Egyptian Timewave

Chapter 53

Her dad has clearly been waiting for this all day, he doesn't even give Abayomi the chance to take off her hijab before he starts asking questions.

"Aya, why didn't you tell me about the assault yesterday?"

Because she was still reeling from the time travel. "I just didn't want to, Baba. I wasn't ready. Can I at least take off my hijab before we continue with this?"

He waves the go ahead at her and with a sigh of relief, Abayomi removes the headscarf. Once it's off, she massages her scalp a bit. She had tied her hair too tightly beneath it this morning and she's been feeling it pull. She sighs at the easing tension and sits on the bed.

"What do you want me to tell you, Baba?"

"I want you to tell me what happened. I need to know that you can take care of yourself, that you're not hurt."

Abayomi lifts her chin, touching the red line on her neck. "A man grabbed me, he held a knife to my throat, and then I got away before he could kill me. That's really all you need to know, Baba." It's not like he would ever be able to find Prince Amenhotep and turn him in to the authorities here.

Her father makes a displeased expression at the limit to the information she'll tell him, but he crouches in front of her to inspect the wound. He turns Abayomi's head to one side and then the other, seeing how the movement pulls on the wound. When he at last pulls away, she raises an eyebrow at him.

"Are you satisfied now?"

"Somewhat. I know that it isn't deep now, just a scratch that is healing decently well. I'll be satisfied if you promise to tell me or your mother next time something like this happens. Abayomi, I don't ever want to feel that fear again, of seeing you have a panic attack because of an assault that you didn't tell me about. We can't help you if we don't know."

Abayomi looks down at the floor, her voice small. "I'm sorry, Baba."

"Oh, come here."

He pulls her down off the bed and into a hug, Abayomi immediately curling into him like she used to when she was small and always wanted to be glued to his side. She sniffs, curling tighter, only to startle when the hijab fabric slides off of the bed where she had placed it. The fabric falls on top of her, covering the majority of her body.

When Abayomi realizes what had happened, she laughs softly, lifting the fabric up from where it had partially landed on her head to peer out from under it. She pulls back from her father, tugging the scarf down between them to bundle it up. Her dad chuckles softly and stands, reaching out a hand to Abayomi.

"Do you feel up to talking with your mother?"

Abayomi nods. While he turns towards the desk to set up a video call on his computer, Abayomi folds up the headscarf and tucks it away. She finishes just as her dad pulls up the video call. It rings for a few moments before it's accepted, her mother's face filling the screen, dark wisps of hair poking out of the braid she's tied it back with. She smiles at them.

"Hey you two, how is the dig going?"

Her dad smiles. "Quite well. We're cataloging the contents of the main room at the moment, but we should be getting into the burial chamber within the week. Just in time for Aya's birthday."

Abayomi blinks at that. She'd forgotten. With the time travel, is she technically eighteen already? She's distracted by her mom's clap, the sound pulling her out of her head.

"Oh that's wonderful. Still, make sure to take her out to do something special, even if she says being at the dig is enough."

At the same moment as her dad mock groans "Rana . . ." Abayomi is flushing with embarrassment.

"Mama!"

"Oh hush, Aya. You're turning eighteen, you'll be an adult. We'll do something special when you both get home after the dig season ends too. Now as much as I would like to chat, I am making dinner and I don't think you just wanted to make a social call."

"You're right, Rana, this isn't just a social call. Abayomi was assaulted yesterday."

Her mom's face turns ashy. "She was what?!" Abayomi's dad opens his mouth to respond, but her mom holds up a finger. "One moment." She moves away from the camera and yells out. "Hassan, I need you to keep Rashid out of the kitchen for a little while, okay?" Abayomi can hear her older brother call back, but she doesn't know what he said. A moment later, her mom comes back into view. "What happened."

Aya fidgets under her mom's gaze. "Baba is making a big deal out of it, Mama. I'm fine. Really, I am!" Her mom just keeps staring at her until Abayomi caves. "Someone just grabbed me on my way back to the hotel and held a knife to my throat. But I got away, I'm fine, even Baba agrees that it was only a scratch."

"Yet you didn't tell either of us this had happened, Aya. This is something you should be telling us about."

"I know, I know, Mama. I just couldn't."

"And why not?"

Abayomi hugs herself. "I wasn't ready to talk about it, I guess."

Her dad leans forward. "I can agree that she wasn't ready to talk about it very much, since she had a panic attack about it, but she also hid that anything was wrong."

Her mom rubs her face. "Aya . . . You're starting college this year. You're a young, muslim girl. I don't want something to happen to you and then for you to not tell us. You may be starting at the same university your father works at, but that doesn't mean you won't get backlash, especially for your religion. People in college are different than those at high school. I want you to be able to tell us when something happens."

"I know, Mama. I will."

"Will you? Because it doesn't sound like you will."

"I promise, Mama. If something happens, I'll tell you."

Her mom gives her a sharp look. "I'm trusting you, Abayomi. Please don't let us down."

"Yes mama."

"Good. Now I have to go, but I'll tell the boys hello for you."

"Give Rashid a hug for me?"

"Of course."
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