The next morning Elizabeth was speaking to an older man, holding his hand gently in both of hers. She was listening to him speak—only missing a few words in his quiet slur of Arabic. Pride in herself was true, thanks to Ardeth for teaching her so well.
The old man spoke of the sky and of sand, of how she would need to find a way to bring both back with her when she left. She was stumped as to how on earth she would capture the sky well enough to travel with it safely back to England and through customs.
"Elizabeth?" She turned to the voice, to Ardeth walking up to her. "You wanted to speak with me?"
She nodded and bid the elder farewell.
"Would you like to go for a walk?" She asked, gesturing for the ruins. Ardeth nodded and followed, focus on his brow.
The wind was stronger today than most days, her hair which had grown considerably in the last several weeks, whipped around her face. And the wrap, which Ardeth had given to her, kept her neck warm and safe.
He sighed softly, glancing at her only once. He was waiting for her to speak, for her to say the first words they both dreaded. In turn Elizabeth kept her line of sight far from him, unable to look him in the eye for fear she may lose herself.
They walked for what seemed like an hour, by each other's side through the ruins of a lost city.
"Would you like to hear about the first time I saw Hamunaptra?" Ardeth spoke and Elizabeth smiled and nodded. "I was ten. My mother was adamant that I choose my own path instead of following in my father steps. But I was just as adamant. I wanted to protect my family and my people, just like my father and grandfather before me. So I chose, at ten years old, to become a Medjai. That's when my father took me to the city of the dead, to show me what my life would be. And when I saw it for the first time I felt it's power immediately, felt it's pull—it's curses. I will never forget the sunrise, the colors of the sky when it appeared before my father and I. I felt it's danger but also it's love. It's hope, and I knew, then I had made the right choice in life."
Elizabeth smiled to herself as he spoke, hearing him speak so candidly was beautiful to her. A soft, rosy feeling filled her stomach.
"I think you made the correct choice."
"I think so too. Was there a specific reason for this meeting of ours?"
"…I am sorry about last night, it's just…" She sighed and looked up at the sky. "I would like to be candid, since you are so with me."
Ardeth nodded, "You may."
"I…I do not know if I ever told you how much I admire you, since I met you. The way you carry yourself with such weight on your shoulders—even I cannot know what that must be like." She said, hoping the courage in her words was not lost on him.
Ardeth thought for several moments on her words. "It gets easier everyday, much like anything else. Easier with people like you to help."
Elizabeth held back a painful sigh and nodded, tears threatening to swell.
"I'm not so special, with what I've taught you and your men you'll do just fine without me." The conversation was restrained, and it was as though they'd shared the same words hundreds of times before—but the conversations before did not seem nearly as hard as they did right in this moment. So she spoke simply, "Abdal is walking and I am confident by the end of the week he will be able to hold a sword again like he used to."
"Good. I will be happy to have him back in his usual position. Thank you."
Elizabeth nodded slowly and smiled at him, their eyes connected and he nodded in turn just as slow.
"The tribe will miss you."
"I will miss them."
"I will take you to Cairo at the end of the week, the ships for Europe dock every six days so we shall make it just in time." Elizabeth listened to his words and felt herself nodding, afraid to look into his eyes this time.
Pain, this internal pain she was feeling, was something Elizabeth did not yet know how to heal.
"Is this all you have?" Ardeth asked in the early morning. The sun had just barely a sliver risen above the cascading rolls of the desert hills. Elizabeth hoisted her single bag up onto the camel's back.
"Yes, just what little clothing I have left and a few bits and bobs from my time here in Africa. I've used up a lot of my medical equipment and I've left the rest of what I had with Tala."
"Are you certain you will not need any of it?"
Elizabeth shook her head and smiled gently, "No, not unless I run into another tribe of dark linen clad warriors in the middle of the Atlantic needing medical attention, that is."
Ardeth smirked as she spoke, tightening the horses reins.
"I do wish I'd had enough time to teach you to ride." He said as he helped her up on the horses back.
"Perhaps some day you may teach me, but for now you must act as my chauffeur." Elizabeth laughed to herself as she got situated on the saddle.
"Chauffeur? What is this word?"
Elizabeth chuckled again as they began their trek across the desert.
"Perhaps some day I will tell you."
"Alright then, you have your mysteries. Get comfortable, Miss Elizabeth."
They rode for hours, the hot sun tanning their skin even darker. Elizabeth was anxious and nervous to return home. Though she still had a ways to travel it was still impending, the people she must face, the reality and the society she must face.
As she laid her head on Ardeth's back, the gentle sway of the horse's steps in the sand lulled her into complete relaxation.
She would have to deal with England soon enough, but for now the thing she wanted nothing more was to feel him. Just these last few hours, and smell him. Ardeth smelled like sand and earth, he smelled human. And on top of that he smelled like something else, like a tea or an herb she couldn't quite put her finger on. It was a smell should would never forget.
When they arrived in Cairo Elizabeth's every sense was raised to high; the sounds, the smells, the light, the people. Everything was moving faster and faster and Elizabeth smiled as she watched the merchants and citizens and eyed the pyramids and architecture along the Nile. Busy, she thought, busy like London—but with sand.
"Do you come here often?" Elizabeth asked as Ardeth helped her off the horse.
"Often enough. I have business here sometimes, contacts to connect with."
"You like it here then?" She swung her bag over her shoulder and looked at him expectantly.
"I do. The food is good, the people are kind, the land is beautiful."
"It is beautiful." She said looking around. "Different than the desert, more…people." Ardeth smirked at her.
"The ship will board within an hour's time. You will board there," He said, pointing to the end of the dock by the river. Elizabeth nodded. "Would you like me to stay with you until it is time for you to board?"
Elizabeth looked at him with a small smile on her face and nodded again gently. Together they walked the Nile for the rest of the hour, sharing few words together—just enjoying one another's quiet company. Neither really knowing if they would ever see each other again.
After their time was up they approached the ship, passengers began to board with their luggage in an excited rush. Elizabeth sucked in a breath and looked at her feet.
"I believe I will miss you, Ardeth." He looked her in the eye and stepped closer to her.
"I will miss you as well, Miss Elizabeth." He dug into his pocket then and pulled out a carefully folded piece of paper. "This is the address of my contact here in Cairo, if you are ever in trouble or need…anything at all—you may write to this address. Keep it close." Elizabeth took the paper gently and held his hand in hers for the moment.
"Thank you." She said as she leaned forward. She placed a soft kiss on his cheek. Ardeth rested his forehead on hers and he sighed.
"I will thank Allah everyday for bringing you to me." Ardeth said quietly, closing his eyes in a moment of contemplation. Or perhaps it was so he could remember every second about this moment right here, right now like she was. Memorization of moments was easy for her, a curse her mother had called it. And she would never forget a moment like this one.
"We can't, Ardeth." Elizabeth sighed, eyes still closed. She wanted so badly to feel his lips on hers, to experience him like she had never before—intimately and eternally. She heard him sigh in her ear. "If we do then I am afraid I might not be able to leave your side."
She felt Ardeth's arms wrap around her waist to pull her closer. Their bodies had been this close before but never their faces, their lips, and never so intimately.
"You speak as though I will find that a bad thing." Elizabeth chuckled and kissed his cheek again slowly.
"I must go, but this will not be the last time we are together. I promise you." She said into his ear and he breathed out heavily again. He pulled back and moved his hands from her waist to cup her cheeks.
"May our paths cross again, Elizabeth." Ardeth said with finality and kissed her forehead. "I must go, and you must board that ship. Good luck."
Elizabeth nodded and picked up her bag. Ardeth turned to leave and she watched him until he disappeared into a crowd of people. She heaved a big sigh and took a long look around, memorizing this moment.
The river, the air—the breeze, the smells picked up by the breeze, the pyramids, and beautiful buildings that surrounded her. Just as she took a step toward the ship she noticed a man struggling with a large trunk exiting a building opposite the Nile. It looked as though he might throw his back out at any second.
Quickly she ran over a picked up the other side, alleviating the weight from the man's back.
She helped him move the trunk to a wagon just adjacent to the building.
"Thank you so much, m'am." Elizabeth nodded and looked up to the second floor of the building, through the windows of the first.
"Are you moving, sir?" She spoke in Arabic, hoping her accent wasn't too terrible.
"Yes I am. Sadly."
"When are you looking to sell?" Elizabeth felt her mouth ask before her mind had a moment to think.
"Within the next two months. Why—are you interested?"
The breeze picked up a scent of musk and rice and her mind went silent. She gazed past the man to the beautiful building, dark reds and pale orange brick and stone in facets of an old 19th century building—with rot iron balconies and gold trim detailing and a single black and white striped arch over the front entrance. Elegant but understated next to ancient pyramids, she thought.
Her breath left her again as her lips spoke before her mind could beat it, "Would you ever consider selling to a doctor?"