Chapter 3: Tender Destroyer of Evil
Southwestern Coast of Portugal,
July 1939
The day dawned bright and fresh. Rick practically leapt out of bed pulled up the sash and flung open the window allowing the cool salty air to come billowing into the room. He nudged Evelyn awake and immediately ordered her to put on her bathing suit so that they could rush out to the beach before it got too hot. Today they would be choosing names for the baby, he was sure of it. The way she had been holding the book last night meant that she would not forget about it.
Evelyn stood up groggily then ran into the bathroom and threw up. The morning sickness still hadn't quite left her. It had gotten less violent though, which was good. Usually if she had a bit of cracker before she got out of bed she was fine, but she forgot this morning. After she had finished and was feeling better she flushed the toilet, washed her face and brushed her teeth. Then, she braided her hair and slipped into her bathing suit. After she had done this Rick came in to wash his face only to find Evelyn taking up all the space in front of the mirror looking at herself sideways. "Honey, I think I am bigger than I was with Alex at this point. Boy I really hope that this baby isn't going to be large. Because if it is they are going to have to give me some serious pain medication."
"I'll say... With your screaming the last time it's a wonder the whole hospital didn't awake!" Rick said.
"Hey! I don't see you giving birth!" She replied poking him lovingly in the ribs.
"Eh! Eh! Don't mess with the six pack!"
"What six pack? I don't see any muscle at all!" Evelyn said beginning to laugh.
"You just have to search for it...It's under all the fat, see?" He explained pushing her fingers into his very firm stomach.
"Oh Rick, I love you!"
"I love you too sweetheart." He declared as they shared a kiss. "Now, what do you say we go down and grab some fruit and then go out to the beach and think of names for the baby with your new book?"
"Oh I would love that! Oh Rick thank you so much for the book, it's absolutely wonderful, and it's so beautiful as well!" Her eyes welled up again.
"Oh Evie, darling, don't cry... Shhh, shhh, it's ok." He reassured her as he drew her close patting her back and smoothing her hair.
"Rick I want this baby out. I am so fat and ugly, and my feet are all swollen and I feel like a blimp!" The last came out as a sob.
"Evelyn, I don't ever want to hear you say that ever again. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, and you are my wife, and I love you dearly. When the baby is born you will go back to your normal size again, you'll see. And you will be more radiant than ever. But my love for you will never alter, it will just continue to grow. And, you are not a blimp." She nodded, sniffling, and snuggling into his shoulder. She then dried her eyes and they walked hand in hand down to the veranda with the baby book and lotion and towels accompanying them.
After a quick breakfast of fresh pineapple, mango, papaya and toast the couple retreated to the beach, spreading their towels, and putting lotion on each other before they settled down to decide on names.
The cool moist air blew the wisps of hair against Evelyn's face as she leaned back into her husband's lap, reveling in the moment. She placed her hand on her belly, rubbing soothingly as she felt the baby kick. "Rick the baby's kicking again, and it won't stop." She pouted, knowing that only Rick's soothing words could lull the baby back to sleep.
"Ok, ok, ok, fine..." Rick mumbled as he came around to her side and reluctantly put his cheek and ear to her tummy. "Hey baby, today we are going to give you a name. Isn't that exciting? Your own name. But, since we don't know whether or not you are a boy or a girl we are just going to have to pick two names and use them each equally that way when you come out and make your mommy 'un-ugly--'" Evelyn heard that and punched Rick in the shoulder. "Hey, that hurt! Now your mum's abusing me, maybe you should kick some more..." Just then Rick let out a yelp and removed his head from his wife's stomach as fast as he could.
"What is it honey?" Evelyn asked trying to suppress a smile.
"The baby got me right in the jaw!" He replied, rubbing his slightly red cheek.
"Oh Rick, you will have to forgive it, it's just a little thing! Now, what do you say we go about finding you a name." With that Evelyn opened the book and turned to the first page. Which was full of A's. The first thing Evelyn noticed about the book was that a lot of the names were in Arabic. "Oh Rick, where did you find this book? The names are incredible! Like Adara, and Akilah, and Ashia. They are beautiful."
"Yes, I thought so too. When I told the manager in the store that you would really appreciate a book comprised mostly of Arabic names, he said he had just the book for us. When he came out of storage with this one, I knew if was perfect." He bent down and kissed her before they again continued their search for names.
"Hey, Evie, what about Bertha?" Rick asked smirking. "It's kind of interesting!"
"Rick how could you even suggest such a name? It reminds me of a cow, and I would not have our child walking around being called 'Bertha'. It reminds of this poor girl in London when I was little. She was on the large side and people always used to call her 'Big Bertha'. I felt so sorry for her. Hey... how about the name Aslan, that's a really pretty name!"
"Yes, it is, but, I don't know, it makes me think of a Lion's mane. Don't ask why, it just does." He said beginning to laugh.
"A...what? A lion's mane? I think that's the funniest thing I have heard all day. Ok, I guess 'Aslan' is out of the picture. What about Naida? That's a pretty name."
"What does it mean?" Rick asked, his nose buried in her hair.
"Well, the meaning kind of makes the name not so nice. It means 'water nymph'."
"'Water Nymph'? Ha! That's all I have to say."
"Hmn. Well, the name Christina is kind of nice, but the meaning is not what we would like at all. It means 'follower of Christ'. That might not go over too well with Alex or Jonathan."
"Yeah, I agree, I don't think one of our children would appreciate that too much either." There was a pause as Evie flipped through several pages and then stopped.
"Oh my goodness Rick! I found it! The perfect name!" If she could have gotten up quickly she would have done so and jumped up and down.
"Well, would you prefer to just have me wait in angst, or would you mind telling me?" He asked patiently.
"Mahalia- tender. Isn't it beautiful Rick? It's perfect."
"Yes it is. I like that name a lot, if we have a girl it will suit her well. Ok, so on to the boy names."
They lay there for awhile while Evelyn looked through the book and picked out names she liked. "Ok, so we are down to the following: Akil, Hashim, Devlin, Faruq, Fakhir, Harun, and Jakeem. You pick one and then I will pick one and we will see if they are the same and then go from there."
"Wait a second, you have to tell me what they all mean first!"
"Ok, Akil- intelligent, Hashim- destroyer of evil, Devlin doesn't have a meaning I just thought of it, Faruq means wise, Fakhir-proud, Harun-superior, and Jakeem means raised up."
"Alrighty. I have my favorite...are you ready?"
"Yes, I think so." Evelyn replied. "OK. On the count of three we will say the names that we have picked and then we will go from there I guess. Ready, alright...one...two...three-"
On three they said in perfect unity "Hashim".
"Oh, that's just wonderful, we agreed on the same name!" Evelyn marveled.
"Well, the name is rather fitting for our family, don't you think? Destroyer of evil...Maybe if it's a boy Hashim will put Imhotep back in his grave forever, assuming I haven't done that already."
Evelyn's face changed from a large grin into a fading smile as she recounted those horrible events with a great sense of foreboding. The thought of the high priest returning once again to claim more of their lives than he had already sent chills up and down her spine, and she shook visibly.
Feeling her shudder Rick asked, "Hey Evie, are you alright?" his voice showing his concern.
"Yes, I am fine." She lied, not wanting to worry him. The day had been going too well for it to be ruined by some self-doubt. "The wind just hit me from a certain angle and I got the shivers for a second." She wrapped her arms around her even though she wasn't cold. "Let's go into the water Rick." She presented, hoping to change the subject.
"Sure." He took her hand, helping her up and then wrapped his arms around her. "Evie, you don't have to lie to me, tell me what's wrong."
There was no further use in hiding something she had been concerned about for so long so she forced it out of herself. "Rick, what if Imhotep isn't truly dead? What if he finds some way of returning to this world- what would we do? We have outfought ourselves in every way."
"Well. I will tell you what we'd do. We would fight to preserve everything we have created. Our house, our lives, and our children. But, Evelyn, there's nothing to worry about. We got him, he's gone, forever, I promise." Rick wrapped his arms around her and there they stayed for a minute or two, basking in the ethereal glow of each other.
~*~
A tiny life form gurgles and spins,
It knows not of anguish.
Its existence is hazy with glowing warmth,
It knows nothing of darkness.
All is peaceful in its untouched environment,
It knows not of destruction.
Everything is unfazed, unfractured.
But what is this we call peace?
It knows nothing of slavery,
What kind of newfound wisdom does it embody?
It knows nothing of knowledge,
It knows of only itself.