The next day, we got the gods’ gift.
We woke to find that the mansion had been completely repaired down to the smallest detail. Everything we hadn’t finished yet—probably another month’s worth of work—was done.
The first thing I found were new clothes in my closet, and after a moment’s hesitation, I put them on. I went downstairs and found Khufu and Sadie dancing around the restored Great Room. Khufu had a new Lakers jersey and a brand-new basketball. The magical brooms and mops were busy doing their cleaning routine. Sadie looked up at me and grinned—and then her expression changed to shock.
“Carter, what—what are you wearing?”
I came down the stairs, feeling even more self-conscious. The closet had offered me several choices this morning, not just my linen robes. My old clothes had been there, freshly cleaned—a button-down shirt, starched khaki slacks, loafers. But there had also been a third choice, and I’d taken it: some Reeboks, blue jeans, a T-shirt, and a hoodie.
“It’s, um, all cotton,” I said. “Okay for magic. Dad would probably think I look like a gangster....”
I thought for sure Sadie would tease me about that, and I was trying to beat her to the punch. She scrutinized every detail of my outfit.
Then she laughed with absolute delight. “It’s brilliant, Carter. You look almost like a regular teenager! And Dad would think...” She pulled my hoodie over my head. “Dad would think you look like an impeccable magician, because that’s what you are. Now, come on. Breakfast is waiting on the patio.”
We were just digging in when Amos came outside, and his change of clothes was even more surprising than mine. He wore a crisp new chocolate-colored suit with matching coat and fedora. His shoes were shined, his round glasses polished, his hair freshly braided with amber beads. Sadie and I both stared at him.
“What?” he demanded.
“Nothing,” we said in unison. Sadie looked at me and mouthed O-M-G, then went back to her bangers and eggs. I attacked my pancakes. Philip thrashed around happily in his swimming pool.
Amos joined us at the table. He flicked his fingers and coffee magically filled his cup. I raised my eyebrows. He hadn’t used magic since the Demon Days.
“I thought I’d go away for a while,” he announced. “To the First Nome.”
Sadie and I exchanged glances.
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” I asked.
Amos sipped his coffee. He stared across the East River as if he could see all the way to Washington, D.C. “They have the best magic healers there. They will not turn away a petitioner seeking aid—even me. I think...I think I should try.”
His voice was fragile, like it would crack apart any moment. But still, it was the most he’d said in weeks.
“I think that’s brilliant,” Sadie offered. “We’ll watch after the place, won’t we, Carter?”
“Yeah,” I said. “Absolutely.”
“I may be gone for a while,” Amos said. “Treat this as your home. It is your home.” He hesitated, as if choosing his next words carefully. “And I think, perhaps, you should start recruiting. There are many children around the world with the blood of the pharaohs. Most do not know what they are. What you two said in Washington—about rediscovering the path of the gods—it may be our only chance.”
Sadie got up and kissed Amos on the forehead. “Leave it to us, Uncle. I’ve got a plan.”
“That,” I said, “sounds like very bad news.”
Amos managed a smile. He squeezed Sadie’s hand, then got up and ruffled my hair as he headed inside.
I took another bite of my pancakes and wondered why—on such a great morning—I still felt sad, and a little incomplete. I suppose with so many things suddenly getting better, the things that were still missing hurt even worse.
Sadie picked at her scrambled eggs. “I suppose it would be selfish to ask for more.”
I stared at her, and I realized we were thinking the same thing. When the gods had said a gift...Well, you can hope for things, but as Sadie said, I guess you can’t get greedy.
“It’s going to be hard to travel if we need to go recruiting,” I said cautiously. “Two unaccompanied minors.”
Sadie nodded. “No Amos. No responsible adult. I don’t think Khufu counts.”
And that’s when the gods completed their gift.
A voice from the doorway said, “Sounds like you have a job opening.”