Chapter 3

"I already told you no, I won't go," Elizabeth repeated for the umpteenth time that morning.

"Come on, Liz, it's a great opportunity."

Carmen had been trying to convince her to accept Mark's proposal. Elizabeth had already told her that she wouldn't go, but her friend was stubborn and, to her misfortune, not inclined to accept a simple "No" as an answer.

"Twoys, Villareal!... Anything you'd like to share with the class?" Their contemporary history professor's voice interrupted their conversation.

Professor Halskin was a short, chubby man in his thirties or forties, with prominent cheekbones and tan skin. He had short, chubby legs that made walking a bit difficult for him. His face looked severe, and the only beautiful feature he had were his hazel eyes; otherwise, he had grotesque features, a crooked nose, small thin lips, and a huge double chin that had formed due to his obesity. Despite not being very old, he seemed to be going bald, although some students (Elizabeth included) believed that all that hair on his head was being glued to his mustache, which always seemed disproportionately large. Perhaps that's why he always seemed to be angry when they saw him.

"Not at all, sir, please continue," Liz's voice came out in a small whisper. She didn't like it when teachers scolded her.

"Quiet, you're disrupting my class."

Elizabeth saw the smile forming on her friend's lips and immediately knew they were going to get into trouble if she didn't stop her. However, before she could do anything, Carmen was already on her feet.

"On the contrary, Mr. Halskin, it's your class that's interrupting our conversation," she replied with an air of condescension.

The professor's face turned even redder (if that were possible), his mustache twitched, and for a moment, Elizabeth couldn't help but compare him to a walrus. She couldn't hold back a brief burst of laughter at the thought, but it was enough to infuriate the little man even more.

"Out of my class!" Seeing the teacher's contorted face was all it took for both of them to flee the classroom.

The hallways were empty, which was understandable; all the students were in class, just as they should have been if it weren't for her friend's venomous tongue.

"Did you see his cheeks? God, he was really mad," Carmen commented with laughter as they walked through the halls.

"Well, of course, you make fun of him all the time," Elizabeth said, looking at her friend disapprovingly.

"Me? You're mistaken! I would never do such a thing," the redhead replied with false indignation.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes; things had always been like this between the two of them. She was the calm water, and her friend was the tsunami with a storm included. Before she could respond, a voice interrupted them.

"What are my two favorite girls doing out of class?"

"Mike... We usually end up outside the classroom when it comes to the Hamster," Carmen affirmed, using the nickname students had given to Mr. Halskin.

Michael Lombardo was everything a girl could wish for. Blond, green-eyed, tan-skinned, and irreversibly troublemaking. They had only known him for six months, but he had become one of their closest friends.

He had come from Italy on a sports scholarship and was, in a way, the "new guy" at the university. However, he had made it very clear that when it came to hockey, he was the best. He had been named captain of the team just four months after joining.

"And you?" Liz raised an eyebrow.

"What about me?" he replied, feigning innocence.

"Shouldn't you be in class?"

"You said it, ice princess," Liz scolded him. Carmen just ignored him; her friend worried too much.

"Relax, Liz, he'll have to deal with it if they kick him off the team for poor performance," Mike said, putting down the fourth slice of pizza he was about to eat.

"You know? I'm not hungry anymore," Carmen said with a scared expression.

"That's good," Carmen winked at Liz with complicity. Elizabeth couldn't help but smile. The redhead was a complete manipulator and, therefore, a real danger.

"Changing the subject. Liz, what have you decided? Are you going?"

"I've already told you, Carmen, I'm not going."

"What are you talking about? Is it the job in Egypt? Professor Mark Vivanovik called her to offer it," Elizabeth looked at her friend with a desire to strangle her. She knew what she was trying to do; she wanted to exert more pressure on her to make her accept, but it wouldn't work. She wouldn't give in.

"No, really? That's awesome," Mike said, looking at his friend with a mix of pride and surprise. He had already assumed she had accepted. Great. Just fantastic. He thought. Another stone in his shoe.

"Yes, and it would be if I had said yes to the offer," Carmen interrupted, seeing that she was about to speak.

"What?" Her friend looked quite confused. "Are you crazy? It's the opportunity of a lifetime!" He took a sip of his drink.

Elizabeth sent a sharp look at both of them. "First, I would appreciate it if you didn't use that adjective with me, Michael..."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to..."

"Second," she continued as if nothing had happened, "I really want you to stop pressuring me." She looked at her redhead friend, who only lowered her gaze. "And third, I am the one who will make that decision, and frankly, I don't think it's the opportunity of a lifetime." She stood up from her chair, angry, grabbed her bag, and stormed out of the cafeteria. She heard her friends calling her, but she didn't turn around, just quickened her pace.

The university garden was beautiful, full of grass and some huge trees that provided shade to students on sunny days. Elizabeth sat under one of them. She felt more than angry; she felt somewhat sad because her friends didn't support her. Especially Carmen, who had witnessed all the suffering Elizabeth had gone through and was still going through. She had expected more understanding from her.

Gray clouds covered the sky, and it looked like it would rain soon. Those days when everything was cold and wet were Elizabeth's least favorite. She always got sick, as if the lack of sun drained all her energy. This weather was not for her, and before the raindrops

 started falling, she thought it was best to return to the building. She stood up carefully and shook her clothes. Upon reaching the building's entrance, she silently prayed that it would be open. Luck was on her side that day because when she pushed the door, it opened. The place was completely empty, which was logical; the other students were probably still in the cafeteria, and no one went there if they could avoid it.

"Neanderthals," she thought with mockery. She didn't understand why they preferred to be outside, getting wet, trying to catch a cold or worse, instead of coming in here where they would stay dry, comfortable, and warm. Not to mention they could enjoy a good book. She really didn't understand it. She began to look for something that caught her eye to read. She saw many books, but none seemed interesting. A sudden noise made her turn around in alarm. Apparently, she had dropped a book while she was distracted, and it had caused a loud noise when it hit the floor. She crouched down and picked up the book carefully. Judging by the worn cover, Elizabeth knew it was one of the oldest volumes in the university. The title on the cover piqued her curiosity: "Symbolism of Ancient Egypt." She opened the book; it wasn't her usual reading material, but she felt an inexplicable curiosity about the subject. The pages were filled with various figures that were incomprehensible to her. She stopped at one of the symbols and read the inscription below it.

Ankh

"The ankh (ˁnḫ) (☥) is an Egyptian hieroglyph that means 'life,' a symbol widely used in the iconography of this culture. It is also called the ansate cross (a cross with the top in the shape of an oval, loop, handle, or ansa), crux ansata in Latin, the 'key of life,' or the 'Egyptian cross.'"

She stared at the hieroglyph with a sense of strangeness; she was very sure she had seen it somewhere else, but she couldn't remember where. She looked at it intently for a few seconds. Suddenly, some images came to her mind.

"This is your necklace and your family's. It is your duty to restore it."

The images came so suddenly that Elizabeth didn't realize she was leaning on one of the shelves with one arm. She was about to fall, and she felt dizzy, but she had an answer to Mark's offer. She closed the book tightly and ran out of the library. When she reached the building's entrance, she looked at the garden. She didn't care if she got sick; she ventured out into the rain on her way home. The wind blew Elizabeth's hair as she got out of the taxi. Her gaze settled on the building in front of her. The Bonjour Hotel was one of the most elegant and expensive hotels in all of Cairo. As she gazed in awe at the building, she instructed one of the hotel's workers to retrieve her luggage and follow her to the reception.

She had made the decision to travel to Egypt at the last minute and in a hurry. Her friends had been very happy that she had accepted; they offered to help her with everything she needed for her trip, and she (despite still being angry with them) agreed. So, she packed, bought her ticket, and boarded the first plane bound for the ancient country.

Carmen and Mike had promised to visit her as soon as they could and made her promise to keep them updated on everything that happened. She obviously had to agree; she didn't know what those two were capable of if she didn't. They said their goodbyes with tears at the airport, causing some amused looks from other travelers. Elizabeth ignored it all; she didn't know when she would see them again and wanted to cherish each of those memories.

Elizabeth loved her friends; she trusted them more than anyone else. However, she couldn't tell them the real reason she had decided to go work in the middle of nowhere, making such a drastic change in her opinion. No, it was better for them to continue to believe that she was doing it for academic purposes. She knew they wouldn't agree with the truth, and despite supporting her without hesitation, she couldn't stand to see their constant looks of doubt and disbelief.

"I need to find out more about that symbol," she thought as she headed to the reception.

"Good morning, my name is Elizabeth Twoys. Is there any message for me?" she asked the receptionist.