Misplaced (28 page)

Sh
e
foun
d
Elia
s
seate
d
a
t
hi
s
desk
,
w
earin
g
glasse
s
that
magnified
his
e
y
es
to
the
point
of
absurdity.
The
sight
of
him
forced her to smile, and she
w
as glad she
’
d come.

H
e
seeme
d
genuinel
y
surprise
d
t
o
se
e
her
.
She
’
d
caugh
t
him
wrappin
g
a
f
ist-size
d
objec
t
i
n
newspape
r
an
d
tuckin
g
i
t
into
a
dra
w
er.
“What
are
you
working
on?”
she
asked
as
she
sat
in
one if the chairs in front of his desk.

“Nothing worth the time it would take to look at.”

“Tio
,
”
sh
e
began
,
stil
l
considerin
g
ho
w
bes
t
t
o
approach
him,
“I’m
hoping
you
can
help.”
She
stammered
slightly
as
she
continued,
“Khara
w
ants
to
sell
a
few
pieces
of
je
w
elry
to
fund
her trip back to Egypt.”

Elia
s
sa
t
bac
k
i
n
hi
s
chair
,
lacin
g
hi
s
hand
s
together
behin
d
hi
s
head
.
H
e
seeme
d
t
o
tak
e
pleasur
e
i
n
thi
s
paternal
opportunity.
“That
could
be
a
bit
of
a
quandary,
no?
According
to
your
theory
,
anythin
g
i
n
he
r
possessio
n
i
s
alread
y
thousand
s
of
y
ears
old.
P
lease
tell
me
you’
v
e
come
up
with
something
more
plausible.”

“I’m
afraid
not.”
She
took
two
bracelets
from
her
bag
and
laid
them
on
the
desk.
“I
thought
you
might
know
how
to
go
about—”

Her
uncle
w
as
reading
her
and
making
no
attempt
to
hide
it.
“Of
course,
there
are
outlets
for
any
trinket
that
hails
from
Egypt. I could recommend someone, perhaps.”

V
ictoria
stared
into
her
lap.
“
W
e
need
to
turn
these
pieces
into cash as quickly as possible.”

Her
uncle’s
e
y
es
narro
w
ed.
“
W
e?
I
don’t
like
the
sound
of
that.”

Really, it’s just a favor.”

He
put
the
glasses
with
the
thick
lenses
back
on
reluctantly.
“
Al
l
right
,
then
,
let’
s
ha
v
e a
look.
” A
momen
t
later
,
he
whispered, “
Dios mio
.”

The
black
mantel
clock
ticked
loudly
on
the
credenza
as
her
uncle’s
trembling
hands
reached
for
the
bangles.
He
examined
eac
h
stone
,
on
e
b
y
one
,
payin
g
extraordinar
y
attentio
n
t
o
the
empty
settings.
Finally,
he
looked
up
at
her
with
an
expression
she had ne
v
er seen before.

“Egyptology
is
not
my
specialty.
More
research
would
ha
v
e
t
o
b
e
done
,
bu
t
I
woul
d
gues
s
they
’
r
e
quit
e
v
aluable
.
I
t
could
take
months,
e
v
en
longer,
to
establish
the
pro
v
enance
of
these
pieces.
They
can’t
just
appear
on
the
antiquities
market
out
of
thin
air;
there
are
laws
and
treaties
that
must
be
obe
y
ed.
This
i
s
no
t
th
e
sam
e
a
s
askin
g
fo
r
favor
s
fro
m
Immigratio
n
an
d
Naturalization,
you
know.
She
has
no
right
to
ask
you
for
this
kind of help.”

“Months?”
V
ictoria
questioned,
frowning.
“
W
e
don’t
ha
v
e
that kind of time.”

“Gettin
g
th
e
bes
t
v
alu
e
require
s
patience
.
Besides
,
what’s
her
hurry?”
Her
uncle
snapped
the
golden
bands
together
and
pulled them apart repeatedly.

“It’s
complicated.
What
could
something
like
these
bring?
I
mean, without drawing attention
to the seller?”
Elia
s
thre
w
u
p
hi
s
hands
.
“Wh
o
knows
?
I
’
l
l
kno
w
more
whe
n
I
pas
s
i
t
alon
g
fo
r
mor
e
qualifie
d
e
y
e
s
t
o
examine
.
W
ill
you lea
v
e these with me?”

“Wh
o
better?
”
V
ictori
a
ros
e
an
d
w
alke
d
aroun
d
th
e
desk
to
kiss
her
uncle’s
forehead,
which
w
as
damp
and
v
ery
w
arm.
“Gotta
go,” she said, patting
his shoulder.

“Mart
a
won’
t
b
e
happ
y
abou
t
th
e
kind
s
o
f
favor
s
you
’
re
doin
g
fo
r
thi
s
girl,
”
h
e
calle
d
ou
t
a
s
sh
e
w
alke
d
to
w
ar
d
th
e
dock
door.
“
P
erhaps
it
would
be
best
not
to
trouble
her.
She
spends
enough time worrying about you as it is.”