Chapter 1

Humming lightly, Caroline checked the food in the oven before stirring the pot on the stove. She expected the O'Connells home in a few minutes and she wanted everything to be ready. Having been Alex's nanny for over a year now, the woman knew the family's habits fairly well. Every time they came home from a trip, Rick and Evelyn would spend some time alone in the upper library while Alex spent his time either unpacking his bags or some kind of game with Caroline. Caroline had taken care of the house while they were away, something she thoroughly enjoyed.

She had moved to London a year and a half ago, taking odd jobs to get by. She had seen a posting for a family needing a nanny and something urged her to apply. Many years of watching children when she was growing up gave her the experience that Rick and Evelyn were looking for. They were extremely generous, paying Caroline such a sum that she didn't need another job to live comfortably. Alex really liked her and the family in general was very laid back. After spending 2 months with the family, their housekeeper quit suddenly. Caroline remembered the day vividly.

Angry French floated down the hallway, getting louder by the moment. Caroline's head popped up, her book in her lap forgotten for a moment. The door to the kitchen pantry opened, revealing Dorothea. She had worked for the O'Connells for 7 years but it wasn't a secret that the woman disliked Alex. In her opinion the boy was too smart for his own good but that was one of the reasons Caroline liked him so much. Even from her spot in the living room Caroline could see the flour that covered the older woman.

"Where iz dat leetle brat? I am going to murder 'im! I'll wring ees leetle neck!" Dorothea's french accent was thicker than usual due to her anger. Several minutes passed as she stomped around the house looking for Alex. After wondering how such a tiny person could contain so much anger, Caroline sighed before going back to her book. She knew where Alex was and knew the old housekeeper would never find him. The front door opened and a moment later Rick walked into the room. He had dropped Evelyn off at some university to speak to a few classes. Pausing as he heard shouting, he asked what was going on.

"I think Alex set another trap in the pantry. Dorothea was not amused. She's been running around for 15 minutes looking for him." Caroline kept her eyes on her books, her voice sounded like she was trying not to show her amusement. Rick sighed loudly then walked down the hallway to talk to the irate woman. The hidden panel in the wall across from her opened and Alex popped his head out.

"Is the coast clear?" Caroline gave the boy a disapproving look.

"You're awful Alex. Dorothea is a nice lady. You shouldn't play such nasty tricks on people." The boy looked contrite but before he could say anything, they heard footsteps. Alex pulled his head back and pushed the panel back into place. Dorothea, her bags in hand, silently marched past and out the front door. Rick walked into the room slowly with a hand rubbing the back of his neck. He told her that Dorothea had quit. Then he asked if she could watch Alex a few extra days so he could find a new housekeeper.

"Well if you wanted, I could take over housekeeping chores. I'm pretty good at it. Alex already knows that I can make my way around the kitchen." Blinking in surprise, Rick only stared at her. Eventually he nodded and agreed that it seemed reasonable.

He talked to Evelyn that evening who agreed it seemed like a good idea. She then asked Caroline if she would be willing to move into Dorothea's old room. The young woman agreed happily, the room had its own bathroom and was significantly nicer than her rented studio. The O'Connells also increased her salary despite her repeated assurance that it wasn't necessary. Within a week of Caroline taking over housekeeping, the family knew they had made a great decision. Caroline was even more detail oriented than Dorothea and she also genuinely cared about the artifacts throughout the house.

Caroline was pulled from her memories as her scalp began to prickle. She suddenly got the feeling that she was being watched. Turning to look out the kitchen window, only the darkened back porch was visible. The woman knew that a hundred people could be standing in the backyard and she wouldn't see them. She shivered slightly before pulling the curtains across the windows. A quick check of the back door and the small sheath at the back of her pants, concealing a small knife, assured her that she was safe.

As she took dinner out of the oven and turned the stove to the lowest setting, a car could be heard coming up the driveway. The front door unlocked then opened a moment later and Rick called out that they were home. Caroline walked to greet the family and see if they needed any help.

"Dinner is waiting in the kitchen whenever you guys get hungry. Tomato bisque and beef pot pies!" Caroline called over her shoulder as she took Alex's bags to his room. She heard the scrape of dishes being grabbed and knew at least one person had gotten food. As the small bags that Alex had taken with him were deposited on top of his bed, one tipped over and something gold and shiny rolled out. Curious, the woman picked it up. It looked like a long necklace with an unusual pointed disk as the pendant. Unsure of its use, she simply tucked it back into the boy's bag.

As she went back to the main room, Alex was carrying a large ancient looking chest. He complained about how heavy it was, prompting Evelyn to scold him about his language. Caroline patted his shoulder softly before she went back outside to get the last bags. She came back into the living room just in time to hear something click onto Alex's wrist. Her eyes flicked around the room to see the ancient chest open and empty then she realized the boy must have put on whatever had been in it.

"Alex what did you do?!" Caroline's voice was no more than an angry whisper. She didn't want to interrupt Rick and Evy's alone time up on the next level of the room. She grabbed the hand that now had the weird looking gold bracelet on it. Seconds after, both of their hands were tugged upward by the object. The majestic pyramids of Giza projected from the bracelet into their field of view.

They both watched in shocked, nauseous awe as they seemed to speed through the desert until they stopped at some ancient looking site that Caroline didn't recognize. The image lasted for a few more seconds before it disappeared and the two were once again looking at the familiar bookshelves of the O'Connell residence. The young boy looked over at the woman who had fallen to her knees when the images began. She looked right back at him, shocked. A moment passed then they both suddenly tore at the bracelet, trying to get it off his wrist. It wouldn't budge and Caroline decided that they would have to break it to get it off.

"Here keep your coat on and button the sleeve over it. We'll both be in big trouble if your mother sees this. I'll go grab some tools, you wait here." Caroline sprinted away while Alex pulled his sleeves down. Realizing the chest was still open, he tossed a heavy baseball statue into it before shutting it. Evelyn came downstairs then, showing Alex some pages about the Egyptian calendar.

Caroline came back a few moments later with a screwdriver and a couple other tools. When she saw Evy, she stealthily put them down on a random bookshelf. They could get the bracelet off tonight before Alex went to bed without Evelyn noticing anything. Nodding to show he knew what the plan would be, Alex asked more about the year of the scorpion. His mother began telling him about the different symbols and ceremonies. Eventually the subject of the Scorpion King came around.

"Alex where is that key I gave you, it was attached to a chain?" Evy asked as she walked over to the chest. The child looked through his small backpack then revealed he couldn't find it. Evy then helped him look, getting agitated when it couldn't be found. As she began digging through other bags, Caroline remembered the gold disk that was in Alex's luggage. She offered to go look for it then trotted off in that direction. Walking through the kitchen, movement caught her eye through the small panes of glass on the door to the backyard. It was a flash of bright red something but it wasn't there when she turned to look. Stepping closer to the glass, she peered out into the darkness. She wondered to herself if perhaps Jonathan had brought another date home, he'd been doing that on and off for the past month. A bright red dress on one of the women wasn't an unusual explanation as the women were usually dressed in eye catching clothing. The woman shrugged and double checked the lock before continuing to Alex's room.