Chapter 2

Without thinking twice, she moved to London. It was her opportunity to leave her past behind, to separate herself from everything that caused her great pain. Her godmother and Carmen always told her to look inside the chest to be able to close that chapter of her life, to overcome everything, but...

How do you overcome the death of your parents?

How do you overcome the fact that you'll never see them again?

That they won't take care of you when you're sick.

That they won't give you their smiles.

That's not something you can overcome, and certainly not something you can accept.

She looked at the box once again; maybe they were right, and it was time for her to turn the page forever. After all, that's why she had made the decision to leave her hometown.

She was about to open the chest when the sound of an incoming call on her phone grabbed her attention; she took it out of her hoodie pocket. She frowned when she unlocked the screen.

She didn't recognize the number, but despite that, she answered.

"Hello?" The breathing of whoever was calling was palpable on the other end of the phone.

"Good evening, sorry for the late hour. Is Elizabeth Twoys there?" The male voice that responded was vaguely familiar to her, although at that moment, she couldn't remember from where.

"Who's speaking?" she asked.

"It's me, Mark Vivanovik," he replied.

"Mark, what a joy to hear from you again! It's been months since I heard from you!" Joy was evident in Elizabeth's voice.

Mark was an old friend of her parents and had also been her professor in her first year of college. However, to her, he was more than just a teacher; he was like a second father.

"Same here, Liz. How have you been? How are you?"

"I'm very well. And you?" she asked playfully.

Mark only called when he needed something, and since her curiosity was greater, she would let him put on his show to have a good laugh.

"With a lot of work here in the ruins," he replied casually. Liz sighed. That was another one of his tactics.

Everyone at the university knew that he had started an important archaeological research project a few months ago. The government of Egypt had recruited him to help recover the treasures of the ancient country and, above all, protect them from treasure hunters.

"Alright, I'm very happy for you, but seriously, why are you calling? Get to the point," Elizabeth decided that if she let him put on his theater, it would be much worse. Laughter could be heard from the other side.

"Always so perceptive, just like your father," despite not being able to see him, she knew that a nostalgic smile had formed on Mark's lips. "I'm calling you because I have a golden opportunity to offer you. My superiors believe I need help with the work I'm doing, and I thought maybe..."

"No," she immediately replied, knowing where he was going, and it was better to cut his idea off right away.

"No?" confusion was palpable in his voice. "But I haven't even told you..."

"I know what you're going to say," she interrupted him. "You're going to offer me a job in Egypt again, and my answer was and still is, no."

Mark sighed, and Elizabeth heard him mutter something like, "Stubborn like her mother. God save me."

"I know you're afraid to travel there because of what happened to your parents, but you can't let that influence your decisions, and certainly not your life," his calm and conciliatory tone made Liz angry.

"I don't..." she began to say, but couldn't finish because Mark interrupted her.

"Think about it, I'm just asking you that. I have to give an answer by the end of the week, you have plenty of time to make a decision. But I'll just say that your father wouldn't have liked his daughter to stray from her roots," he said and then hung up, leaving Liz in a state of confusion.

After Mark's unexpected call, Liz decided that it was best to go to bed and consult everything with her pillow. She took a glass of water, then slipped into the warmth of her bed sheets.

That night, she couldn't rest; once again, the dreams came, and this time, with more force than ever.

Her heart raced as she ran, her feet pounded against the hot desert sand, and the suffocating heat hit her chest, leaving her breathless.

She knew she had to find something, it was more than that, she desperately needed to find something; however, she still had no idea what it was. Her legs were about to give out, and she felt that she would soon pass out if she didn't drink some water.

She reached the top of a sand dune and found an object protruding from the sand. She ran towards it and dug with her hands. She had a feeling that what she longed for was there.

What she discovered left her even more confused than before. It was a necklace, there was no doubt about that, but not one she recognized. It was a cross, a very particular one. At the top, it had a handle-shaped part, and looking at it closely, it had the shape of a key.

"Ankh."

She didn't know how, but something told her that was the name of the jewel.

She stared at the necklace intently when, unexpectedly, a sandstorm covered her completely. The desert seemed to be speaking to her.

"This is the Ankh necklace, your inheritance and your family's. It is your duty to restore it in Egypt."

Her legs gave way, and her pulse raced. It wasn't the desert speaking to her; it was her father. Tears filled her eyes as she saw him, and as for him, he only smiled and then disappeared with the wind.

"No!" the words burst from her throat. Everything around her started to blur, but she was approaching the dream with all her might. However, it wasn't enough.

Elizabeth woke up with a racing pulse; her hair was stuck to her face because of the sweat that covered her body. She put a hand to her forehead and realized she had a fever.

Her hands were cold, and despite being covered in sweat, her body shivered from the intense cold she felt. She put on her robe and slippers, got out of bed, and went to the window, opening it. The warm summer wind hit her face, relaxing her.

She gazed at the sky; the stars shone brightly in it. The moon, high and majestic, illuminated everything, it was past midnight.

"Our inner demons return in the least expected moments."

She closed the window and returned to bed, this time, very uneasy.