"Two pair!" Jonathan slapped his cards down triumphantly and began to scoop up the coins that were in the center of the table.
Pushing his uncle's hand away, Alex revealed his cards with a knowing smile, "Full house."
You could have pushed Jonathan over with a feather, "You said you had nothing." Alex's smile never faded, "You were bluffing?" His uncle murmured in disbelief.
Alex began to collect his winnings when a loud crash from upstairs froze them both in place. After a moment, they locked eyes.
"What was that?" Alex asked, nervously.
Jonathan slinked cautiously out of his chair, "I dunno, probably nothing. Just the cat or something, I'll go check."
"Yeah." Alex paused a moment, staring fearfully as he watched Jonathan take the first few stairs, "Uncle Jon?"
"Yeah?" Jonathan called down as he reached the top.
"We don't have a cat."
This stopped Jonathan in his tracks, swallowing, "Alright then." He turned on his heel, intending to come back down.
Alex's eyes grew wide and he gasped as a dark figure appeared behind Jonathan, "Uncle Jon, look out!"
Jonathan whirled around, only to be clubbed in the head by the butt of a sword. He crumbled to the ground.
Lock-Nah held his sword up to swing at Jonathan's still form.
"No, leave him, we need a witness," Came a feminine voice behind Lock-Nah.
Alex nearly froze with fear when he saw Anck-Su-Namun lock eyes with him
"Get him." She commanded.
As reluctant as he was to leave his uncle, panic took over and he ran. He knew very well how much Lock-Nah wanted to kill him. Even in his fear, he hatched a plan to get out. Taking a hard right, he rushed into the kitchen, which led to a balcony over a garden. Stopping suddenly, as if remembering something, he turned and grabbed up a glass bottle filled with olive oil. He opened it and poured if fully onto the floor before fleeing again.
Pulling open the balcony doors, he climbed over the balcony railing and landed in some flowers. Sprinting, he careened around the front of the mansion toward the main road.
The oil had the desired effect and Lock-Nah found himself flat on his back after entering the kitchen. Growling, the hulk of a man got to his feet, muttering curses at Alex. He reached the balcony and grunted as he climbed over the railing and landed in the garden.
Alex chanced a look behind him to see how close Lock-Nah had gotten on his tail, but before he turned his eyes back in front of him, he ran square into the chest of another large man. Stepping back, he looked up. Gasping, he beheld a sight far worse than Lock-Nah or Anck-Su-Namun. In a suit that hardly disguised his enormous size, The Scorpion King stood tall before the small boy before grabbing him painfully by the arm.
Alex's meager struggles were no match with the strong warrior holding him. "Let go!" He begged as the Scorpion King dragged him back inside the mansion, where they found Anck-Su-Namun tying up an unconscious Jonathan.
"Tie his hands." The Scorpion King commanded her as he shoved Alex toward her, "Bring him out with you."
Lock-Nah came inside then as well, having run the circle with Alex and eying the young O'Connel with dark hatred.
"Once the boy is secure, Lock-Nah and I will wait here for the O'Connells." The Scorpion King announced.
Alex gasped as Anck-Su-Namun nodded to her instructions. She did not spare Alex any pain as she tied his wrists together tightly. Grabbing a handful of his hair, the dark haired woman led Alex outside to a waiting car. She shoved him inside before following. With a snap of her thin fingers, the driver sped away.
Holding his wife's hand, Rick stepped quietly into his dark home a couple of hours later. Glancing around and seeing no lights on, he thought it was safe to assume that Jonathan and Alex had gone to bed.
"I think the coast is clear." With that, he gently pulled Evie the rest of the way inside and against him. He took in her pretty smile in the dim moonlight before kissing her, his hands cupping her face.
The kiss deepened, growing more passionate and Evie slid her hands from his neck to his chest, unbuttoning his dinner jacket. Rick's hands smoothed from her face to her shoulders and slipped her coat off of her arms and allowing it to drop to the floor. Evie made short work of his jacket and tossed it on the nearest chair. He took a moment to smile at her before continuing the fervent kiss.
The romantic moment was shattered as a loud noise echoed through the foyer. The O'Connells snapped their heads toward the sound. Cautiously stepping further inside, keeping himself between Evie and the perceived threat, Rick found a light switch. The sudden brightness revealed Jonathan, bound and gagged, next to a broken vase.
"Jonathan!" His sister cried, rushing toward him. Kneeling beside him, she untied his gag. He spit out the foul rag that had been stuffed into his mouth and coughed.
"What happened?" Rick asked, urgently.
"Where's Alex?" Evie asked, her voice shaking.
"I-I don't know." Jonathan admitted.
Rick couldn't halt the instinct to act. He stormed out of the room, entering the study, where he had last seen Alex. Empty. Rushing from one room to the next, he nearly fell when walking into the kitchen. Rationality got the best of him again and he returned to the living room to find out what Jonathan knew.
Evie was untying him as he was talking, "I went upstairs…" He saw Rick coming back, "We heard a crash and I went upstairs to find out what it was and was knocked cold. I just came to a few minutes before I heard you come in."
"You don't know who hit you?" His sister pressed.
"I think I do, but it couldn't be."
"Who?" Rick insisted, half expecting to hear the familiar name of Imhotep.
"The man who Ardeth killed at Ahm Shere, Lock-Nah." Jonathan answered, reluctantly, "Not that I don't believe he could be brought back to life, Lord knows I've seen it, but he was buried with the oasis less than a month ago. Who dug him up?"
"Imhotep." Rick said morbidly.
"How?" His wife asked, incredulously.
No one had an answer.
Another crashing sound came from upstairs and the trio tensed. Evie could feel her heart beating furiously and Rick seemed ready to act.
"That noise I heard upstairs before. It was a lot like that." Jonathan announced.
