As the voices around us died down, however, I began to feel extremely uncomfortable. In the sea of white and black robes, there was an occasional black veil. And then I had a great big wonderful idea. Surely our housekeeper would not miss a demonstration such as this.
"Habiba!" I called out. "Habiba?" I turned around, searching the other side of the crowd. "Habiba, are you out there?"
There was stunned silence, and people began to look at one another, shaking their heads. "Habiba!" I tried one more time, dead tired and wanting nothing more than for all of this to be over and for me to be back in our little bungalow. "Habiba!"
Slowly the crowd parted and a hesitant black-swathed figure crept forward, glancing at those beside her and shrugging her shoulders, as if she could not account for the craziness of the Inglaize. As she drew closer, her hand flew to her mouth. "Young miss? Madams?"
"Oh, Habiba!" I pulled my elbow from Mother's grip, hurried over to the stunned Egyptian woman, and threw my arms around her neck. "Thank you for finding us!"
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
Explanations and Goodbyes
THE DEMONSTRATION QUICKLY DIED DOWN as word spread that one of their own had found the English ladies. The sea of people parted as Habiba led us to the nearby police station, where we could explain what had happened. Or parts of it, anyway.
They were rather overwhelmed by our somewhat hysterical tale of a German national who'd been impersonating a member of the Antiquities Service by the name of Borscht. It wasn't until Major Grindle's name was mentioned that they began taking us seriously.
Word was sent round to Father at his hotel, but Major Grindle arrived before he did, with a rather battered-looking Jadwiga and Rumpf. When Jadwiga spied me, a slow grin spread over his face, the first I had ever seen.
Before we could greet each other properly, we were distracted by the police's seizing of Rumpf, thinking he was the German national who'd kidnapped us. Honestly, did they really think he'd just waltz right into the police station and make their life that easy? Chaos didn't work that way.
The only good thing about their harassing poor Rumpf was that it created an opportunity for me to speak with Gadji. As I settled onto the bench next to him, I asked, "So now do you believe you are the last pharaoh?"
"Oh, I always believing it, miss." He shrugged. "Just didn't care so very much."
"I have some good news for you." His little face brightened. "Sefu and your sister are both safe and waiting for you."
His jaw dropped open as he gaped at me. "How you be knowing this?" he demanded.
This is what would make him a good ruler, I thought. It was people he cared about, not the trappings of power. "I saw her with my own eyes. She's very nice, and she's keeping Sefu for you until you return."
He digested this news quietly for a moment. Unable to contain his joy, his legs swung back and forth vigorously. "Effendi miss is not needing me now that the bad mens is gone?"
"No. And even if I did, there are others to help me." I glanced over at Major Grindle, who was arguing fiercely in defense of Rumpf. I had no doubt he'd win, eventually.
There was a whisper of movement in the hallway next to us as a familiar black cloak swished in the shadows. I glanced up, relieved to see Khalfani. "You made it," I said quietly.
He nodded. "And you." Then he turned his gaze to Gadji, the wedjadeen's relief palpable. "We owe you much, Rekhet." He glanced over at the arguing officials. "Even so, I think the boy and I should be gone quickly."
"I agree." Before Gadji could squirm away, I gave him a quick hug. "Be safe."
"I will, effendi miss. You too!"
As I blinked back tears, Khalfani bowed. "Do not worry, Rekhet. You will see him again—when he leads his country to independence!" He flashed a rare grin, and then, with a swish of black cloak, he and Gadji slipped out the back door just as Father arrived at the front.
There was a lot of shouting and hugging and kissing. Father insisted on giving Habiba the reward he had posted for information leading to our rescue. However, one of the police tried to suggest she had had us kidnapped in order to collect the reward. Honestly, was he related to Mr. Bing? Father set him right double-quick, and that was that.
But not quite.
I was still desperate for a chance to speak with Major Grindle and find out what, exactly, had happened that had made everything go so terribly wrong. And if the looks he kept throwing me were any indication, he had questions for me as well.
We finally had our chance when the police decided they wanted to take Mother's and my statements separately, to be sure they matched. Mother was still just this side of hysterical, so Father went in to accompany her. At the door, he hesitated, and I was somewhat relieved to see that he was thinking twice about leaving me alone.
"I'll just sit here with Major Grindle," I assured him. "I'll be fine." I gave him a bright smile. Then he did the strangest thing.
He left the doorway and came over and planted a kiss on the top of my head. "I know you will, Theo. You are made of remarkably strong stuff." Then he returned to Mother's side and shut the door.
Major Grindle and I were alone at last. Well, relatively alone, if you didn't count Jadwiga and Rumpf sitting on the bench across the hall or the various harried-looking police officials racing back and forth, carrying reports of violence done during the demonstration. There were also reports of a small earthquake centered at the Luxor Temple, so they dispatched some of their men to see. There was even one crazed report of a lion being spotted in the desert, just on the outskirts of town. That one they ignored.
When I was certain that everyone was too wrapped up in his own business to pay any attention to us, I turned to the major. "What went wrong? How did Chaos get past all of you?"
"We hadn't counted on the nationalist demonstration," Major Grindle said, his voice laced with bitterness.
"They arranged that, you know."
"I'm not surprised to hear it. The streets were clogged with people—innocent people—and we couldn't even get close to our arranged ambush points. We had to stand helplessly by while Chaos let the crowd carry them to where they wanted to go, safely surrounded by a shield of innocents.
"Once we realized all the ambush points had been neutralized, we rushed to the Luxor Temple with all due haste." He gave me a glance both curious and shrewd. "Imagine our surprise to find a bloody panther on the loose, tearing through Chaos agents as if they were nothing but a field of mice. It seemed to avoid the wedjadeen, for some reason."
"Did you find von Braggenschnott, sir? Was he"—I swallowed hard—"dead?"
Major Grindle sat up straight, his nose quivering in indignation. "Von Braggenschnott! No—where was he?"
My heart sank as I explained how he'd followed us to the temple's inner sanctum. "Isis—the panther—attacked him first, but we were in such a rush to escape, I didn't check to see if he survived the attack."
"I will send someone round at once."
"It was the only way I could think of for us to get away."
"It was downright brilliant, is what it was, and if we had the time, I'd insist you teach me how you did it."
I glanced nervously at the door. "But Mother saw ... so much. How do I explain it to her?"
Major Grindle's bright blue eyes studied me intently. "Your heart will know, Miss Throckmorton."
"Yes, but will it know soon?" I asked. "Because they will want a full explanation sooner rather than later." It was too much to hope that Mother would forget what had happened or that she would refrain from telling Father. "Do you have a family?" I asked.
He gave a brisk shake of his head, and it suddenly became crystal clear to me why he didn't. He knew the true costs of the life he lived. The family he'd never have, the friends he'd always have to keep at a distance, the secrets he could never share. Impulsively, I turned and threw my arms around him, giving him an enormous hug. "Thank you, Major Grindle. For everything. But especially for my grandfather," I whispered.