The day had been long and when the sun was beginning to set across the Cairo skyline, my flat riding boots tapped against the wooden walkway while I waited impatiently for the people whom had hired me as a guide to the City of the Dead. A Mr. and Miss. Carnahan, if I was correct. As I neared the ferry itself, I overheard a familiar voice.

"All they found was sand and blood. Let me get your bags." The voice said. I could almost hear his trademark smirk. Turning to look, I spotted the owner of the voice – exactly how I remembered him.

"Rick? Richard O'Connell?" I asked, running towards him as fast as I could with a few loose curls falling out from underneath my hat. I must have looked quite a slight with long trousers on, braces, a white dress shirt, black riding boots and a dark pork-pie hat in the Egyptian heat, but I had lived in Egypt for years and was used to the intense heat.

Rick turned to look at me and a smile slipped onto his face as he engulfed me in a tight hug.

"Bernie! How long has it been?" Rick asked as he let me go touching my face like he could feel my answer with his fingertips.

"French Foreign Legion. 1923; good year." I grinned. It was like seeing a long lost relative.

"Excuse me, Miss. Can we help you?" A very prim and proper voice asked and I turned to look at the snooty lady who owned it only to be met with two people who looked very well educated and European too.

"Yes, sorry. I'm Bernadette LeBarde, pleasure to make your acquaintance."


After introducing myself to my employers, we all boarded the ferry and explored it until nightfall. My cabin was next door to Evelyn's so I thought it would be best that I introduced myself to her. I walked up to the door and knocked gently,

"Miss. Carnahan?" I asked, pushing the door open slightly only to be met with a dark and empty cabin. Great. When I try and bond with the only other woman on this trip she's not even in her room. Giving up on waiting around for her, I went onto the main deck and stood to the side watching some men play poker.

"Quit playing with your glasses and cut the deck, will ya' Burns?" One man asked the other who was meticulously polishing his small circular spectacles. Without missing a beat, Burns looked up and retorted with a scathing,

"Without my glasses I can't see the deck to cut it can I, Dave?" I giggled but blushed when the men turned to look at me. Oops.

"Hey darlin'," One drawled in a thick American accent and I unconsciously scooted away from the man I would forever remember as sounding like a cowboy. Don't get me wrong, I love the Cowboy vs. Indian films but I must embrace my European roots and have a slight distain for the Yanks. I spotted Rick coming out of a room with his gunny sack slung over his shoulder and I quickly stuck to his side like glue. Okay, I know that Rick's an American too but this one is like my brother after we were in the French Foreign Legion together from 1919 until 1923.

"O'Connell, sit down. We could do with another player." Jonathan beamed at Rick, but it was useless trying to get Rick to gamble.

"I gamble with my life, never with my money." Rick chuckled, giving Jonathan a condescending look down his nose. I knew this better than anyone.

"Ain't that the truth?" I muttered, grinning slightly at Rick. The American who asked for the cards to be dealt faster piped up a bit.

"Never? What if I was to bet you $500 that we get to Hamunaptra before you?" He asked, the side of the mouth tilting up in a cocky smirk. He knew that Richard would take up the bet, but how did he know that we were going to Hamunaptra too?

"You're looking for Hamunaptra?" I asked, puzzled as to why they were going and how they knew we were also.

"Damn straight we are, Darlin'." The blonde American answered with a flirtatious wink, causing me to gag in complete disgust. Eww.

"And, who says we are?" Rick asked. As Rick asked this, my eyes automatically went to Jonathan. I bet he had something to do with this.

"He does." Every single man at the poker table turned and pointed a finger at, low and behold, Jonathan Carnahan. Jonathan spluttered in faux innocence and I rounded on him, standing just to the left of his chair.

"Well, how 'bowt it? Is it a bet?" The dark haired man asked yet again. Rick smirked and nodded his head.

"Alright you're one." Rick takes challenges to easily. A small, snooty-looking man in a red fez spoke up from reading his leather-bound book,

"What makes you so confident sir?" He asked, tilting his head back in order to size Richard up before scrunching his nose up when he noticed my presence next to Rick.

"Well what makes you?" I shot back. There was no way in hell that I was going to take lip from a stuck-up English scholar.

"We got us a man who's actually been there." The blonde spoke up again but thankfully this time he never took his eyes off his poker hand.

"What a coincidence because we have two–" Jonathan never managed to finish his sentence because I hit on the back of his head with my equipment bag filled with hammers, chisels, brushes and the occasional set of daggers. Long story short, it made in verbally incompetent. "Who's play is it? Is it my play?" He started to stumble over his words terribly as Rick came up behind him and placed one of his large hands on the shoulder of Jonathan's crisp cream suit.

"Gentlemen, we got ourselves a wager. Good evening…Jonathan." He said, but while saying Jonathan's name he squeezed his shoulder and made a crunching sound that set my teeth on edge. Rick walked away and I thought that I should at least say my goodbyes rather than trailing behind Rick like a lost puppy.

"Good night, gentlemen." I said, with a small smile and a wave which only seemed to alert one of them that actually had manners to stand up. He had rounded glasses and I think he was called Burns – well, that was what the others called him.

"Good night, Ma'am." He called, sitting back down to carry on his game of poker.


Okay, so it has taken a while but I have finally updated this story. It's being reread and I'm completely embarrassed by my terrible writing. This is the new and properly reviewed and edited version.