Chapter Three

Reaching over to pick the object up Cameron did his best to keep his composure. Only his eyes gave him away. A flicker of recognition, glimmering in their depths. Knowing that something, which was not much bigger than his hand, could inflict so much pain, even death, and that no one else was aware of this, was a little disconcerting, even more so when seeing it up this close. Knowing all that it could do and what it represented, Cameron thought it was an odd experience to be holding a Goa'uld ribbon device in his hand.

It was certainly not something that he had expected to see here on Earth in 1929. The one positive aspect of seeing the device was knowing that there were at least no Goa'uld around to use it. As yet the Goa'uld were unaware of Earth's presence. For Cameron that meant no bad guys which was as far as he was concerned at least one good thing about living in the past, that and the fact that the history he knew was now his present, although he did miss a little the not knowing. He liked being surprised, it was one of the many things that had always been enjoyable about working for the Stargate Programme. Living as he now did in 1929 he knew how many of the future events were going to play out, and though it would be interesting, in truth he would rather not know what was going to happen. The fun part of life was the unexpected.

Placing the ribbon device back on the table Cameron picked up his glass of Scotch and took a big mouthful, pulling himself back into the here and now, collecting his thoughts. This was his life, and though it wasn't the life he had ever expected, it wasn't so bad and even knowing what he did, it still managed to throw the odd surprise his way, like the Goa'uld ribbon device that was laying on the table.

"Interesting, isn't it?"

Picking up his cards Drummond watched Cameron curious as to what he would think of the object he had found. Not everyone found Egyptian artifacts as fascinating as he did and he was intrigued by this American, there was something different about him, though he couldn't quite place what it was, all he knew was that he agreed with Montet, Mitchell didn't belong on the Nereid.

"A little." Cameron picked up his cards pretending to concentrate on them when in reality he had to admit he was curious. "Where did you find it?"

"Yes, I must admit I'm curious." Montet picked up the object again, turning it over in his hands, looking at it intently. "I've never seen anything like it before. It's an unusual piece of jewelry, looks like some kind of hand ornament."

"Yes, that's what I think too, though I can't imagine that it was all that comfortable to wear."

"So where did you get it?" said Montet as he placed it back on the table.

Drinking his Scotch, Drummond smiled, amused that he had caught the interest of the others. "Let's just say it fell into my hands."

Cameron placed a few coins on the table for his bet, turning his attention back to the game. Interesting though it was to see a ribbon device up close, it was useless. There were no Goa'uld around, and that was a good thing.

*S***S*

Four weeks later - October 1929, Cairo, Egypt

Laying down the razor Cameron picked a towel, wiping off the remaining residue of the soap off his face. Tossing the towel to one side he ran his hand over his chin, looking from side to side in the mirror. It felt good to be clean shaven. Inn fact it felt good to be clean all over. Though there had been basic washing facilities on board the ship and he had taken a few dips in the Mediterranean, it wasn't quite the same as having a decent shower or in this case a long, hot soak in a bath.

Walking into the connecting bedroom, a towel wrapped firmly around his waist, his hair still damp from the bath, Cameron began dress, pulling on the freshly laundered clothes that were laid out on the bed. Though he didn't mind roughing it, it made a nice change to stay somewhere that was modern, had running water, electricity, and the best things of all, as far as Cameron was concerned, was the large comfortable bed and the fact that he didn't have to share his room with anyone. Though he could accept living in close quarters like he had on the ship, it was good to have his own space.

Picking up the clean shirt and pulling it on, he also had to admit that the hotel had a few other luxuries that made staying here worthwhile such as the laundry service which had seen to it that just about every piece of clothing he owned had been thoroughly cleaned, steamed and pressed.

Dressed and ready Cameron left, walking hurriedly down the several flights of stairs, stopping only once he reached the bottom, his attention drawn to the woman standing at the hotel foyer desk, writing something down on a piece of paper.

Having met her briefly yesterday with Drummond, he couldn't help but stare at her, his eyes traveling the length of her of body, admiring. Lady Katerina Faraday was a beautiful woman. She was, he guessed, somewhere in her late twenties to early thirties, with jaw length wavy dark brown hair framing flawless skin against which her crimson red lips and nails stood out. The pale cream suit and cloche hat only added to the effect, showcasing a slim figure.

Perhaps sensing that she was being watched Lady Faraday lifted her head, turning sideways. Seeing Cameron she smiled that same slow sensuous smile that she had given him yesterday.

Moving forward Cameron found himself unable to control the boyish grin that spread across his face. "Hi, Cameron Mitchell. We met yesterday."

"Mr Mitchell. Of course, I remember you."

She spoke with a slight accent, though not being a linguist like Daniel was, he couldn't identify what it was. French, or maybe Italian, he thought. Her voice held a hint of amusement, though Cameron had a feeling she was ever so slightly mocking him. Deciding to ignore it, realising that perhaps she had expected him to greet her differently, he found himself staring into hazel brown eyes, and knew in an instant that she was quite aware of the affect she was having on him.

"I was just leaving a note for Mr Drummond, inviting him for drinks tomorrow night. You should come also Mr Mitchell, you are more than welcome to join us."

"I'd like that. Thanks."

"Tomorrow night then."

Cameron stood there watching her, admiring the sway of her hips, the completely languid and sensuous way she moved across the room and out the door. He also noticed that he was not alone in his appreciation as every other male in the vicinity watched her walk away.

Pulling his mind away from the very beautiful and tempting Lady Faraday, Cameron took out the card from his jacket pocket, that Drummond had given him.

On it was written a name and instructions on how to find them. Drummond had told him that they were looking for a pilot, wanting someone to take some aerial photos. Looking at the card, Cameron was not all the surprised that Drummond had remembered him telling him that he could fly and even less so that Drummond had found him a job where he could fly again. The prospect of flying again, of being up in the sky, of feeling that total freedom was exciting and something he hadn't felt for a long time.

Tapping the card against one hand a couple of times, Cameron smiled to himself. Life was indeed starting to look a lot brighter.

*S***S*