Early the next morning, she found Ardeth-Bey sitting at the table eating breakfast. When she sat down, he poured her a cup of coffee and pushed the basket of flatbread towards her.
"Eat," he commanded and took another strip of lamp from a platter and took a bite. She shook her head, having no desire for anything but coffee.
He looked at her, studying her, "I saw your father this morning carrying a strong box. I told him 'good morning' but either he did not hear me or he did not know I was here."
"You mean he seemed preoccupied, don't you? I told him good night and he acted as if I wasn't even there. Today's the day we pay the workers, I wonder if he carried their wages?" She paused, then said, "I am going to call the bank and ask if he made the withdrawal, if not, I must do it for the workers must be paid."
"I think that is wise," he said as she got up from the table, "I am afraid your father is not himself."
She dialed the number of their bank and Luxor and asked if the month's withdrawal had been made. "I see," she said, "I will be in there shortly and do it myself. My father has obviously forgotten." She hung up the phone then put her hands over her eyes as she began to cry.
He left his seat and put his arm around her waist. "I am sorry this is happening," he said, "I want you to know I will do everything I can to help."
"I have to go to the bank and get the money. I cannot believe Father did this to his workers. I must make sure that things are packed up and ready to be delivered to the museum. The tents must be taken down and the equipment readied for storage until the next season. And I must see if Father is sincere regarding this mad scheme to transport part of the artifacts by camel, if it is true he must have taken leave of his senses."
"I will meet you at the site and try to find out from the workers what is going on." Ardeth tried to soothe her, "They may be willing to tell me things they would not say to you for one reason or another. If we are truly meant follow through with this madness, I will find us some good camels and supplies. The first half of the journey we will be mostly on our own, there are several small towns after that where we can acquire what we need. Please do not worry, it will be all right."
She allowed herself a quick bath, then dressed and drove the truck she kept in Luxor to the bank. She was half afraid that her father may have withdrawn their funds—for whatever reason she did not know—but the account contained not only the workers' wages, but the bonuses they handed out at the end of every season.
She took a felucca to the opposite bank and allowed on of the camel drivers to escort her to Deir El Medina. For a small fee, and food and drink, he was willing to wait for her and escort her back to the landing where she would return to Luxor.
Her father had returned to Deir El Medina and seemed his old self, slightly surprised that he had forgotten the workmen's wages, but laughing it off, saying he must be going soft in the head. And of course, he knew that if he had forgotten, he could depend on her to remember for him.
This disturbed her but she said nothing. She supervised the final packing, the load she would take with Ardeth remaining in a small supply tent. She paid the workers, making sure that each received his bonus, and asked them if they would be willing to come back the next digging season. Though some seemed apprehensive, most were more than eager for the professor would pay them better than any other archaeologist. Carter-Bey provided work but his wages were stingy, they would rather work for the professor.
Ardeth-Bey rode up, leading for sturdy and well-fed camels. "We can load them up today and I will leave them with my father overnight. He is willing to tarry for one day, but the valley is barren and the herds need to be fed. You must be ready to leave tomorrow morning—I will come and fetch you. He is also willing to supply us with enough food to make it through the desert. We can fill the waterskins and hopefully they will supply us with enough water."
"Tell your father 'thank you', or better still, I will tell him myself tomorrow. That is very kind of him."
"He is worried, he feels that this is not good. He admires your father and wonders why he does this. He is sending word out to the tribes to let them know we are coming. If any Bedouin are in the area they will be on the lookout for us."
"Ardeth, is it true that your people claim they are descended from the Medjay?'
He laughed, breaking the tension, "There are some who like to tell that story. If so that would make us rather ruthless and cruel, don't you think? After all, we guarded the village to keep the inhabitants from stealing from the pharaoh's grave goods. No, and you should know this, we are more Arab than Egyptian now, with maybe a little Turkish and Greek thrown in. If we were the Medjay, it was a very long time ago."
She did not sleep well that night. Nightmares haunted her sleep with images of the old Egyptian gods, long-dead pharaohs, and monsters. Taking a bath helped refresh her, somewhat, and it would be the last she'd have for a while she reminded herself.
She was finishing her breakfast when Busa led Ardeth into the room.
"Did you eat well?" he asked, "I want to cover as many miles as we can before the weather gets too hot." He peered closely at her, "You did not sleep well?"
"No, I did not," she would not tell him why, "But it is probably only nerves about this trip. We probably should have left last night while the air was still cool. I will sleep after we stop—if not, please make sure I do not fall off my camel."
Some of the Medjay—how funny it was that they named themselves after the guards of the Valley—were waiting for them at the site of her father's camp. Her father was supervising the loading of the pack camels they would use, his truck had been loaded the night before.
She could hear Ardeth and his father arguing about the folly of the trip to Minya through the desert, she was surprised to hear Ardeth defending it. The necessity of protecting her was the priority, he told his father, it was only the first part that would be hazardous, but he had heard that there might be Bedouin roaming in area so if they encountered trouble help would not be far away.
Sandstorm season was a month away, Ardeth argued, their route would follow the Nile and if one did occur there were caves and old tombs in the cliffs that they could take refuge in. The camels could be brought in, too, so there would be no danger of losing them.
She agreed with Ardeth's father, this trip was folly. Something must have possessed her father for had he been in his right mind he never would have suggested it.
He came over to her and hugged her, "Be careful daughter, don't let the camels out of your sight. I am sure that Ardeth Bey will protect you. I will see you when you arrive in Cairo." He kissed the top of her blond head and went to his car.
"How is he?" he asked her.
"I don't know," she replied, "He is acting too normal and it bothers me. For once I am eager to leave the village. Let us travel as far as we can in the heat, then make the camp—I could certainly use some sleep."
"Well, the camels are packed and loaded with supplies. The goatskin tent I brought will be easy for two people to assemble and give us some protection from the heat during the day. My father brought along a generous supply of food, some dried lamb and dates, along with lots of bread that we must eat before it grows stale or moldy. The water skins are full and placed where we will have easy access. Is there anything else you need?"
"I was hoping to make one last trip to the village before we left but there is no time. Let us leave, Ardeth, if I linger too long here, I will lose my courage."
The pack camels were tied to their saddles. Roma had long ago learned how to make the camel kneel so she could mount, and had learned how to ride them like a Bedouin. She would have preferred taking horses, but these "ships of the desert" were better suited to their needs and she had long ago learned to tolerate their cantankerous natures.
The sun had already started its ascent into the clear blue sky of the desert. The day would grow from hot to unbearable hot in a few hours. She cursed herself for making such a slow start, hoping that they could at least make their way past the valleys of the kings and queens before they halted.
The relentless sun was growing hotter and even Ardeth, son of the desert that he was, decided he wished to go no further. "There is not much to shelter us here," he said apologetically, "But let us pitch the tent and try to get some sleep through the hottest part of the day. When the sun starts to go down it will start to cool a little."
She would have objected, she felt as if eyes were watching her back but she was tired from lack of sleep and needed to rest. They pitched the tent, a curious affair of black goatskin and a little awning to provide shelter for cooking and allowed the camels a bit of shade.
Though it was hot, she collapsed on her cot without the precaution of drinking water first and woke with a terrible thirst. She got up, careful not to wake Ardeth, and found of the waterskins and drank deeply.
It was so hot now that the sky seemed to have lost its blue color and turned a ghostly white. She was familiar with this phenomenon having spent a good deal of time in the desert herself, but it never failed to catch her off guard. Now it seemed like an evil omen to her, like a sign that nothing good would come of what she was trying to do. The desert would win and she would lose and whatever it was that the baggage hid on the camel, the evil it carried would doom her.
"What are you doing?" asked Ardeth and she held up the waterskin, "I was thirsty, I forgot to drink before I lay down on the cot."
"That was my fault," he took the container from her and replaced it on the camel, "I should have made sure that you did. Come inside and rest, it will be some time before set out for the evening."
She didn't move but stared at the ghostly white sky, "Do you something is going to happen to us, something bad, I mean?"
"Of course not, why are you letting your imagination run away with you? I could hide you safely in the desert for weeks and no one would find you and that is what I will do if I have to. Come inside and rest, you are anxious for your father, that is all."
She lay down once more and went back to sleep, a deep sleep empty of dreams. She did not see Ardeth watching her, not falling asleep himself until he was sure she was all right.