Minya had been around since the time of the pyramid builders and in its time had been part of a major trade route in the Levant. Perhaps because of this the town had not died away, but had survived various conquests of Egypt and now flourished.
It was not only a stopping over point for the ships that made the journey up and down the Nile, there were also hotels and shops and other conveniences designed to attract the money of the tourists.
Roma purchased galabiyas, the garb most frequently worn by the modern Egyptians, but there were also shops where she could purchase clothes for herself. She picked out a beige linen suit and a blue blouse, a skirt and a comfortable white shirt. The journey to Cairo was only 150 miles so she would wait to have their dirty garments washed when they got home.
They boarded early the next morning, Ardeth having seen to their camels which he would bring with him when he returned home. The stateroom he had booked for her was just big enough to be comfortable for the day's journey. They would reach Cairo that night.
Once he had seen her settled, he went on deck to smoke a cigarette. Though he made this trip gladly for her sake, he was not comfortable amongst so much "civilization". He was not prepared when the boat took off with a shudder and for a moment, he lost his footing but stabled himself.
"You okay there?" he felt the touch of a hand on his shoulder and turned to find the face of Rick O'Connell staring at him. They shook hands delightedly, he was happy to see the tall handsome American, his companion in adventures that neither had thought they would ever experience.
"O'Connell," he said, surprised but glad to see him, "I thought you had returned to England."
"We did, but England proved far too cold and dreary. "Evie and I both missed Egypt so we put our son in boarding school and returned to assist on a dig in Abydos. We're returning to Cairo to consult with an archaeologist friend of hers, then we plan to return and assist Howard Carter with the removal of grave goods from Tutankhamen's tomb."
"Carter actually found an intact tomb?" Rick turned to see an attractive blond woman come to Ardeths's side. "I was wondering if it was just going to be another one of his follies."
Rick took a good look at her. She was slender, attractive, and had cut her blond hair short but it suited her. "Yes, ma'am, he did. One of the archaeologists working for Carter became ill and my wife was invited to take his place. The tomb was just recently opened but it contains some fantastic finds."
"I'm sorry, but I think I've met you and your wife once before but I can't recall your name. I'm Roma Wilkes-Pemberly, my father is..."
"Yes, I know," he replied, "My wife is an admirer of his work. I'm Rick O'Connell and my wife Evelyn works in the Egyptian Department of the British Museum."
"Yes, I recall now. Tell me, where are you and your wife staying? Do you have a house in Cairo?"
"We had thought to put up at a hotel room until we return to Luxor. It will only be a few days before we leave again."
"No, don't rent a hotel room, come and stay with my father and me. Our house has plenty of rooms and it's delightfully cool. Plus, we have an excellent cook. You'll be far more comfortable with us than in a hotel. Besides, you won't be charged extra to have your laundry done.
"I'll have to ask Evie but I'm sure she'll be delighted, especially since she will be able to discuss Egyptology with someone who will understand what she is talking about. Goodmorning, Miss Pemberley- Wilkes, Ardeth." He lumbered off to find his cabin.
Ardeth felt uncomfortable in his new clothes, but it did feel good to be wearing clean garments again. He tied his hair back and was not too unhappy with his reflection in the mirror.
Roma was wearing a skirt and a pink shirt. "You look nice," he told her, "I have never seen you..."
"Dressed like a woman?" she suggested, "We're meeting Rick and Evelyn for lunch so I thought I'd make a good impression. It felt good to take a bath and change, I couldn't wait until I returned home. I think it will be nice to have the O'Connell's staying with us. I will have support now when I confront Father. I want him to tell me why he was using us to smuggle those jewels to Cairo. You and Rick are imposing enough that he might feel obligated to tell the truth.
The "Pharaoh" was not a luxurious boat, but offered its passengers some measure of comfort. One of the ways it did this was to employ an excellent cook. There was not much European fare on the menu but delicious dishes confections of lamb, poultry, and couscous more than made up for it.
Evelyn O'Connell was looking as lovely as ever, Ardeth decided, with her dark mane of hair and brown eyes she formed a pleasant contrast to Roma's short golden hair and grey eyes. As he looked surreptitiously from one to the other, he could not make up his mind who was more beautiful.
He and O'Connell discussed his trip from the Valley to Minya, but he was not yet ready to discuss the incidents that happened to them in the deep desert, that would wait until they reached the safety of her house in Cairo.
Evelyn was filling Roma in on the details of Howard Carter's progress. "Carter pushed the workers to clear the passage, which they were more than willing to do just to get a glimpse of a Pharaoh's tomb. There was another doorway with the seal of the acropolis and when they broke through, they were met with the sight of gold everywhere. Can you imagine that? And that's only the first chamber! It will take ten years at least to clear the tomb and properly preserve the artifacts!"
"He will be lucky if he is the one who completes it. He is always at odds with Lacau who has little love for him and I can't blame him. Carter is arrogant, he's one of the best but insists on everything being done his way and will not tolerate interference from anyone. And if I know Carter and Carnarvon they are going to try to steal as much of the contents as they can for themselves. Carter had better watch himself."
"Yes, that is rather unfortunate, isn't it? Egypt's treasure belongs to the Egyptians, that is only right. It's too bad some people get so greedy and lose their perspective. We're here to help the Egyptians, not steal from them."
The boat docked after dinner in the soft, velvet Egyptian night. Rick and Ardeth made arrangements to stable the camels, relieving them of their loads and engaging a truck to take their baggage to villa the Wilkes-Pemberly's owned on the outskirts of Cairo. The women were loaded into a cab, along with their luggage, and driven to the quiet neighborhood where Roma lived with her father.
The house was old, having been remodeled from an Turkish villa that dated to the times of the Ottomans. The ceilings with their fans were high and the walls thick enough to keep it cool in the summer and, with the help of fireplaces, warm in the winter.
Roma was glad to be home, but something felt wrong. Where was her father? Excusing herself she ran to the garage where she and her father kept their vehicles, but there was no sign of her father's truck, or that he had been there recently.
"Is everything all right?" asked Evelyn but Roma shook her head.
"No, Father's truck is not here, and there is no sign that he has returned.
Ardeth and Rick entered the foyer and she ran to Ardeth and put her arms around him. "Ardeth, Father is not here. His truck is gone and it looks as though he hasn't been here."
"Have you talked to the servants? Maybe he only stepped out for a while," he said, but the look on her face told him that the news would not be good.
They questioned the servants in their rapid Arabic and Rick saw the troubled looks on their faces and knew. Pemberley hadn't returned from the Valley of the Kings.
Ardeth guided her to a seat on a sofa and Evelyn sat next to her and took her hand. "Is it possible that he was delayed?" she asked gently.
"Oh, it's possible, but unlikely. He should have been here before us. The servants say he hasn't been here although he was expected much earlier. If he was delayed, he would have left word for me in Minya." A servant came and handed her a glass of brandy which she drank gratefully. "Oh, I'm sorry, I should have asked if you wanted any." She looked around, confused, suddenly no longer the confident English woman but a confused young girl.
Rick and Evelyn accepted a brandy, Ardeth declined but took a cup of tea. They drank in silence until Roma interrupted saying, "We've got to go back to the Valley of the Kings and look for Father. I need to find out what happened to him!"
"It would do you no good," Rick said as kindly as he could, "Unless you know what route he took, if he took the main road out of the valley and headed for Cairo he should be here by now. If his vehicle broke down, anything could have happened. He could have been beset by bandits or he might have taken shelter with the local Bedouin. Either way it is not looking very good. You should check with the police in Luxor to find out if they have any word.
"And you have to meet with Lacau at the museum," Ardeth added, he looked at her, then at the O'Connells. Should I tell them his look said?
She dismissed the servants, then turned out all the lights, save those in the living room. She retrieved her saddlebags, then drew out the two canvas-wrapped packages.
"I have something to show you, but you must tell no one what you saw." They looked at her and nodded, then she opened first one bundle, then the other.
Evelyn drew in a sharp intake of breath, Rick whistled and said, "Oh my god—are those real?"
Evelyn picked up a bracelet and held it to the light, "This is exquisite, the workmanship and the quality of the gold." She examined one piece after another, "There is a fortune here, if a price could even be put on it. Where did it come from?"
"My father told me nothing but I suspect he found them stashed here and there in the Valley of the Kings, and Deir El Medina. He believes they are caches that the tomb robbers hid and intended to come back for later. He thinks there may be caches like this hidden in the valley, but with Carter working there he can't search it. I think he didn't intend to turn these over to the museum, but lined up a private buyer. And probably intended to receive a large sum of money.
"This is Egypt's heritage; it should not be taken out of the country. Look at this seched diadem, there is probably no other in existence. These scarabs and jewelry are from the New Kingdom. He had Ardeth and I smuggle it out without telling us what we were carrying."
"I don't know where my father is, or if he's even alive. There are so many unscrupulous people in this business that he could have gotten himself into trouble that he didn't foresee. I wonder if his buyers were expecting to retrieve these jewels here in Cairo, if so, I don't feel very safe."
"Ardeth and I can protect you for now," said Rick, pulling a pistol from a holster on his hip. He spun the chamber and then replaced it." The danger is that you don't know who you are deal with, do you?"
"No," she shook her head, "That's why I want to get these jewels to Lacau as soon as possible. I don't know if I should remain here or not. We have a house in Luxor, maybe I should go there. Do you think I would be all right there?"
Ardeth took her hand, "One step at a time, if the O'Connells can go with us, I can help to protect you." He looked at Rick who gave a faint nod of his head.
The boy was looking for a goat that had strayed from the herd. He made a bleating noise, trying to attract it when he saw something that looked like a bundle of rags lying on the sand. Thinking it might contain something useful, he trotted towards it, then as he grew closer realized it was not rags at all.
The man was English, his face burned red by the sun and his hair bleached whiter than the sands. The man licked his cracked, bleeding lips, then croaked, "Help me," then drew his last breath.