"Are you sure? I hate to mess up your plans," Kami asked.

"It's fine. I didn't have anything planned today. Well, I did have a prior engagement with my bed involving lots of shut eye and possible drooling since I'm so knackered, but I suppose I can do without sleep a little longer."

She wished she were safely with her grandparents already, but it wasn't like she had a lot of options. There were no flights out of Cairo for several hours at least, and surely Liam and Haji needed to get home to their families soon. She couldn't ask them to camp out at the airport indefinitely. She just needed to get to her grandparent's house safely.

"Okay," she said. She tried to act nonchalant about it, but inside she felt relieved to travel with two guys who were familiar with the country. She still had her misgivings about being forced into this situation, but what choice did she have?

"Let's move out then," Liam said. They picked their way through the crowded airport and outside. She climbed into the backseat of the bulky black SUV and buckled up. She liked the way the leather seats smelled, like the vehicle was brand new. Liam sat in the passenger seat next to Haji.

Kami gave the directions to her grandparent's village to Haji. He was familiar with the area and pulled out a map to show them how Hamin was triangulated between Cairo and Alexandria, a few hours north of Giza and about fifteen kilometers south of Alexandria.

Haji veered into the congested traffic. Kami gripped the handle so tightly that when she glanced down, she realized her knuckles were white. She tried to relax, but it was next to impossible with the back-to-back traffic.

"Are you nuts?" Kami cried as Haji swerved around a bus packed with tourists.

"Relax, Kam," Liam said. "When you've got 20 million people living in a city designed for about 4 million, what do you expect? You have to be aggressive here."

They continued to make a herky jerky progress down the street, stopping every few seconds with a slamming of brakes. The six-lane road should only be three cars deep, max. Instead there were three cars on their left and two on the right.

Then a man walked right in front of them.

"Hello? Crosswalk?" Kami said.

Liam and Haji busted up.

"Good one," Liam said, tears practically streaming from his eyes. It wasn't that funny.

"Let me guess. There's no designated place to cross," she said.

"The girl's quick," Liam said. "You gotta love Cairo. It's controlled chaos."

Chaos? Yes. Controlled? She didn't buy that. At least they were protected by a thick barrier of metal by being in a car.

The SUV continued its tedious creep. They were surrounded by smog and pollution and a cacophony of horns that gave Kami a headache. Between closing her eyes and rubbing her head, she saw interesting bits and pieces of Cairo. Several vendors lined the streets laying out their wares. A woman stood out on a balcony beating a brilliant red and gold rug. The display windows reminded her of fashion boutiques back home, only the signs were written in Arabic as well as English.

She breathed a sigh of relief when they drove out of the city. They had only driven for about ten minutes when they came to Giza and slowed down. More traffic.

The SUV slowly drove down roads lined with trees with skyscrapers in the distance. Suddenly Kami gasped. A pyramid loomed in front of them. The juxtaposition between modern and ancient was cool but jarring.

"Impressive, eh?" Liam said. "That's not even the largest one. That's the second biggest pyramid—commissioned by Khafre."

"I've seen them on the internet, but it's not the same," she said. "How many people must it have taken to build the pyramids?"

"Around 20,000 to 30,000," Haji answered. "It took about 80 years to construct the pyramids in Giza. Workers hauled huge blocks of limestone up ramps."

"You'll have to excuse Haji," Liam said over his shoulder. "His last job was as a tour guide. He can't help but spout facts."

"I don't blame him," she said. "It's incredible."

As they drove past the pyramids, she couldn't help but stare up at them. They were literally right next to the road. They towered over their vehicle, and she felt small in their presence. On another day under different circumstances, she could have spent hours exploring them. She thought again of her missing grandparents and felt a sick feeling in her stomach, a reminder that not all was right. She was overwhelmed with a confusing array of emotions: fear, confusion, and even a little anger. Her grandparents should have been there to meet her, or at least send someone if they couldn't make it. It was inexcusable, unless something had happened to them. Something serious. She didn't want to think about it, but she had to consider the possibility. 

Even so, as they pulled away from the pyramids, she couldn't help but stare back wistfully at the fading shapes. Liam caught her.

"Don't worry," he said. "I'm sure we'll be back for you to take enough sphinx kissing and pyramid tip touching pictures for your heart's content."

"Ha! A trip to Egypt isn't complete without kissing the sphinx," Kami said more light-heartedly than she felt. "I didn't come all this way to miss out on the only surviving member of the seven wonders of the ancient world. I'm sure the pyramids are on my grandmother's itinerary."

"You should bring Haji with you. He'll bore you with obscure tidbits about Pharaoh Khufu. He's the fellow who commissioned the Great pyramid, and is also known for having the smallest Egyptian royal statue ever discovered. Then he'll drone on and on about how it wasn't slaves that built the pyramids as once believed, but skilled workmen. They even carved on the wall how much they spent on radishes, and onions, and leeks. What's a leek anyway?"

"You seemed to enjoy learning about the robots sent down the secret shafts in the Great Pyramid to reveal hidden hieroglyphics," Haji said.

"Sure, that part was interesting. But leeks?"

"Kami, it would be an honor to guide someone with the intelligence to appreciate my country's archeology," Haji said.

"Ouch!" Liam cried. "Stab wound to the heart. How could you do that to me mate?"

Haji shook his head.

"Oh Kami, if there's one thing you can't miss while you're here, it's the fascinating display of meat mummies at the Egyptian museum," Liam said.

"Meat mummies?"

"They found cuts of meat, leg of beef, roasts, ribs, all mummified and stuffed in a basket for a royal picnic in the afterlife," he said. "It's brill. Oh, and I suppose that King Tut display wasn't too shabby either."

"That's awesome. I want a mummified banana split when I die," Kami said.

"Good luck with that one," Liam snickered. He had a great laugh.

"We did a mummification project in elementary school," she said. "We were supposed to mummify a chicken, but we had budget cuts. We ended up mummifying a hot dog instead."

This time both Haji and Liam busted up laughing.

Haji steered onto a small unpaved road, and the SUV kicked up dust until they reached the outskirts of Hamin. It was much quieter than the bustle of the city. As they navigated the giant potholes where erosion had washed away portions of the one paved road in town, Kami realized they were alone on the streets. The few cars she saw sat on the sides of the road in rusting heaps. It seemed bicycles were their main form of transportation. They were everywhere, lying on the ground, propped up against houses. But strangely no one was riding them like in Cairo.

They passed several empty vendor stalls, which seemed strange considering the activity they'd seen in Cairo. They must open their shops later, Kami thought.

Kami was surprised by how many scruffy and bedraggled goats she saw, either penned up by the houses or staked to the ground. She quit counting after seventeen.

She studied the homes as she passed them. They were mostly constructed with concrete, and there seemed to be no good part or bad part of town. The nicer homes were as likely to be near a rundown home as another nice one. There seemed to be no rhyme or reason to it.

A brown chicken ran across the road in front of them. Kami opened her mouth to make a joke about it just as they pulled in front of a house. She forgot the joke as she stared at it. It was a stunning place, with white arches beautifully lit and three balconies and palm trees surrounding it. Lush-looking plants and brightly colored blossoms were growing all over the grounds and in large planters on the balconies. The house wasn't enormous, but its elegant facade made it seem larger than it actually was. This house was like the ones back home she passed by all the time on her runs, the ones she couldn't conceive living in.

"Who's the one teasing me about being rich?" Liam asked playfully as Haji parked.

Kami stared at it in wonder, trying not to give away that she had no clue her grandparents lived in a house this nice. It was probably something a granddaughter should know.

Haji hopped out of the driver's seat and retrieved her luggage. Liam and Kami climbed out as well. A wave of dry heat hit them, and Kami had a hard time swallowing.

"Here, I'll help her with the luggage," Liam said.

Haji handed over her bags, then climbed back into the driver's seat as the two of them walked to the door.

"Nervous?" Liam asked.

"Yeah."

"It will be fine."

"You keep saying that. I think your idea of fine must be different than mine," Kami replied.

Liam grinned.

They reached the door.

"Well, here goes nothing," she said as she rang the doorbell.

_____________

If you liked this chapter, hit that little star!

If you were stuck in a scary Egyptian catacomb, what would you rather have chase you? A creepy mummy or a swarm of flesh-eating beetles? And no, neither is not an acceptable answer. ;) 

Hamin, or the village in which Kami's grandparents live, is a fictional place, but similar to other villages in the area. It's name has special significance to me, but I will reveal that later.

If you're looking for some good reads, consider Hunger by @SleeplessBeauty and Earthborn by @WriterAngelique I'm enjoying both very much right now.

This dedication is for a very special reader and one of the original three, my little sis @ChristinaGedeborgMac! She is also a writer, and I hope one day to give a shout out to her fabulous writing in this space. I have so appreciated her enthusiasm for my little story and putting the word out about it. Thanks sis!