The Pharaohs

Prologue - Cleo

"Cleo! Dinner!" my dad calls out the screen door.

"Coming!" I yell over my shoulder. I'm standing in our back yard, staring up at the sky. I take a quick glance around and wonder what it would be like without even this small privilege.

"Cleopatra Elizabeth!"

"Coming!" I yell again, except this time I turn and run to the house. My full name means business.

I sit at my usual spot around our round kitchen table. Dinner is already all laid out. Mom and Dad quickly join me. Their faces are grim, and it looks like Mom's been crying. I set my fork back down and glance between the two of them.

"What's going on?" I ask, my voice catching in my throat. Dad reaches over and squeezes Mom's hand. She sobs quietly.

"Dad. What's going on?" I repeat, this time louder.

"Do you remember Great Grandma Quinn?" he asks, not taking his eyes off Mom.

"Of course I remember her," I say, my voice barely above a whisper. "She taught me a little about the Time of the Tombs." Dad doesn't say anything. "Did she pass away?"

Dad nods.

I feel my eyes start to sting. "When?" The word is barely audible.

"This morning," Mom croaks.

"Mom, I'm so sorry," I say. I quickly stand up and wrap my arms around my shaking mother. She pulls me closer and we stay like that for what seems like a lifetime. Finally, Mom pulls away and looks up at me. A small smile fights the grief in her eyes.

"It was just her time to go, you know," she says. I nod in agreement. Mom motions to my chair. "Let's not starve because of it."

I force out a chuckle and take my seat. We eat silently for a couple minutes, and then I ask, "When's the funeral?"

"The cremation ceremony is tomorrow," Dad answers. "And then on Tuesday we're doing the reading of her will. Hopefully she mentioned where she wants her ashes to be scattered."

"Don't you think she told Great Grandpa Jaxon?" I ask.

Mom and Dad are both quiet for a minute.

"Am I missing something?"

"Grandpa Jaxon hasn't said a word since she passed," Dad finally answers.

"Oh," I breathe. "Is he gonna be okay?"

"He'll be fine, honey," Mom says. "Him and Grandma Quinn went through a lot together, that's all."

"Yeah, like going through the Time of the Tombs together," I say, half to myself. Mom and Dad just nod, both seeming to be deep in their own thoughts.

Grandma Quinn had told me very little about the Time of the Tombs. Mom and Dad didn't say much either. In school, our history classes skip over the years 2020 through 2045. Now, in 2110, the 25 year period is taboo. The Time of the Tombs is simply referred to as the darkest time in the history of mankind. That's hard to imagine when thinking about the great World Wars. Some people I ask say it started out as World War III but then changed into something much worse than a war. I usually get told to get lost at that point in the conversation. That's all I know.

The next morning, I get up at my usual 6:30 to get ready for school. Halfway down the stairs, I hear hushed voices from around the corner. I pause and tilt my head and listen.

"...worried about Caine at work."

"What are you saying, Seth? That he's the next King Tut?"

"Don't say his name!"