Desiree's passion for ancient Egyptian culture leads her on a dangerous trip down the Nile.Can Desiree Roberts leave her law career in Texas and become a 1980's Egyptian?
Will the country that has captivated her since childhood embrace her, or will it lead her down dangerous paths fraught with deception and betrayal?
As Desiree follows her dreams and treks through shifting sands, she enters portals of pharaohs long since entombed. Her obsessions lure her into alien territory filled with suspicious characters - where someone wants to end her fantasies.
How far will he go?
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Excerpt:
Desiree’s dreams climaxed as she stood in front of her love, in spite of unnatural fears that played along her spine. Tension gripped her as she felt his hands cradling and caressing her head, threading his fingers through her hair. Gentle sensations drifted down her arms that she met with quick agility. She backed away, waving her hands in fan-like motions before rushing into open air.
In minutes, Sandy was by her side. “Have you lost your friggin’ mind, Desiree Roberts? What’s wrong with you?”
She whispered a weak apology, touching her palm to her heart. “You’re going to think I’m crazy, and maybe I am, but he touched me. He actually caressed me.”
“You’re certifiable. That’s absolutely impossible. Understand? Impossible. Now, relax a few minutes if you can in this horrendous heat—then we’re going back.”
“Don’t think so.”
“You may not think so, but you’ve waited a long time to see this man. Pull yourself together—we’re going back.”
Desiree felt Sandy squeeze her arm. She jerked free, watching tourists plod through the sand, exploring tombs in one of the most visited valleys in the world—the Valley of the Kings. In less than five minutes, she sensed Sandy pushing her toward the dark passageway, nudging her forward. The narrow path forced them to walk single file, but Sandy’s hand remained on her shoulder.
“You don’t have to hold me. I’m not going to run away.”
“Making sure. Go on—right behind you.”
When they were halfway down the tunnel, the women paused, laboring to breathe alien air. In minutes they once again faced the magnificence of Tutankhamen. Desiree’s eyes locked onto his black ones that promised nothing yet everything, eyes rimmed in cobalt, laid to rest in gold. Desiree whispered, “I can’t believe I’m finally looking into your face. You’re no longer just in my dreams.”
Her mother’s words echoed in her ears, “I swear, if I believed in other lives, which I don’t, you had to be an Egyptian princess.” Oh, mother, she thought, if I didn’t believe in other lives before, I would now.
She stole a glance at her friend. Sandy, who had agreed to come on this trip after a promise of her first and last child as well as anything else she wanted. When they were seven, they swore to be together forever and never refuse each other anything. Unfortunately, Sandy didn’t share her fondness for anything and everything Egyptian—in fact, quite the opposite. Desiree smiled, wondering how someone like Sandy, who thought mummies were spooky, felt now in the presence of this young king. If her friend were honest, as she stood looking at the sarcophagus, the magnificent sarcophagus of King Tutankhamen before her, she couldn’t deny the mysticism surrounding them. Even so, Desiree decided to handle her friend carefully. She knew she had experienced something supernatural, but she didn’t need to put this on her—at least not now.
Desiree whispered, “Thanks for making me come back, or maybe I should say forcing me to come back. I’m glad you did. It means so much that you’re sharing this dream with me. You know better than anyone how long I’ve fantasized about all this.”
“C’mon, don’t get sappy. Besides, you don’t have to thank me because this is one of the most inspiring sights I’ve ever seen.”
Des beamed, “I knew you’d come around.” Excitement quickened her voice. “Loosen up and think about how much time has passed since Tut died in, what was it? 1352 BC, I believe, yet this pharaoh continues to capture people’s imagination all over the world. Think how many make this journey to the Valley of the Kings every year to look at his golden image as we’re doing now. I don’t think the thirst for anything and everything new about his life will ever stop.”
Not waiting for a comment, Des continued. “I know you have to be impressed by the wall paintings. They are magnificent. Say, maybe you could paint something like that when we get home.”
Sandy chuckled. “That’s the spunky monkey I know and love. As for painting something like we’re looking at, I’m just a Sunday painter—you know that. It’s remarkable though these pigments have endured, or at least partially endured, for centuries.” Taking a breath, she went on, “I may not know a lot about all this, but it makes me mad as hell that people touch the tomb walls and leave their brands of destruction—not so different from the grave robbers if you ask me.” Not getting a response, she glanced at Desiree.
“Okay, I’ll get off my soapbox now.” Her comments went unanswered.
“What I’d give to see the tomb as Howard Carter saw it in 1922. Can you imagine his exhilaration?” Sandy started to reply, but Des held up her hand, “I know, I know. We can see the treasures in the Cairo Museum, but it’s not the same as actually seeing them in the original tomb.”
Sandy released a sigh. “What I was going to say, if you’d give me a chance, there’s something eerie about the dead confronting the living like this, or suppose you could say the living confronting the dead.”
“In a way, but if you had read more about the Egyptians’ beliefs before we came…”
“So I should have read more—too late now.”
Des finally managed to tear her eyes from the glorious vision before her and noticed she and Sandy were alone.
“Hey, we’re by our lonesome. How about that?”
“Didn’t notice—too caught up in this.”
They smiled, enjoying a special moment. Des whispered, “Absolutely wondrous! This is by far the most glorious sight I’ve ever seen.”
Sandy didn’t answer but rubbed her arm reassuringly. “Hey, your arm is cold as ice and you’re trembling. It’s hot as H-E-double L in here. What’s going on?”
Des returned her question with her own. “I don’t know. How could I be cold in a hundred plus degrees?” Her knuckles turned white from gripping the metal fence separating her from the regal coffin before a razor-like sharpness invaded her head.
“I don’t know what’s happening, but I have to get out of here.”
“Out? You want out? Not again.” Sandy’s words echoed in the burial chamber. “We’ve only been back a few minutes. You’ve waited all your life to get here, not to mention that we had to pay extra bucks to get in this tomb, little princess. The tour bus will leave before we get another chance. Calm down and look a little more.”
Des’ face paled. “I mean it. I have to leave.”
They rushed into open air once again.
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