Authors: Patti Wheeler
Egypt
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
Published by Greenleaf Book Group Press
Austin, Texas
www.gbgpress.com
Copyright ©2014 Claim Stake Productions
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the copyright holder.
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Cover illustration by Leon Godwin
Ebook ISBN: 978-1-62634-000-8
Ebook Edition
You can tell whether a man is clever by his answers.
You can tell whether a man is wise by his questions.
—Naguib Mahfouz, Egyptian winner
of the Nobel Prize in Literature
One hand doesn’t clap.
—Egyptian Proverb
TRANSLATION OF COMMON PHRASES
Hello
—As-salamu Alaykum
How are you?
—Kayfa halluk
I am fine, thanks
—Ana bkheir, shukran
What is your name?
—Esmak Eh?
Please
—Min fadhlik
Thank you
—Shukran
No thank you
—La Shukran
You’re welcome
—Afwan
Do you speak English?
—Titkallam Inglizi?
I am lost
—Ada’tu tareeqi!
Can you help me?
—Hal beemkanek mosa’adati?
Can I help you?
—Hal beemkani mosa’adatuk?
Okay
—Tayib
Goodbye
—Ma`a as-salaamah
PART III
THE SEARCH FOR EGYPT’S LAST PHARAOH
WYATT
DECEMBER 14, 4:51 PM
COLORADO, U.S.A.
R
right up until this morning, you could say my career as an explorer was going exceptionally well. In all of our recent globe-trotting, my brother and I have saved endangered species, protected threatened habitats, and raised cultural awareness through the publication of our field notes.
I’m not going to lie, all of our success was starting to go to my head. I consider myself a humble guy. Honest, I do. But truth is, I’ve always pictured myself following in the footsteps of the great explorers—Captain James Cook, Dr. David Livingstone, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. If you had asked me just this morning, I would have said with confidence that one day my name would be added to that list.
But, as they say, life is what happens while you’re making other plans.
“It arrived, Wyatt!” I heard Gannon shout at the top of his lungs. “Hurry up and get down here so we can open it!”
I sprang from my desk chair, burst through the door of my bedroom and leapt down the stairs three at a time. Sprinting down the hall, I could see Gannon standing near the front door. In his hand was a large envelope. An envelope we’d been waiting almost three months to receive.
“Give it to me!” I said and snatched it away from him.
The envelope was scrawled with Arabic writing and covered in Egyptian postage. In the upper left corner was a faded black stamp that read:
Youth Exploration Society
Cairo, Egypt Office
A few months back, Gannon and I applied for the Youth Exploration Society’s Egyptian Antiquities Fellowship. Awarded annually to four lucky teenagers, this fellowship grants winners a one-month expedition in Egypt with a distinguished archeologist.
This year’s fellowship is being led by none other than Dr. Mohammed Aziz, a man credited with discovering 99 tombs to date. It was my hope to be part of the team that helped him discover his 100
th.
“Are you going to open it or just stare at it all day?” Gannon asked.
This was the moment of truth. At last, we were about to find out if we’d been chosen. I opened up the envelope and removed two letters.
“Read them aloud,” Gannon said.
I cleared my throat.
Dear Gannon:
Congratulations! You are one of four candidates that have been awarded the Egyptian Antiquities Fellowship. Please keep this between the two of us, but of all the candidates you were the most qualified. I look very forward to having you on our team!
Sincerely,
Dr. Mohammed Aziz, Fellowship Director
Youth Exploration Society
Gannon pumped his fist in the air.
“Oh, yeah!” he said. “I’m going to Egypt, baby!”
Something about the letter just didn’t seem right. Gannon, the most qualified candidate? That’s just ridiculous. The second most qualified, maybe.
“Read your letter,” Gannon said anxiously. “I’m dying to know if you’re going to Egypt with me.”
I almost laughed at him.
“If they accepted you, they definitely accepted me.”
I read the second letter.
Dear Wyatt:
Though we would like to accept you along with your incredibly talented brother, the competition this year was very stiff. I regret to inform you that your application has been denied. Better luck next year.
Sincerely,
Dr. Mohammed Aziz, Fellowship Director
Youth Exploration Society
My ego deflated like an untied balloon. I was floored, shocked, and worst of all, humiliated. Not only had I been denied, but I’d lost out to my brother.
“Wow, that’s a total bummer,” Gannon said. “I was really hoping we’d be going to Egypt together. Oh, well.”
How could this have happened? I still can’t figure it out. There must have been some mistake. Maybe they mixed up our applications. Got our names crisscrossed. Given that we’re twins, this seems a logical explanation. I bet they meant to accept me and deny Gannon. That’s the only thing that makes any sense. After all, I’m the one who’s been studying ancient Egypt for the past six months! I’m the one who loves archeology! I’m the aspiring scientist! As a fellow, I would make a meaningful contribution to the expedition! What’s Gannon going to do in Egypt? Write poems about the desert?
I looked at my brother. He had a huge smile on his face.
“I can’t believe this!” I yelled. “You don’t even know anything about Egypt!”
“Don’t be such a sore loser,” he said. “I know plenty about Egypt.”
“Okay, how tall is the Great Pyramid?”
“Much taller than you.”
“455 feet.”
“And how tall are you?” Gannon replied. “5′ 8′′ tops? Next question.”
“How many tombs have been discovered in the Valley of the Kings?”
“A lot.”
“62, actually.”
“Like I said, a lot. That’s Gannon two, Wyatt zero. Just in case you’re keeping score. Any more questions, smart guy?”
“Why don’t you tell me something about Cleopatra?”
“
Cleopatra,
a 1963 film directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. The role of Cleopatra was played by Elizabeth Taylor.”
“Are you being serious?”
“Come on, Wyatt. You should know better than to ask me movie trivia. I’m an aspiring filmmaker. You’ll never stump me.”
The discussion was pointless. My head sank.
“Keep your chin up, Wyatt,” Gannon said. “You’re no slouch of an explorer. I’d be willing to bet you came in fifth place. Not too shabby. It’s like honorable mention. Who knows, maybe someone will drop out and you’ll get to take their spot. I doubt it, but you never know.”
Gannon patted me on the shoulder and walked off. I glared at him, my blood boiling, as he strolled down the hall whistling casually. If there’s one thing Gannon’s good at, it’s rubbing salt in the wound. It makes losing to him almost unbearable. I had the urge to chase him down and give him a good pummeling, but I knew that wouldn’t solve anything. Instead, I ran up to my room and haven’t come out all afternoon.
Spread across my desk are several books on Egypt.
The Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt
by Margaret Bunson;
Tutankhamen
by Howard Carter;
Cleopatra: A Life
by Stacy Schiff. There are drawings of tombs, diagrams of the tunnels and chambers in the Great Pyramid, maps of the Nile River, Cairo, Alexandria, and Luxor.
To think of the hours I’ve spent studying. All those late nights and weekends preparing an application that I thought was a sure thing. As far as I know, Gannon hasn’t done anything to prepare. I guess none of that matters now. Bottom line, he’s going to Egypt and I’m not.
DECEMBER 14
Okay, okay, I should probably ’fess up. Let’s see, how can I put this? I totally messed with my brother’s head. Yeah, that’s one way. I toyed with his emotions. Sure, that’s another. I betrayed his trust in me. Fair enough, I guess that’s another, but I like the first two better. They don’t sound quite as harsh.
So what did I do to poor Wyatt?
Well, just so happens I was outside this morning when Easy Eddy, our mailman, drove up.
“Hey, Easy Eddy!” I said. “How’s it going?”
“Takin’ it easy,” he said.
“Easy’s the only way to take it.”
“Right on, brother.”
He handed me a stack of mail, shot me the “hang loose” sign, and drove off with his music blaring. I was flipping through the mail as I walked inside and that’s when I saw the envelope from Egypt. Pretty much goes without saying that I had to be the first to know if either of us had won the fellowship, so I opened it right away.
When I read that we had both won, I was so excited and almost yelled to Wyatt, but just before I did I was hit with this brilliant idea and instead made a beeline to my dad’s office. There, I hid the acceptance letter and typed up two fake letters. One that said I was accepted and another that said Wyatt had been denied. I slid the fake letters into the envelope and resealed it with tape. Oh, man. After Wyatt read those letters he went totally pale and his mouth fell wide open. I’m not joking, it looked like he’d just seen sasquatch or something.