Self Esteem

Summary: Sequel to Tongue Tied. Madeline O'Connell is finally getting her life together. Her sister-in-law got her a job at the Cairo Museum before moving to England with Madeline's brother, Rick, and her nephew, Alex. Her best friend Jonathan Carnahan is also doing well for himself, running a very successful bar in the city, popular among the American and European tourists. But everything starts to go down hill when an old friend, Med-jai Chieftain Ardeth Bay, shows up at the museum and leaves an ancient necklace in the custody of the curator. Suddenly, the museum is attacked and Madeline finds herself in possession of the necklace, doing her best to avoid some very persistent thieves. Jonathan and Ardeth are her only allies – and Madeline's going to need them. If Madeline doesn't figure out how to stop what's headed her way, not only is the world going to end, but she will be the first to die.

Rating: M

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with the motion picture The Mummy. That's all you, Universal Studios. And I'm not going to profit off this story, so calm down. There's no reason to sue, and you all make too much money anyway. Vultures.

AN: Later in the story, we will be introduced to a legend about an Egyptian Queen named Nitocris, supposedly the last pharaoh of the sixth dynasty, and famous for the way she killed her brother's murderers. However, she is most likely completely fictional. As such, anything in the story involving her will most likely be just that: completely fictional. Enjoy!

Chapter 1: The Decent Job and the Familiar Face

The time was the early nineteen-thirties, and the setting was Egypt, in the administration offices of the Cairo Museum of Antiquities. The curator, Dr. Ajwad Kadar, was shut away in his office, doing who the hell knew what, and his secretary, Madeline O'Connell, was filing some of his very important paperwork.

Madeline did this work with surprising happiness. Filing papers and brewing coffee might not be every girl's dream job, but Madeline didn't mind it at all. She had been employed at the museum for over six months now, ever since her sister-in-law, Evelyn O'Connell, had talked Dr. Kadar into hiring her for the newly opened secretarial position. This had been right before Evie had left for England, taking Madeline's older brother, Rick O'Connell, and their now three-year old son, Alex, with her.

Keeping a job for longer than six months was a personal best for Madeline, a young woman famous for getting herself fired, and she was perfectly content to be Dr. Kadar's secretary for the rest of her life. Dr. Kadar was a good boss – he treated her like an equal, and was willing to overlook the occasional mistake. And Madeline honestly found the work enjoyable – she liked being a secretary. It was a hell of a lot better than being a store clerk, or a bartender, or a waitress.

Humming contentedly to herself as she stacked the papers in alphabetical order, Madeline was almost disgustingly cheerful as she finished her filing. The only thing left to do was place the paperwork in the filing cabinet.

"Good morning, Maddie!"

Madeline jumped, turned, and felt the huge stack of papers slip from her hands. All the documents she had spent so much time putting in perfect order crashed to the floor in a mixed-up jumble that spanned a five foot radius around her. Damn it, anyhow.

Embarrassed and frustrated, Madeline managed a weak smile for the man who'd wished her good morning. "Hello, Mr. Berkley," she said.

He smiled at her. "You're looking awfully pretty this morning, Maddie."

Madeline felt a hot flush creep into her face. "Oh," she laughed nervously. "I… uh… thank you. You… you look good… as well."

He smiled again. "Thank you, Maddie. Well, I'll be off! Good luck with those papers!"

Madeline cursed inwardly as she watched the young, extremely attractive anthropologist walk away. He had been working at the museum for about a year, and his main job was to examine the many bones brought in from the digs that the museum was affiliated with. He was tall, blond, and muscular, spoke with a British accent, and had absolutely killer gray eyes. Madeline had been smitten since her first day of work when he had doffed his cap to her and said a merry, "Good day, miss!"

Once again, however, she had managed to look like an ass in front of him. But her embarrassment was not the only upsetting thing on her mind. She now had an hour's worth of filing to redo. This was just so typical.

With a resigned sigh, Madeline knelt on the floor and began gathering the papers into an untidy pile, determined to at least get them all up off the floor. As she hurriedly snatched papers up off the aging carpet, stacking them in a manner that would have appalled Dr. Kadar, she was again interrupted. "Excuse me, miss?" a masculine voice called to her in a heavy Arab accent.

"One moment, sir," she replied politely, not looking up from her work. The pile she'd created was stacked in such a perilous manner, that Madeline feared it would all topple over if she removed her steadying hand. She continued gathering the strewn-about paperwork.

"Excuse me, miss, but this is very important," the man persisted.

"Yes, of course," Madeline murmured distractedly. "One moment. I'll be right with you."

"Miss!"

"I said, one moment!" Madeline snapped, grabbing the last of the fallen papers and gathering the stack into her arms. Some people just had no patience. Fortunately, Dr. Kadar didn't mind too much when she lost hers.

Her filing gathered up in her arms, Madeline finally stood and turned to address the visitor. "Now, what is so important that…."

Madeline trailed off, gaping in shock at the man before her. For the second time in the past five minutes, she dropped the large stack of papers on the ground, and once again, they scattered everywhere. Madeline sighed heavily. "Damn it," she whispered.

"Madeline?" the man before her asked uncertainly, looking equally surprised.

The man before her was none other than Med-jai chieftain, Ardeth Bay. Madeline had met him on an ill-fated archeology expedition roughly four or five years ago. The trip had also been how her brother had met his wife. Evelyn O'Connell, or Evelyn Carnahan as she was known then, had saved Madeline's older brother from hanging – on the condition that Rick took Evie and her brother, Jonathan, out to the lost city of Hamunaptra. Evie had hoped to uncover some famous artifacts – but what they had uncovered had been some serious trouble. Soon, they had accidentally brought a cursed mummy back to life who'd been intent on destroying the world – and it had been with the aid of Ardeth Bay that the four of them had managed to send the mummy back to where he came from.

Since that fateful adventure, Madeline had occasionally met Ardeth in the streets of Cairo, when he came into town on business for the Med-jai. These meetings were rare, and very short. This wasn't necessarily a bad thing, because the sight of the very attractive chieftain, who had big brown eyes, large muscles that were visible even under his long black robes, and – unfortunately – ruggedly handsome features, was enough to turn her into a blithering idiot.

"Ardeth," Madeline said with a smile. Attractive men always caused Madeline to act less than intelligently. The one thing Ardeth had going for him was that during the time the two of them had spent saving the world together, Madeline had managed to loosen up enough to actually sound like a normal person when having a conversation with him – even if she did continue to do stupid things like drop Dr. Kadar's paperwork everywhere. "Hi, there. I... haven't seen you in awhile. Uh… what are you doing here?"

Ardeth was staring at her. Madeline wondered what the hell he was looking at. Knowing her, she was probably drooling or something. Madeline tried to wipe her mouth as inconspicuously as possible – just in case.

"You look different," he said finally.

Madeline frowned. What the hell was that supposed to mean? Suddenly, it dawned on her that Ardeth was accustomed to seeing her wearing pants and boots, and looking rather sweaty and dirty. She looked down at herself. Today she was actually wearing a skirt and high heels – as if she needed to wear heels with her height – as well as a rather feminine blouse. Her long chestnut brown hair was pulled off to the side in a neat braid, and she was even wearing a touch of make up.

"Oh, right," she laughed, rather awkwardly. "Well, you know – office dress, and all that."

Ardeth nodded, still staring at her. "You, uh… you look… nice."

Madeline wasn't sure if that was a compliment or not. "Thanks," she murmured.

"How are your brother and his family?" Ardeth asked politely.

"Oh, they're fine," Madeline replied. "Evie's got some prestigious job with the Bembridge scholars, and Rick's mostly just… being himself. Alex just turned three, so…"

"They moved to England?" Ardeth inquired.

"Yep," Madeline replied. "That's how I got this job actually. When Evie gave her notice, she asked the curator to give me a secretarial position, and, well… here I am."

"Do you like it?"

"Yeah, it's great," Madeline said with a smile. "How's… the desert?"

Ardeth smirked slightly. "It is… very dusty."

Madeline gave a small, rather awkward laugh. "Oh, that's… yeah." And there she went. She was back to sounding like an idiot.

Ardeth continued to smile. "How is Jonathan?"

"Oh, he's actually doing really well," Madeline replied. "He opened his own tavern in town, and he's making really good money."

"He is still in Cairo, then."

"Yep," Madeline said. "So, um… what are you… what do you need? Are you here to see Dr. Kadar?"

Ardeth frowned momentarily, but then understanding lit his face. "Oh, you mean Ajwad," he returned. "Yes, that is exactly why I'm here. Is he able to see me now?"

"Sure, go right in," Madeline answered, leading him to the office door. "So, uh, what are you here for? Got some sort of official Med-jai business or something?"

"Something like that," Ardeth replied, in his usual secretive manner.

"Right," Madeline nodded. "Evil mummies and such? End of the world is coming?"

"I can't really say," Ardeth returned.

"Right, of course not," Madeline fairly babbled. "Med-jai stuff and all that, I'm sure. Can't tell us outsiders, I get it. Um… yeah, so…" She opened the door to Dr. Kadar's office. "He's right in here. Hey, uh, I know you're probably busy, but… Would you like to go get a drink or something later? You know, catch up and talk about old times and all that stupid shit?" she managed to ask. Madeline could feel herself blushing as she posed the question.

Maybe it was her imagination, but she rather thought Ardeth looked regretful as he said, "I am sorry, Madeline, I cannot. I must return to my people at once. Times like these…"

It was on the tip of Madeline's tongue to ask what the hell he meant by 'times like these,' but she refrained. "Right, yeah, I get it," she waved him off. "No problem. Just thought I'd ask… yeah, so… go right in!"

Ardeth entered the office and shut the door behind him. Madeline sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of her nose. "God, I am such an idiot," she whispered. "Did I seriously just ask a Med-jai chieftain on a date? Stupid, Madeline. Stupid."

She surveyed the mess before her. "Damn it," she cursed, kneeling on the floor and gathering the papers up for the second time that day.

As she cleaned up her mess, she heard Dr. Kadar say from within the office, "Chieftain Bay! What are you doing here?"

"I am here to deliver something of great importance to you," Ardeth announced. "I am entrusting this to you. You must keep it safe."

Madeline leaned closer to the door, straining to hear their conversation. She knew she really shouldn't be eavesdropping, but… well, she didn't really care. Her interest has been peaked.

There had been a moment of silence, but now Dr. Kadar spoke again. "No, Chieftain. I cannot take this."

"You must!"

"The necklace will not be safe with me! I am no warrior."

Madeline heard Ardeth sigh. "Ajwad, please. I had to take this from its resting place. After all the robbery attempts, I knew it was no longer safe there. You must take this, and protect it. You are the only one who can even begin to understand its power."

"No, Chieftain," Dr. Kadar practically begged. "I cannot protect this the way it needs to be protected. I tell you, I am no warrior! I am a mere scribe! You are making a mistake."

'Take it, please! It will be safer here than anywhere else so far. Please, Ajwad. Take it."

There was a moment of silence. Then, suddenly, the door swung open, smacked Madeline in the head, knocked her over, and caused her to spill the papers she'd managed to pick up before she'd started eavesdropping.

Madeline reached up to rub her aching temple. "Ow," she muttered. "Damn it!"

The door closed, and Ardeth glanced over at her. "Madeline!" he exclaimed, kneeling beside her. "Are you all right?"

Madeline looked up at him, praying Dr. Kadar wasn't with him. Thankfully, Ardeth was alone. "Oh, yeah," she waved him off, trying to laugh. "I'm fine. It's nothing."

Ardeth frowned at her, helping her to her feet. "Were you eavesdropping?" he asked.

Madeline went wide-eyed, trying to look innocent. "No," she said, far too quickly. "No, I was… I was filing."

Ardeth's mouth twitched into what Madeline had come to know as the 'almost smile.' She continued trying to look innocent – even though she was pretty sure she was failing. "Of course," he agreed. Madeline knew he didn't believe her for a moment, but if he wasn't going to call her on her fib, then she wasn't going to push him. "Filing. Well, I must be going, Madeline. It was very good to see you again."

"You too," Madeline grinned, giving him kind of an idiotic half-wave. As soon as she did it, she hated herself, but there was no turning back now.

He smiled, nodded, and headed towards the door. Halfway out the door, he stopped, and looked back at her, a kind of frown on his face. "Madeline," he said, rather hesitatingly. "Just a word of warning. Should you need help later on…. Do you know how to gain the trust of a Med-jai?"

Madeline frowned at him. What the hell was he going on about now? "Uh… no?" she replied.

He hesitated again, and glanced back at the office. "The only sure way to gain the trust of a Med-jai is to say to him, I am a stranger traveling from the east, seeking that which is lost. Then he will reply, I am a stranger traveling from the west, it is I that you seek. Or, the other way around. Do you understand?"

Madeline continued to frown at him. "I suppose…. Why are you telling me this?"

Ardeth looked away from her. "Something troubling is happening in Egypt. I fear that…" he trailed off, and then looked back at her. "Be careful, Madeline," he said. Then he turned and left the museum.

Madeline watched him go, confused. Be careful of what, exactly? What was going on?

"Madeline!"

At the sound of her name, Madeline jumped and turned on the speaker. Dr. Kadar was standing in the doorway to his office, staring at the mess before him. The short, lean Arab man usually wore a good humored smile on his bearded face, but today his eyes were wide with shock, and his hands were trembling. "What happened out here?" he exclaimed.

"Oh," Madeline murmured, staring down mournfully at the mess she'd made. "I'm sorry, Dr. Kadar. I, uh… had a bit of an accident, I'm afraid. Don't worry; I'm in the middle of cleaning it up." Saying this, she bent down on the ground and began gathering up her papers.

Dr. Kadar heaved a heavy sigh. "It is all right, Madeline. I know you'll fix it." He stared at the door Ardeth had just disappeared through, looking troubled.

"Dr. Kadar?" Madeline asked, still organizing papers. "Are you all right?"

Dr. Kadar looked down at her, and smiled so fake that it was almost painful to watch. "I am fine, Madeline," he replied. "I am just… concerned about something an old friend told me. It will all be all right."

Madeline didn't believe him for a second, but she didn't get the opportunity to press the matter. Dr. Kadar turned and went back into his office, locking the door behind him.

A sigh escaped Madeline's lips as well. She went back to cleaning up the papers she'd dropped everywhere. As much as she liked Ardeth Bay, there was no denying that every time the man showed his face, trouble followed.