“Yeah, I’m going to take her to Luxor with me,” he said. “I can get her something to eat and try to figure out what to do with her from there.”
It hit me then, I was at his mercy. I had to go wherever he wanted me to and there wasn’t anything I could really do about it. What other choice did I have? I had no idea where I belonged or who I belonged with?
Why wasn’t I afraid? It didn’t make sense. I didn’t know him. I should be suspicious of his intentions, but I wasn’t.
Alex walked back to the car and got in, he put the keys in the ignition and waited for the lingering group to clear.
“You seem strangely calm with all of this. Are you okay?” He asked, glancing my way.
“I guess so.”
He slowly inched the car forward, “I can’t imagine what this must be like for you.”
“It’s sort of unreal.”
Alex started out onto the main road, “Has anything come back to you? I can call someone for you or take you anywhere you want to go.”
“No,” I said, feeling the tears coming again. “I don’t remember anything.”
“Don’t cry,” he said softly. “It doesn’t matter right now. Are you still hungry?”
I wiped my tears away, “Yeah, I am actually.”
“All right, let’s go get you some food.”
It was a fast drive across the Nile to the hotel. It seemed strange to go from an ancient landscape to the modern world so quickly. The street lights were bright, almost shockingly so, the closer we got to the city.
The hotel loomed up, pale and glowing in the night. Alex parked and came around the car to open my door. I mumbled an awkward thanks and followed him inside.
The lobby was large, modern, and air conditioned. I crossed my arms and followed close behind him, past the lobby sitting area with burgundy sofas and chairs, to the restaurant. I peeked around him, seeing beautiful archways and tables covered in burgundy clothes and small lantern type lamps.
We were lead to one of those tables, the waiter pulling out my chair for me. I sat down quickly and looked around at the other dinners, some dressed casual like me and other dressed in fashionable summer wear.
“What will you have?” He asked as he handed me the menu.
I looked at all the options, fought the urge to cry again and just shook my head. “It sounds crazy, but I have no idea what I do and don’t like.”
“I’m sorry,” he mumbled. “I wasn’t thinking... How about a burger and fries?”
“I guess that’s fine.”
He shook his head, “See right here is where I normally ask a girl all about herself and her interests. I don’t even know what talk about.”
There was something about his awkwardness that put me at ease. I watched him fidget and look everywhere, but at me. He was maybe in his late twenties, too old to be so nervous, but it made me smile nonetheless.
He’s just as uncomfortable as I...
I put my elbows up on the table and placed my chin in my hands, “So why don’t you tell me about yourself. Why are you here?”
“Excuse me?”
“They said you were American, so what are you doing here?”
He smiled, “I just always loved Egypt. My father came to America from India, and at the time The Treasures of Tutankhamun was on tour, he was working as a security guard in one of the museums it visited. He filled my head with stories of the boy king, so when I got older, I jumped at the chance to come work at the Valley of the Kings.”
“Is that where I was?”
“Yes.”
I nodded even though the name of the location meant nothing to me. “So what do you do at the Valley of the Kings?”
“I catalog artifacts.”
“But you don’t work with the mummies?”
“No,” Alex said with a shake of his head. “It’s almost disrespectful. I mean they were people... They were somebody’s people.”
The waiter returned to our table with our orders. As soon as the scent of the food hit my nostrils, my stomach began to growl.
“This is crazy,” I said as I popped a fry in my mouth. “I know these are french fries and this is a burger, but I don’t know my own name.”
“I imagine that is a strange thing,” he said with a smile.
I took a bite of my burger, chewed, swallowed. “I’m sorry for all the trouble I caused.”
“It’s understandable.”
“So, what should I do?” I asked, “What are you going to do with me?”
Alex shrugged, “I don’t know. I don’t really think taking you to the police is a good idea and if I take you to the hospital, they will put you in psych –”
“I’m not crazy,” I argued, ready to run if he even suggested such a thing.
“I don’t think you are,” he said as he scooped the rest of his fries onto my plate. He looked up at me and narrowed his eyes, “You know you have a slight bruise on your four head...”
I reached up and felt the tender spot, more towards the temple than my actual forehead.
“Do you remember how you got it?” He asked.
I tried to remember something...Anything, but it was all just a blank.
I shook my head, “No, my head hurt earlier, but with everything else...”
Alex nodded, “Yeah, I can understand that. Now as far as what do with you, I can’t just... Well, you shouldn’t be alone.”
Why did a tingle go over my body at his words?
Looking up at him, I shrugged. “So what do I do?”
It was quiet for a moment, motioning to the waiter to refill my drink.
“Why don’t you stay with me?” Alex said and then stopped himself, “I can’t believe I said that, but why not? I’ve got a nice room upstairs.”
“And a nice bed?” I asked skeptically.
He smiled, somehow boyish and charming at the same time.
“No, not like that,” he explained. “It’s a suite. I’d take the couch.”
“Why are you doing this?”
“What?”
I sipped my soda, “Being so nice to me. You don’t know me.”
He held out his hand, “Alexander Patel.”
I took his hand and shrugged, “You already told me your name. It’s nice to meet you, but I have no idea who I am.”
“Well,” he said, “I have to call you something... How about Senna?”
“Senna? Where did you get that from?”
“It’s short for Ankhesenamun. She was Tutankhamun’s wife,” he said with a blush. “You were sitting under her hieroglyphic.”
“Senna...” I repeated. It was better than nothing.
It made me feel slightly better to have a name of sorts, even though it wasn’t mine. We finished our meal and I timidly followed him to the elevator and up to his room. I expected people to turn, stare, and judge me, though I didn’t know why I would think they would, but no one did.
“You have to be exhausted,” Alex said as he unlocked the door to his room.
I couldn’t even look up at him. What had I gotten myself in to? I didn’t know this man. Was I crazy to trust him?
There’s that word again...Crazy...
Alex opened the door and stepped aside so that I could walk past him and into the suite. The sitting area was large with a deep burgundy carpet, beige sofa, and a set of glass doors leading out to the balcony. I could just make out the black Nile and the lights from the Valley of the Kings on the other bank.
“The bedroom is through here,” Alex said as he switched on the light. He went over to the dresser and took out a tee shirt. He handed it to me and then opened another door. “The bathroom is right here.”
“Thank you,” I mumbled.
He looked around awkwardly, “Well, why don’t I give you some privacy and let you get settled.”
I watched him back out of the bedroom and into the sitting room, shutting the door behind himself. I waited a moment to see if he was going to come back, but I could hear him out
in the sitting room moving around.
I ran myself a hot bath, studying my naked body for scars and birthmarks. How did I get that crescent shaped scar on my knee? That freckle on my shoulder, was that a family thing or just a freckle?
I looked at myself in the mirror. My eyes were blue. Were they my mother’s eyes? My father’s? What about my dark hair?
I looked down at my tanned skin. Was it a hint of some ethnicity or was it just evidence of a vacation? Everything I noticed as clues to who I might be, only lead me to more questions.
When I finished my bath, I slipped into the shirt Alex gave me, feeling lost in the size of it. I padded on bare feet back out into the sitting room with my clothes in hand. He was making up the sofa with a pillow and blanket.
“Thank you for letting me sleep here,” I said, feeling almost naked even though his shirt almost came to my knees.
Alex glanced back over his shoulder, “You’re not sleeping out here. You take the bed, I’ll stay out here.”
“I couldn’t,” I said shaking my head.
“Yes, you can,” he said as he sat down on the couch and kicked off his shoes. “I’ll be right out here, just call if you need anything.”
I turned and went back into the bedroom, glancing over my shoulder to see him watching me. Part of me knew that it should make me self-conscious, but instead I felt safe...More safe than I’d been all day.
Chapter Four
I felt myself falling, sliding down into the darkness and away from reality. I could still hear the steady hum of the air conditioner and the smell of bleachy hotel scented air, but I could feel myself being pulled down into dreams.
It was as if I was floating, suspended in darkness, rising and falling at the same time. I felt myself turning until I too, was a part of the blackness that surrounded me.
Out of the darkness, I could make out a hallway. It was lit by flaming torches, making the adorned walls almost glow orange in the flickering light. I could see the tall columns on either side, too big for me to even wrap my arms around them, decorated with inlaid jewels and precious stones. Among those jewels, the painted eyes of history looked back out at me.
I was in that hall, frantically searching for something. I could feel the cold stone under my bare feet, but I didn’t look down. I needed to find this thing that I was searching for on the columns.
Where is it... I know it’s here...
Suddenly, I stopped and circled the last column. I looked up at the paintings on it, searching for one in particular, and there she was.
Nefertiti...My mother...
I looked up at the painting, up into her black, lifeless eyes. I wished those eyes could look down and see me there. The strength left my legs. I sank to my knees at the base of the column. I was crying, wishing my mother was there to protect me.
Mother...
Was that it? Was Nefertiti my mother in this dream?
I heard a noise at the other end of the hall, the sound of approaching footsteps that made my heart miss a beat and sink to some nowhere place in my chest. I scrambled to my feet and pressed my back against the column. I tried to stay in the shadows.
Don’t let him find me...Don’t let him find me...
I could just make out the shadow of Akhenaten approaching, darkening the floor. Why did the sight of his shadow fill me with such fear?
Moving so that I remained hidden, I nearly screamed when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned just as Tutankhamun came out of the shadows.
He held his finger up to his lips, “No harm will come to you.”
I looked up at him, the boy raised as my brother grown into the man that would be Pharaoh. His robes hung loosely over his broad shoulders, open at the chest and showing his sculpted muscles the gods would envy. His dark eyes were kind as he looked down at me.
I lowered my head and only then did I see the nearly sheer gown I was wearing.
He reached out and lifted the torn strap of my gown back up onto my shoulder.
“My father?” He asked in a whisper.
I could feel myself blushing, “Yes.”
“Did he harm you?”
I shook my head, “I ran away.”
He pulled me deeper into the shadows, his black rimmed eyes taking me in from head to toe once more. I was very aware of the closeness of him, making my heart pound against the walls my chest.
We were so close, every breath I took with his, our lips almost touching. If I was to move just a little...
The shadow of the Pharaoh came closer. Tutankhamun held up his hands, motioning for me to stay hidden.
I crouched down, just as Akhenaten came into view. Tutankhamun stepped out into the light. His black hair glistened down his back, rippling like the water of the Nile. I immediately felt safe.
“Where is Ankhesenamun?” I heard the Pharaoh demand.
“She is not of your concern,” Tutankhamun said, standing tall.
The two exchanged harsh words of some sort, too low for me to hear from where I hid, but I could sense the threat between the two of them. Finally, the Pharaoh placed his hand on Tutankhamun’s chest and pushed him back.
“I am still the Pharaoh,” Akhenaten argued.
Tutankhamun staggered backwards, but did not fall. I peeked out to see the hatred in his eyes as he glared at his father. “For now.”
“As Pharaoh, I have a right to the girl.”
Tutankhamun shook his head, “I claim the right.”
“It is not your place,” the Pharaoh said. “Nor is it your right.”
The prince of Egypt rose taller, “She will be my queen and one day rule at my side.”
The sound of the Pharaoh’s laugh echoed down the hall, “She will be nothing more than a whore like her mother.”
“And like mine?”
I shivered, remembering when his mother was executed and erased from the history when we were children. The sight of the Pharaoh’s sword gashing at her face and throat haunted my nightmares for years.
“Women are the downfall of any Pharaoh,” Akhenaten said with a sinister laugh. “Ankhesenamun is no different.”
“Speak ill of her again and I will be Pharaoh by morning,” Tutankhamun threatened.
There was a pause, a moment when the two men just glared at each other. I didn’t breathe. I didn’t move.
At last, the Pharaoh took a single step backward, “Very well. The right is yours.”
I heard him walking away, but Tutankhamun remained unmoved until the sound of the Pharaoh’s footsteps faded away. Only then did he call me out of my hiding place.
I fell to my knees and lowered my body to the floor in a bow.
“Thank you... Thank you.”
“You are not safe,” he said as he turned to me. “By law he can take you as his wife and there is nothing I can do to stop him.”
I rose up on my knees, “Please...”
He walked around behind me. I felt his hand on my head, stroking my hair.
“Your mother was kind to me as a child and I swear, for her,” he said softly. “I will do whatever I must to keep you safe.”
He said nothing else. I heard the sound of him walking away. I sat there, finally able to breathe.
Why did he save me from his father? Why risk everything for me?
I got to my feet went back to my chambers. My servants were waiting to help me back to bed. I let them brush out my hair again and change my dress.
I thought again of Tutankhamun coming out of the darkness and saving me from ruin. I closed my eyes, remembering the feeling of his hand on my hair and how the sound of his voice stirred right through me.
Tutankhamun...No longer a boy...
As soon as I was in the bed, I heard a noise at my door. I took the dagger from under my pillow and motioned to the maids to go check to see what the matter was. I strained to hear what was happening, not sure if I would have to fight or flee.
The maid returned, “His Royal Prince, Tutankhamun, will be guarding your door tonigh
t. He says you should fear not.”
I sighed with relief, “Thank you. You may go.”
The maid left me alone and within moments, I was asleep, knowing I was safe with Tutankhamun at my door.
Sometime before dawn one of my maids returned to shake me awake.
“Mistress,” she said urgently. “You must wake and go to the Pharaoh.”
“What?” I asked, sitting up, my mouth going dry. How could this be? Where was Tutankhamun?
“Please mistress,” the maid repeated.
“Why? What has happened?”
“The Pharaoh Tutankhamun wishes to see you.”
Pharaoh...
I slipped from the bed and went to my chamber door. The hall was empty, lit with only the fading torches from the night. The palace was still and quiet, as if waiting for something.
I went down the hall to the chamber of the Prince. The guards at the door stepped aside as soon as I approached. I entered the chamber door and looked about. The room was near dark, but for a single candle near the place where Tutankhamun stood washing his bloody hands in a bronze basin.
He glanced back at me and then back down at his bloodstained hands.
“He came to your door,” he said in a shaking voice as he scrubbed at the blood. ““I’ve kept my promise. You are safe.”
Chapter Five
“Who exactly is this guy?” I asked as I followed Alex down a narrow street of venders in the market area of Luxor.
Alex reached back and took my hand, sending an almost electric jolt up my arm.
“The less you know, the better,” he said with a grin.
We stopped outside an apartment building of some sort. I wrinkled my nose, already smelling the odor from within. It looked dirty and rundown, like a place where the police would find a body or something.
Alex went to one door with red peeling paint and knocked. The curtains at the window were pulled, but I saw them sway slightly and I could hear someone moving on the other side.
He looked back at me and smiled, putting me slightly more at ease. I smoothed the new cami he bought me over my thin frame and smiled back.
Suddenly, the door opened just a crack. I could see was a single bloodshot, blue, eye.
The Pharaoh's Kiss (Reincarnation Romance Chronicles Book 3) Page 2
