Chapter 2: Withdrawn

 

After a fitful night of sleep, Alex awoke to the smell of good food, though he wasn’t much in the mood for eating.  He found that his parents were already up, and just stayed put.  All of his life he had lived for adventure, and now he just wanted to be at home where things were normal.  He heard someone approaching, and closed his eyes.  Evelyn walked over to her son, concerned. It was nearly noon, and he hadn’t made a peep, though in all honesty, he needed to sleep, since he had not been able to get much the night before.  She knelt down and kissed his forehead, then moved away going back to Rick Jonathan and Izzy who were talking about their past adventures.  Once she was gone Alex opened his eyes again, and tried not to think about what he had just dreamed but it was difficult not to.  Frustrated beyond belief Alex kicked the covers off, and got up going to the side of the ship to look over it.  Rick took notice and excused himself from the group, then went over to his son.

 

“Hey Alex,”  he said.  Alex kept looking over the side of the ship wondering if he could just jump.  There had to be a way to get the dreams out of his head, the images of his mother dying, and the other images of being eaten by pygmies, and though he knew that he would be badly hurt if he jumped, there was some part of him that wanted that.

 

“How about some lunch?”  Rick tried again.  Alex just shook his head not moving from his spot, and Rick frowned.  He looked over where Evelyn was sitting, and saw the concern in her eyes but what could they do for their little boy.  She stood up and came to where they were standing and knelt down.

 

“Alex will you tell me about your dreams?”  she tried.  He pulled away and went to the other side of the ship looking out over the sands there so that they wouldn’t remind him of what he most feared, her death.  When he left, Evelyn stood and went into her husbands arms.

 

“Rick what do we do?”  she asked.

 

“I don’t know sweetheart, all we can do is love him, and try to be understanding,”  he answered.  From where he was sitting Jonathan had watched his nephew with equal concern, and left his diamond not caring about it any longer.  He walked over beside Alex, and put a hand on his shoulder.  Alex didn’t respond other than to stand there, and Jonathan frowned.

 

“Have I ever showed you how to win at Poker?”  Jonathan asked trying to make him smile.  Alex shrugged.

 

“I could show you now, its really easy just a slide of the hand and you can win every game just like I do,”  Jonathan said.  Alex didn’t move or say anything back, and after a little bit Jonathan went back to the lounge chairs and settled down next to everyone else.  Now that people were leaving him alone, Alex felt worse.  He wasn’t sure what he wanted. Whether he wanted people to be there for him or for all of them just to leave him be.  He guessed maybe it would be better just for them to all go away, that if they did he wouldn’t have to be afraid of one of them dying like his mother had done.  The problem was where would he go that they wouldn’t find him.  His stomach growled and he sighed. Eating meant he would have to talk to people, and he didn’t want to face anyone today, so he just stayed put, then he felt another hand on his shoulder.

 

“Alex please come eat,”  Evelyn said.  He shook his head.

 

“If you don’t eat you’ll get sick,”  she said.  He sighed.

 

“I’m not hungry,”  he said then went over to their beds and lay down pulling the blankets over his head, and closed his eyes.   Sleep soon took him, and with it his dreams.

 

 

 

 

The dream was the same, time had passed since Ahm-Shere, and in this world Alex had not been able to save his mum.  He and his dad and Uncle all lived without her, and the pain that he felt was unbearable.  He walked through the large manor house in his pajamas, going to his fathers room, hearing him crying for his mother, and then he began to run, but the crying got louder and louder until he thought his ears would bust.  He put his hands over his ears shaking his head but he kept hearing the crying, and then he heard his mother voice.

 

 

 

 

It was getting dark again, and both Evie and Rick had tried to get Alex up to eat something but he had refused.  Now as they sat around the fire eating some Rice and beans, they became aware of a soft crying.  Evelyn was the first to get up and go to her baby, and she knelt by him gathering him against her.

 

“Alex shhh,”  she said as Rick came over.  He shook his head and put his hand over his ears crying louder, and harder, and it took both of them to wake him up.  Once he realized his mum was there, Alex clung to her squinting his eyes shut against the dream and that horrible reality.

 

“Get a glass of water,”  Evie said softly as she held her baby.  Rick went over to their supplies and got one of the mugs, filling it with water, then returned to his wife and his son.  Alex was still upset, though Evelyn was helping him calm down which was  relief.

 

“Take a deep breath and let it out,”  she said stroking her hand over his back.  He did, and then took another still holding on to her.  Once he was more calm, Evelyn took the cup of water from her husband, and helped Alex drink a little, though after a moment he pushed that away, still staying in the safety of her arms which was a start, or so she hoped.

 

“Can you tell me what you saw in your dream?”

 

“You didn’t...”  he took a breath and let it out.

 

“Didn’t come back with us, and Dad was crying, and I couldn’t get away from it,”  Alex said and his grasp around her got a little tighter.

 

“Alex look at me,”  she said gently.  Reluctantly he eased away from her.

 

“I’m right here.  You were my smart boy, because you remembered The Book of the Dead and the power of bringing me back to life.  Because you remembered that I’m here,” she said, and leaned down kissing his forehead.

 

“Then why do I keep having those dreams?  I see it and feel it just like it was real, and I try to wake up from it but I can’t,”  Alex said.  His lip trembled and Evie held him close to her once again.

 

“What you went through with seeing me die was something you weren’t ready to face, and in order to face it you need to let daddy and I help you.  Will you do that?”  she asked.  He didn’t respond to that, not ready to talk about it, and Evie didn’t press it.  She felt at least for now they had made some progress.

 

“Will you eat some stew if I fix you a bowl?”  Evelyn asked changing the subject.  He nodded, and she started to leave but he held on to her.

 

“Don’t go mum,”  he said softly.  Rick heard, and in a moment he brought the bowl of stew and settled next to them.  Alex sat between them and made the food disappear fairly quickly.  After he had eaten, he went with them by the fire, and listened to his fathers story of being in the Legion.  Try as he might, Alex couldn’t stay awake, and it wasn’t long before he fell asleep.

 

 

 

 

 

It was chilly, and when he woke up again he was in his own room.  Alex looked around finding everything as it should be.  The fire was burning strong, and it was just breaking to a new day outside.  As he sat up his door opened and his father walked in.

 

“Hey pal,”  Rick said as he settled on the bed next to his son.  Alex gave him a hug.

 

“Morning dad,”  Alex replied.  After a moment the two of them parted, and Rick went about getting Alex’s cloths laid out.  While his father did that, Alex went to his bathroom and washed his face, then brushed his teeth and combed his hair.  When he walked back out his father was sitting on his bed holding a picture of all of them standing at the pyramids of Giza.  Alex frowned and walked over to his dad.

 

“I love that picture of all of us,”  Alex said.

 

“I know its one of my favorites.  Your mum was so happy to go back to Egypt,”  Rick said, and the pain in his voice was evident which started Alex’s heart pounding.

 

“Well she is always proud when we go there,”  Alex pointed out trying to push off the feeling of dread that was creeping into his heart.  Rick looked at Alex.

 

“Son, she is gone,”  he said, and that echoed in his ears.  Alex dropped his hair brush then and got up.

 

“No she’s not.  Mum is alive dad, I read from the book,”  he said wanting to get out. Rick held him then.

 

“Alex you tried reading from the book, and it didn’t help to bring her back.  I know it’s easiest to pretend none of that happened, but it did,”  he said near tears himself.

 

“No dad no,”  Alex replied and started to cry.

 

“She was on the boat with us, I know thats not a dream,”  he said and clung to his father. 

 

 

 

 

Feeling her son’s restless movement against her woke Evelyn.  She sat up just as he called out ‘No dad no’, then mumbled something about she and the boat before he started to really cry, and that woke Rick, who took him in his arms.

 

“Hey Alex,”  Rick said kissing the top of his head, as well as rocking him.  Having heard the commotion, Jonathan came over with a mug of warm tea, and handed it to Evelyn, staying by their side as Alex slowly came awake.

 

“Where’s mum?”  he said panicked.  Evelyn moved beside them, and Alex went into her arms.

 

“Mum your not dead your not,”  he said feeling the reality of her arms around him, and knowing well that was not a dream, though it was becoming difficult to choose between what was real and not real.

 

“I’m real baby,”  she said terrified for him.

 

“Because when I go to sleep your not there, and dad tells me I have to face that I didn’t save you,”  Alex said, his voice shaking with every word he uttered.  Rick couldn’t imagine what life would be like without Evelyn, and the thought of his son facing such dreams was painful to him as well.

 

“Alex Mum and I are here, and she is alive,”  Rick said.  Alex eased away and reached out touching her face, then leaned in against her chest.

 

“How do I get the dreams to stop?”  he asked.

 

“Tell me what scares you the most,”  Evie tried.  Alex knew what scared him the most, but he couldn’t voice it.

 

“I’m not sure, I think it was being chased down by that man with the sword who wanted to chop my hands off,”  Alex said.  That had scared him but it was far from the truth of what he was afraid of.

 

“Alex maybe what your afraid of most is what you are seeing in your dreams,”  Evelyn said. 

 

“But your here with me, and I’m not afraid mum,”  he said though he still hung on to her for dear life.  They tried to get him to talk more about the dream, however the more awake he became the less willing he was to talk about it, and for the time being the subject of his dream was dropped, as the new day began.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Izzy announced that they would be back in Cairo by lunch time, and that was excitement enough for everyone.  Alex however stayed fairly quiet.  He got a chance to fly the ship on his own, which was great fun. Then by lunch, when they landed he was worn out.  While everyone unloaded the ship, Alex hung back playing with some of the children around Izzy’s place.  Some of the boys led Alex a little away where there were some kittens, and one of the boys handed him one.

 

“You keep,”  he said.  Alex already had a cat, or rather his mum did.  Cleo was a finicky cat, and she hid from pretty much anyone that wasn’t Evelyn.

 

“Thanks,”  Alex said, and ran over to his mother

 

“Mum look this little boy gave me a kitten to have.  May we keep it?”  he asked hoping she would say yes.  The kitten in question was a Siamese.  Evelyn was about to say no, but the look in Alex’s eyes changed her mind.

 

“All right, but I want you to take responsibility for this pet,”  Evie said.  Alex hugged her as his kitten snuggled against him.  About that time, Rick came and told them it was time to head to the city, and noticed the cat.

 

“Mum said I could keep him,”  Alex said in defense.

 

“Sure,”        Rick said just as happy to see happiness in their son.  Once they had said goodbye to Izzy, they headed back to Cairo, to their house there, where they would spend the rest of the week.  The steamer ship which would take them to Alexandria was leaving on Saturday, and both Rick and Evie had planned to spend time with Alex to help him.  As they drove along Alex tried to think of a good name for his cat.

 

“Mum is this a type of cat?  Like Cleo is just a stray, but Amelia at school has a Persian, so whats this one?”  he asked as his kitten batted at his hand.

 

“I think that is a Siamese,”  Evelyn said, they were fairly common around Egypt, as was every other type of cat.

 

“Hmm I think I’ll call you Siam,”  he said.  (pronounced sigh-am)  After thinking up a good name for his kitten Alex went back to sleep.

 

 

 

 

It was his kitten licking his face that woke Alex, and when he opened his eyes he found himself in his parents bed, and without a second thought he knew where he was.  Siam was there with him purring loud as Alex sat up, which woke his father.

 

“How do you feel?”  Rick asked as he pet the kitten.

 

“This isn’t real,”  Alex said as he sat up more.  Rick frowned at that.

 

“What isn’t real?”  he asked reaching out to feel Alex’s head.  He wasn’t warm, but his son’s constant need to sleep was worrying him.

 

“You aren’t real.  I am asleep right now and this is just a stupid dream.  Tell me how I got Siam?”  Alex said starting to get angry.  Rick pulled Alex into his arms, and his touch melted Alex’s strong resolve.

 

“When we got back to Izzy’s a boy gave him to you.  He told you that the kitten was Siamese, and you decided to call him Siam,”  Rick said.  Alex felt pain in his heart again.

 

“Why is this happening to me?”  he asked.  Siam stayed snuggled in Alex’s lap as Rick held him.

 

“I’m not sure Alex.  Maybe because you need to face your fears,”  he said, and Alex found a common link.  His biggest fear was still way to scary to admit, though right now he seemed to be living it.

 

“I don’t have any fears,”  he said and he got up taking Siam with him out of his fathers room to explore.  They were in the Manor house, and nothing was different.  Everything was how it should be, except that Evelyn wasn’t there.  His wondering led him to the other part of the house, and he found his Uncle John asleep in his bed.

 

“Uncle John?”  Alex called out.  After a moment Jonathan sat up and made room for Alex in his bed.

 

“What is it partner?” 

 

“What happened at the pyramid?”  Alex asked rubbing Siam’s ears.  Jonathan pulled Alex closer in his arms.

 

“Your mother and I ran as fast as we could to keep up with you, and when we arrived you and your father were safe.  I was about to go explore, when Imhotep and that woman came up.  I knew I should have thought about your mother but because I didn’t, she was killed.”  His words hurt, and Alex got up and ran from him.  He ran as fast as he could to his own room, closing the door behind him, then he laid down on the bed and started to cry.  Siam crawled onto his back flexing his feet against Alex’s back, what could best be described as making muffins.

 

 

 

 

 

When they arrived at the house, Alex was asleep.  Rick carried he and his kitten up to the master bedroom, and held him as Evelyn made the bed.  When she finished, carefully he placed his son in the bed covering him up, smiling as the small kitten cuddled up next to him ready to protect him.  With Alex asleep, Rick and Evelyn went back downstairs to the Parlor.  Jonathan was there, and had made some tea, which both of them gladly accepted. 

 

“I’m going to go out for a night on the town,”  Jonathan said.  He left then, and Evie and Rick retired to the parlor.  They sat in the sofa against the far wall, looking out at the darkening sky.

 

“What would you have done if Alex wouldn’t have been able to bring me back?”  Evelyn asked.  That question was something Rick had known she would ask, and even with knowing that, it was still difficult for him to face.

 

“I think about that, now more than ever since he has been having dreams.  I would try to help both of us move on.  I’m not sure if I would ever find anyone who I would want to spend the rest of my days with, so I would devote my time to our son,”  Rick said.  She sighed and nodded, then both looked up as Alex walked in.  He walked over to the window and looked out holding Siam in his arms.  Evelyn stood and went over to him resting her hand on his shoulder.

 

“Would you like to go out for a walk?”  she asked.  He shook his head, trying to figure out what was real and what was not.  Both this place and the place he didn’t like seemed equally as real, and he wasn’t sure how to cope with any of it.

 

“Why don’t we find some milk for Siam,”  Evie suggested.  Alex nodded and followed her in the kitchen, and Rick followed them.  From one of the cabinets, Evie took out a clay bowl and then got some milk from the refrigerator.  She poured some into the bowl and set it down as Alex set Siam down, and in a moment the tiny kitten was going to town on his treat, and that made Alex laugh a little.

 

“You like that don’t you?”  Alex asked as he pet his kitten on the back.  When Siam had finished his milk he meowed at Alex, and started to purr once his boy picked him up and held him again.

 

“Do you want to have a nap?”  Alex asked, and walked off without a word to either of his parents.