Transfusion (Transfusion Saga #1)

Chapter 7

Alone in Passion

Ten minutes later I found myself stood in room four with a much larger audience than Sir Allerton first led me to believe.

So, now stood in the wonderful gallery of Egyptian sculpture, I started at one end and began to work my way down the space that included some of the world’s finest depictions of kings, deities and symbolic objects ever found.

These ranged from the time of the Old Kingdom right through to the middle of the Roman Period.

There were also some grand architectural pieces from temples and tombs that I had the pleasure of showing them.

The room itself was a large painted white space, framed with columns either side, creating an almost serene quality to the colourful Egyptian history.

With its tall, square cut ceiling and its wall of tall windows that was usually flooding the place with natural light, then it was the most perfect place to display them in all their glory.

Especially like this, when it was silent and still, being without the hustle of cram packed tourists, it was one of my most favorite places to be.

However, being as it was one of the most popular parts of the museum, being so close to its entrance and situated next to the great court, it was rarely seen like this by anyone but the museum’s staff.

But no matter how much I loved it, I had never once been forced to share it with the likes of Lucius, who was currently making my job very hard indeed.

From the very first moment he followed me into the gallery, he stood in the background, watching my tour like the master of his own universe.

He was totally at ease being surrounded by the godly figures of Egypt and considering how old he was, then I could sort of understand why.

After all, most of what we saw now, being housed as a way for modern day society to view these small snippets of the past, then he himself had most likely seen in its original form.

Then, no wonder a room like this would be underwhelming to a man like Lucius, compared to seeing these mighty statues stood proud where they were always intended to be.

Statues not broken and weathered through the whirling sandstorm of time.

So, maybe it was this reason that, unlike the others who seemed to be listening to me with great intent, he wasn't looking at the ancient treasures I had been referring to.

No, instead, the whole time he had solely been looking at me talking about them and no doubt hearing the way my voice wavered slightly whenever I caught sight of him staring at me.

I tried not to look at him, I really did, but when such a powerful figure was in the room, standing out just as much as if one of these ancient kings had come back to life, then it was very near impossible.

I felt as though I was being studied by Lucius, and surprisingly, not necessarily in a scrutinizing way.

But still studied all the same.

At first when I started speaking he would raise his brow at me when my voice faltered slightly with my nerves and in a way, it never had done before when talking to people about my work.

So, eventually I had no choice but to act as though he wasn't there, which like I said, was near impossible to do considering it was as if I could feel every one of his movements.

As though in some way I was connected to him on a deeper level.

At one point during the start of the tour I even found myself having to shake my head a little after he had simply placed his palm at the lower part of my back, so that he could lead me into a space I knew well.

I didn’t know why he did this, but I knew two things…one was that his actions felt more driven by a possessive side of him.

And the second was that unfortunately there was no way that he could have missed the audible gasp I had created by sucking air back through my lips in genuine surprise.

But then I started speaking and addressing about twenty people with a slice of history that felt as though it was rooted to my very bones.

“In the first section of the gallery we are greeted with Egyptian monuments that give you a sense of kingship ideology and both Egyptian religion and their magnificent art,”

I told them coming to stand in front of the first of two matching statues.

“This here, ladies and gentlemen, is Amenhotep III, a king who ruled in Egypt in the 14th century.

But don’t be fooled into believing this a likeness of his image as kings were rarely replicated as such,”

I told them ignoring the way Lucius held two fingers casually over his lips as if concealing a smirk underneath those large pale digits.

“What do you mean, didn’t he look like that?”

A woman asked, who was clearly surprised as she walked over to the largest of the two and looked up at him.

It was a statue that was extremely well preserved given its age, but that was most likely down to the hard, dark stone it was carved from named granodiorite.

“As you can see here in the largest of the statues, which I think you will agree is the best preserved of the two, it is a perfect summary of what an Egyptian king was supposed to be thought to look like by his people.”[sh5] I told her and the others, as I walked over to the statue, noticing how Lucius was the only one not to move with the rest of the group.

But then again, why would he, as he could see everything just fine from his advantage of being six foot four and a head above most people.

In fact, I hadn’t failed to notice the admiring looks he had already received from the ladies in the room.

This had been the case since he first escorted me in here and even now was no different.

But this hadn’t surprised me, for which female in their right mind wouldn’t look.

However, what was shocking was every time he had ignored these appreciating glances.

Because, unsurprisingly, there were more than a few pretty women here and a few of which that were now occupying the space around him. One in particular who had also been the one to ask me the question about the king’s appearance.

“And that was?”

Someone else asked me in reference to what an Egyptian king should be portrayed as.

“Well, essentially he was thought to be half human and half divine, which is why he is therefore made to look eternally young and his features are very idealized.

So, although not at all a true portrait of the king, it was like most people who preferred to hold on to their youthful days and was most undoubtedly a representation he would have approved of.”

I said making a few people laugh and more unbelievably, it also managed to make Lucius smile.

Had he just found me funny? Well if he had, then that old saying, ‘A first for everything’ certainly suited.

“And how do you know he’s a king and not just an interpretation of a God?”

A man asked me with a skeptical tone I was about to crush with fact.

“There are a few different ways that soon become obvious, for example, can you see that he is wearing a pleated head cloth with the cobra on his forehead?”

I pointed up and each of them followed my direction.

“Can anyone tell me what they think the cobra meant?”

I asked deciding to involve the group more, seeing as it was obvious with their questioning that they wanted to get involved.

But in the end, my answer came from the most unlikely source and not someone I would ever have classed as a team player.

“It’s the symbol of divine protection,”

Lucius said in a controlled tone that gave none of his thoughts or feelings away.

“I uh…well, yes, that’s right,”

I said in a flustered way, making me wonder if this hadn’t been his intent all along.

“Unfortunately, though, the cobra is rather damaged, as well as a piece of the king himself, as he would have originally had a long beard…these are both ways of telling us the statue is one of a king,”

I told them and before another question could be asked, I provided them with more concrete proof.

“But even if these had been too damaged to see, then if you look on his belt there is a small inscription that presents his official name, as is the beauty of hieroglyphics and the extensive abundance of information they tell us.”

I went on after this to explain about a ‘Cartouche’ which were formerly only worn by pharaohs and the oval surrounding their name was meant to protect them.

“Protect them from what?”

Another of the guests asked and I couldn’t help but glance at Lucius when I answered,

“From evil spirits in both the living and in the Afterlife.”

Lucius gave me a wry grin at this and I wondered then if he knew the hidden meaning that I was referring to.

This was him being one of my own personal evil spirits that I seemed to be forced to live with, at first in Afterlife and now here, in my new life.

His coy look certainly told me that it hadn’t been lost on him.

“The cartouche has become a symbol representing good luck and protection from evil.

And as a hieroglyph, it is used to represent the Egyptian language word for "name" which therefore tells us his name as being Amenhotep III.

And even more interesting still is what you can see in between his legs,”

I said pausing for the laugh I knew would come from everyone.

Again, a single glance at Lucius granted me a questioning and amused look, which included that sexy raised brow.

One he combined with just the hint of a playful smirk, therefore I couldn’t help but blush in return.

“Is he exaggerated as a divine entity down there as well,”

one of the gentlemen joked, making the rest of us laugh, all except who I supposed to be his wife, who smacked his arm in reprimand.

“What you say is not far from the truth as in between his legs you can in fact see the ceremonial bull’s tail which an Egyptian king would typically wear at official occasions.”

“Why in God’s name would he do that?”

An older lady asked in mortification.

I wanted to laugh out loud for if she knew only half of what the ancient world used to do, then she would be doing more than just blushing.

It had often been strange to me when reading these unusual customs of lost cites and civilizations that were born with nothing but a river and vast sands of the harsh desert.

It made me think about my father and the ancient world he knew.

But not only that, it made me think of Lucius’ own past as well. Which was why I looked at him now, in his tailored suit, swapping it in my mind for what he would have worn back in those times. Had he visited Egypt back then? Had he seen these magnificent cities in all their glory? Oh, what I wouldn’t have given just then to excuse myself and beg upon him to tell me everything he had seen throughout the ages.

However, his questioning stare was one I knew was trying to read what I was thinking and again I was asking myself why would he be bothered enough to want to know?

“Miss Draven?”

The second I heard my name I shook away my thoughts like the cobwebs they were, for they had clung to my mind for much longer than today.

“Because the bull is a strong animal that represents the king in both strength and power.

Now, moving on from here, we have two truly magnificent statues from the same reign as our king, Amenhotep III, over there.”

I said as I approached the two resting lions carved from red granite.

I explained about their relaxed state being something quite rare seeing as they also represented the king.

“But they’re lions…how would that represent a king?”

A haughty and rude woman asked, who up until now had looked quite bored, well with me anyway, with Lucius, not so much.

She was in a sparkling blue dress that was tight enough, I half imagined her to have at least four people all grabbing a quarter of her hem and giving it a good tug down.

I would have said she was most likely in her late fifties and not doing so with grace as she’d had so much Botox she couldn’t have smiled even if she had wanted to.

But it soon became clear where her distaste for me arose, for she had been one of the women eyeing up Lucius like he had been a piece of man candy she wanted to lick to the bone.

And well, it was becoming very apparent that his eyes were locked onto only one sight and that was me.

She even went as far as to walk over to one of the lions that Lucius was stood close to and run her fingers along its back seductively.

And even though I was tempted to remind her not to touch the exhibits, I had to remember that we needed money from these people, and her clueless husband was wearing Armani.

However, Lucius merely spared her an unimpressed glance of indifference and it was obvious that from this, I wasn’t the only one that thought her to be rude and obnoxious.

“It is true that the human headed lion, which is better known to you all as the Sphinx, is a very familiar motif in Egyptian art.

And for those of you that don’t already know, these Egyptian sphinxes as a rule usually represented the kings as powerful creatures.

So, in this instance to see the king completely depicted as a lion and one so relaxed, it makes them both quite rare.”

I then couldn’t help but think of Lucius, seeing him as another king depicted as a lion, one hidden in plain sight and right now surrounded by the unsuspecting cattle of humanity…me included.

“You can see here on the inscription that it identifies the king as ‘A lion among rulers’,”

I told them after swallowing hard and knowing where my eyes would rest upon after it was spoken.

Seeing as I had included it solely for his benefit, telling him this was how I viewed him.

The look he gave me in return came with the slight tilt of his head as if voicing the question in his mind and trying to silently connect with me.

For in that single moment, one that lasted only seconds, it felt as though we were suddenly the only two people in the room.

The only two communicating so much, yet none of it something we could trust, for not a single word was uttered between us.

“Right, let’s continue should we…?”

I said holding out my arm and leading them to the next part of the tour, wondering how I had managed not to crumble by now under Lucius’ intense gaze.

But then I looked back and saw the woman in the sparkling blue dress linger by the lions until he walked past her… or at least, he tried to.

Because this was when the woman boldly approached him, and I had to give it to her, she was a brave.

That much needed to be said for there wasn’t many people that would have intruded on such a stern looking man.

It wasn’t just the air of authority that clung to him like a man of great power and strength.

But it was that other worldly element that shrouded him in a cloak of deception and mystery.

Like the shadows under your bed, not knowing what could be lurking there ready to snatch you from your world at any second you got too close.

Well, that was Lucius, an unknown depth of fear that held you locked to the nightmares he wanted you to see.

Never seeing the buried layers that meant he could care, as they lay hidden deep beneath the surface of one of the most frightening men in the Supernatural world.

Oh yeah, she was brave alright, I thought trying not to look but finding myself unable to find the strength not to.

In the end I was glad I did, otherwise I might have missed his reaction to her stepping up to him and running that same finger she had down the lion, now down his chest.

His hand snapped out as quick as a venomous snake bite and combined with this lightening quick response, came one on the other end of the spectrum.

The way he bent his neck slightly in such a calm, cool manner, so that he could whisper something down at her.

Once more I was damning my inability to hear like a Supernatural being, because the second I saw her snatch her hand away I was desperate to know what he had said to her.

Especially as now she was looking both mortified and scared as she quickly made her escape back to her husband, who had been more interested in the next artifact I was to talk about.

I saw her saunter past me, giving me an evil glare as she did and making me wonder even more what it was that had been said to her?

Well, whatever it was, then I doubted it had been anything good because now she looked murderous and actually left the gallery, after first muttering something to her husband about needing the rest room.

It was at this time that I decided it was best not to let him see that I had witnessed the exchange for fear of what my expression would confess for me.

My constantly looking at him was doing enough damage already, of that I was sure.

But then again, it wasn’t as if I was the only one looking.

And surely my response to his staring would have been the same as any others, which primarily was a natural response to simply stare back?

Someone cleared their throat, once more telling me to get on with my job.

Something which I decided was best to do right now, before I got too lost in my own thoughts and I ended up burying myself under all the questions I was asking myself in regard to his strange behavior.

“So, moving on into the gallery after our introduction to concepts of kingship, we enter the first period of great Egyptian history, the Old Kingdom.

This is the 25th century and this great monument here that looks like a doorway is from part of a tomb created around 2400 BC.

It was part of a chapel that remained permanently accessible to the living, where they could bring offerings to the dead,”

I said motioning to the reddish stone wall that did in fact look like a doorway.

It was covered in rows of hieroglyphics down each side with a larger column running horizontally along the top, depicting the image of the high priest it was created for.

I went on to explain about the piece as I had done with the others and like before, Lucius continued to stand masterfully in the background and watch me like a hawk.

It became so unnerving that I often found myself stuttering my words or getting lost in them, whether it was saying very little or way too much about one of the exhibits.

Sometimes Lucius would look amused by this.

But then there were other times when he would give me such an intense look of what I could only hope was the respect I read it to be, that it was in these moments that he simply took my breath away.

“And this, who is this handsome fellow?”

One of the gentlemen asked, who had been making comments throughout and getting closer to me with each one made.

This, in turn, would make Lucius scowl as his displeasure deepened, making me question why? Once again, I had to shake off this question and answer another one rather than trying to guess the answers to my own.

“Ah, this is one of the museum’s most renowned pieces.

This large bust represents Rameses II, another great ruler of Egypt who ruled no fewer than 67 years, which I think you will agree is a feat in itself.”

They each agreed in unison, nodding as they gathered around one of the museum’s most popular pieces.

It was also one that each and every one of the curators was most proud of as it alone brought in thousands of people from all around the world just to see it.

“Now it gives me great pleasure to end our little tour with the museum’s most famous exhibit, the Rosetta Stone,”

I said coming to stand in front of the large glass box it was sat inside, looking upon it now with fresh eyes considering it was only earlier today that I had been discussing it with my father.

Everyone else stood at its sides, giving me the space directly opposite it so that I could explain what the signs would have told you, like the rest of the pieces in the gallery.

But the one person I could no longer see was Lucius.

However, I didn’t want to look around and make it obvious to the others who it was I was looking for.

“The stone you see now is but a fragment of a larger stela, which for those of you who don’t know is a word used in archaeology as an upright stone slab or column, one typically bearing a commemorative inscription of sorts,”

I told them after receiving a few questioning looks and remembering that not everyone knew the different terms that were used in describing our artifacts.

“Were any of the other pieces ever found?”

A lady asked that had been the same one to ask me why the first statue wasn’t made to look exactly like the current king, letting me know that she truly had a passion for history, unlike most of the others who actually pretended to.

“Unfortunately not and as you can see, because of its damaged state, none of the three texts is absolute, which is a shame as we won’t ever truly know what it would have looked like or what else it could have told us.”

It was at this point that I had another glance around looking for Lucius but once again, I couldn’t see him.

Which meant I was unable to prevent the disappointment from setting in, knowing that in all likelihood he had hit his limit on babysitting me and left as I had told him he could.

I let my shoulders slump without thinking of my audience and in that moment the man, who continued to comment and annoy Lucius, stepped up to me.

He then placed a hand upon my shoulder before saying,

“It must be a great frustration to such a passionate young woman who clearly wishes she could simply step back in time and see these types of things complete once more?”

I frowned up at him, now seeing him as if for the first time and being struck by his choice of words.

He was a handsome man and one of those where age agreed with him and the added years only ended up enhancing his good looks.

He reminded me a little of Pierce Brosnan with dark grey hair and a groomed beard and mustache to match.

His eyes were a startling green and ones that seemed to have the ability of staring directly into your soul, which was unnerving to say the least.

I was about to answer him, not sure how I felt about him touching me or the way his fingers tensed, digging in slightly as if he was trying to relay something private to me without the use of words.

But then something strange happened as his eyes seemed to glaze over a moment and he looked away from me, focusing on something else.

Then his fingers twitched once before releasing me with a snap, as if something invisible had broken them backwards.

I winced for him for his own reaction was that of someone in a trance and had no knowledge of what he was doing.

“I have to go now,”

he said in an almost robotic voice that reminded me of someone reaching out to a dead person.

Then he simply left without anyone else but me taking notice of his strange behavior which itself was odd.

“Why is it called the Rosetta Stone…Miss…Miss Draven?”

Someone asked, saying my name when I hadn’t responded in time.

“It’s named after the site of discovery in Rosetta or pronounced Rashid in Arabic,”

I answered looking at it now and still finding myself fascinated by what secrets the scholars had unraveled.

I couldn’t help but wonder what else could have been learned from it, should it have been found intact.

Which led me to continue my explanation of why it was so important to the museum and to people like me that had dedicated my adult life to Egyptian research and would continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

“What is remarkable about the Rosetta Stone is that it contains text in three different scripts, not three different languages like you would think at first glance.”

I took a step closer and held out my hand, running it just shy of the glass to indicate the top lines of script.

“At the top as you can see we have the hieroglyphics script, which was mainly reserved for monuments, temples, sculptures and tomb walls, which makes sense seeing as it is most certainly the more decorative of the two.

Which brings me on to the next lines of script in the middle.”

I then lowered my arms, indicating to the middle of the stela.

“Now here we have the demotic script which was used as a more everyday kind of text by literate Egyptians who could read and write.

But it is the script on the bottom that was the key to unlocking the hieroglyphics, as it is ancient Greek.

Which of course scholars had already mastered by the time the stone was discovered in 1799, during which was Napoleon's attempt to invade and conquer Egypt,”

I told them, now taking a step back so that they themselves may look upon the stone more closely.

During the day and the peak times that tourists were at the museum I would often walk by and notice that unless you wished to wait your turn, then this piece was often crowded by many people.

All of which were either taking pictures or reading what their guide books told them about the piece.

“What does it all mean?”

The same inquisitive lady asked and her husband, not one to be left out, agreed with her question and also asked,

“Yes, that’s what I wanted to know, what is actually translated?”

I chuckled once and said,

“It’s a recipe for a very nice ancient chicken soup.”

I then waited for them all to gasp in surprise and each give me their own version of a sheer look of incredibility before I laughed once more.

“But of course, I am teasing.”

They all started laughing with me at my own private joke and once they had composed themselves I continued.

“Now, what it actually refers to and this is thanks to the Greek section of the tablet, is that we are actually dealing with a decree issued at Memphis, Egypt in 196 BC during the Ptolemaic dynasty.

It was in honour of King Ptolemy V as he came to the throne and it was erected after the coronation,”

I told them then swiftly going on to explain about King Ptolemy and the immense weight that must have been bestowed upon his shoulders given his tender young age.

“Now, the interesting thing about this king was that he was known as the Boy King, inheriting the throne at only five years old, and under a series of regents, the kingdom was paralyzed.

The Rosetta Stone however, was produced during his reign as an adult and the text actually documents benefits bestowed by the King to the priesthood of Egypt.

In return the priests’ decree was one that established the divine cult of the new ruler, declaring him King,”

I said unable to help myself from smiling when I saw the keen interest that was clearly visible in their eyes.

“And this, ladies and gentlemen, concludes our tour and just in time it seems as I believe the Chairman will be making his speech soon.

So, if you would please make your way back to the great court which is through this exit here,”

I told them knowing that I should have really shown them the way back myself but found that I needed a moment alone after all that.

Well, being totally honest with myself, it was more the fact that since talking about the Rosetta stone Lucius had disappeared, affecting me far more than I would care to show and also, care to admit to myself.

I smiled and nodded to each of them that thanked me and praised me for both my knowledge and the manner in which I presented the tour.

I then waited until the last person had left before letting out a big sigh.

I was tired, both emotionally and physically and each reason I could put down to seeing Lucius again.

It was like he physically sucked the energy out of me and one that had been solely used to help me restrain myself around him.

I needed to be constantly on guard and in turn he simply seemed with little effort to be able to ground those protective barriers to pulp, rendering them useless.

I walked closer to the glass and stared at the stone not seeing any of its texts as my mind couldn’t help but focus on only one thing.

I closed my eyes and silently cursed myself for not being strong enough to conquer this like I had convinced myself that I would, should we ever have to meet again.

After all, given his connections to my father’s world then I guess it was inevitable, but all those times dreaming of such a meeting and you would have thought I would have handled it better.

But yet here I was, in this vast room, feeling as though I was being buried alive once more by the weight of my emotions.

I wanted to hate him just as much as I already knew I loved him.

It was the cruelest of realities to face as I couldn’t help but replay those honest words he had thrown at me like a slap across my face.

‘How could I ever love you?’ That was what he had said to me, for I could never forget it.

Never forget the moment as if those very words had been branded against my heart, before slamming the vault door and walking away from my damaged soul.

It sounded dramatic but that was how deep the pain cut for there was no other way to describe what he had done to me.

I swallowed hard as I pushed those words back down, deep into the abyss of forgetful thought where I only wished they would stay for eternity.

Then I opened my eyes and the second I did, my palm flew to the glass so as to steady me.

For now, I was no longer looking at the stone but instead the reflection of Lucius’ face staring back at me.

He had something to say and the second it was heard that damn abyss started to flood with hope, for what else was there for me to think when he simply stated…

“Alone at last.”