Derek was struggling to stand up. Emma was hovering in midair, contorted in a ridiculous position. The suffocating cloud enveloped Notaspy. He was coughing and sneezing. The meerkat could hardly breathe. Colin felt that something had hit him in the chest. “Spinning knives,” the boy guessed. He was not scared because Emma had insisted on wearing the bulletproof T-shirt.
Emma managed to whip Ramses with her tail. He dropped the Scarab. It rolled and fell onto the sand. There was a large crack caused by the earthquake near the Gate.
Ramses screamed in disgust and frustration. His eyes blazed with fury. He saw a burrow in the sand and retreated.
Then… just like that, everything went back to normal.
“Are you all right?” Emma looked at the boy anxiously.
“Sure. Thanks to the bulletproof T-shirt!” Colin answered.
“Let’s take Notaspy to the hospital,” she shouted.
“I’ll stay and do a sweep,” Derek said thoughtfully. “Just in case. If Ramses has the intention to come back, we won’t give him any chance to win the Scarab back!”
“That’s an excellent idea! I’ll come back as soon as I can. Be careful!” Emma looked worried.
“Dad, may I go with Emma?” Colin asked.
“You may go provided that you promise me to wear the bulletproof T-shirt!” Derek said sternly. “Don’t waste time!”
“Of course,” the boy replied. “Take my spy night googles! You’ll need them as twilight’s approaching!”
Then, off they went. Emma looked around, scanning the sandy surface of the desert. At first, they were vividly discussing the fate of the Scarab, but soon their talk faded. Emma the Crocodile was too frustrated to think about the artifact. Notaspy was her only concern at the moment. The silence embraced them. It was interrupted by the muffled shhhsh, shhhsh, shhhsh of their camels’ hooves. They traversed through the dunes, heading towards the city.
CHAPTER NINE
“I’m glad to hear that Notaspy’s feeling better,” Colin said, “but he’s under doctors’ orders to rest.”
“The mysterious disappearance of the Scarab puzzles me! Why did I fail to find it?” Derek asked Emma. “I searched through the place. Did the Scarab fall into the crack?”
She scratched her head over his vexing questions.
They were sitting by the fireplace sipping mint tea.
“The Scarab has been buried under the thickness of sand! Among those free – flowing dunes,” the boy suggested.
“The only explanation for this is that someone else might have got possession of it while we were fighting Ramses,” Emma said. “Evil creatures have always dreamt of it.”
“There was nobody around!” Colin disagreed with her.
“What’s about Ramses?” Derek asked.
“Have you read the Daily Crocodile Express today?” Emma asked in surprise, “THE ROYAL JEWELRY MUSEUM THIEF HAS BEEN ARRESTED BY THE POLICE. RAMSES IS BEHIND BARS. It’s on the papers front page.”
“The police received an anonymous tip-off and found Ramses when he was trying to sell the stolen jewelries. They dusted for prints and compared them to those taken at the Royal Museum. Perfect match,” the crocodile added.
“It isn’t surprising, is it?” Colin said, “Let’s visit Notaspy and tell him the news! He asked me to keep him informed.”
“Of course,” Emma replied, “but there is one small issue that I still have to take care of. Let’s just stop by the spice shop. I’ll take herbal tea for the patient if you don’t mind.”
In ten minutes they found themselves in the spice shop. There were numerous tubs with fragrant spices and herbs, and of course, hand-decorated plates and tea bowls there.
“An Aladdin’s cave of flavors!” Derek exclaimed.
“Just walking in here is a treat!” Colin agreed.
Emma cried out, “Saul the Gator Boy! Are you here?”
“My dear! Nice to see you,” he smiled with delight.
“If you sit on two chairs, you just end up falling into the gap in between,” she said, looking straight into his eyes. “Are you a traitor dealing with Hunter the Bat?”
“Come on, Emma! You can’t have fallen for it,” he said with a smirk. “You’re kidding, right? Of course, and I knew it!”
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