Unforgettable Nights

Chapter 1

Layla sat on her couch, drinking some Jasmine tea and watching some tv. She was expecting her next assignment to be sent to her home and was waiting for it to arrive any moment.

"Did they tell you what was coming this time?" Femi, Kayla's roommate and best friend of ten years asked, walking into the living room from her bedroom. She was in the middle of getting ready to go visit her parents in Jamaica.

"They just said that I'm supposed to be getting an artifact from the Museum of Natural History, it's probably an old vase. Either way I'm gonna have fun with it." Layla said, sipping her tea.

"Yeah, you're lucky, having a job that you have fun with. You don't have asshole customers who yell at you because they ordered the wrong thing," Femi said.

"Yeah, how's your uncle doing by the way?" Layla asked, looking over at Femi.

"He's doing better, he's taking some time from work for a week or so. He's been stressing so much that his doctor insists that he gets some rest, so that means Auntie is taking over the business until he gets back," Femi said, walking into the kitchen to make a snack.

"Mm, those customers don't stand a chance," Layla said, earning a chuckle from Femi. They both knew that Femi's aunt took no crap from anyone.

"You know it," Femi said. Layla chuckled softly, before hearing the doorbell ring.

"That must be my artifact," Layla said, standing up. She sat her mug down on the coffee table, setting it on a coaster and heard the doorbell ring again as she walked to the door, "I'm coming," she called, jogging up to the door. She opened the door and was met with a giant box, being held up by two tall and somewhat built delivery men. "Whoa..."

"Package for Layla Malak," one of the delivery men said, holding a clipboard in one hand, leaning his weight against the box to hold it up to help out his partner a bit.

"That's me," Layla said, looking from the giant box to the delivery man who spoke.

"I'm going to need a signature," the delivery guy said, holding out the clipboard. Layla gave a small nod and took the clipboard, signing her signature quickly, holding it as the men carried the giant box inside.

"Girl, what the hell did they send you? A body?" Femi asked in a half joking tone.

"I have no idea," Layla said, moving her coffee table so that they could set it down with less trouble.

"It's on the paper, I think," the other delivery man said. Layla read over the paper on the clipboard, before her jaw dropped.

"What?" Femi asked, walking over to Layla. She looked over her friend's shoulder and read it quietly. "Aw hell. I jinxed it."

"You did," Layla said, letting out a chuckle of disbelief. "Looks like we have royalty in our home."

"Damn, now I hate that I have to leave," Femi said. "I wanna see him."

"I'm sure he'll be here when you get back, Femi," Layla said, walking the delivery men out, giving them a tip for their service.

"Oh, this came with it," the first delivery man said, handing Layla a flat object that was covered in an old cloth and a large plastic bag.

"Oh, thank you," Layla said, looking down at the object in her hands, before setting it down on the coffee table. She paid the delivery men, escorted them to the door and closed and locked the front door once they left.

"Can we open it? I wanna see him before I go," Femi said. Layla chuckled softly and walked over to the large box.

"Okay, okay. Help me open this. I'm eager to see him too. They've never sent me a mummy before," Layla said, beginning to open the large box. Femi let out a small squeal of excitement and helped Layla open the box carefully, knowing that artifacts could be very fragile. They pushed the box's lid off, causing the entire wooden box to collapse, revealing a golden sarcophagus. Both girls stared in awe at the sarcophagus, hardly able to contain their excitement. Layla walked over to the sarcophagus slowly and began taking out the pins to loosen the lid. She looked over at Femi, before looking down at the sarcophagus, and gently lifting the lid. Femi walked over and helped her hold the lid. They both looked down at the now opened sarcophagus, and stared at the preserved body inside. He was wrapped from head to toe in old bandages, his arms resting across his chest. "Well hello, your majesty," Layla said, looking the mummified pharaoh over.

"He looks so peaceful," Femi said, before looking at the object that was on the coffee table. "What's that?" she asked.

"I don't know. It must be his accessory that he was buried with," Layla said, propping the lid of the sarcophagus against the wall. She then walked over to the coffee table and picked up the artifact, taking it out of the bag and cloth slowly.

"What is it?" Femi asked, inspecting it from a distance.

"I have no idea. I'll have to do some research on it tomorrow," Layla said, setting the artifact down on the table carefully. "Come on, I'll go help you pack and then we can go get some food before you have to go," Layla said.

"Good idea," Femi said, walking to her room, Layla following behind, looking over at the resting pharaoh on her way out of the living room.