Hathor's Return

by T. M. Grinsley

  I looked up at him, and slid a hand up his chest feeling the definition of his toned muscles. He looked down at me and smiled. Sliding my hand to the back of his neck and into his hair, I brought his head down, so I could reach his mouth. The kiss was tentative and gentle, but hot as hell. My stomach flipped with nerves. It was the first time my body reacted like this in a long time.

  I let him lead the kiss and he deepened it. I opened my mouth, giving his tongue permission to enter. The kiss became more passionate and wild. I was swept up in the emotions and feeling of it, that I totally forgot anyone else was in the room. It was just us.

  A pillow hit the back of my head, breaking the kiss and the spell.

  “Enough of that crap,” Kris snorted.

  “Bite me, Barbie.” I retorted.

  “Looks like he’s got that covered.”

  I laughed, then cuddled back up to his side. My vision began to waver. The television disappeared, and I found myself lying on a chaise, watching a man pace in front of me. It was different from my dream. I was aware, but had no control of my actions.

  “What ever is the matter, Ra?” I asked as he made another pass in front of me.

  “Those humans dare treat me with such disrespect! I would love to see them suffer and then they would have to come crawling back, begging for my forgiveness and my help. That would teach them some humility and respect.” Ra spat. He stepped out onto the balcony, staring out at what I assumed was the humans below.

  I fingered the eye necklace I was wearing, as he spoke. I could feel Ra’s power building inside me. I knew what I could do to help him. I just had to wait for the word, so I could unleash the wrath that I had been holding onto.

  Ra’s head fell backwards, a moan escaping his lips as he began to merge with Horus. My arousal for him continued to grow. The transformation was nearly complete, signally it was time to attack. I slowly stood, letting the silk of my dress slide sensually down my legs.

  I glided across the room and stood directly behind him. Gently, I put my arms around his waist and slid my hands up his strong, masculine chest.

  “Is there something I can do to help?” I purred against his ear.

  His hands covered mine and slid down my arms. He turned and faced me. His mouth came down so it was a breath away from mine. “I want to make them suffer.”

  My breath hitched as the excitement of his words swam through me. “All you have to do is say the word, and your wish is my command.”

  I heard my name being called, and hands wrapped around my waist. I was looking down at the ground from the balcony of the hotel room. I shook my head, trying to clear it.

  “Jo, are you okay?” Ari asked from behind me.

  I turned to look at him and saw concern etched on his face. “I’m, uh, yeah. Sorry. I’m okay. I must have dozed off. How did I get out here?”

  “You walked,” Kris said from across the room. Her voice had risen an octave, which told me that she was worried.

  Ari led me back into the room and I sat on the foot of the bed. He left my side long enough to bring me a glass of water. I sipped the water, and watched Kris staring at me.

  “I’m sorry if I worried you. I didn’t mean to. I don’t know what happened.”

  “What were you dreaming of? You were speaking ancient Egyptian.” Malik said quietly.

  “I couldn’t have been speaking ancient Egyptian, I don’t know ancient Egyptian, I barely know any Egyptian.” I wasn’t sure why, but I felt defensive.

  It felt like my life was spinning out of control. It was bad enough to be dreaming about the pyramids, but to dream about things I shouldn’t know anything about. I didn’t know what that last dream meant, but I didn’t think I was actually asleep then. I hadn’t been sitting long enough to fall asleep.

  Kris stood up. “Maybe we should call it a night. Sorry guys. It’s been a long day, and I think we need to get some sleep.”

  She ushered the guys to the door. I watched as Ari spoke quietly to Kris. “Are you two going to be okay? I can stay and help, if you need. I am worried about her.”

  “Don’t worry, we’ll be fine. I’ve got this. I’ve taken care of her before, so I’m good. I’ll make sure she gets some rest.” Kris patted his shoulder.

  “I put my cell phone number in her phone,” Ari said. “Call if you need anything.”

  Kris nodded.

  Malik approached her, gave her a light hug and said his goodbyes as well. She quietly shut the door behind them and turned to look at me.

  “I’m sorry. I don’t know what happened.” I confessed. “I’ve never experienced anything like that before.”

  Kris walked over and wrapped her arms around me. “It’s okay. We will figure out what’s going on.”

  I hoped she was right.

  CHAPTER 5

  ~ Kristina ~

  Two days in Egypt and things were far from normal. Jo seemed to be having flashbacks of someone else’s life and has begun sleep walking with her latest vision. Jo recapped what happened once the guys left and a cold chill went up my spine. Why was she having visions of Ra? And who did he want to pay?

  Tucking Jo in for the night, I walked over to the balcony and recapped the events of the past few days. Weird amulet arrives, Jo’s strange visions, a giant hawk appears out of nowhere, and weird hieroglyphics randomly showing up in my journal. Not to mention, these strange boys show up out of nowhere, making us melt into piles of goo.

  Piles of goo? Oi.

  Slapping my forehead from the ridiculous thoughts going through my head, I groaned loudly, thinking about tonight and what the best way to get revenge on my best friend would be.

  While Jo and Ari were getting their mack on in the back room, Malik and I were in the living room, talking. He started off rigid and off putting, but as the night progressed, he only got worse. One minute he was relaxed and having the time of his life, then the next, he acted like the world was on his shoulders and would only grunt in response to what I told him. But the strange thing was, his mere presence made my skin tingle and my belly flip just by looking at him. I figured maybe he wasn’t too thrilled to be with me here, so he was just trying to be nice and keep me busy while our friends had some fun.

  He asked about the tour, what we liked so far, etc. I told him about correcting the tour guide a few times at the Great Pyramids and he just laughed. He said the tour guides tend to be misinformed when it comes to a lot about Egypt, and it was about time someone put him in his place.

  That was the understatement of the century.

  When he turned to see me laughing along with him, his smile would disappear and a haunted look would appear on his face. I asked him what was up, but he would just change the subject and drill me with questions about me. After we talked about everything Egypt, he asked me about the strange attire I was wearing. Looking down at my ‘I’m a librarian, what is your superpower?’ shirt, I blushed and looked at anything but him.

  Staring off at the wall, I felt strong hands on my chin, gently pulling me towards him. Taking a deep breath, I turned slowly to see dark green with a hint of gold boring into my soul. My breath started to quicken and something started to tug at my brain, telling me I knew those eyes. His eyes dropped to my lips, causing my body to swoon, making everyone in the room disappear. Malik started to say something, when Ari started to yell, snapping us out of whatever was happening.

  Shaking my head from what happened, I turned to see that Jo was on the verge of falling over the balcony. Ari’s arms wrapped around her waist, stopping her from being flattened like a pancake on the sidewalk. Instinct told me to run and help Ari bring her to safety, but rough hands grabbed my wrist and held me in place. I tried to wrangle myself free, but he just held on even tighter. Not knowing what to do, for fear of who knows what, I stayed put.

  Why the hell did you invite these men into our room, Jo? You are so dead when they leave.

  When Jo was safe and sound inside the room, I felt Malik’s grip loosen on my wrist.
Making sure to make a point for him not to ever do that again, I turned and flipped him off, which made him chuckle. Running to Jo, I pushed Ari’s hands away and started to inspect her. Her body was shaking from what happened, sweat was on her brow, and she looked like hell. After checking her and making sure she was alright, I turned my attention back to the men. If this was anything like last time, she needed to vent and get some rest.

  Ari insisted on staying, but for one, we hardly knew the men, and two, they hardly knew us. Why the heck would he be so attached already? If I didn’t know any better, I’d think they were supernatural whatever’s trying to claim their mates. But alas, this is the real world and that sort of thing doesn’t exist.

  Ushering the men out the door, Ari told me he programed his number into Jo’s phone and asked that I keep him updated. Since he refused to budge until I promised to keep him updated, I growled okay and pushed him out the door. Unsure what to do with Malik, I settled for an awkward wave, then he wrapped his arm around my shoulder and I felt his lips graze my ear.

  “Ruwhi, until we meet again.” He whispered softly.

  Looking out over the balcony, my body shivered from the memory of his lips near my skin. He had tan skin, and dark green eyes with a rigid jawline. And don’t get me started on his bod. Those arms looked like they could rip a man in half, and he had a tight black shirt clinging to his chest. He wasn’t a man with a six pack, that I could tell anyway, but man, did I wish I could see what was under that shirt.

  Ugh, knock it off Bulfer! Stop drooling over the Egyptian god and focus on Jo and the hawk.

  “What have we gotten ourselves into, Jo?” I muttered to myself.

  “Sabah alkhyr. Good morning, everyone. We have a very busy day ahead of us. Today we will drive south to the Sun Temple and the Pyramids at Abusir. There you will see the pyramids built by the kings of Egypt of the Fifth Dynasty. That’s where we will meet up with Egypt’s renowned scholar, Cleo Skmet. Then after lunch, we will drive five miles north of Giza, to Abu Rawash, which is the site of Egypt's most northerly pyramid, also known as the Lost Pyramid. The bus leaves in thirty minutes. Finish checking out and I will meet you on the bus.” Dr. Hawass continued to address the group with our itinerary for what was going to happen today, and we made our way to the bus.

  Last night was, well, interesting. Jo slept like a log the entire time while I stayed up keeping a close eye on her. Even though I knew she was safe and nothing was going to happen, the visions she was getting were starting to get more real. What seemed to be a measly memory that she blanked out for, now became visions that made her walk around, unaware of where she was going.

  “Ready to get this show on the road?” Jo asked. She was dressed in a black tank top, with shorts just below her bum. Yesterday, she was pink from head to toe from the harsh sun, and now her skin was getting tanner by the hour. Unfortunately for my skin, my legs were starting to become a reddish shade, and my upper body wasn’t much better. But with the temperature sporting a humid 112 degrees, I lathered on several coats of sunscreen, and prayed I wasn’t going to be cooked like a raisin by the end of this trip.

  Rocking my favorite hiking boots, a shirt that said ‘I see dead people’ and had a small cartoon mummy chasing bugs, with a pair of shorts, I was ready to tackle whatever lied ahead. Today was going to be a good day to see ruins, ancient writing, and eat good food. No more crazy visions or mysterious hawks appearing out of nowhere.

  Checking out of our hotel, I went to pick up my bag, when the same hands that stopped me from saving Jo last night, gently pushed my hand away and picked up my bags for me.

  “Sabah alkhyr, Ruwhi.” Malik said with a grin that made my stomach flip and cheeks flush.

  “Umm, hi Malik.” I attempted to get my bags back from him, but Malik only chuckled and blocked all my attempts.

  “I told you I would be seeing you again.” He said, heading towards the bus with my luggage in tow.

  “Well, I’ll be. Here I thought he was a mute sex on a stick with no social skills what so ever, but looks like I was wrong. Looks like someone is just smitten over our girl.” Jo patted me on the back and followed Malik towards the bus.

  “Ah, crap.” I leaned my head back and counted to three. Why, God, are you punishing me? Did I read too much? Examine too many bodies? This was supposed to be a simple trip, look at ancient Egypt and then head back home. You weren’t supposed to throw two men into the mix, causing our hormones to go crazy and make thoughts about running my hands up and down Malik’s body.

  Rubbing my forehead, I made my way to the bus and saw Malik hand my luggage to Ari, and disappear into the bus. Ari put my luggage in the compartment, then looked my way and waved with a huge grin on his face.

  You got this Bulfer, he is just a gorgeous, tan, sex on a stick man who is trying to mess with you. Oh great, now I am starting to sound like Jo. Giving Ari a small wave, I stepped onto the bus and I noticed Jo was sitting in the row besides Malik. When she saw me approach, she started to make weird hand gestures and wiggle her eyebrows like a crazed person.

  Whatever she was trying to do, knowing Jo, it wasn’t PG-13.

  Removing my bag off my shoulder, I went to sit down next to Jo, but she stopped me before I could sit down. “Why don’t you sit next to Malik this time and Ari by me?” She said with a mischievous look on her face, daring me to say no.

  “No, thank you.”

  “Don’t be such a sour puss. I need to smooth things over with Ari and not make him think I am a looney tune that goes off the deep end at random moments.” Jo responded, still trying to make sure I didn’t sit down next to her.

  “Jo-“

  “No. Go sit next to Mister Hot and Steamy. Get out of your bubble and get to know the guy. For all we know, he may be the one.”

  I made one last effort to sit down, but Jo pinched my butt, causing me to yelp, making everyone in the bus turn around and look at me. Glaring at my so called best friend, I dug deep and got the courage I needed to sit down next to Malik. I was a girl who dug up dead people, studied her entire life, decoded pictures, and sent information back to the higher ups. I do not do live people very well.

  “Hey.” I said, trying to keep my voice from shaking.

  “Hey.” He replied.

  Trying not to make eye contact, I sent a silent thought to Jo and tried my best to be cordial. The problem was, the last time I was interested in a guy and started getting butterflies in my stomach, he found out what I’m really like and ran for the hills. No man wants a short scholar, who dedicates her life to her studies, is curvy and not stick thin, and wants to know the secrets behind those that have passed. So the chance of this working out with Malik was a billion to one. He was gorgeous and well, I wasn’t.

  “What are you both doing here? This is a private tour group.” I asked, with a brisk tone. And there went my mouth with no filter.

  “Ari and I have been on this tour the entire time. You and Jo just haven’t noticed.” Malik shifted slightly so his body was angled towards me.

  “No you haven’t-” Stopping mid sentence, a memory surfaced of the club we went to the first night we were here. “That was Ari dancing with Jo?”

  “He ran into her in the hallway when she went to get ice. He told me he was in love the moment he saw her, and had to see what his future wife was up to. I called him a complete idiot and asked why I got cursed with a romantic nut. Next thing we knew, we were at the club running into you guys.”

  Thinking back to that night, Jo told me she danced with a mysterious man. One minute they were dancing the night away and the next, he hightailed it out of the club, without so much as a word. “If that was Ari dancing with her, where were you?” I asked.

  Malik leaned in closely, our faces inches apart. His breath fanned my cheeks, causing me to blush. “I was watching this beautiful brunette with glasses, having the time of her life.”

  “Wait?” I squeaked. Oh God, I did not just squeak like a freaking mouse.

&
nbsp; “I was going to introduce myself, but before I was able to, Ari grabbed my arm and stormed out.” Malik replied, still invading my personal bubble.

  I pushed him to a safe distance, out of my bubble. “Why did Ari leave?” I asked, hoping to figure out why one minute he was dancing, and the next, he ran out of the bar, and now he was all over my best friend.

  “He had somewhere he needed to be.” Malik responded with a tone that told me that was the end of the discussion.

  Rolling my eyes, I leaned back in my chair and waited for the bus to arrive at our first destination.

  Forty-five minutes later we arrived at the Pyramids of Abusir. To the human eye, it looked like rocks covered in sand, but to someone like me, it was a gold mine. Pillars still stood, wall formations from previous buildings stood strong against the desert storms with only a few crumbling to the ground. The small mounds were once vast pyramids that held secrets that are yet to be discovered. They may be small in size, but that doesn’t mean what they hold isn’t mind blowing.

  Making our way out of the bus, the entire group huddled around a small walkway with Dr. Hawass in front. Malik and Ari stayed behind us, while Jo and I waited to see what Dr. Hawass was going to say.

  “Marhabaan bikum fi Abusir. Welcome to Abusir. Abusir has been called the site of the Forgotten Kings of the Fourth Dynasty. Despite the size of their monuments, these kings do not have the fame of their predecessors from the Third Dynasty. This site was closed for many years to visitors, but with express permission from the Egyptian government we were granted permission to visit. The Pyramids of Abusir originally consisted of fourteen pyramids from the Fourth Dynasty. There are four still standing.”

  Can this man get anything right? For goodness sakes, when we left he said Fifth Dynasty and now he is saying Fourth. Oi.

  Pinching the bridge of my nose, I did everything I could to keep my mouth shut. I already caused a problem the other day, no way was I going to do it again. But the inner scholar in me was having a hard time and the information was eating me up inside. He had every single dynasty wrong. I mean if you are a so called Archeologist and this is your life’s work, how in the world do you get this stuff wrong?