The Exhibit

Chapter 12 - Fighting the President of the EHA

As planned, Dr. Asir came at nine sharp. Both Hannah and Edward were called to Dr. Fisher's office where he and Dr. Asir were waiting. The moment Hannah saw that creep, her blood started to boil. Edward was no different—he knew what Dr. Asir did to Hannah. She saw the fire in his eyes as he glared at the man.

"Dr. Browning and Dr. Zuberi," Dr. Asir greeted them with a smile, and he shook both of their hands. "Pleasure to see you both again."

Hannah felt sick as she sat in the chair next to Dr. Asir, with Edward on her other side.

"I'm afraid we have a difficult matter to attend to here," Dr. Fisher said, seeming uneasy as he sat in his desk chair in his spacious office adorned with multi-cultural artifacts. His uneasiness wasn't a good sign. "Dr. Asir has a request sent from the Egyptian Government."

Hannah's hands became sweaty as she balled them in her lap, and she tried to stay calm, even though she was near tears. Dr. Asir pulled a piece of paper out of his briefcase. "I have an official request from the Egyptian Government stating that all artifacts found in the Ahkmenrah Exhibition in Luxor, Egypt are to be sent to the Cairo Museum, no matter where they are located at present."

Hannah shot out of her seat and glared at the man, her eyes full daggers. "You little...!"

"Dr. Browning," Edward coaxed after standing up and putting a hand on Hannah's shoulder. They both sat back down.

"We have every right to those artifacts," she said. "We signed the paperwork and everything."

"Yes, but when this request was issued, those documents were annulled," Dr. Asir argued.

She stared at him, not believing that a person could stoop so low.

"I'm afraid there's nothing we can do," said Dr. Fisher sadly. "There is another dig in Southern Egypt that has requested we take some of the items off of their hands. We can take those and present them to the public here in three months in our new exhibit."

"Are they in the process of sending them?" Edward asked.

"Not at present," said Dr. Fisher. "Another document states that once our museum is emptied of the Ahkmenrah artifacts, they will send the others over."

"What excavation?" Hannah asked. "I'm only aware of the Ahkmenrah Excavation."

"This one has been planned for months, Dr. Browning," said Dr. Asir, "but has only been known to the public for a week. I chose this specific excavation because it is more in your area of expertise—meaning mummies, pottery and weapons."

"You chose it?" she asked, her irritation rising. That didn't surprise her. He was trying to get back at her by breaking the Egyptology department.

"Yes. The artifacts they have found so far are what I have listed, and some with hieroglyphs. But those will be sent to the Cairo Museum to be translated because Dr. Browning's knowledge of Ancient Egyptian is only intermediate. The Cairo Museum contacted me on this matter and also requested that Dr. Edward Zuberi be immediately transferred back to the Cairo Museum for the purpose of translating those artifacts."

Hannah's mouth dropped at this shocking information. He was going after Edward also!

"I'm to be transferred?" Edward asked in disbelief.

"Yes, Dr. Zuberi," Dr. Fisher said, a weary look on his face. "You are to return to the Cairo Museum by this next Monday. The tickets are already paid for." He sighed. "I'm truly sorry, but now that the Ahkmenrah Exhibit is canceled, we have to let you go."

Edward covered his mouth, trying to process all of that. Hannah was on a short fuse and was one step away from socking Dr. Asir in the jaw as hard as she could.