Chapter 27

Sam sat on her couch and began sifting through the magazines she’d received while she was in New York. It had been about four days since she’d returned home, but she'd been so busy with the wedding plans that she hadn’t had much time to get caught up on her reading. She was feeling a bit stressed out and it was great to sit back and relax. Her new issue of National Geographic featured an article related to Petra, the ancient city that was detailed in the exhibit at the museum where the Jacksons were curators. As she thumbed through the article, her mind began drifting and she thought back to her meeting with them. She hoped that she had convinced them to at least consider attending the wedding.

She felt a bit more optimistic after seeing Daniel’s mother at the museum the next day. After she’d spoken with her at the exhibit, Sam had run into her in the museum cafeteria where she decided to have a bite to eat for lunch. Claire reiterated that she didn’t know Daniel had made his home in Colorado and she admitted that she’d been a little depressed on and off over the years. She had never heard from Daniel and assumed that he just never tried to call or write.

Sam was a bit reluctant to inform her that Daniel had tried to call, but in the end she decided it was important that his mother know. She revealed to Claire what Daniel had told Sam fairly recently. He had made several efforts to call and would end up leaving messages on their answering machine. This revelation left Claire nonplussed, as she couldn’t recall receiving any messages from him at all over the years. Sam hesitated before telling her that Daniel had suspicion that his father was erasing the messages.

Hearing this made Claire understandably upset and even angry with her husband. The fact that he would do such a thing initially gave her pause. In the end, however, she resigned herself to the fact that she wouldn’t put it past him, especially for the way he thought of Daniel and his career decision. Sam could see heavy emotion in the older woman’s eyes and she really felt for her. It seemed that Daniel’s relationship with his mother was just a bit stronger than the one with his father. It certainly wasn’t fair that they’d been cut off from each other for so many years due to his father’s absurd attitude.

With determined resolve, Claire told Sam that she would have a talk with Mel – not only about the wedding, but also about his actions over the years that caused them to become estranged from their son. She thanked her daughter-in-law-to-be with a grateful hug. Sam went back to her lunch and smiled to herself, hoping that something good would come out of this.

She was thrown violently out of her daydreams by a loud, urgent knock on the door. She placed the open magazine down on her coffee table and rose from the couch. A bright smile spread across her face as she made her way to the front door. It was the twentieth of August and that could only mean one thing.

Daniel was back.

She pulled the door open and happiness filled her heart when she witnessed Daniel standing in front of her. On this relatively cool August evening, he was wearing a dark and light blue plaid shirt and a pair of khakis. A large duffel bag lay at his feet, which made her think that he’d come straight here from the airport. Little did she know that he’d actually gone home first to shower and freshen up, in order to look halfway presentable before seeing her. His complexion lacked the rugged tan she nearly expected from being in the Egyptian desert. He looked exactly the same as he had before he’d left, except that his long, floppy mop was a bit longer and floppier. His clear blue eyes seemed bright and enthusiastic, as did the smile on his face.

She didn’t expect his first words to be, “Sam, I have incredible news. You really need to hear this.” She could hear excitement edging into his voice.

She merely smiled at him. “Daniel …”

“I’ve made an amazing discovery,” Daniel continued, seemingly ignoring the affectionate look she was giving him. “It’s just so … incredible. You really need to see it. I think it’s something that will really interest you.”

“Daniel …”

“I think it will really blow your mind. All the research I’ve done in this area over the years – research for my doctorate and whatnot, has never yielded anything of this magnitude. It’s the most amazing thing,” he rambled on.

“Daniel!” she exclaimed impatiently. She found his enthusiasm endearing but why hadn’t he kissed her yet????

Daniel finally trailed off and looked at her inquisitively. He noticed the broad smile on her face and barely had time to smile back before she grabbed him and kissed him tenderly. As their tongues intertwined, her fingers played with the soft strands of his hair before her hands found their way to the front of his body and under his shirt. As she caressed his chest, his hands explored her shoulders and back.

At long last, their lips parted and they looked expressively into each other’s eyes. Color tinted Daniel’s cheeks before his lips formed a wide grin. “Thanks for reminding me just how much I missed you,” he said. He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, which caused her to giggle softly before she stepped back to allow him entrance.

Daniel set his duffel bag down as he sat on the couch next to Sam. He took hold of her hand and caressed it. “I really did miss you, Sam,” he told her.

“I hope I don’t have to tell you how much I missed you,” she replied. “And, from the way I just found you, I guess I don’t have to ask how it went over there.”

Daniel chuckled and gave her an affectionate smile.

“So, what’s this amazing discovery you’re so excited about?” she asked, grinning.

He was on the verge of telling her when he looked nervously down at his bag. “Pack your bags. We’re going to Cairo,” he blurted out.

Sam’s eyebrows drew together. “What?” she asked with an incredulous chuckle.

“You have to see this in person, Sam. I booked a flight to Cairo and a hotel room for us. We’re leaving tomorrow,” he elaborated excitedly.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa – back up. You just got back from there. We’re going??” Sam asked, still wondering if this was all a joke.

Daniel nodded and felt a bit of dread well up inside him. He was so excited about his find that he didn’t give much thought to how Sam would react.

“You’re completely serious?” she asked quietly.

His eyes met hers and he nodded quietly.

Exasperation and disbelief colored Sam’s eyes as she hastily rose from the couch. “It would have been nice if you’d asked me first before doing all this,” she said, raising her voice a notch. She didn’t realize at the moment how hypocritical she sounded, having seen Daniel’s parents without telling him. “You’re expecting me to drop everything and just fly over with you to Cairo?”

Sam’s words struck Daniel like a blow to the head. Granted, she had a reason to be angry, but he still didn’t think she’d react quite like this. “Drop everything? Drop what?” Daniel asked absently.

Sam shook her head and scoffed incredulously. “For your information, I’ve been going crazy trying to get everything taken care of for this wedding!” she said with a vehemence that surprised even herself. “I mean, for two and a half weeks you left me here to do all of this myself. And now you’re expecting me to drop it all and fly off with you to the hot Egyptian desert??” She quickly shut her eyes as she realized she might have said the wrong thing.

Daniel visibly bristled at this and rose from the couch. “Are you implying that I deliberately left you to take care of this all yourself?” he asked in disbelief. “In case you’re not aware, Sam, my job requires me to do this every now and then. That I would do this on purpose to inconvenience you is completely ludicrous.” The edge of sarcasm in his tone made him wince inwardly.

Sam’s cheeks grew hot as he spoke. She knew how ridiculous she sounded, but she wasn’t about to let him off the hook for the suggestion of a whirlwind trip to Egypt. She took a moment to gather her thoughts before responding to him. “That doesn’t excuse the fact that you just suddenly made plans for us to go to Egypt without even asking me. You just thought I would agree to this?”

Daniel took a deep breath and looked into her eyes. “Yes, I did,” he said lamely. “Sam, I have to show you this and the only way for you to see it is up close.”

Sam looked at him and uttered a sound of disbelief. “I don’t believe this. The wedding is in eleven days!”

“So?” Daniel interrupted. “That’s plenty of time! Do you honestly think we’re going to be in Egypt for two weeks?”

“I don’t know! I’ve never gone on an … expedition … before!” She said, waving her hands around awkwardly.

“Well, consider this a golden opportunity, then,” Daniel said hotly.

“I …” Sam started. She abruptly stopped when she noticed Daniel’s eyes aglow with anger. She immediately looked away, embarrassed. They had argued before but never this badly. He was sounding quite mean, not like himself at all, and it made her feel awful. She wasn’t exactly in the clear either. She realized that they’d both had a long two and a half weeks and were tired and stressed out.

She looked back up at him and found that his expression had turned from anger into hurt. She took a deep breath to calm herself down. “Oh, God. We’re not even married and we’re already fighting,” she said ruefully. “It’s all my fault – I literally picked a fight with you. I’m so sorry, Daniel.” Her tone became uneven and she blinked away tears.

Daniel edged up to her and wrapped his arms around her. “It’s okay, Sam. It’s my fault, too. I should have never made plans like this without consulting you first. You were already going crazy planning the wedding and this was the last thing you needed to hear. I was just so excited about this find and I thought it would really interest you. I guess I can be overzealous in my enthusiasm.”

A small chuckle briefly escaped her lips. “I’m sorry that I reacted the way I did. I shouldn’t have been so angry. Some of the things I said were completely ridiculous and I wouldn’t have said them if I was in my right mind. I was pretty stressed out with all the planning I’ve done for the wedding and the fact that I missed you dearly didn’t help. I guess that’s why I’m a bit out of sorts.”

“I know,” Daniel said softly. “And I’m sorry. I wish I could have been here for you.” He hugged her and kissed her softly on the top of her head.

“Okay now?” he asked once they stepped back.

Sam nodded and a faint smile appeared on her lips. “Yeah.”

“I should have thought about you, Sam. If you want, I’ll cancel these plans. We can go out there after the wedding and the honeymoon,” he said in a conciliatory tone.

Sam picked up on the slightest bit of disappointment in his voice. She remembered how excited he seemed when he first came in. She wasn’t quite happy with his making plans behind her back, but she had done nearly the same to him in the form of her trip to New York. Admittedly, she was quite curious about what he’d found and she wondered why he didn’t come right out and tell her.

“How long would we be there?” she finally asked, resigned.

Daniel seemed slightly surprised that she seemed willing to consider it. “Three days is all we’d need,” he replied. “We’d be gone tomorrow, the twenty-first, and we’d arrive back home on the twenty-fourth. We’d have a whole week until the wedding. How much is there left to do?”

“Not very much,” Sam admitted. “The plans are set for the chapel and Sara is taking care of the floral arrangements. The invitations were all mailed out and we’ve gotten 15 RSVPs so far. I picked out my wedding gown and it’s been fitted. All that’s left to do is pick out the cake.”

Daniel smiled. “It sounds like everything is going according to plan, then. I picked out my tux before I left in case you’re wondering about that. The ring is taken care of, too. I think all I need to do is get the honeymoon all settled, which I can do when we get back.”

Sam gave him a quick little smile. “Now, are you going to tell me about this thing you found?”

Daniel’s cheeks immediately became rosy and he briefly glanced at his hands. “Ah … yeah. About that …”

Sam regarded him curiously.

“I have a confession to make,” he began tentatively.

“About what?”

“Do you remember when I told you about that student’s theory; the one about the pyramids in Egypt being millennia older than they actually were and possibly being used as landing pads for aliens?”

“Uh … yeah,” Sam began.

“I sort of stretched the truth there … or, more appropriately, made it into a figure eight,” he said awkwardly, his blush growing by the minute.

“Daniel, what are you talking about?”

“That theory … was mine,” he finally got out. He put his head down, causing his hair to flop over his face.

Sam stared at him, slightly surprised before she remembered what he’d said about anything being possible when they discussed the possibility of alien life. “So?”

Daniel’s head shot back up and he pushed his hair back from his face. His expression revealed that he was not expecting her reaction. “You don’t think I’m crazy?” he asked with a touch of disbelief in his voice.

Sam looked at him for a moment and then began laughing. “Of course not, Daniel. I don’t think that’s crazy at all. I’ve heard similar theories being pushed around before. My brother had an old book that discussed them. That was back in the mid seventies. I know some people find it all a little ‘out there’, but I’m not one of them. I think it’s pretty interesting and something to think about.”

Daniel regarded her in disbelief for several seconds before a content smile formed on his face. He was glad that she didn’t find his theories outlandish or unorthodox and even happier that she actually found them interesting.

“Why didn’t you tell me it was yours back then?” she asked him quietly.

Daniel hadn’t given much thought to how he’d explain himself in this regard. The blush crept back into his cheeks and he clutched at his hair nervously. “I don’t know if you’ll understand. I don’t know if I quite understand. I guess I presented it to you that way to sort of … feel you out. I wanted to see what you thought about it. I just liked you so much that I was afraid you’d be turned off and not want to be bothered with me.”

Sam felt a slight pang of sadness upon hearing this. She also felt a bit ashamed when she remembered that she had basically joined him in ridiculing the theory. It was time for her to come clean, too. “I guess you remember that I ridiculed it along with you. In a way, I was saving face, too. I really didn’t find it ridiculous but, since I thought you did, I was afraid you’d think I was a nut job if I ever said so.”

Her comment prompted Daniel to chuckle affectionately. “I guess we are perfect for each other, then,” he said.

Sam laughed softly and beamed as he gave her another kiss on the cheek. “Now, will you tell me why the moldy old tombs of Egypt demand my immediate presence?” she teased.

Daniel blushed and nodded as he removed a small photo album from his duffel bag and set it down on her coffee table. It contained pictures he’d taken with his digital camera.

“I apologize for the quality on these,” he began sheepishly. “The focus somehow got messed up – probably when Kevin borrowed it to take pictures of a few camels we spotted.” A light grin flitted across his features.

Sam nodded and squinted as she tried to make out the subjects of the blurry pictures. They appeared to be of hieroglyphs and pictographs, though she could hardly recognize them. Not that she was an expert on these things…

“I know you can barely see them, but let me at least give you some idea of what they’re about. As I studied them, I wrote up some extensive notes.” He trailed off and searched his duffel bag for his notebook. Clasping it in his hand, he thumbed through it until he came to the last section of notes he’d taken.

“Basically, it depicts a normal representation of civilization during the Middle Kingdom, with one interesting exception. There’s one set of hieroglyphs that talk of beings that are … the closest translation I could find was ‘foreign.” These beings came from some distant place and would walk among the indigenous population. One of the corresponding pictographs depicts members of all the classes – the aristocracy, the upper classes and even the poor – among these unknown ‘beings.’”

Sam looked at him intently as she listened. “’From a distant place’… could they have been nomads who came from someplace far away like Asia, or even some more remote location in Africa?” she offered.

Daniel’s eyes lit up, as if he was expecting her answer and was eager to either embrace it or refute it. “Ah, see that’s what I originally thought. But, there’s one very interesting thing that made me change my mind.”

Sam found his enthusiasm endearing and bit back an affectionate chuckle. Instead, her eyebrows drew together as she looked at him curiously.

Daniel licked two of his fingers and flipped the page of the album over. He took two of the photos out of their plastic sleeves and held them up. One was blurred almost beyond recognition, while the other was just a hair clearer. They seemed to show pictographs, most likely the ones Daniel had just described.

“These are more pictographs, generally depicting the local population interacting with these, for lack of a better word, foreigners,” he began. “Here’s the interesting thing: one of the scenes depicts what I’m reasonably sure is the sky. Located in the corner of this … sky … is a group of round objects aligned in a specific pattern. Their grouping is consistent throughout. I thought they could be stars, but the hieroglyphs led me to believe otherwise –“

“You think they’re planets,” Sam interrupted, completing his train of thought as she knew where he was going.

Daniel regarded her seriously and nodded.

“And the fact that they could be planets makes you think that these ‘foreigners’ might be aliens,” she continued, a faint smile appearing on her face.

A faint blush colored Daniel’s cheeks but once he recognized the smile on Sam’s face, he smiled broadly. “Yes,” he said quietly.

“It ties in with your theory,” Sam mused quietly, sounding impressed.

“That’s where I need your expertise,” he said. “I wonder if there’s any way you can tell if these planets depict the ones in our solar system.”

She turned back to the photos and her brow furrowed. “Not from those pictures.”

Daniel chuckled. “That’s why I wanted you to come with me. My evidence isn’t exactly strong. I’d like you to see it up close and I’d like to get some video footage of it. My students had the video camera a good deal of the time and the battery ran out before they gave it back to me.” He snorted softly.

Sam nodded. Suddenly, a thought came to her. “How does the question of whether the planets depict the ones of our solar system figure into this?”

Daniel blushed upon realizing that he’d left an important detail out. “Oh, ah … well, the first set of these pictographs show these beings located above the planets or in their immediate vicinity, which would seem to indicate that this is where they originated from. The hieroglyphs basically say the same thing.”

Sam stared at Daniel and then back down to his album. “I didn’t see any pictures of those.”

“They’re towards the back, but unfortunately they didn’t turn out well at all,” he replied grimly.

Sam nodded and barely caught Daniel gazing down at his bag once again.

“Oh, I almost forgot,” he said hastily as he bent down and began rummaging through it. Sam looked at him expectantly.

He grabbed a small cloth bag and presented it to her. “I got this at a bazaar not far from the hotel. You didn’t think I’d come back without getting you a gift, did you?” He gave her a warm smile.

Emotion briefly flashed across Sam’s face before she reached into the bag and pulled out a necklace. Her jaw dropped and she ran her finger over it. It featured a round-shaped pendant that appeared to be made of gold and was engraved with the symbol of an eye. The long chain from which it hung was fashioned out of small beads. She looked back up at Daniel, silently asking him what it was supposed to be.

“It’s the Eye of Ra,” Daniel told her. It’s an ancient Egyptian amulet that had protective powers and was believed to ward off evil.”

Sam took in his explanation and then looked back down at the necklace. “This is ancient Egyptian?” she asked, seemingly impressed.

“Ah … yeah. Well, actually, it’s a replica of an ancient amulet – at least that’s what the merchant told me. I’m not so sure how true that is, but as soon as I saw it I thought of you.”

Sam looked at him and blinked. “You only thought of me when you saw this amulet?” she asked in a slight teasing tone.

Daniel chuckled affectionately. “No, of course not! I mean, I thought it would make the perfect gift for you. I was hoping to find something more akin to that which a pharaoh gave his beloved queen. This was the next best thing.”

Sam grinned and nodded. Daniel reached for the amulet and gestured for Sam to lower her head slightly. As she did, he slipped the necklace over her head and down around her neck. She looked down at it appreciatively and then back up at him with a smile. “Thank you, Daniel,” she said, her voice filled with emotion. “This was such a sweet thing for you to do.”

“It’s nothing,” he said as he smiled tenderly. He hugged her and then gave her a soft kiss on the lips. Sam beamed and the notion that she’d been quite angry with Daniel so recently was all but a memory.

“So, Dr. Carter, will you be joining me on this expedition?” he asked coyly.

Sam laughed softly. “I would be more than happy to, Dr. Jackson. I’m eager to see what these ‘planets’ are supposed to represent. Hey, come to think of it, we’ll both be ‘Dr. Jackson’ soon enough.”

Genuine warmth filled Daniel when he realized once again that they would be married soon. He smiled at her. “We’ll be Drs. Jackson.”

Sam nodded. Her smile faded when she realized she had to get more information about this little trip of theirs. “When are we going to be leaving?” she asked.

“Oh … right. The flight is at 9 AM. I got a later flight this time because I didn’t want you to have to get up at the crack of dawn. I felt bad for coming over to say goodbye so early that day,” he said ruefully, remembering when he visited her before he left for Egypt, “and the return flight back to Colorado on the twenty-fourth is at 1 PM.”

Sam nodded. “There are still so many things I have to figure out here. What type of clothes should I bring? Should I bring any extra supplies?”

“Don’t worry about it, Sam. I’ve got everything taken care of … well, except for the clothes, of course. Ah … your clothes, that is.” He blushed slightly. “Bring clothes that are lightweight. You’ll want to bring sunglasses and some sunscreen definitely, although I have plenty of that so you can use mine. Do you have a wide-brimmed hat?”

Sam’s brow creased in thought. “I have a sunhat made of straw that I use when I’m gardening, but I doubt that will do me any good this time.”

Daniel grinned and shook his head. He reached into his duffel bag and pulled out a tan colored boonie hat with an adjustable chin strap. The price tag attached to it revealed that it was brand new – either that, or he’d had it a while and let it go unnoticed.

“I bought it for you,” Daniel elaborated.

Sam began to feel bad. “You didn’t have to do that.”

Daniel shrugged. “It’s really nothing.”

“What about you? Do you have one of these?”

Daniel looked at her. “Ah … not exactly. I have something else. Don’t worry about that.”

Sam studied his face and then shrugged, resigned. She rose from the couch and motioned for Daniel to get up. As they were leaving early and he had everything he needed with him, he would be spending the night at Sam’s house. She insisted on opening up the couch for Daniel, but he didn’t want her to go to all the trouble. He was content to just lie on the couch as it was. Sam begrudgingly accepted it, but she fetched an extra pillow and a blanket for Daniel anyway.

After a goodnight kiss, Sam made her way into her bedroom, pulled out her large barrel bag that doubled as an impromptu suitcase, and set it on top of her bed. As she began to pack, she kept thinking of the discovery Daniel had made and its possible implications. She admitted to herself that it did seem quite fascinating and she was actually excited that it would require her expertise.

She finished her packing and placed the bag at the foot of her bed. Just as she was about to shut the light off and turn in, she looked down at herself, touched the amulet that hung across her chest, and smiled.