Missing in Egypt (22 page)

stealing the ransom money and even if they did, it cannot be proved without a doubt that Kareem’s aneurism was definitely caused by that blow to his head. President Hosni Hazif takes the stealing of
Egypt
’s antiquities very seriously.
 
They will come down very hard on these three perpetrators and they will receive very stiff sentences.
 
It is much better for you to leave it to them to punish them.
 
Otherwise you will spend a lot of time back in
Egypt
for the trial, waste a lot of money and at the end you will probably not achieve anything.”

Reluctantly I accepted the wisdom of these words.
 
The trial was likely to be quite a way off.
 
Every effort would be made to find out who was behind all this.
 
Obviously it was none of the three already arrested.
 
They would be interviewed over and over again and coerced into giving up the name of the mastermind in exchange for a more lenient sentence.
 
Only time would tell if any of them would yield to this type of interrogation.

It was another month before John rang again to let me know the trial had started.
 
“Tomorrow they begin the preliminaries and soon we will know what is to become of the three prisoners.
 
They have not given up any names so far.”
 
“Please let me know how things progress, John” I pleaded. “Actually, that’s going to be a bit hard, Anna. You see, I will not be in
Egypt
much longer.
 
I have resigned my posting and I’m coming back to
Australia
tomorrow.”

I was taken by surprise at this news.
 
“But I thought you loved your job in
Egypt
” I exclaimed.
 
“I have enjoyed the experience immensely” John replied.
 
“I’m not just resigning from the post in
Egypt
though.
 
I’m leaving the service altogether.
 
I want a change of direction.
 
Can I take you out to dinner when I return and tell you all about it?”
 
“Yes, that would be nice.
 
Why don’t you call me when you are settled?”

After I put down the phone I spent the rest of the evening wondering why John would want to quit the Department of Foreign Affairs.
 
I also had to examine my own feelings.
 
I was feeling very pleased at the thought of seeing John again. How could I feel this way so soon after losing Kareem?
 
Eventually I decided it was nothing more than looking forward to seeing a friend again.
 
It couldn’t be more than that, surely.

It was only a matter of days before John rang.
 
We arranged to meet in the City at an Italian restaurant at
Darling
Harbour
.
 
John was already there when I arrived and had picked a lovely table overlooking the water.
 
He kissed me lightly on the cheek and pulled out my chair.
 
“Its great to see you again, Anna” he said.
 
We chatted idly for a while about his journey and he told me how much he was enjoying being back in
Australia
.
 
“There’s no city in the world like
Sydney
” he declared as a paddle-steamer pulled out from the wharf in front of us, lit up like a Christmas tree and full of happy tourists. ”
Cairo
is an amazing experience but it’s not somewhere you would want to spend the rest of your life.”
 
We sat quietly, gazing at the lights of the buildings reflected in the water.
 
There were blue, red and white lights, even some green and amber, shining down on the yachts in the
Marina
in front of us.
 
We could see the old South Steyne ferry moored across the other side of
Darling
Harbour
, proudly lit up in its new life as a floating restaurant.

“So what are you going to do now you are back in
Australia
and out of Foreign Affairs?” I asked.
 
“I’m planning to have a couple of months off and catch up with old friends. Then I’ll look around.
 
I don’t really want to work for anyone else again so I may start up my own business.
 
Who knows, I might even go into antiques!”
 
We both laughed at this and I asked him if he had heard any more about the trial.
 
“It is proceeding slowly, as things do in
Egypt
.
 
I still have contacts in the Department of course and they will keep me updated.
 
I have no doubt that they will all go away for a very long time”.

The rest of the evening passed pleasantly and we finished the night with a stroll around
Darling
Harbour
.
 
“When can I see you again, Anna?” he asked as the time came to say goodnight.
 
“I know you are still grieving for Kareem but I do enjoy your company.”
 
I suggested he ring me in a few days and we could catch up for a drink.

Over the next few weeks I saw quite a lot of John.
 
He didn’t seem to be in any hurry to go back to work.
 
He had an apartment in the city, which so far I had avoided going to see.
 
I enjoyed his company - he was funny, thoughtful and generous - but I didn’t want to take our friendship any further.
 
John didn’t push me, but I knew he was hoping our relationship would soon go to the next level.
 
I liked John a lot, but I was still grieving for Kareem and knew I was not ready for another relationship yet.

Eventually the news came from
Cairo
that I had been waiting to hear.
 
The trial was over and the sentences handed down.
 
Gahiji, who was considered to
be a minor player, was given 7
years.
 
Rashidi and Mosi were each given 15 years.
 
They never revealed the names of those they worked for and steadfastly denied any knowledge of anyone called Mohammed, even though it could have resulted in a lighter sentence.
 
It seemed those master-minding the operation had them well and truly frightened and although the investigation would be ongoing, it was not looking very likely they would ever be found.
 

To celebrate, John threw a party and so at last I went to his apartment.
 
He had invited a few friends over he wanted me to meet.
 
When I arrived at the address he had given me in
Castlereagh Street
I pressed the button to his apartment and was let into a very smart foyer.
 
The lift took me up to the 10
th
floor and No.9 was around to the right from the lift.
 
When John opened the door I was totally unprepared for the level of affluence of his apartment.
 
It was quite magnificent, with a huge picture window giving a wonderful view of the city lights.
 
There were five other couples already there enjoying drinks and the view.
 
“Wow, this is some apartment” I whispered in his ear “I didn’t realise what I was missing”.
 
John just grinned and poured me a huge gin and tonic before taking me to see the two spacious bedrooms and the huge ensuite and main bathroom.
 
“You have done well for yourself”.
 
The kitchen was state of the art with a laundry off the back of it.
 
“This must set you back a packet”.
 
“After two years in
Cairo
I figured I deserved a bit of comfort” was John’s response.

I left my coat in the spare bedroom and prepared for a very pleasant evening.
 
As the night drifted on, John put some dancing music on and invited me to dance. I felt his arms tighten around me and I let myself fall into the rhythm. It was very enjoyable to be held again and to melt into the music whilst gazing out at the light show below.
 
The other guests were interesting.
 
Only one person was someone John had worked with from the Department of Foreign Affairs, a man called Henry Whitehouse. A quiet, bespectacled man in his early forties, he and his wife, Margarita, talked to me about my experience in
Egypt
and wanted to know about being trapped in the secret tomb.
 
They were quite amazed to hear my story first-hand.
 
Henry had not been to
Cairo
but was fascinated to hear my insights into the city.
 
We talked at length.
 
“It was quite odd that they never caught up with the containers full of treasures” he mused.
 
“It was an extremely busy time at the ports when they were supposed to be shipped out.
 
They must have had it all organised well in advance and managed to slip them through Customs by bribing one of the officials.”
 
At this point John cut in and whisked me away for more dancing.
 

The other couples were friends whom John had known from Uni.
 
Two of the guy
s
, Peter and Graeme were lawyers with well-known
Sydney
firms.
 
Their wives were very smartly dressed and were stay-at home mums.
 
Both had a live-in nanny to help with the children and enjoyed a very pampered, leisurely life by my standards.
 
His other two friends from Uni were female.
 
Pamela, was in Public Relations and was quick to tell me she was divorced, no children and loved her work.
 
The other girl, Julie, was a high-school teacher.
 
All had travelled extensively so were very interesting to talk to and Julie and Pamela often holidayed together.
 
Although she didn’t mention her personal life, I understood Julie had never been married.

When all the guests had left, it seemed natural that I should stay on and help clear up.
 
When the last glass was washed and put away John pulled me into his arms again and I didn’t hesitate as his lips came down on mine.
 
His kisses were hard and demanding but they lit a fire within me that I couldn’t control.

The next morning whilst John was in the shower I went in to the spare room to retrieve my bag and coat.
 
As I turned to leave the fax machine started up and made me jump.
 
Without thinking I went over to it, so used to answering its call.
 
The words “The eagle has landed safely” jumped out at me and, intrigued, I let my eyes run across the rest of the text.
 
“Meet me outside Central Station opposite the youth hostel at 1pm and we can finalise our deal”.

I suddenly realised I was snooping and pulled myself up quickly.
 
I hadn’t meant to read someone else’s mail, it just sort of happened.
 
I decided I would pretend I hadn’t seen it.
 
Over coffee I asked him what his plans were for the day.
 
“Oh, nothing much.
 
A bit of business” he replied “but I’ll be back by the time you finish work.
 
Why don’t you come over and I’ll cook you dinner”.
 
He nuzzled the back of my neck and my legs went weak.
 
“That would be lovely” I whispered, my voice hoarse.

I couldn’t help musing over the fax I had seen as I went through the day.
 
What sort of business deal was John involved in?
 
He hadn’t mentioned doing any business – he had seemed quite happy to enjoy some free time.
 
And what did Henry mean about the Customs official? Presumably the authorities would have questioned everyone who was on duty on the nights they thought the goods would have been shipped and anything strange would have been reported.