Chapter 17

Suhayl grimaced as he walked through the tourist-filled streets of al-'Iskandariya. This city was smaller than al-Qahira but was still far too large, and with all the Western tourists currently enjoying vacations, it made it even more crowded.

Why do people enjoy living this way? Suhayl wondered to himself.

After speaking to the shop owner, he had been directed to a place where he could hopefully do some eavesdropping. He wasn't yet convinced that this was anything but a way to dispose of him, but if he was wrong, then, he had to find out what he could. After walking for about a kilometer on the streets, he turned and walked into a dingy alley. It was empty.

For the moment.

He looked around for a place to be hidden where he could hear what was going on and arouse no suspicion. Then, he saw a doorway. He walked confidently to it and knocked. There was a rustling sound.

"Iftāh il-bāb!"

More rustling.

"Lan 'awathīk."

The door opened a crack.

"Mātha turīd?" came an old voice.

Suhayl decided to be honest with this person.

"Makān lilāstimā'."

The door opened and an old woman looked at him suspiciously. He bowed to her slightly. He had said what he wanted. She knew he was probably doing something secretive since he had admitted that he wanted a place to listen in on someone else's conversation.

Finally, she nodded and stood aside. He stepped into a dark room. Very likely there was more light on the second floor, but in this neighborhood, it made sense to keep this area relatively empty. He decided to reassure her once more.

"Sayakūn il-waqt qasīran."

She nodded again and then left him in the small room. All the better. If something bad happened, she wouldn't be involved.

Suhayl stood silently, unmoving for twenty minutes.

Then, he heard voices. They weren't clear enough to understand and, to his surprise, they were speaking in English again. It was the same accent that he had heard before, only he still didn't recognize it. Whoever they were, they weren't Egyptian, and they weren't Arabs of any variety unless they were deliberately trying to disguise themselves. They walked close enough to the door that he could hear and understand.

"–pay him."

"How much will it take?"

"Does it matter?"

"Yes. What if this is a trick? There have been warnings."

"With his family as well? No."

"Will we take them, too?"

"Yes. Insurance."

"If we fail..."

"It will be fatal."

"If I refuse now?"

A long pause.

"It would be fatal."

Another long pause.

"Will you refuse?"

"No."

Another person joined them.

"Well?"

"Not today."

"When? We only have a limited amount of time before..."

Then, the voices decreased in volume, almost to a whisper. Suhayl strained to hear. No matter how he tried, he couldn't, not without getting closer. He peeked through the door and saw the three men standing together, speaking very quietly. They must have seen someone on the street or in one of the windows.

Then, the voices got louder for just a moment and he heard a single word.

No, not just a word.

A name.

Almost, he swore in surprise. It was only the years of experience he had doing this kept him from giving away his position because of his shock.

The three men left the alley and he watched through the crack as they split up and went different directions. He had to follow and find out where they were going.

He looked toward the stairs where the old woman had disappeared. Quickly, he pulled some money out of his pocket and set it on the stairs.

"Shokran!" he said.

Not waiting for an answer, he opened the door and hurried to the end of the alley. He saw one of the men walking away.

He began to follow.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Zahara woke up before everyone else. Salma and Jonathan had definitely been worn out by the full day. Thank goodness.

She lay in bed for a while, savoring the silence. There was little silence in her life at the moment, and these times were treasured even if she would never want this to be all her life was. She rolled over and looked at Tim who was sleeping deeply. Whether it was peaceful or not was questionable, but he was deeply asleep and that was good.

The first day had been a good day. Tim had genuinely enjoyed himself and she had seen her brother warm up to her family a little bit. He had never been rude or dismissive, but he was rarely effusive about anything, and she knew that he had struggled somewhat with the choices she'd made for her life. Ahmed's reaction to Jonathan had surprised her, but she would take what Ahmed could give. He could be so stern and yet so caring at the same time. Perhaps she had been more changed by the very different culture in America than she had realized, but the men she knew there tended to be so much more open and expressive and she had become accustomed to that to the point that Ahmed's stoicism seemed downright cold at times. But she knew he cared for her. And yesterday, he had actually shown some of it.

Zahara couldn't help but wonder what today would bring. She smiled at the thought of Tim haggling. As much as Tim knew about the world, as strong as he was, as experienced as he was, he just didn't strike her as being one who would be good at haggling. He would be uncomfortable with that kind of action. It would be interesting to see if she was right or if Tim would surprise her as he did on occasion even now.

But their first stop would be at the ancient city of Memphis. She didn't know if Salma and Jonathan would be as excited there as they had been with the pyramids, but if anyone could make them excited, Tim was that person. She knew that, in spite of his anxiety, he was still excited about the chance to see these things. The only thing he wasn't quite as excited about was the boat tour on the Nile. He had said it was a good idea, that they should take the time to see the river like that, but Zahara knew that it wasn't really his preference. Well, they hadn't bought tickets for that yet anyway. They had put it as a maybe on their itinerary.

Tim suddenly shifted around in bed and opened his eyes. He stared at the ceiling for a few seconds, unmoving. Zahara watched as he took a deep breath and let it out in a soft exhale. Then, he looked over and smiled when he saw she was awake.

"How did you sleep?" she asked.

"Well enough," he said. Then, he looked over at the other bed. "They're still asleep?"

"Yes. We wore them out," Zahara said, smiling.

Tim laughed softly. "Good. Maybe we can keep that up all week long."

"Maybe. Do you think Memphis will take all day?"

"No. I don't, but I don't think we should try to pack everything in, either," Tim said. "We want this to be something Salma and Jonathan look forward to, not something they dread." He reached out and put a gentle hand on her abdomen. "And we want their brother or sister to be able to enjoy it, too."

Zahara smiled and reached out to cup her hand on his cheek. His eyes closed as she brushed her fingers over the scars around his eye.

"And you," she said.

"Maybe even me," he said.

"Mama?" Jonathan mumbled. "Mama?"

Zahara smiled once more and then slid out of bed and walked over to where Jonathan was stirring. She sat down and kissed him on the forehead.

"Sabāh il-khayr, ibnī. How did you sleep?"

Jonathan put his arms around her neck and hugged her, seeming just a little unsure about the unfamiliar surroundings. Zahara hugged him back, letting him lean on her until he felt better.

"Mama, we're in Egypt?" he asked.

"Yes, we are. Today, we're going to a place called Memphis that was the capital city when the pyramids were built thousands of years ago."

"Wow." Jonathan gave that due consideration. Then, he let Zahara go and started shaking Salma. "Wake up, Salma! We go to Memphis!"

Salma's eyes opened slowly. Then, she took a breath and her eyes closed again. Jonathan began jumping on the bed.

"Salma, wake up! Salma, wake up!"

"Jonathan, calm down," Zahara said. "Let your sister wake up by herself. Why don't you pick out your clothes for today?"

"Okay!"

Jonathan jumped off the bed and went to his bag. Zahara leaned over and shook Salma more gently.

"Salma, it's time to wake up."

Then, Salma grinned and opened her eyes.

"I'm awake, Mama. I was pretending!"

Zahara smiled. "Good. Now, get up and it's time to get dressed."

Salma sat up and did as asked. Tim got up and went into the bathroom to change. Zahara helped Jonathan get dressed and then, when Tim came out, they made sure their children both went to the bathroom and then Zahara took her turn. As she changed her clothes, she rubbed her hands over her abdomen as she had done more than once before. Was there just a bit of roundness that hadn't been there before? Perhaps. She smiled at herself. If this pregnancy was anything like Jonathan, she would know for sure when she started to show signs. Her pregnancies weren't at all subtle. She had never seen pictures of her mother pregnant so she didn't know if this was normal for the women in her family, but it certainly seemed normal for her.

Quickly, she got dressed and then left the bathroom. She stopped and smiled as she saw Tim kneeling on the balcony with Salma and Jonathan. She didn't know what they were talking about and she didn't care. Tim seemed to be relaxed and her children were happy. That was enough.

"Are you ready for breakfast?" she asked.

"I'm hungry!" Jonathan said, instantly running back into the room.

"Okay. Let's go down and eat," Tim said, getting to his feet.

They left the room together and headed down to the breakfast room where they all got some pastries. Tim got his coffee and Zahara had her tea. Tim got some snacks for them to have while they were out and about, not knowing exactly how long these things would take.

Then, it was back up to their room to get their things and wait for Ahmed to join them. This would be the last day that he could spend with them before he had to go back to work. Tomorrow, they would be on their own. They'd see him in the evening but not during the work day. Salma and Jonathan were watching a cartoon on Tim's tablet. Normally, Zahara didn't want to do that, but sometimes, it was just easier and they didn't want to get started on anything that would take a long time.

"I'm not really sure about being forced to haggle," Tim said as they waited.

Zahara laughed. "The worst that will happen is that we'll pay too much for something."

"They'll see an easy mark is what will happen," Tim said. "And I'll bet that our children won't help at all. I'm used to the price being the price. I'm not used to the seller changing the price based on what he can get out of me."

"It will be fine, Tim," Zahara said. "What do you think about the boat ride?"

"I don't know," Tim said honestly. "I'm wondering if I'm tempting fate by willingly getting on a boat that relies entirely on the wind to get around."

"Well, we can decide later," Zahara said.

There was a knock on the door.

"Uncle Ahmed!" Jonathan said, abandoning the tablet. He switched back and forth between Arabic and English without thought.

"I had no idea that Jonathan would bond with your brother like this," Tim said softly.

"Neither did I, but I'm glad of it," Zahara said and then walked to the door and looked through the peephole, verifying that it was indeed her brother before opening the door. "Sabāh il-khayr, akhī."

"Good morning, Uncle!" Jonathan said.

Salma put the tablet down as well. "Are we going?" she asked.

"Yes, we're going," Tim said. He checked to make sure they had everything and then the group left the room and headed down to their driver.

"Where to?" he asked.

"Mīt Rahīna," Ahmed said.

"I thought we were going to Memphis," Tim said.

Ahmed smiled a little as the driver pulled out into traffic.

"Much of the ancient city is gone," he said. "But there is an open-air museum with artifacts from the city in Mīt Rahīna. It may not take long to see."

"Well, is there something else close by that we could see along with it?" Zahara asked.

"Many things," Ahmed said and then he was silent for a few seconds as he considered it.

"We see pyramids today?" Jonathan asked.

Tim smiled. "I don't know, Jonathan."

"Yes, more pyramids!" Salma said.

"There are more pyramids," Ahmed said. "Not far, I think. There is the Red Pyramid and the Bent Pyramid."

"Bent?" Tim asked.

"Yes. They made a mistake with the angle and changed it."

"Really? That's fascinating. I'd like to see that. Zahara?"

"Of course," Zahara said, smiling at Tim's enthusiasm.

"Is this possible?" Ahmed asked the driver.

"Of course."

They rode in the car to the museum and paid for their entry. The first place they went was to a huge statue of Ramesses the Great which had fallen over and was now displayed lying down in a building.

"Why is the statue on the ground, Baba?" Salma asked.

"It's really old and it fell over."

"Can't they lift it back up?"

Zahara smiled. "No. Look at the legs, Salma."

Salma looked.

"They're broken."

"Yes. It will not stand now."

They took some pictures and then left the statue to walk around the area some more. It didn't take long before Jonathan was asking Ahmed to carry him on his shoulders again. Zahara smiled as her brother willingly did so. He caught her looking at him and he smiled a little bit. He probably could tell somewhat how she was thinking.

They walked over to a statue of a sphinx.

"Another sphinx!" Salma said. "It's very small."

"Yes. It's not as big as the one we saw yesterday," Zahara said.

"But the other statue is so big."

"They made statues of all sizes, Salma."

"Oh."

"Hey, we should take some pictures with my phone here and send them back to everyone in the States," Tim said suddenly. "What do you think?"

"Na'am!" Jonathan said, happily. "Take my picture, Baba! With Ahmed!"

"We'll take pictures of everyone," Tim said.

And Zahara smiled at the sight of her family enjoying themselves.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

His phone buzzed and Tony groaned as it pulled him from sleep far too early. Still, he had to be available no matter what and so he rolled away from Ziva to pick up his phone. Then, he groaned again as he saw that this was not a call about a case but rather someone sending him a message.

"What is it?" Ziva mumbled.

"I don't know. Someone who's up way too early," Tony grumbled.

He pulled up the message and then shook his head and laughed a little.

"What is it?" Ziva asked again, rolling toward him.

"Tim must have forgotten the time difference. He sent some pictures from his trip. Want to see?"

Still sleepy, Ziva sat up and took the phone. She yawned once and looked at them. Tony smiled as she swiped through the pictures Tim had sent. It was Tim with his whole family. Tim with Ahmed who had Jonathan sitting on his shoulders. Tim with Salma and Jonathan. Tim and Zahara. Zahara and Ahmed. All standing in front of the same statue of a sphinx.

"He looks like he's happy," Ziva said.

"Yeah, he does," Tony agreed. "I hope it lasts."

"So do I."

Tony took his phone back and then texted Tim.

You could have waited until six a.m., Probie. But it looks like you're having fun.

A few seconds later, there was a reply.

Oh, no! I'm sorry.

Tony laughed and he got an idea.

"Hey, Ziva smile."

"What?"

She had lain back down and closed her eyes.

"Smile."

Ziva didn't bother opening her eyes. She smiled and Tony scooted over and then took a picture of the two of them and sent it to Tim along with a short message.

We aren't as exciting as you.

A few seconds later.

I totally forgot what time it would be for you. Sorry. I won't send any more pictures until it's later.

No worries, Tim. Have a nice day and think of all of us toiling away back here.

Ha. I'll bet you're making Lara and Muna do all the work.

Wouldn't you like to know. Don't worry. I'll go right back to sleep and see you later.

Okay. Enjoy.

Tony smiled and set his phone down. Then, he lay down as well and smiled as Ziva rolled over to curl up next to him.

"I'm glad Tim is happy right now," she said softly.

"Me, too. Let's see if we can get some sleep before we have to get up."

"Okay."

Ziva said nothing more and after a few minutes, her breathing was deep and even. Tony lay there awake for a little while longer. That Tim was genuinely enjoying himself was good to see. Tony just hoped that it would last.

With that thought, he tried to get some more sleep.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Arabic translation:

"Iftāh il-bāb!" - Open the door!

"Lan 'awathīk." - I won't hurt you.

"Mātha turīd?" - What do you want?

"Makān lilāstimā'." - A place to listen.

"Sayakūn il-waqt qasīran." - It won't take long.