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“Except it didn’t work out that way, did it?” asked May.

“No,” she said, shaking her head. “He said he was certain about the objects, which was why he had me present them and claim them authentic. Two of the items were forgeries. I was disgraced before my career even got off the ground. When I told them he asked me to present the items, they said that I was trying to make a name for myself, and he’d even told them I was often going rogue at the dig sites.”

“Rogue? What the fuck does that mean?” asked Major.

“I don’t know. I was the last person to go rogue. After what happened to my father, I was extremely cautious on dig sites. But he was the one with the name and reputation, and I was just a young, new archaeologist. They placed the blame for the frauds on me and relegated me to working at the museum and teaching classes at the university.”

“I’m sorry, Elena,” said May. “I had something similar happen a long time ago. It’s more common than people think with not just archaeology but all professions.”

“Could that be what happened with my father? Maybe he found something that someone else took credit for?” asked Elena.

“It’s possible,” said Major, “but whoever it was would have brought forth their findings and become famous. If no one did that, then it’s still hidden somewhere.”

“Well, all of those boxes are digs that were concluded or closed,” she said, pointing to the stacks behind them. “These six boxes are the only things that might hold what we’re looking for. You know, it’s quite possible that this has nothing to do with my father. It could be anything.”

“We know,” said Major, “but it seems odd that you suddenly started to have issues after your face was seen with us and mentioned in the article about us thwarting the catastrophe at the airport. You were hidden before, and maybe that’s what this person wanted.”

“Maybe,” she frowned, shaking her head. “It still seems far-fetched that my father found something and no one else knew about it.”

“And you’re sure that your mother has nothing that belonged to him?” asked Luke.

“I’m positive of that,” said Elena, sighing as she shook her head. “When my father died, my mother was boxing up his clothing to be donated within a few days. All of his books she saved for me and are in these boxes. Anything that belonged to the last dig was given to the Egyptian Antiquities Department. Everything else, you see here.”

“Alright, let’s dig in,” said May.

The two women clearly were lost in their work. The notes kept by Dr. Fayek were exceptional, and as they read through things, May was learning more and more about Egyptian antiquities and the culture.

If she wasn’t certain about something, she would stop and ask Elena, who was more than willing to elaborate on what was written or found.

“Okay, time for a break,” said Thomas. “You two have been at this for hours now.”

“Oh, wow,” said Elena, looking up at the clock. It was nearly two, and they’d missed lunch. Suddenly, she was very hungry. “I didn’t realize it was already time for lunch.”

“You have to eat and keep up your strength,” said May, smiling at the young woman. “Let’s head over to the cafeteria.”

There were still a lot of people in the cafeteria when Dylan brought out plates of food for each of them. She’d made muffalettas, Cajun homemade spicy chips, and the most delicious pecan bars she’d ever eaten.

“This is so good,” moaned Elena. Major laughed at her, nodding his head. “I mean, I’m a woman who likes to eat, but this is really, really good.”

“We pride ourselves on good food around here,” said Luke. “My grandmother is probably the best chef I know, but we have several professional chefs here as well. My Aunt Sara, who is married to Wilson; Dylan, who is married to Gator; and Casey, who is married to Rett. They’re all professionally trained, but Grandma had fifteen children. She was trained by necessity.”

The room laughed, nodding their heads.

“You have a lot of multiple births here,” said Elena. “Have you tested the water and the soil? Sometimes, it does make a difference. Some of the highest rates of twin births are now in African countries. Many researchers believe it’s the climate, food, and soil that play a part in it.”

“That does seem odd,” said Major. “As far as we know, it’s all genetic. Mama Irene had four sets of twins; some of her children and grandchildren had multiples. But most of them come from those who are not blood-related. For instance, Magnolia’s parents. They had quadruplets. Spontaneous quadruplets at that.”

“Well, all I know is that I’m only carrying one,” she smiled. “Not that I don’t want more, but one is enough for now.”

“You want more?” smirked Major. Elena stopped with her sandwich halfway to her mouth.

“I-I. Yes,” she said confidently. “I’ve always wanted a large family. I was an only child, and it wasn’t any fun at all. All of my friends were researchers and archaeologists, dig teams. I want my children to have other children to play with.” May laughed, shaking her head.

“They’ll definitely get that here.”

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

After digging through about half of the boxes, the team stopped for the day and decided to just give it a rest. They’d shower, have dinner, and start fresh in the morning. Walking back to their cottage, Elena and Major were happy to see Walker and Mags walking hand in hand toward the gardens.

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