CHAPTER 11

Avery was dutifully watching Jed from the side. She had a good vantage point from behind a pillar. She was trying to figure out how she could sneak over and grab the hourglass to free Jed without being detected. The more she thought about it, the less aware she was of the environment around her.

Someone came up behind her and pinched her butt. She yelped and turned around. She was met with a monochromatic man. He was carrying a bag filled with, she guessed, jewelry and other valuable pieces. Thankfully he wasn't carrying a weapon.

"Well, ain't you a sight for sore eyes doll! Here I thought there weren't any beautiful dames in this place! What are yous doing all alone over here?"

Well, it appeared her disguise was working. Though he did back her into a wall, she was trapped. Thinking quickly she adopted a squeaky, high pitched voice as if she were an old movie starlet.

"I was just tryna see what all the hullabaloo was about! I must've gotten lost!"

"Well, allow me to escort you back! I won't complain if you're the arm candy!"

"Oh! No, that's quite alright!"

"I insist!" He didn't give her much of a choice. "But first, let me drop off this loot to the boss."

With a hand on her lower back, he pulled her into the room. Thankfully Kahumnrah's back was turned toward her. She met Jed's wide, questioning eyes.

"Hey King Tut! Gotcha some nice jewels right here!"

"I am not that child Tut!" He turned towards them, and Avery quickly dropped her head pretending to be very fascinated with the hem of her dress. She had expertly hid her phone within her bra earlier. She wished the dress had pockets, it would make hiding her phone and things much easier.

"Ah, and it appears you've brought me another jewel of entertainment for the evening!"

"Uh, yes, of course that's what I did!" He was quick to agree with whoever was in charge, making her think of him as spineless.

Once again she adopted her starlet persona and said, "oh, I couldn't possibly dance for you."

"You will! I have commanded it!" She faltered for a second. She had no idea what kinds of dances were in the 20s, so she started to do a poor rendition of the Charleston. She exaggerated her movements like how she had seen them on TV. To her credit, she thought she was doing rather well at the moment. Of course Kahmunrah wouldn't know what an exact 20s dance would look like. So the one person she needed to sell it to was the gangster. But he was hardly paying attention to her footwork more than he was to body and how her dress accentuated it. She could see the hunger in his eyes. She put on her best smile and continued dancing.

Everything was going according to plan, they were none the wiser, when suddenly her phone rang. She forgot to put it on silent! It wasn't Larry calling her though, just some spam number. Of all the times to call, they had to pick now! She abruptly stopped her movements as the men started looking around for the source of the sound. Avery was trying her best to silence it without appearing obvious but that only drew more attention to herself.

"It appears we have found our little fugitive at last! My, my, my. You do clean up quite nicely, I almost didn't recognize you my dear." Kahmunrah's eyes trailed her form. He ordered her to sit by his throne as he gave more orders to the gangster.

Avery shot Larry a quick text that her cover had been blown and that she was now a hostage. Still, she was willing to help with what limited knowledge she had of the Smithsonian.

She was sitting next to Jed being absolutely bored out of her mind. She had been forbidden to talk or as Kahmurah put it "to strategize an escape plan with the cowboy." Still she was glad to have him as company and with that she could also keep an eye on his hourglass. The other guards kept coming back with valuable museum artifacts. She watched as Kahmunrah picked up and threw the famous ruby slippers from the Wizard of Oz carelessly aside.

"Hey, careful, those are famous movie props!"

"I don't see how they are of any value, they're not real rubies. Just cheap plastic replicas."

Meanwhile, they were forced to watch the man try on other valuable items like a boxer's silk robe.

"He looks ridiculous," Avery whispered towards Jed. The moderness of the robe coupled with the Ancient Egyptian robes was an awful mashup.

"And crazier than a road lizard." She had no idea what that was but she had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. She schooled her face to a neutral expression when Kahmunrah glanced over at her. He glared at her once before his attention shifted elsewhere.

Phew that was close!

"I'm sorry I can't be of more use and get you out of there Jed." She whispered to him.

"Hey, I'm tougher than I look! It's gonna take a lot more than a little sand to stop ol' Jedidiah." He tried to reassure her but started to falter as the sand was beginning to compress his chest. She couldn't risk breaking the glass, as it would draw too much attention to them and who knows what Kahumnrah would do to him then. She hated to admit it but he was safer there.

"You girl! I need some entertainment. Dance for me again!" He demanded. She rose from her seat and made her way to the middle of the room once again. Kahumnrah sat on his throne, eyes glued to Avery. She started doing the Charleston again but unfortunately it was not enticing enough.

"No, don't do that. I want you to dance for me." He emphasized the word and she knew what he meant. She was going to have to dance suggestively for him. She hesitated, her face turning a deep shade of red.

"Perhaps you need a little motivation…" He picked up the hourglass and shook it violently. Sand flew up around Jed who was trying his best to weather the storm. She heard his grunts of pain and held up her hands.

"No, please! Please, stop! I'll dance, I'll…dance for you. Just please put him down." This appeased Kahmunrah as he smirked and unceremoniously dropped the hourglass beside him. He then gestured for her to begin dancing as he leaned back into his throne.

Biting back her mortification, she began to sway her hips. She shakily exhaled as she slowly moved her arms up and down her body. Jed had averted his eyes out of respect and modesty. But on the inside he was furious. How dare this man humiliate his friend!

"Mr Egypt! These two want in on the world domination thing. I don't know who they are but apparently they are on exhibit here too." Ivan strode into the room with two exhibits in tow, mercifully halting her dance.

"You should know I hate being interrupted!" He growled before getting a look at the newcomers. "I don't even know what they are. Girl! Surely you must know about these two…creatures." Avery begrudgingly stepped forward, grateful for their timely entrance.

"Oh yeah, that's Oscar the Grouch from Sesame Street and Darth Vadar from the Star Wars franchise." She found it interesting that the two wanted to join in the group.

"What is that, your breathing? It's hard to hear myself think. Let's see you're either evil, asthmatic, or a robot with all those buttons. Honestly I can hardly tell what you are. And what of you, you furry green puppet? Is a trash can really the best ensemble? No, it's not working though your name does suit you as you are vaguely grouchy. Thankfully all positions for world domination have been filled. Off with you now. Bother someone else who actually cares." He made a little hand gesture waving them away.

Vadar held up a hand as if to choke him by the way of the Force.

"What is he doing now?"

"He's using the Force."

"The Force? What is that, other than a weird hand gesture?"

"It's like telekinesis power. Ya know, move with your mind."

"Now that's just embarrassing."

She wasn't really into the franchise herself but she was a little bummed out because even with the tablet's abilities of bringing exhibits to life, a fictional power wasn't one of them. Still it would have been cool!

A little while later she had gotten a text from Larry. He and Amelia had found a bronze bust of Teddy and he helped to decipher the meaning of the hieroglyphs.

"The secret's at the heart of Pharaoh's tomb… There's gotta be some Einstein that knows what that riddle means."

"Wait, I think there's some in Air and Space. But that would mean…"

"Leaving the museum, I know. It's our best bet right now."

She only hoped that he could leave the museum discreetly and sneak across campus without being detected. She got up to look out the window and saw him and Amelia leaving through a side door. At that moment, Napoleon and his men had just reentered the room carrying even more treasures. He ordered his men to put the artifacts on the ever growing pile. He was close to the window, so she tried to block his view. He was oblivious to her motives until movement caught his eye outside.

"Pardon, mademoiselle." He gently pushed her out of the way. As he took out his spyglass to see what it was, he was shocked by what he saw.

"He is escaping!"

"What!" Kahmunrah yelled as he stormed to the window and shoved both of them out of the way. "After him! Kill him and bring me that tablet. Without the tablet we have nothing!"

In the momentary distraction when all the guards rushed out of the room to hunt for Larry, Avery saw an opportunity and made a run for it. She knew a little shortcut through one of the "employees only" doors. She quickly scooped up Jed and made a run for it. She reached into her bra and took out her key card and swiftly entered the door. She slammed it shut before anyone could figure out where she had gone.

Kahmunrah noticed a second too late that she had run off.

"Where is she? Find her but don't kill her! I want her alive!" His only leverages were gone. How could everyone be so blind to their escape? Idiots, imbeciles!

Avery took a moment to compose herself and catch her breath.

"Jed, what are we gonna do? Larry's gone to Air and Space. We could try going down to the basement to see how everyone else is holding up. But I'm sure there's guards posted there. God forbid our friends get in the way of Kahmunrah's master plan." She whispered to him as she walked, not knowing who could be around the corner.

"Your guess is as good as mine, kid."

"Well that helps narrow things down, thanks." All the guards would no doubt be looking for her now as well as Larry. So if everyone was preoccupied, then that leaves a weak spot on security. She started to think up a plan. As she was walking she tried to open the hourglass but it was sealed well enough that she couldn't. So in place of that she carefully tilted it to remove some of the sand from Jed, allowing him to breathe easier.

Shortly after they had entered the room of the statues of human forms. If her plan was to work, she needed some muscle. As she looked around the room, the little Dega ballerina was thrilled to see her again, enthusiastically waving and dancing up to her.

"Hey! It's great to see you again, but I need to know where the Thinker is. Have you seen him?" The little girl nodded and took Avery's free hand and led them over to where he was, attempting to woo yet another female form. Actually it looked like he had amassed nearly every female he could find.

"Are you sure we need this guy, Avery?"

"Yes unfortunately. Thinker? I need your help!" But she was drowned out by the murmurs and giggling of the females while he was continuing to flex for them.

"Gorgeous woman coming through!" Was all she could think to yell to get his attention. It successfully worked.

"Hey baby! Come to check out the gun show?"

"No! I need your help, our friends are trapped down below and we need your muscles-"

"Sorry, baby, no can do. Gotta continue to impress these ladies here!" He flexed in their direction and was met with even more giggling.

"Okay but what if I told you that a heroic man always gets the girl? You want these women to fawn over you, then the only way to do that is by showing off what those muscles can do in action!" She watched him put a hand under his chin, contemplating her offer. To her relief, he bought it.

"'Cuse me ladies, I, we've got a job to do." He was referring to his muscles but at least he was on board.

Finding their way down to the archives was easier this time around. The only problem was the Thinker's feet made a clunking sound wherever he walked on account of his bronzed physique. They were nearing the storage pod so she told the statue to hang back and wait for her signal.

"When we get down there, I'll create a distraction drawing the guards away. And Thinker will bring in his muscles."

"What about me? Ain't it a little obvious to be carrying me in the hourglass?"

"Well I can't just leave you somewhere. Maybe we could use that as part of the distraction?" She mulled it over. Entering the room she was met with two of Al Capone's men playing what she assumed was poker. Their guns lay on the ground next to them. Adopting her starlet persona, she confidently strolled into the room, hourglass hidden behind her back.

"Evening gentlemen, do you know where a girl could get some giggle water?" She was of course referring to alcohol. Both men looked at her and one of them let out a low whistle.

"Hey babydoll, where's the party?"

"Yeah a pretty dame like you shouldn't be alone here. Why don't you join us?"

"Oh no. I just thought you might be interested in what I have to show you." She coyly said, slowly slinking away. Of course these men were enticed by this flapper and followed her. Once she was a safe distance away, she pulled out the hourglass.

"Howdy fellas!" Jed waved at the men who had originally captured him.

"What the-" One of them started to say before she yelled out.

"Thinker, now!" But nothing happened. She soon realized that by bringing him down below he probably found a whole other batch of women he could impress. She cursed under her breath.

"Gentlemen, whaddya say we forget about all this?" She nervously laughed.

"Oh, not a chance doll."

"Avery, run!" Jed commanded and she set off through the maze looking for the exit. As she ran, one of the men scrambled back to get their guns and were soon trailing after her.

"I told ya we shouldn't have used Mr Gun Show."

"Yeah, yeah. You were right!" Suddenly a crate splintered right in front of her as a shot rang out. She brought a hand up to shield herself from the debris.

"Alright, that's enough running! You're far more trouble than you're worth, doll, and I look forward to turning you in." The men had caught up to them, brandishing their guns. She was afraid of them because she knew these were real guns from a photograph and not just some prop like what Jed had used. They led her out of the basement, guns pointed at her back. As they marched her back, she looked around hoping to find a trace of where the Thinker might be. She thought she had seen his head peek out from around a corner but it was gone in a flash so she couldn't be sure. All she knew was that her daring escape and rescue plan had failed fantastically.

Back in the main room, Kahmunrah could be seen pacing back and forth. His mind was racing with worse case scenarios that could spell disaster to his plan. He stopped when he saw her entering with Jed's hourglass still in hands. He gleefully snatched it back.

"Here I thought you were smarter than that. It appears that sneaking around is not one of your apt strengths. You stupid girl. Were you trying to go help Larry Daley? Or were you trying to find your way back to New York, and back to him?" He was met with no response from Avery which further angered him. He expected to be paid attention to when he spoke.

"How dare you defy me, you are mine! Know your place!" He didn't hesitate to slap Avery across the face. It was unexpected and the sting brought tears to her eyes.

"Whoa whoa, hey now. You ain't a man if you hit a woman!" Jed was furious that it had happened to Avery but what could he do, he was trapped in an hourglass. Feeling emboldened she spoke back.

"You are no man! You are not even a true Pharaoh! What kind of a king puts his own interests above the safety of his people? You only care about yourself! You let them suffer for your own amusement while you did nothing to ease their burdens! Ahk was the one who tried to right the wrongs you inflicted on your own people!"

"Enough girl!" He could feel his temper flaring at the audacity of this impudent girl and he started pacing back and forth.

"What kind of man poisons and kills his own brother in cold blood? You're nothing but a murderous tyrant! You never deserved the throne! Your father was right to strip you of your claim to it! It rightfully belonged to Ahk! Your hands are stained with blood that you will never be able to wash off. You can't hold a candle to him because Ahk is still twice the man you'll ever be-"

"I SAID ENOUGH!" He backhanded her and sent her crashing to the ground. She cried out in pain.

"Avery!" Jed helplessly pounded against the glass. All became quiet in the makeshift throne room.

"I see that dear baby brother's influence has gotten to you. Told you the whole story, did he? He was too soft, too weak to be Pharaoh. I was the one who showed true potential! That throne was mine and he stole it from me! So I returned the favor by stealing his life. No matter, once I am the rightful ruler of the world, everyone shall tremble before me and all shall know my name. And you will be by my side as my bride, my queen. You have no say in the matter. Baby Ahkmen will not be here to save you. And I relish the thought of taking something of his away again. First his life, and now you. As I told you before, I always get what I want." He knelt down beside her and forcefully grabbed her chin making her look into his face. Her ears were ringing from the slap and she was momentarily disoriented, still she glowered at him.

"Alright, leave the dame alone, you've made your point." One of the thugs raised his tommy gun in a silent threat.

"Fair point. Now I'm sure she won't do it again, will she? Besides, a woman ought to know her place besides a powerful man, surely you can relate? I believe the phrase is 'a woman should be seen and not heard.'" This got him to lower his gun as he grumbled in agreement.

He's no man either, but at least he tried to intervene. She thought while tenderly reaching up and touching her face. There would surely be a large bruise there tomorrow. Just her luck. And just what she expected of herself when she became boisterous towards a dangerous man. Ahk had been right. She had changed. She had learned how to stand up for herself, even if that meant harm would befall her. In the past she would have just kept her mouth shut. And maybe she should have this time. But something in her snapped. She wasn't fully sure why she decided to take this stand. Maybe it was because of her love for Ahk. But one thing she knew for sure, she wasn't going down without a fight.

AN: okay so if you're wondering why Kah keeps calling her girl and not her name- he knows her name, he's just refusing to use it. I headcanon him to be misogynistic and treat women like objects instead of real people. So he thinks Avery is only there to serve a purpose for him.