DISCLAIMER: The Mummy, The Mummy Returns, and it's characters belong to Stephen Sommers and Universal Pictures
Chapter 4:
The three had prepared themselves for the chaos that they were sure to find on their return to Cairo but they were not prepared to find the place looking as if nothing major had taken place. The marketplace near the museum was bustling and not one boil or sore could be seen.
They dismounted, took the camels by the reigns, and walked to the spot where Dr. Bey had been crushed to death by Imhotep's mob. They gave a moment of silence, thanking him for sacrificing his life to save theirs. Evie and Jonathan were particularly saddened by the loss of this man who had been a father figure and had helped to make sure they were taken care of in every way, especially with their schooling.
They headed for the Cairo Museum in continued silence. After tying the camel's reigns, Rick untied the three bags of treasure and swung two of them over his shoulder. Jonathan and Evie carried in the third bag.
"You gentlemen stay here with the bags," Evie motioned to the entryway, "and I'll see if I can find someone."
Evie headed towards the offices, marveling at how quickly everything had been put in order. She frowned and shook her head when she noticed some pieces were missing. They'd probably been damaged or destroyed when Imhotep's mob had come in after them.
She entered the research and reference library, which was still in disarray. The shelves had been set up properly, but the thousands of books were set in piles everywhere. Leave it to clumsy Evelyn to make a mess that would take five times longer to clean up than the mess of an entire mob.
Evie was so lost in thought that she did not hear someone come up behind her. She turned and her heart leapt into her throat when she nearly collided with what must surely be an apparition. She could feel the blood leave her face and she was sure she would have screamed and passed out if not for the courage she had gained, thanks to her recent skirmish with Imhotep and his minions.
"D...Dr. Bey?" she stuttered, reaching out her hand to see if he was real.
The man gave her hand a reassuring pat as he gave her a kind smile.
"Yes, my child. I am Dr. Bey, though not the one you are thinking of. I am Joseph, Terrence's brother. We were but a year apart in age, and as you have noticed, we looked very much alike."
Evie put a hand over her racing heart feeling both saddened that it wasn't really Dr. Terrence Bey and relief that she was not dealing with another supernatural being.
"I see." She looked him over once more and did notice some slight differences in their features. "Dr. Bey, your brother I mean, never mentioned that he had any family-" She broke off realizing that what she had just said was highly inappropriate.
"Oh my," she tried her best to correct her rudeness. "I'm terribly sorry. I meant- Well I'm sure he must have- I mean-"
"It is all right my dear," he said patting her hand once again. "I know by brother never spoke of his family. It was part of the Med-jai code put in place to ensure the safety of the warrior's loved ones."
Evie smiled and let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you for the reassurance. Forgive me, but I haven't introduced myself. I'm-"
"Miss Evelyn Carnahan, I know. My brother sang his praises of you. He said you were the best librarian in all of Egypt, if not the world." He smiled as she looked a little startled with this revelation. "My brother was not good with giving compliments, I am afraid."
Evelyn's eyes shone with tears. "I really do miss him. He taught me a great deal about Egypt's history. He also had great patience for my clumsiness." She waved her hand at the stacks of books everywhere as evidence of her most recent mishap.
Joseph raised his eyebrows as he looked around the room. "You mean you did this? I had thought the angry mob had unleashed their fury right here in this very room." He bit down on his bottom lip to keep from laughing as she blushed with embarrassment. "Oh, but do not worry. This sort of thing happens all the time in libraries."
"Really?" said Evie in complete surprise.
"No, not really." He burst out laughing as her jaw dropped.
Evie lightly swatted his arm as she laughed. "Oh, you are a beastly man!"
Their laughing subsided and there was a bit of uncomfortable silence, which Joseph was quick to dispel.
"Miss Carnahan-"
"Please, call me Evelyn."
"In that case, Evelyn, I must insist that you call me Joseph. Now then, would you be interested in taking up your position again here? I need someone to help me organize this library and I hear that no one else within a thousand miles can properly code and catalog this library." He winked.
Evie's heart filled with joy as she recalled saying those words to Dr. Bey. He really had been proud of her.
"I would be delighted to. I am, after all, the mastermind behind this catastrophe. Though it would be a temporary post seeing as I am planning on moving back to England." All joking aside, she looked him straight in the eye and continued. "It's the least I can do. I feel as if I am to blame for your brother's death. If I hadn't have insisted on going to Haman-"
"My dear child! Surely you do not blame yourself!" Joseph quickly interrupted and took a step closer to her so he could speak in a quieter voice. "Evelyn, what's done is done. It was bound to happen at some point. It was fate, for you and your associates had the courage, knowledge, and strength that was required to put an end to this curse." He lowered his voice even more. "Be careful when you speak of that place, my dear. The walls have ears." He gave a discreet nod towards the open door of his office.
Evie looked passed Joseph's shoulder in the direction of the main office and noticed for the first time a man whom she'd never seen before.
He was standing with his hands in his pocket and appeared to be studying a painting on the wall. She only had a viewpoint of his profile, but from what she could see, he appeared to be a scholarly man, most likely an archeologist.
He wore a brown suit and a pair of glasses. His dark brown hair was trimmed short and neatly brushed back. He was a tall man and appeared to be well built, but by his neat and tidy appearance, she guessed he was the type of archeologist who stood by the sidelines and instructed others on where to dig and what to do, though his tan complexion proved he didn't go as far as to shade himself under an umbrella, like the late Dr. Chamberlain.
She came to an obvious conclusion simply by his appearance.
"American?"
Joseph smiled. "Precisely. Stubborn, persistent, and to be perfectly blunt, a pain in the ass."
As if right on cue, Rick walked into the room.
"Speaking of." Evie began.
Rick gave a long whistle as he looked around the room. "Wow. What happened in here?" Rick looked towards Evie and the back of the person she had been talking to. The man turned toward him. Rick paused and unconsciously placed his right hand on one of his guns.
Evie's cheeks turned red with embarrassment and she avoided answering Rick's question. "Rick, this is Dr. Bey, the new curator. Joseph, this is Rick O'Connell. He's, ah-" What exactly was he to her? "an acquaintance of mine," she continued lamely.
Rick extended his hand in greeting. "Great to meet ya. You remind me of someone I met once," Rick said in an attempt to apologize for reaching for his gun.
"Yes, I seem to be getting a lot of that today."
"So, You're the new curator?" Rick asked.
"Yes, for the time being. I am here until they have found a permanent qualifying person to fill the position."
"I see. Well Dr. Bey, it's been fun, but it's been a long day and we've gotta run. Evie, I'll be up front. Your brother is acting like everyone's out to get his treasure and I'd hate to see him thrown in jail for beating someone senseless with that damn gold stick of his."
Evie shushed him and nodded towards the office. "Quiet," she whispered. "Joseph has someone in his office. And besides, it is not a gold stick. It's called a scepter."
"My apologies, oh All Knowing One." Rick smirked and gave an exaggerated bow. He said a final goodbye to Dr. Bey. On his way out, he took a discrete glace towards the office and put the man's profile to memory, a trait that he'd learned through necessity as a young boy. His instincts told him he'd have to watch out for that man.
"Joseph, I believe we may add arrogant and aggravating to that list."
