Leila’s jaw dropped. Soliman raised his eyebrows.
“Are you sure?” Soliman asked, pushing his spectacles back up to the bridge of his nose with a finger. “You’ve put so much work into this project. A discovery like this, it’s every archaeologist’s dream.”
“Right. I know. It’s hard to explain.” Xander shrugged.
Soliman pursed his lips. “Well, if that’s what you want,” he said, his voice skeptical. With a wave, he limped into the tent, the flaps swinging back and forth behind him.
Leila crossed her arms. “Hard to explain?” she asked. She couldn’t think of a single reason why he wouldn’t want credit as a part of the discovery.
“Right,” Xander said.
“But why not?” She wouldn’t let him brush her off like that.
He shook his head. “Look, I can’t…” He trailed off with a small sigh and ran a hand through his hair, making it stand up on end.
Leila stared at him in disbelief, a frown tugging at her lips. He probably wasn’t going to enlighten her. Even if she begged to know why, he’d keep her in the dark. A discussion would be a waste of time.
“Do you always have to be so vague?”
He shrugged again.
“Fine,” she snapped and pivoted on her heel, “whatever you want. We’ll pretend you weren’t there.”
Even if it made it feel like her heart had turned into a rock, that’s exactly what she planned to do. It was what she had wanted anyway. Wasn’t it?
• • •
After the break, digging continued inside and outside of the mastaba. Karl, who had been stationed at the sifter, came to show off a pottery shard he had found in one of the buckets of dirt. He proudly held up a plastic bag with the small sample inside. They would have to proceed extra carefully, perhaps even switch to smaller, gentler tools.
Dr. El-Baz, an older man roughly Soliman’s age, joined them as they began to clear out a corner where they found more pottery remnants. By mid-afternoon, they were finished for the day. The next day would mean more delicate work with small picks and brushes, setting up a grid, and plenty of photos.
Leila was the last to leave the mastaba, holding her satchel of tools under her arm. She headed back up the dusty trail toward the tent. Up ahead stood two security guards, whom she nodded at politely as she passed by.
More security already?
With a grin spreading over her face, she picked up her pace. Soliman must have already broken the news. Or he was about to. She entered the tent where the entire team had already gathered. All eyes were on the professor.
“Salamun alaykum. Please do not be alarmed at the sudden increase of security,” Soliman was saying to the assembly. “After further investigation of Thutnekhbet’s tomb, a passageway was discovered, leading to the door of a second tomb. This tomb…” He took a moment to glance around the audience. “…is sealed.”
A wave of murmurs went over the group. The archaeologists exchanged glances of surprise and shock.
“We will begin preparations immediately,” Soliman continued. “The university has also invited several media outlets to document the occasion. We will also have police protection for the remainder of the excavation. In the hopes that the tomb is full of artifacts, our lab will be prepped for the incoming items. A transportation system will also be set up, using special packing material, locked crates, and one designated driver. Should all preparations go smoothly, the opening of the tomb will take place in five days.”
The crowd cheered.
• • •
The days began to fly by, the opening approaching faster than the team was ready for. With one day to go, the sun slowly rose above the excavation site, and Leila was stuck showing a small group of journalists around the necropolis.
She soaked in the morning’s first rays, thankful for their warmth after being outside in the chilly early morning air.
If only the sun could do something to warm up my brain.
The constant questioning had started to clog up her head. She would have loved nothing more than to hand the journalists off to someone else to take care of, but Soliman had dumped them all on her.
She gritted her teeth, wondering if Xander had foreseen things like this happening. No wonder he bailed out.
Her plan was to end the tour by Thutnekhbet’s tomb, but the reporters showed no signs of dispersing. Two armed guards stood before the locked metal gate, watching the group with paltry interest. An idea formed in her mind. The journalists wouldn’t be able to follow her inside. She glanced over to the tent that had been set up the day before, twenty yards down the gravel path from the tomb entrance.
There was at least one person who would be glad to talk to the curious reporters.
Leila led her shadows into the tent. It was sparsely furnished inside, with two tables Emma and Karl had set up. An array of electronics covered one table. Both Emma and Karl had their hands full as they sorted through the mess. Neither of them noticed Leila’s entrance.
“But if you put it on the left, it’ll block the view of the room,” Emma said as she moved a flat-screen monitor from one end of a table to another.
“I need the space on the right for the docking station,” Karl insisted, picking up the monitor as soon as it left her hands.
“But I’m going to be sitting here too. Just put the docking station on the left!”
“Hey, you two,” Leila interjected. Their heads whipped around, and Leila gestured at the four reporters standing behind her. “Mind explaining your setup here?”
Karl and Emma exchanged wide-eyed glances.
“Well,” Karl started, setting the monitor down, “don’t mind if I do.” He walked over to the reporters and began shaking hands.
Leila backed out of the tent, but the journalists were already so busy hounding Karl with questions nobody noticed her exit.
As the flaps swung closed, her back hit something solid. She whirled around, blurting out an apology, only to meet Xander’s amused gaze.
