children if we were so blessed. He had decided not to do anything about it, just to let the dead sleep in peace. We have always had enough for our needs and don’t believe that earthly possessions bring happiness. We have never spoken of it since that night. But now I think maybe someone else knew about it and that is why my husband and daughter have been abducted”.
It took me some time to digest this latest piece of information. Unlikely though it may seem, it would help to explain their disappearance, especially since no ransom demand had been received. I asked Waleed if she had any idea where the tomb lies. “No, my dear” she replied “only that it is in the Valley of the Queens ”. I also asked her if she was sure that her husband had not mentioned it to either of their sons, but she was adamant that he would not. “You know what young men are like” she said. “They would not be able to resist going to have a look and then they would want the treasures and the money it would bring them”. This seemed to make sense, as neither Pili nor Omar had mentioned it on our trip and had not shown any signs of looking for such a tomb.
“Do you have any idea where the family of your father-in-law’s friend might be now?” I asked. “Only that they lived not far from the Valley of the Queens ” she replied. “I think the friend’s name was…….um……let me think now. Yes, I’m almost sure it was Edjo.
This was also the name of one of my cousins, which is why I remember it. But as for his family name, I’m sorry, I have no idea.”
We talked more about what could have happened to Kareem, Masud and Yasmeen. It seemed we were just going around in circles. “I beg you, my dear, use this information cautiously. In the wrong hands it will do a lot of harm and will not help our loved ones.”
I rang John Turner and arranged to meet him for dinner. I didn’t tell him over the phone the secret that Waleed had revealed to me and I wasn’t sure if I would tell him later. What, if anything, was I going to do about it? I needed to get away and think so I left the house and wandered out into the streets of Cairo . There was a museum not far away with beautiful gardens and I made for this, ignoring the taxis calling out to me, so that I could sit under a shady tree and sort out my thoughts. I found a seat under a huge tree and closed my eyes. It would be foolhardy for me to try and do anything with this information on my own. But who could I trust? I thought of Kareem’s aunt and uncle. They were likely to be of little help – they were quite elderly and I couldn’t imagine what assistance they could offer. Hamidi? I hardly knew him and certainly didn’t think I should trust him with this sort of information. That only left John Turner. How well did I know him? He made you feel you could trust him – but could I? Working for the Australian Embassy he should be more interested in the welfare of two missing Australians than antiquities. Another possibility occurred to me – I could ring Jim and relate the story to him and seek his advice. It was not really something I could tell him over the phone though and I knew if I flew back to Sydney now I would find excuses – money, work, the impossibility of it all – not to return to Egypt . I felt I owed it to Kareem to try and find out what had happened to him and to his brother. If I did nothing and never found Kareem I would be forever haunted by guilt.
I battled with these thoughts for over an hour. In the end I came to the conclusion that the only person I could turn to was John Turner. I thought of his twinkling blue eyes and warm smile and I felt sure he was someone I could safely confide in.
I returned to the house and found Omar and Pili had finished in the shop. They seemed pleased to see me again and asked if I had made any progress.
It took me some time to digest this latest piece of information. Unlikely though it may seem, it would help to explain their disappearance, especially since no ransom demand had been received. I asked Waleed if she had any idea where the tomb lies. “No, my dear” she replied “only that it is in the Valley of the Queens ”. I also asked her if she was sure that her husband had not mentioned it to either of their sons, but she was adamant that he would not. “You know what young men are like” she said. “They would not be able to resist going to have a look and then they would want the treasures and the money it would bring them”. This seemed to make sense, as neither Pili nor Omar had mentioned it on our trip and had not shown any signs of looking for such a tomb.
“Do you have any idea where the family of your father-in-law’s friend might be now?” I asked. “Only that they lived not far from the Valley of the Queens ” she replied. “I think the friend’s name was…….um……let me think now. Yes, I’m almost sure it was Edjo.
This was also the name of one of my cousins, which is why I remember it. But as for his family name, I’m sorry, I have no idea.”
We talked more about what could have happened to Kareem, Masud and Yasmeen. It seemed we were just going around in circles. “I beg you, my dear, use this information cautiously. In the wrong hands it will do a lot of harm and will not help our loved ones.”
I rang John Turner and arranged to meet him for dinner. I didn’t tell him over the phone the secret that Waleed had revealed to me and I wasn’t sure if I would tell him later. What, if anything, was I going to do about it? I needed to get away and think so I left the house and wandered out into the streets of Cairo . There was a museum not far away with beautiful gardens and I made for this, ignoring the taxis calling out to me, so that I could sit under a shady tree and sort out my thoughts. I found a seat under a huge tree and closed my eyes. It would be foolhardy for me to try and do anything with this information on my own. But who could I trust? I thought of Kareem’s aunt and uncle. They were likely to be of little help – they were quite elderly and I couldn’t imagine what assistance they could offer. Hamidi? I hardly knew him and certainly didn’t think I should trust him with this sort of information. That only left John Turner. How well did I know him? He made you feel you could trust him – but could I? Working for the Australian Embassy he should be more interested in the welfare of two missing Australians than antiquities. Another possibility occurred to me – I could ring Jim and relate the story to him and seek his advice. It was not really something I could tell him over the phone though and I knew if I flew back to Sydney now I would find excuses – money, work, the impossibility of it all – not to return to Egypt . I felt I owed it to Kareem to try and find out what had happened to him and to his brother. If I did nothing and never found Kareem I would be forever haunted by guilt.
I battled with these thoughts for over an hour. In the end I came to the conclusion that the only person I could turn to was John Turner. I thought of his twinkling blue eyes and warm smile and I felt sure he was someone I could safely confide in.
I returned to the house and found Omar and Pili had finished in the shop. They seemed pleased to see me again and asked if I had made any progress.
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