FELINE ONLINE AND THE MAZE OF THE MINOTAUR
CHAPTER FOURTEEN: HIDDEN TREASURES COME TO LIGHT
Amanda and her neighbors gathered on the sidewalk at they watched the firefighters reunite from the rear of Amanda’s garden. The crews had turned off the two trucks’ emergency lights and had dusted off their heavy protective jackets.
“Ma’am, this is quite a fascinating event you just witnessed, but I can assure you no major damage has been done to your home or greenhouse. I’m afraid your garden statue is in pieces, though.”
“What happened?” Emily asked, as she nervously drew long strands of her hair through her mouth. “We thought it was a big earthquake, and a thunderstorm, too!”
Mike nodded.
“It felt like the earth was really caving in behind us!”
Brad and Joann held five-year-old Zach’s hand tightly between them. Everyone had been awakened moments ago with the blaring of fire truck sirens and men and women jumping out with axes and firehouses.
“You can certainly call on the city inspector to take a look, but as far as we can tell, you now have a common sinkhole in your garden.”
“What?” Amanda asked. “Did you say ‘common’?”
“Well, yes. In this city we sometimes see a sinkhole form, maybe every two or three years. There is limestone underneath us which can often be dissolved in underground streams or even after heavy rains, which this brief storm provided!”
The neighbors looked at each other as Amanda scratched her head.
“I guess I will have to call on a contractor to fill the hole,” Amanda said, not hiding the frustration in her voice.
“Yes, Ma’am. The sooner the better.”
He held out his hand to Amanda who accepted his gesture.
“My name is Tom.”
“Amanda. I am so grateful to you and your crew!”
“By the way, we did find some oddities. There were long hairs hanging from branches near the sink hole.”
He looked kindly at Emily.
“Even longer than your hair, Miss.”
Tom took off his heavy jacket.
“Whew! My coat is too warm for this summer night,” he said, as he tossed his coat onto the truck seat.
“Here, Ma’am.”
He reached into his overalls and pulled out a mess of fur.
“These hairs and furry tangles are all different colors and thicknesses,” he said, handing them to Amanda.
Amanda accepted them, then handed samples to the others.
Several hairs were long, yellow and thicker than the others. Some shone like gold in the moonlight. Many were thin and wiry.
“They were hanging from branches in your garden, Ma’am. It looks like wild animals had torn through your garden, chasing or perhaps running away from something.”
The fireman smiled at the midnight gathering of friends as he waved at his crew to prepare to follow him.
“Please call me if you have any questions, but I think you can all sleep well tonight.”
Tom’s radio was crackling with voices.
“Excuse, me, folks.”
He climbed into his truck cab and grabbed his radio mike.
“I have to move on, folks. Seems there has been an escape at the zoo on the other side of the city. Several big cats are loose! That windstorm blew down a section of double steel fencing! Lock your doors until we are all clear after this next adventure.”
Tom checked with his crew in the truck behind him and pulled out into the quiet street. The storm clouds had passed, and except for hanging branches in the back yard, all seemed well enough.
Mike turned to Emily, whispering, “Remember the terrible storm on the night of the Pyramid Party?”
Emily nodded. “I do remember! Has Sekhmet returned?”
“Amanda, may we just take a quick look at the sinkhole now? “ Mike asked.
“What about these zoo animals on the loose?”
“Just a quick look, please?” Emily pleaded.
“Brad, will you go along with these youngsters if Amanda says it’s ok? Zach, you come back into the house with me and get into bed.”
“Aw, Mom, can I have a cookie first? I’m too ‘cited to sleep.”
Amanda led her neighbors and Mike back to the now tangled garden.
“Please hurry with your survey,” Amanda advised. “It’s just a hole now. You can’t even see that there was a stone ruin or tomb here. It is completely covered with dirt and sand and tree branches.”
Brad shone his flashlight around the area above the now buried tomb.
“The hole is still obvious. It’s about a foot below the rest of the garden. I’ll be happy to test this tomorrow for walking on, Amanda,” he said. “Someone could sprain an ankle. The disrupted ground looks to be about twenty feet across.”
“Amanda, before you arrange for a bulldozer to fix this damage, might we have a few days to look into what we can salvage from the tomb?” Mike asked.
Amanda sighed.
“Well, let me think about that. I certainly don’t want anyone to get hurt. And my goodness, haven’t we had enough excitement?”
As Mike shined his flashlight around the edges of the sinkhole, a glimmer of light reflected back from a bush.
“Oh, my gosh!” Emily exclaimed “It’s a beetle! A jeweled scarab beetle!”
“And more,” Brad said, reaching further into the bushes.
Emily pushed aside branches that had covered much of the hole.
“Wow!” she exclaimed. “Who needs to travel to Egypt? We have our own tomb treasures right here! Amanda?”
Amanda moved closer and reached out for one of the jeweled insects.
“Emily, you pick one and keep it as a ‘thank you’ for your hard work as we come to a possible end to this cat mystery. “You, as well, Mike, if you would like.”
Amanda turned to Brad. “Please take one for Joann. Or she can stop by soon and pick out one she likes.”
“Ah, look at this!” Mike pulled another object from the loose sand.
The friends stared at the new discovery in Mike’s hand.
“This looks like a statue of Wadjet!” Mike exclaimed.
“Wadjet? My cat, Wadjet?” Amanda asked.
“Well, not exactly. Wadjet is Bastet’s sister, also a cat goddess. She is often represented as a cobra, worn by Pharoah for protection. Wadjet is a protectress, like Bastet.”
“Cool, Mike!” Emily said, as she took the statue and turned it over in the moonlight. “Cool!”
“Let’s call it a night!” Amanda said, turning toward the garden path.
Mike looked up at the full moon, noting its onward march to the west.
“Mike,” Emily whispered. “Mike, do you think it was Sekhmet who caused this damage, who made the ground sink?”
“I’m not sure,” Mike answered. “It could very well have been Bastet, testing her new powers! I wish I knew what the Cat Goddess wants next!”
“Ha, Mike! I thought you already had all the answers about Bastet and her feline powers!”
“Well, I am, after all, only twelve-years-old,” Mike said. He chuckled. “There is much I have to learn. We shall see.”
“Amanda,” Brad said. “Would you be willing to hold off on hiring a bulldozer? It looks like there is much more to this discovery than we can sort out tonight. It might take weeks to get to the bottom of these mysteries.”
“Yes, Amanda, please?” Emily begged. “And look at all the poor minotaur beetles rushing around!”
She pointed to some of the tiny creatures scrambling in the moonlight to find their precious dung balls within the recent upheavals.
“Very well,” Amanda said slowly. “But now, it’s late. Let’s talk more in a few days.”
The four friends turned away from the sink hole and its secrets yet to be discovered.
As they walked along the bramble covered garden path toward the sidewalk, Amanda stopped in front of her dining room window. Brad stood back, waiting for Emily to join him.
“It’s quite late, Emily,” he reminded his daughter.
“Oh, look at my cats!” Amanda called to the others. “Just look at them!”
Wadjet and Foo Foo, sitting on their favorite dining room window cushion, were staring at Bes, Emily’s new pet, who sat perched at Emily’s bedroom window across the garden. The three cats gazed at each other for a few moments before Wadjet lifted a paw and waved it up and down.
“Is Wadjet saying ‘goodnight’ to Bes?” Emily asked.
“Or ‘Goodbye’?” Mike offered, as he turned toward the sidewalk.
“Foo Foo or Bastet. Bastet’s Ba or her Ka? Who was it that kissed the cat mummy?” Amanda wondered out loud. “Will we ever know?”
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THANK YOU to all of my new and current readers! A special thank you to my educator and student readers from around the world!
FELINE ONLINE AND THE MAZE OF THE MINOTAUR continues with Chapter Fifteen: scheduled for Friday, June 6. Now that Bastet has regained her ancient powers, what does she really want?
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CREDITS: Cover Illustrations for above titles: Tamara Clark
Book chapter illustrations: Tamara Clark and Rosetta Clark-Smith
Sekhmet’s Storm: Illustration by Tamara Clark
Photos of jeweled beetles: handwork by Annette M.
Photo of Wadjet’s Statue: Rama: Commons.wikimedia.org
Bastet’s Power: illustration by Tamara Clark
See my posts on this site, More Cats, Please!, about ancient Egyptian burial practices:
Cat Mummies of Ancient Egypt: December 13, 2024
Cat Mummies: After the After Life: December 30, 2024
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BOOK TWO OF FELINE ONLINE
