Ben, Raj and the Queen laughed at their escapades.

“HA! HA! HA! We did it!”

They had indeed. Their mission to return the World Cup to Wembley Stadium had been a stonking success. Now all they had to do was put the mask of Tutankhamun back in its place at the British Museum and the Queen would be in the clear.

Raj adored being at the wheel of the police car. He put the siren and the flashing lights on to add to the drama.

“PC Raj on the case!” he cried.

“I want this night to go on forever!” said Ben in the back seat.

“One too!” replied the Queen. “But it will last forever in our hearts.”

In no time, the police car came to a halt outside the entrance to the British Museum.

The huge columns at the front of the building made it look as if they were in Ancient Greece. The museum had only been founded around three hundred years ago, although it had changed a lot over the next few centuries. It was home to lots and lots of ancient art and antiquities, so it was the perfect place to put the mask of Tutankhamun on display. Well, it was until Her Majesty the Queen decided to become the new Gangsta Granny and steal it!

The unlikely trio waited until the security guards had passed in front of the entrance before stepping out of the police car. The Queen led the way, with Ben and Raj trailing behind, carrying the mask.

“So how are we going to get into this old place?” asked Raj, huffing and puffing. “This thing weighs more than a box of toffee!”

“Last time one came through one of the underground tunnels built during the Blitz—” began the Queen, but Ben jumped in.

“That leads all the way from Buckingham Palace!”

“How did you know that?”

“I studied some books in the library about the museum. That was a big clue! The tunnel from your house. I should have known it was you all along!”

“But who would ever suspect Her Majesty the Queen?” she said, rather smugly.

“I will now!” said Raj. “Even if one penny chew goes missing from my shop, I shall blame it on you, ma’am!”

The Queen was rather tickled by this. “Ha! Ha!”

“I need to put this thing down!” complained Raj.

“Me too!” said Ben. “How on earth did you lift it on your own, ma’am?”

“I let my corgis pull it along on a sled! Arctic-style!”

“Proper gangsta!” said Ben.

“Please can someone tell me how we are going to get in?” demanded Raj.

“One doesn’t know! We would have to go all the way back to Buckingham Palace to find the entrance to the tunnel!”

“We could just leave the mask here at the front door!” said Raj. “The security guards will have circled round in a moment.”

“Someone might steal it!” replied Ben.

The Queen pushed against the front door of the museum, and it opened.

CREAK!

“One’s goodness! The door is open!” she exclaimed in astonishment. “Follow one!”

Ben and Raj shared a worried look, before tailing the Queen into the museum.

Inside, it was still and quiet. Too still and too quiet for Ben’s liking. The boy felt something was wrong.

“This isn’t right,” he hissed.

“Maybe someone just left the door unlocked? I sometimes do!” whispered Raj.

“This is the British Museum. People don’t just forget to lock the door! It must be a trap!” replied Ben.

“Let’s put the mask back and get the blazes out of here!” replied Raj.

Their footsteps echoed around the huge entrance hall. The museum is home to eight million objects. Sadly, our heroes didn’t have time to see them all, but they did pass some of the most dazzling artefacts that have survived from ancient civilisations:

The Sutton Hoo Burial Ship Helmet

This is a bronze helmet from the burial of an Anglo-Saxon warrior or king dating back over a thousand years. He was buried in a huge ship along with his treasures. Sutton Hoo is the name of the place in Suffolk where the ship was excavated.

The Lewis Chessmen

These are chess pieces carved from walrus tusks and whalebone sometime during the twelfth century.

The Fishpool Hoard

Over a thousand gold coins and pieces of jewellery dating back to the 1400s. The largest collection of medieval coins ever found in Britain.

Eventually, the three made it to the specially constructed new exhibition gallery where the mask of Tutankhamun had been displayed, surrounded by other treasures from Ancient Egypt. There was:

The Rosetta Stone

This is adorned with hieroglyphs etched by Ancient Egyptian priests.

The Head of the Pharaoh

This is a gigantic head of Amenhotep III, a pharaoh who lived more than three thousand years ago. He wears a double crown, which tells us he ruled both upper and lower Egypt.

The Cat Mummies

Aside from human mummies, the museum has cat mummies and even a falcon mummy from Ancient Egypt. People then liked their pets to be buried with them so they would be at their side in the afterlife.

“I don’t think I can carry this old thing one step more!” spluttered Raj.

“Me neither!” added Ben.

“Let one help!” said the Queen, lending a hand to carry the solid gold mask for the very last part of its journey. “Ooh! This is heavy!”

“That’s what we keep telling you!” moaned Raj.

Just then they heard a familiar sound.

“MIAOW!”

It was the black cat again. Only this time it was perched right on top of the pharaoh’s head.

“How on earth did that cat get all the way here from Buckingham Palace?” asked the Queen.

“It’s not the same cat!” said Raj.

“It is!” replied Ben. He knew. This cat had been around every step of the way, protecting him.

“MIAOW!” it went again. It sounded like it was trying to alert them to something.

It leaped down from the head and tugged at the bottom of Ben’s princess costume.

“MIAOW!”

“It’s right under my feet!” moaned Raj, and he tried to move it away with his foot.

As he did so, a strange noise came from his back.

TWANG!

“OOF!” he cried in pain. “My back! I can’t hold this thing any longer!”

Ben and the Queen took the weight of the mask before sliding it back inside the bulletproof glass case.

“OOF! My back’s always playing up! I need to sit down!” said Raj, searching for a seat.

“MIAOW!” warned the cat.

“I’m sorry, Raj! I think the cat is trying to tell us something. We need to get out of here! And fast!” said Ben. “Let me help you!”

“One too!” added the Queen.

The pair took Raj’s arms and draped them over their shoulders so they could support his weight. Together, they helped the hobbling hero out of the vast room, slower than a snail, the cat trailing behind.

“NOT SO FAST!” boomed a voice from behind the pharaoh’s head.