Heir of Ra (Blood of Ra Book One)

by M. Sasinowski

  To Heather, for decades of friendship

  Heir of Ra

  M. Sasinowski

  Kingsmill Press

  Copyright © 2018 by Maciek Sasinowski.

  All rights reserved.

  Cover art by Igor Reshetnikov.

  No part of this book may be reproduced or disseminated in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  ISBN 978-1-7324467-1-7

  ISBN 978-1-7324467-0-0 (ebook)

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination, except in the case of historical figures and events, which are used fictitiously.

  I am Horus. Son of Isis and Osiris. I shall know no fear.

  Contents

  Prologue

  Part I

  1. Chumbivilcas, South Peru—Present Day

  2. Duke University Genetics Institute, Baxter Lab

  3. The College of William and Mary, Virginia—Seven Years Earlier

  4. Private Hangar 7, Raleigh-Durham International Airport

  5. Outside of Cairo

  6. Cosmo Internet Café, London

  7. World Health Organization, London

  8. World Health Organization, London

  9. Kasir El Aini Hospital, Cairo

  10. World Health Organization—Information Technology Department

  11. Travelodge Dartford, Outside of London

  Part II

  12. Inception

  13. Escape

  14. London Gatwick International Airport

  15. Nile Basin

  16. Cairo International Airport

  17. El Maadi Condominiums, Cairo

  18. Atlantic Ocean

  19. Outside of Cairo

  20. Intercontinental Hotel Cairo

  Part III

  21. Kasir El Aini Hospital, Cairo

  22. Wightwick Manor

  23. Genetic Engineering Research Institute, Cairo

  24. Kasir El Aini Hospital, Cairo

  25. Nile Basin

  26. Outside of Cairo

  27. Giza Plateau

  28. The Hall of Records

  29. Kasir El Aini Hospital

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  Author’s Note

  About the Author

  Prologue

  Giza Plateau, Egypt—1913

  Lord George Renley studied the carving in the stone door, his lips pursed in an expression of perpetual disapproval. A bird of prey? Every detail was exquisitely crafted, from the wings, unfurled gracefully in flight, to its curved talons locked around a glimmering, triangular object.

  He leaned closer, his skin tingling. Goose bumps skimmed all the way from his toes to the nape of his neck, where the hairs stirred and tried to lift off.

  “Sahib?”

  Renley flinched at the sound behind him, the echo of the long tunnel giving the voice of his Arab guide a ghostly quality. He shot a glance toward Hazim.

  “Mind the light,” Renley said.

  He pulled out a leather-bound notebook and flipped through the pages, eyes darting between the meticulous drawings and the translucent object in the bird’s talons. He handed the notebook to Hazim and took the torch. The triangle sparkled, reflecting the dancing light of his torch, shimmering like a firefly flickering in and out of existence.

  Renley coughed, his throat parched from the stale air. His face tightened at the drops of sticky wetness the cough left on his fingertips. He raised his hand—and stared at the red blots on his palm.

  “Sahib!” The cry behind him sounded distant. Renley turned and recoiled. Blood streaked from the other man’s nose. He groaned and stretched out a hand to Renley.

  “This place…” Hazim backed away with dread in his eyes. “The oracle spoke truth!”

  Renley’s vision blurred. A slash of pain in his head mingled with the ear-piercing scream of his guide. He watched Hazim reel then rush for the entrance, the sound of his footsteps disappearing into the tunnel.

  “Hazim!” Renley’s voice grated in his throat, his tongue heavy. Time seemed to slow as darkness enveloped him and the tunnel began to spin. He reached for the wall only to find that his body refused to obey his command and he sank to the ground. His knees hit the limestone floor. Fear came as a surprise, an unknown sensation, when Lord Renley grasped that he would die alone, buried under the great Sphinx with pain and shadow his only companions.

  Hazim staggered along the wall of the tunnel. He dared not look back. After an eternity in the blackness, he reached the entrance and collapsed to the ground. Groaning, he forced his body toward the narrow opening chiseled into the bottom of the stone door.

  His head appeared beneath the open sky and he hungrily sucked in the cold air of the desert night. He looked up at the other men through the crimson haze.

  “Saa'idni,” he pleaded, blood gurgling in his throat. The workmen gasped at this apparition of horror, blood streaking from its eyes and mouth. The men backed away to the far wall of the large excavation pit then rushed for the ramp as one and scattered into the desert.

  Hazim’s clawed fingers raked the sand in his futile struggle to pull himself free of the cursed tunnel. Halfway through the opening, he collapsed. With a final, desperate effort, he rolled onto his back and peered into the vastness above him.

  Tears mixed with blood dimmed his vision as he prayed to his god, his eyes staring sightlessly at the stars, divine witnesses to his death. He did not see the small boy warily approach him and snatch Lord Renley’s notebook from his lifeless grasp before scurrying after the men into the moonlit desert. He did not feel the sand covering his face as the desert reclaimed her land, reshaping it in the image of the wind.

  Part 1

  AWAKENING

  1 Chumbivilcas, South Peru—Present Day

  We are born naked, wet, and hungry—then things get worse.

  Alyssa licked the salt from her lips. A-ha’s Hunting High and Low blared from her earbuds as she wiped her forehead on the sleeve of her vintage Willis & Geiger top—last year’s sweet sixteen present from her father. She had tagged along on plenty of his digs since they moved to Egypt seven years ago. None of them were exactly vacations, but this one was definitely in a league of its own.

  Stop feeling sorry for yourself.

  She dipped her hand into the colorful chalk bag hanging from her hip and lifted her head to study the steep wall above her, scoping out the next handhold. Alyssa shook off the excess chalk and pushed her fingertips into a small crevice above her head. She ignored the pain of the rock digging into her skin and used her legs to push up her weight before clipping her safety line into the next anchor.

  A cool breeze lifted her hair and tickled her neck. She smiled and closed her eyes then pushed her feet against the rock and leaned back, letting the rope support her weight and giving her drained muscles a much-needed break.

  As if the daily climbs to catalog the Chinisiri mountainside graves weren’t grueling enough, two days ago her father had been urgently called back to their home in Cairo and put her in charge of the entire dig in his absence—much to the bafflement of the rest of the team. He probably had no clue that his students were placing bets on the price tag of her first screw-up. Thanks a lot, Old Man… No pressure.

  They all conceded that, though just a senior in high school, she’s had far more field experience than most of his college students. She had certainly put in her dues. While her classmates at Cairo International Academy were busy swapping stories about their exotic summer vacations and fussing over their
back-to-school mani-pedis, she kept mostly to herself, callused palms hidden in her pockets, fighting to extract week-old dirt caked under her fingernails—and quietly thankful she hadn’t picked up some bizarre flesh-eating bacteria while digging in the armpit of the world. Not to mention the countless hours she spent arranging visas and work permits for digs in countries with names most people couldn’t even pronounce. Still, there was plenty of grumbling from everybody in the camp about her father’s decision to leave her in charge… herself included.

  Well, better not screw this one up.

  She reached for the next handhold when the music in her earbuds faded and a buzz announced an incoming call. She glanced at her smartwatch.

  Speak of the devil… She rolled her eyes and pushed the button to answer the call.

  “You know, you don’t have to check up on me every—”

  “Alyssa,” her father’s voice sounded almost effervescent, “the Council of Antiquities accepted my appeal.”

  Alyssa’s heart seemed to freeze, and then it began to pound. She tightened her grip on the rope securing her to the mountain.

  “Alyssa, do you copy?”

  “What?” she gasped. “How? Why now?”

  “It’s the council… who knows?” He laughed. “As long as those desk jockeys give us the permits. We’re going in!”

  “Who else?”

  “We’re keeping it small and low-key, for now. Ed Wallace and his team sent us the last set of the satellite images. They’re wheels up from JFK with the equipment, arriving here tomorrow morning.” He sighed. “Of course, the council is sending observers. The minister wants to make sure we do everything by the book.”

  She checked her watch. “I can make the early morning flight from Cusco. I’ll be there tomorrow evening.”

  “They only gave us a twenty-four-hour window.”

  “Twenty-four hours? I’m on the face of a mountain, half a world away!”

  “I need you to stay and finish cataloging—”

  “What? You run off and leave me in charge of this dig to plead with the council, but—”

  “Alyssa—”

  “This’ll be the biggest thing since Tut! You’ve been dragging me around the world with you ever since Mom—”

  “I’m sorry. The schedule is set. We go in first light tomorrow.”

  Her mind raced. “If I leave now, I can still catch the evening flight and be in Cairo in the morning.”

  “It’s too dangerous. Jacob told me you’re a thousand feet up in the air. It’ll take you a couple of hours just to get—”

  “Dangerous?” Her voice cracked. “Dangerous? What about Masada? Hiding from mercenaries in the world’s first toilet drain? That wasn’t dangerous?”

  “Alyssa, please, just—”

  “I’ll be there, Kade. Don’t you go in without me.” She clicked the button and ended the connection. She switched the headset to the walkie talkie.

  “Jake, talk to me.”

  The voice of her father’s grad student filled her earbuds. “Forget it, Wallerina.”

  “I don’t care what Kade told you,” Alyssa shot back.

  “Your—dad—told me not to let you do anything stupid,” Jacob said.

  “I’m going.”

  “No chance. I’ve been following your ascent through the scope. You just cleared the large headwall on the south face, elevation 358 meters. Even if you rush, you’ll never make—”

  “Not rappelling.” Alyssa’s lips curved into a mischievous smile. She reached to her waist and pulled the large Bushcrafter knife from its sheath.

  “Oh, no…” She could hear the panic creeping into Jacob’s voice as realization dawned on him.

  “Better get started on the pre-flight checks, Jake.”

  “Please don’t do this to me, Alyssa.”

  Alyssa closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

  “Your dad is going to kill me!”

  She kicked off the mountain as hard as she could and swung out like a pendulum away from the wall.

  “Alyssa, don’t!” Jake’s scream resonated in her ears as she stretched and cut the line securing her to the mountain.

  Time froze, then—

  The rush of adrenaline surging through her body and the acceleration was instantaneous. The wind howled in her ears as she fell, faster and faster, transforming the side of the mountain into a blur.

  Alyssa arched, turning her body in midair, and pulled the ripcord. A split-second later the gut-wrenching jerk of the safety parachute arrested her free fall.

  Her body still trembling, she reached up and pulled on the steering lines to guide her away from the wall.

  “Woohoo!” Alyssa’s voice reflected off the mountain, a huge grin splitting her face.

  Alyssa’s Bucket List Item #21: Cut a perfectly good life line securing me to the mountain. Check!

  “Alyssa, you’re friggin’ insane!” Jacob shrieked in her earbuds, his voice shaking like a taut rope. “If your dad finds out, he’ll never leave you at a dig alone again!” He paused. “And he’ll never let me graduate!”

  “No worries, Jake, our secret is safe. Now get the Cessna ready.” She ended the connection. Kade will never hear about the BASE jumping lessons you’ve been giving me in our spare time.

  Her racing heart began to settle. Slowly, her blood found its way into her limbs again. She looked at the ground below, easily spotting their camp and the clearing they had been using as a landing strip for their small Cessna airplane. She steered the parachute toward it and her thoughts turned to her father.

  I can’t believe he finally got the permits…

  His fascination—no, make it obsession—with the fabled Hall of Records had cost her any semblance of a normal childhood… and had gotten him into trouble on more occasions than she cared to remember. The Egyptian Council of Antiquities had insisted on solid evidence proving the existence of the chambers before even considering granting a permit for a dig. For years he’s been fighting an uphill battle. Then, two days ago and completely out of the blue, he was summoned back to Cairo for a special hearing. A mad rush from Peru to Egypt got him there just in time, so he could present his petition for the excavation.

  And a day later they approve the dig? And now he wants to go in by himself? After everything that’s happened? After Mom?

  Her thoughts were still on her father when she spotted three white Land Rovers speeding for the camp. She squinted, struggling to make out details. Seconds later the SUVs came to a screeching halt in the middle of the camp and several men jumped out.

  What the…?

  Then she saw the weapons in their hands.

  Before her brain fully processed the scene, she pulled the right steering line and her parachute veered sharply away from the camp. A second later she realized her blunder as she stared at the dense rain forest canopy below her. Her eyes darted across the tops of the trees, frantically searching for another clearing. She plummeted closer to the sharp limbs with every heartbeat.

  I’m out of time!

  The trees were all around her. She grunted, sharp branches scraping her arms and legs. The ground sped at her far too quickly. She screamed an instant before her parachute lines tightened and the harness jolted her upward—then everything stopped.

  Still dazed, she looked at the branches around her then down. Less than fifteen feet. Ground looks soft. She took a deep breath and released the metal clamp of the parachute harness.

  The next second she was lying face-down on the forest floor, spitting furiously to expel foliage in various stages of decomposition from her mouth. Moaning, she rolled onto her back, doing her best not to gag—and to forget her biology lessons about the average number of invertebrates per cubic centimeter of soil in a tropical rain forest.

  Okay, so the landings still need some work…

  Alyssa slowly sat up. Her body was sluggish, but her brain was in overdrive. What’s happening? Who are those men?

  She wiggled her toes and fingers
and flexed the muscles in her arms and legs. She hurt all over, but everything seemed to work. Gingerly, she got to her feet and checked the range of motion in her joints. She examined her body. A dozen bumps and bruises, but no serious injury. She shook her head in disbelief.

  Better to be lucky than good.

  Alyssa glanced at her compass. The mountains are north, so the camp site should be due east. She motivated her bruised muscles to budge and set off for the camp.

  After a few minutes, the familiar sight of the tents came into view through the dense forest. Alyssa slowed as she approached the clearing. The camp looked deserted, but the three SUVs were still there. She strained her ears.

  Nothing.

  She waited another minute and surveyed the site.

  Where is everybody?

  Cautiously, she left the cover of the trees and crept slowly toward the large tent.

  “Where is she?”

  Alyssa jumped at the sound of the harsh voice, before realizing it came from inside the tent. She swallowed hard and crept closer, holding her breath.

  “Who?”

  Alyssa froze when she recognized Jake’s strained voice.

  “Don’t test me.” The other man’s tone was cold as an Arctic lake. “Jacob—is it?”

  Alyssa’s skin tingled. Without thinking, her hand locked around a fistful of dirt. She saw the shadow of the man behind her an instant before she felt his hand in her hair, and he pulled her up roughly, dragging her toward the tent opening.