Storms and Scarabs by H R Hobbs

Author:H R Hobbs [Hobbs, H R]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780995344860
Publisher: Heather Hobbs
Published: 2019-10-07T23:00:00+00:00

That night Mitch lay on his mat, wide awake. He envied Brock’s soft snores.

He had been so hopeful that the chest would have the stone they needed to get home. Now what? It wasn’t like they could go looking through the city to find another one. If what Jabari said was true, only wealthy people would have the stone. It wasn’t like they could knock on a door and ask for one. Even with Jabari as their translator. No way.

What were they going to do now?

Chapter 14

Weeks went by and Mitch and Brock settled into a routine.

Every day they were up early, while it was cool, ready to accompany Jabari to work. They no longer got strange stares as they walked through the streets. The robes Rehema had given them let them blend into the crowds of people making their way to work each day. Mitch still wore his clothes underneath. For some reason, it gave him the feeling they were only here temporarily. Brock couldn’t stand the heat, so he wore as little as he could under his robes. They’d had to ditch their shoes for sandals made out of reeds. Nikes were just too strange, and they couldn’t chance drawing attention to themselves. The sandals were made like flip-flops and gave the boys blisters between their toes. Mitch hated them. The first thing he did every night when they got home was to put on his sneakers.

At the embalming shop they learned more about the ritual of mummification. They’d watched how bodies were washed with wine and spices. Mitch now associated the smell of spices with the removal of the organs, which usually resulted in him running out of the shop to get some fresh air.

After washing, the body was dried. This involved stuffing the body in salt, along with the internal organs. This step lasted forty days. They then packed the head and body with linen soaked in scented oils—another smell that made Mitch want to lose his lunch.

Finally, the body was covered in necklaces and rings made of gold and gems. Twenty layers of linen covered the body and then was coated with a tar-like substance. Mitch now understood why they needed so many strips of linen.

Mitch and Brock worked side by side most days. It gave them a chance to talk about home and how they were going to get back there. It also gave the boys a chance to get to know each other better. Brock explained the various rodeo events he liked attending. Mitch learned about mutton busting (riding sheep) and the difference between a steer and a heifer (steers used to be boys—Mitch still cringed every time he thought about how that happened—and heifers were girls). Mitch told Brock about his friend Matt and their early-morning games of basketball, and how much he missed them.

It felt good to talk about home. But some days he was so homesick, he could’ve cried.

The men in the shop ignored them for the most part. Metjen was the only one who seemed to be interested in them at all.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.