” crowed the thug. “What did I tell you? He switched our dice for a loaded set. I want my money back–and pay you back for thinking you could steal from me.”
Waleed laughed nervously, standing and holding his hands up to show that he was unarmed as the three other men in the dice game pulled out large hunting knives, gathering around him.
“Now, gentlemen,” pleaded Waleed. “Let’s not do anything rash. I’m sure no one wants to get hurt.”
“You mean you don’t want to get hurt,” laughed another man, who was brandishing a thick cudgel. “But you should have thought of that before you tried to rip us off. Unlike my friend, I don’t want any money from you. No, you can pay me with a pound of flesh.”
“Please,” begged Waleed, backing away. “There must be a way to settle this that doesn’t involve violence. Perhaps another game? This time with a different set of dice? I’m sure we’re all honorable here.”
“Hasn’t anyone ever told you there’s no honor among thieves?” snarled the man with a knife. “We’re going to teach you a lesson you’ll never forget.”
“Is that right?”
Waleed’s attackers whirled round to see a man casually strolling towards them, a wickedly sharp sword slung at his side.
“Akhenaton!” greeted Waleed joyfully. “Allow me to introduce you to my colleagues. Oh, I’m sorry. I’ve forgotten your names. Let’s just call you Sore Loser, Easily Conned, and Out Of Luck.”
“If you think that one man with a sword is going to be enough to stop us, you’re sadly mistaken.” The man dubbed Sore Loser, rushed towards Akhenaton, who easily stepped out of the way of his attack. In a movement almost too swift to follow, he pulled out his sword and slashed at the man’s belt, making his pants fall down to his ankles.
“What the…?” Sore Loser dropped his knife as he instinctively reached down to pull his pants back up, giving Akhenaton the chance to step forward and place the tip of his sword underneath his chin, forcing the man to look at him as his pants puddled around his ankles, revealing a pair of boxer shorts patterned with smiley faces.
“I strongly recommend that you and your friends leave. Now.” Although he spoke calmly, there was an edge to Akhenaton’s voice that made it clear that he wasn’t in the mood for an argument.
The dice players didn’t wait for a second warning. The three men turned and fled down the alley.
“We’ll get you, Waleed!” one of them yelled as he retreated. “Your bodyguard can’t protect you forever!”
“Yeah, yeah,” sneered Waleed as he knelt down to pick up the cash that had been left on the ground. “You were cutting it a bit fine weren’t you, Akhenaton? Still, I must commend you on your actions. I knew having a babysitter would have its perks.”
“Leave it,” Akhenaton ordered, as Waleed scrabbled around in the dirt for the money.
“Are you kidding? There’s at least a thousand dollars’ worth of pounds here.”
“I said, leave it!” Akhenaton jerked Waleed to his feet, shoving him roughly against the alley wall.
“All right, all right. No need to get like that.” Once more, Waleed put his hands up in surrender, notes fluttering to the ground. “I don’t get what you’re so upset about. It was just a game and we need more money to fund our adventure. I don’t know about you, but I don’t exactly have limitless amounts of cash available.”
“God will provide,” Akhenaton countered. “We’re on a sacred mission. Money is the last thing we need to worry about.”
“Is that right?” sniffed Waleed. “Well, I wish I had your faith. While you might trust in God, everyone else pays cash. And I get my money wherever I can. Not all of us have the luxury of an Order behind us.”
“And why do you think that is?” countered Akhenaton. “We choose the path we walk in life. You decided for reasons best known to yourself that being slimy and sneaky is the way to go. If you’d made different choices, you could have put your natural talents to much better use. I know for a fact that you’d be extremely successful as a scout for my Order. You might want to think about joining us. You could do a lot worse.”
“Thanks for the kind offer, my friend, but no thanks,” Waleed replied. “In my experience, everyone is out for themselves, even those in supposedly spiritual Orders. I’d rather make my own way than have someone who pretended to be my friend turn round and stab me in the back at the earliest opportunity. For all your talk of God, I’ve found that it’s the self-proclaimed godliest who are some of the nastiest villains you’ll ever meet. No, you can keep your religion, if it’s all the same to you. God abandoned me and my family long ago and I have no intention of trying to seek his attention anymore.”
“You’ve never mentioned a family before,” ob
served Akhenaton. “What happened to them to make you so cynical?”
“Just as you don’t like to talk about your Order with those of us you deem unworthy, I feel the same way about my family,” snapped Waleed. “Maybe if we were friends I’d tell you more, but you’ve made it very clear that you’re not looking for friendship, especially not with someone as ‘slimy and sneaky’ as me. Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to collect my winnings before the wind steals it all.”
Akhenaton nodded slowly, stepping aside so Waleed could pick up the notes that were scattered all over the alley. Shoving the notes into a wallet he tucked out of sight inside his shirt, he turned to Akhenaton. “Can I ask you something strange?”
“You can ask me anything,” Akhenaton replied. “I won’t promise not to give you a strange answer though.”
“Why do you think the others are willing to keep me around? I mean, I’m not stupid. I’m fully aware that you all share the same opinion of me, so why would you risk such an important mission by having a thief in your midst?”
“I’ve thought the same thing myself,” Akhenaton admitted. “If it were down to me, we would have left you at the dig site, and wouldn’t even have bothered bringing you back to Cairo. But since Samuel is our leader, and he seems to think that you bring something of value with you, even if you can’t see it in yourself, I trust his judgment. Of course, there’s also the possibility that he wants to keep you close so he can keep an eye on you to make sure you don’t tell anyone about our quest or give the Bruard a heads up. After all, he did send me to watch over you.”
“That would make sense.” Waleed nodded slowly as he considered what Akhenaton had said. “More sense than Samuel thinking I’m a useful member of the team. What have I done except provide the odd bit of insight here and there? Besides, what would an archaeologist need with a thief?”
