A/N So… Here I am again. I couldn't in my wildest dreams have believed that I would actually come back to this story, but after I got that cute, sarcastic flamer from Ms. Crookshanks/QueenOfSparrabeth, I could not – with a clear conscience – just sit down in front of my computer and make homework. NO, I would have to begin writing this instead ;D
12th Chapter of Huevo de Chivo
"Time for the Truth to Come Out"
Her skin burned underneath the Saharan Sun and Marion cursed inwardly for the lack of a fresh breeze in her face. It made her yearn for the atmosphere in the cabin she'd stayed in during the trip over the Mediterranean. A cool, shady and quiet place so a person was able to think about what had to be done when the ship made berth in Cairo, a person was able to organize all their thoughts in the correct order and therefore a person like Marion knew exactly what her next step would be. She lifted a bag over her shoulder and made her way through the crowded market square of Cairo. Many of the natives where mystified by the young girl who walked confidently among them and her appearance made many turn their heads after passing her on the street. Marion kept her head cool and tried to ignore the stares and whispers behind her back. She had come here with one purpose alone, and it was a matter that she had to resolve with her father. That meant that anything else mattered little. It perhaps added to the number of eyes that searched her figure; a girl so young and so out of place, looking so determined was not an everyday sight in their city.
Marion went on unfazed, finally finding what she had been searching for; a camel salesman. He was a middle-aged man with dark skin and coal-like eyes. Marion talked with him in his native language which obviously caught the man by surprise. Even his daughter looked away from the camel she had been tending too as her father started to bargain the price of a guide and transport to the excavation site located outside the city. Marion wasn't at all surprised that he knew of the expedition, but of course she kept it perfectly hidden that she was the daughter of the one in charge of the dig. Marion had learned from her father that one should never blindly trust anyone with information that could hurt oneself. She asked the price of the camel and was given an outrageously large price. With a little cunning she soon got a guide and the camel for the same price he'd suggested in the first place. Marion reached forward her hand to close the deal and the man wiped his brow with a piece of cloth, laughing at her, saying in his own language that she was far too good to negotiate and that she would succeed greatly if she ever entered the world of trade. The last remark made Marion's lips turn upwards, but just a little bit. She had not forgotten why she was there and immediately asked for the guide because she wanted to be on her way as soon as possible. The salesman looked over his shoulder and pointed to the girl who'd looked at them before. It was only now that Marion took her time to look at her. She was tall and skinny with her hair shaven off, even though a thin line of black hair adorned her bare skull.
The man told her that it was his daughter, a true natural in finding her way out in the desert and the best guide in the area. Marion forgot that she herself was a woman and took Abner's approach and actually criticised her for being a woman. The man was very eager to promote his daughter who only kept a stony gaze at Marion which made her nervous. He even started speaking English; "No, my daughter shall be you guide. She shall guide you because she the best is," he said and smiled at her. Marion tried not to look at the woman while ignoring the unsettling feeling she had when being scrutinized so intently. Even though she felt uncomfortable in her presence, she also knew the importance of finding a good guide and she felt the truth in the salesman's words. She did indeed look like someone who could take care of herself in any uncomfortable environment. Therefore, Marion reached a conclusion and reached forward a hand, entering into a deal.
It was only after watching the woman saddle two camels and pack her gear onto the backs of them, that she was completely sure she had made the right decision. The woman wore light fabric, a pair of thick sandals to protect her from the burning sand. She had strong shoulders and a slender form, a human built for the desert. She saddled up on the camel and waited until Marion had done the same. She didn't seem surprised at all that Marion had no trouble whatsoever saddling up, and she only nodded and asked; "Where".
Marion told her of the dig site, quietly pondering why she spoke so little. She knew the location, said it was only a day's journey away and without further ado, the two people set out on their camels, out of Cairo to spend a day underneath the burning Egyptian sun.
The Dig Site, somewhere between Alexandria and Cairo
The night air was calm. Small breezes brushed about the sand in a playful manner, cooling down Indy's sunkissed skin. He was laying flat on a solitary rock in the middle of a valley, watching the moon while relaxing his tired body from a long day of hard work. The rock still carried some warmth from the sun and Indy sighed, feeling as comfortable as if he was lying in his own bed. He had been working so hard that he'd forgotten to think about anything else but the dig and Abner's obsession, but now when he had time for thinking he thought of only one thing; Marion. She seemed to have creeped into his thoughts numerous times lately, and even though he didn't understand it, it was a welcoming distraction from his training with Abner. He missed her and suddenly felt a tinge of sadness when thinking about how long it would be before he saw her again.
He still didn't understand why she had come to his room that night. He'd already packed his things for the following morning and had been ready to go to bed. Lying beside her had been like holding on to an electric current that stimulated his thoughts and dreams in the strangest fashion. Sometimes he couldn't breathe, sometimes it was like he would never sleep again and sometime during that night, he remembered that he'd thought he'd die before he ever let go of her again. Indy pondered this past experience. He wondered about every detail simply because he couldn't understand it. Why could he not control himself when comforting a poor girl? It was what Abner had wanted him to do, so why couldn't he do it? Speaking of Abner, he was the very person that decided to appear by the very same rock Indy was sprawled upon.
"Enjoying the spices of the Egyptian winds?" he asked cryptically, surprising Indy who sat up straight, too crazed by his thoughts to notice the man sneaking up on him. Indy stared at Abner's smiling face for a moment before said man positioned himself beside him, slapping his legs and grabbing his knees like a grandpa who was just about to tell his grandchild one of his many stories. And Abner did indeed look like someone who was about to tell him a story. It glittered in his eyes, the same passion Indy had seen there when they arrived.
"Oh yes, these Egyptian winds will fool you, because they contain spices that can drive a man mad with desire. Not to mention the heat because if that doesn't get to your head, I don't know what it is that does…" Indy tried being focused, because he wasn't quite sure what it was that Abner was getting at, but he couldn't help the mental picture of Marion's face hiding in the back of his mind, and the very physical reaction it brought just by thinking of her. In fact, he was just about to wander off into his own thoughts once again, before he was harshly driven out of his reverie by a comment Abner had just made.
"What…?" he asked, a blank expression in place as to not sound suspicious. Abner was laughing with squinted eyes, laughing in that sort of way where you don't know if he's having a fit or if he's choking. Almost no sound reached across his lips, except for small spits of high-pitched tones when he had to come up for air. If Indy looked closer, he could see the saliva forming in the corner of his mouth and if he'd moved to breathe the same air as his mentor, he would have crinkled his nose from the stench of alcohol. Indy moved back somewhat, not because he had anything against the man being drunk, hell he could use a drink himself if just to forget about what he'd left behind, but because of what Abner disclosed so graciously to him after recuperating from a burp.
"You know m'boy, it isn't everyday you meet a woman like that. I mean, you meet plenty of beautiful women, but no one like her. She was, she was something out of this world I tell you and she had that thing about her, you know, that quality that sets her apart from the rest, that makes you sure that you're compatible and that even though it's only for an hour or so, it's a passion worth living for. She had that you know…"
Indy listened intently, trying to sort the actual truth from the rest. It was only know he saw the bottle Abner'd been carrying around, certainly the cause of drunkenness as Abner poured some down his throat. The man rested his eyes for a moment, probably relishing in the memories. 'Is he talking about his wife?' Indy wondered, though something told him that that wasn't the case, but he was curious now, so to keep Abner talking he took the bottle from his grasp, drinking his own share. The alcohol hit him with a blow to his mind, bewildering him for a short moment before he could make out the singular dots on the night-sky's firmament once more. 'What's in this stuff?' he asked himself, taking a look at the bottle before putting it away, out of Abner's reach. He looked over at the man who looked like he would smash his head into the rock from falling on his back, but Indy was quicker to react. He reached over and slapped the man, pulling him up by the shoulder. It disturbed Indy slightly that he actually enjoyed hitting his "employer", but it was a necessary evil.
"Who was she?" Indy asked, trying to sound like he didn't care. The subject matter made Abner wake up once again, apparently not remembering what Indy'd just done to him. "She was fate. It was like it was predestined we'd meet because I was having such a terrible day. They'd cut off the support for the dig and we were to be sent home at once after receiving the news and I was walking down the marketplace, scaring of every salesman that tried approaching me, and suddenly, she was just there. I looked up at some point and she was in my eyesight. I don't know how long we stared, but I was sure that I could see her as transfixed with me as I was with her. I thought I'd never see her again because a carriage rode between us and then she was out of sight…" Abner sighed, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand even though it was cool. 'Is it the memory or the insanely strong drink that makes him sweat?' Indy asked himself, waiting silently for him to continue with the story.
"That night my colleagues went out on the town, but I was walking alone. I wasn't looking for something particular but I was thinking about her, and suddenly I'd been walking for three hours straight and there was no light. There was desert sand underneath my feet and the only thing I could see was an open flame from a big fire somewhere out in the distance. I followed it and then there was a stream. Behind the stream there was this great house, even greater than my own, and I walked closer, searching for someone, perhaps to ask the owner if I could stay the night…" At this Abner sighed with a smile on his face, like he'd just entered a world of exquisite bliss, "But thankfully the master of the house wasn't the first one I met. You see Indy, I discovered I'd wandered straight into a duke's harem. Can you believe it?"
Indy creased his brow, suddenly wondering if the man hadn't just gone over his head in telling some fairytale story instead of something that had actually occurred. "You're sure that this is real, right?" he asked tiredly, putting the bottle in Abner's lap while getting ready to leave. Perhaps the man could sleep off the hangover and the longing for his daughter back at home while dreaming sweet dreams, but fact was, Indy himself was tired and wanted to go to bed, knowing full well he had a long day in for him when daybreak came. Before he had his chance to move though, Abner had successfully dropped the bottle, pouring the contents onto himself and onto Indy. He moved quickly for a drunk man and grabbed Indy's shoulder, saying to him with a horrible stench of alcohol breath; "I know it's for real, dait. I was there myself!"
Indy tried freeing himself from his grasp, but the man was surprisingly strong. "I know I didn't believe it myself. I still don't till this very day, but it was, it was!" Indy now had both his hands on one of Abner's arms, but the old man was grabbing his elbow, trying to hold him in one place while Indy wasn't succeeding in scurrying away. They tumbled around on the rock, panting and slipping on the spilled alcohol, each trying to get an upper hand. One was clinging to the other like a drowning man, and the other was just very bent on getting away. Indy realised Abner was much stronger than him, but in his clouded state, he would be easy to topple over, so Indy moved to his feet, dragging him with and as soon as the man had some ground underneath his feet Indy shot out a foot, kicking at his legs which pummelled together like dry palm trees breaking in two. He hadn't thought it through though because Abner still had a firm grip on him and took Indy down to earth with him.
"Son, son! This is important!" Abner shouted, not realising that he wasn't the one with the upper hand, but the choice of words was enough to get Indy's attention. He loosened the grip he had on him for a moment and was immediately toppled over by his mentor. Now held in cheque he could feel Abner's panting breath on his face and he grimaced. "Let go of me, now," he said with a threatening low voice and the effect was striking. Abner let go of him, sitting by himself with his hands in his lap. Indy moved to sit up, wiping his face from all the dirt and grime accumulated during the short fight. It was only now that Indy realised the wetness of his clothes and the stench it brought with it. The bottle Abner had dropped had poured out onto him. Looking over at a dirty Abner, Indy could see that he was also wet; he'd just poured it onto himself from the waist down. Indy gave a short grunt; it looked like he'd been… well, you know. Abner looked over at him and Indy met his eyes after a moment, his own becoming serious again.
Indy sighed, throwing his neck back while cracking a few muscles. "You were saying about the harem…?" he asked, dejectedly, wanting the night to end, the bottle to disappear and Abner with it.
"She was there. The first room I walk into and it's full of exotic beauties and she's there. She was the most beautiful of them all and I knew I couldn't hesitate when I had the chance, so I ran to her and took her by the arm and we were out of there in a second. The most wonderful thing is that she didn't resist at all. I thought that it could only confirm that it wasn't just something I was feeling." Abner sat in silence after this for a while. Indy sat still, still trying to discern who this woman was, because if anything, it didn't sound at all like Emma Ravenwood, the late wife of Abner Ravenwood. His dad had told him very little of her because it was painful for him to remember, but the little he'd learned of her was that she was a frail woman with beautiful eyes, sunlight and paleness. Nothing in his father's description fitted that of a dark-haired temptress from the Egyptian desert. No, Indy didn't believe that this was Emma that Abner was talking of.
"After that night I took her with me to Italy. She had no where else to go and I only wanted her, a perfect ending for once…" Abner said, obviously thinking of the night they'd supposedly "shared" together. Indy couldn't help himself from asking the question burning on the tip of his tongue.
"What happened afterwards?"
The question surprised Abner, making him look crestfallen. For some reason it was impossible for him to meet Indy's eyes anymore and it was impossible for Indy to discern what had caused the reaction if he hadn't heard the mumbled response from under Abner's breath. "…She left me…"
For some reason he did not know of, Indy somehow found Abner's eyes again, asking the question that had been hiding in the back of his mind ever since that day he'd overheard the conversation in Abner's study with Marion's tutor, Jacob.
"Once, you told Marion something about her mother that wasn't true. What's the secret?"
It might have been because he was slightly dazed because of the alcohol. Maybe he'd hit his head in the fight? It might even be some crazy notion that Abner was too drunk to fully understand the seriousness of the question and being as drunk as he was, he would have forgotten everything the following mind. All these thoughts ran through Indy's mind before he'd even uttered a word and the aftermath of the question was deafening. His terror rose with the prolonged silence and suddenly he couldn't keep Abner's gaze anymore. The intense glare he got from him was just too intense to withhold, so he looked away, fearing the next words coming out of the man's mouth.
He more felt than saw Abner rise, suddenly seeming quite sober, only adding fear to what Indy was feeling. The man took a step closer, and in two deliberately slow steps he was standing in front of Indy's crouched position, his knee calf the height of his head. Suddenly Indy felt very small, but he knew what he had to do. He looked up, considering in the back of his mind if he shouldn't also stand. He didn't get the chance.
"It's none of your damn business. If I ever hear you utter as much as a syllable to anyone of what I think you might know, you'll be thrown out of my house and then you'll have nowhere to go," and with that last threat, Abner reached down to grab the bottle and disappeared.
Indy let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. He'd seen something in those eyes. He saw fear and oddly enough, it reminded him of Marion.
Somewhere between Alexandria and Cairo
The camel was getting tired and it wasn't because it's sides where getting damp, it was beginning to chill, and camels don't much like to work their muscles when it's night and cold outside. That was what Marion had been told by Omayra in the longest conversation she'd held with her guide yet. It had consisted of; "Cold night no good for camels. Muscles ache." Then she'd given a very small smile towards her, saying in a deep voice which reminded her of Sallah, "We rest." They'd soon put up a shelter for the camels and a shelter for themselves.
Marion was about to fall asleep when Omayra surprised her with asking the question; "Why you here?" For some reason she knew not of she let it all out, in English and sometimes in Omayra's native tongue. She'd kept it all inside for so long, it almost felt like she would burst if she had to keep ti in after the woman had asked. She told her everything she knew of. She told her of the secret that her father kept from her, something she had the right to know. She told her of Jacobs betrayal as her confidante and the lies that Eliza had told right after she was about to utter the truth by mistake. She told Omayra of hitting Joey and him hitting her and them fighting. And last, Indy. Indy who'd made her feel so bad since she'd seen his fedora hat from her window for the first time. And when she couldn't speak anymore, she fell asleep while Omayra kept her eyes open, sometimes gazing out into the dark to be aware of wild beasts approaching the camp.
It might have been true that Omayra didn't say much, but it said little about the size and direction of her trail of thought. As she looked over at the young girl, she couldn't help but think that there was something to be fascinated about with this man, and without uttering a single word, she thought that chance be she could be harbouring some feelings for him.
