A qanat! A potential source for much-needed water in the desert, more than anything else, men needed water, and this woman would lead him to an entire source of freshwater. Hidden by the desert, possibly a relic of the ancients, and if undamaged, then it would be a matter of letting the woman track down the water source.

Dietrich took a deep breath as he considered the woman across the room. Her attention was on the cards in her hands, but she stumbled over heavily accented German as she tried to talk to the men. She'd indicated that she'd wanted to speak to Dr. Yusuf more than once and doubtlessly in private without someone listening to them. If she knew he was angling for her information on the lost qanat, then she would be reluctant to share. Friendly or not, she was still American, and her willingness to save one dying man did not extend to giving the entire German army access to water.

"Sir," his thoughts trailed to a halt at the sound of his aide.

"Corporal?"

"Someone is waiting in your office, sir." The corporal told him, "waiting to report."

"Who is it?"

"A man from San Lorenzo." Out of habit, both men looked around and watched as Tulip tossed her cards onto the table with a sigh of disgust. "He says it is urgent."

"Very well," he stood slowly to avoid drawing attention to himself and left the hospital. Dr. Yusuf was in the middle of arguing with a nurse over a prescribed dose of morphine and didn't see him leave. As he entered his office, the spy straightened and saluted. "Report," he ordered.

"The Rat Patrol has been to San Lorenzo," the man told him, and he perked up. The Rat Patrol was always a point of interest. "They were escorting two people of interest, a woman by the name of Dr. Moffitt and a man from Japan."

There were a few interesting things to pick from that conversation, but he wasn't sure where to start. "Dr. Moffitt?"

"Ja, a doctor of archaeology. She is related to Sergeant Moffitt; I suspect that she is his younger sister." Intelligence had never indicated that Moffitt had a sister. "She bears a striking resemblance to him, though she is a little taller."

"Taller?" Jack Moffitt was already absurdly tall in comparison to his fellow sergeant and even an inch taller than Dietrich himself. Park Ranger Tulip was already two inches taller than Dietrich himself, and with a considerably intimidating amount of muscle and bulk to back up, her half muttered threats.

"She is very tall, sir, and impossible to miss." Tulip had said she needed an archaeologist.

"Where is she now?"

"The Amis took her to their base."

Getting a hold of her wouldn't be easy, but he thought he could lure her out. "And tell me of this other man. You said he is from Japan?"

"Japan, yes. The rumor is that he is employed by the Spanish government to study the landscape and art of Spain." He paused. "It was not explained well, but he carries a sword with him, and he wears strange clothes. It does not appear to be a uniform, and he was on friendly enough terms with the Rat Patrol. My contact within the mayor's mansion will gather more information."

"He is staying with the mayor?"

"The mayor considers him a guest of Spain and has sent out orders for Senor Agawa to be treated with great honor.'

"Agawa?"

"Yes, sir. His name is Isshiki," the spy stumbled over the name, and Dietrich wondered if he was pronouncing it correctly. "He does not speak English, so the Rats were forced to find a translator."

"I see," Dietrich knew that they were allied with Japan, but he had never met a man from Japan before. They were fighting the Americans in the Pacific, and he knew little to nothing about naval warfare. The man might be a spy, or he might not be, but he was certainly a curiosity. "His cover is perfect; Herr Banderas does not appreciate Allied interference in his town. It is fortunate that this man had to seek a translator; the mayor would not have allowed the Rat Patrol to leave with him."

"I believe that is what happened, but I was not within earshot."

"He is certainly interesting, but what else did you find out about this, Dr. Moffitt?" An eyebrow rose as his spy looked unimpressed.

"Very little, the rats did not let her out of their sight as far as I could see."

Dr. Moffitt the elder had helped discover an ancient road, and every time there was something old or antique, Sergeant Moffitt seemed to be in the center of the chaos, using his skills to the detriment of the German army. If another Moffitt was crawling out of the woodwork, then there had to be a reason why. The entire family seemed damned and determined to personally make Dietrich's life a living hell.

"Very well." He would have to arrange a meeting with her. "Return to San Lorenzo, and gather more information on this...man." Why would the Americans leave him there? Wouldn't it make more sense to take him directly to their base? "Test to see if you can arrange a meeting with him."

"Yes, sir." He saluted and excused himself, and Dietrich leaned back in his chair, and he considered his options.

##$#$#

"What we've got here is a problem," Tully said firmly, "and I'm not sure what I can do at this point."

"I am not certain either," Yusuf rubbed his nose. "I cannot make direct overtures without putting my family at risk, and if I put them at risk, then I could wipe myself out of history or derailed history as we knew it, but you cannot stay here any longer. You could be in danger."

"Well, you know how we talked about a qanat?" Tully shifted on her bed, leaning up to peer out the window. "Dietrich thinks I'm onto something. Which I can use, but it means he's been keeping a super close eye on me."

"I noticed," Yusuf sighed. "None of this makes sense. We are both back in time? Both of us are from the future, and we don't even know why we are here. Why would we be back in time? What use is it?"

"You showed up near your family," Tully pointed out. "I mean...I...did have a relative fight in the desert."

"You did?"

"Tully Pettigrew, I was named after him," dropping her head carefully into her hands, she peeked over at the doctor. "He was a jeep jockey; it's what they called them. I never really knew what he did; it was all classified; but why the hell would we get dropped back here?"

"I," the man's eyes shifted toward the window, a secret lurking behind the deep brown. "I don't know."

"Then I guess we've got a mystery on our hands."

"I guess we do." He tilted his head to the side. "My grandfather believes that I am...courting you, so to speak."

"That could help with our cover," she mused, "if we're going to collaborate on finding the qanat," Tully added a wink, to which the young man smiled. "And generally figure out what the hell is going on."

"It would help, but my grandfather considers Dietrich your chaperone."

" Really ?"

"It does not occur to him that you are self-advocating."

"It doesn't occur to any of these men that I'm self-advocating."

"We could get you to a neutral town," he offered, "I am certain we could find some...pretense."

"Oh yeah, not with Captain Dietrich breathing down my neck and wanting information on the qanat."

"No, unless he decides to give you an extended leash."

"It would have to be a hell of a leash. Just how much does he want that water?"

"The war isn't going well for the Axis powers. The Italians and Germans are not getting enough men or supplies to keep up the fighting, and even the Desert Fox can only do so much. What they need are gasoline and water. That qanat would be enough to give him a promotion to major."

"Damn," she leaned back on her bed, scrubbing her hands over her face. "We have to figure something out."

"I am aware," his eyes slid shut. "You know, it is much harder to practice when they are trying to contradict my methods."

"Yeah?"

"They do not trust me," he shook his head. "Such ridiculous amounts of racism. I could not." He sighed. "I could conceive, but how can you be so stupid when patients' lives are at stake? When there are people bleeding and dying , and you would rather cling to your hatred than save them?"

"That's awful."

"Yes," he nodded, "microaggression I have dealt with, and I can identify...this is...macro. Dr. Kohler does not respect me as a colleague or a professional. It would be funny if there weren't lives at stake."

"Is there anything I can do?" She propped her head up, staring at the doctor's back and slumped shoulders.

"Unless you wish to beat some sense into that doctor, no."

"I could," Tully offered, and he shook his head.

"No, not until your hands heal."

"Then I'll loom ominously behind you," she sat up, elbowing his side gently. "That'll do the trick."

"It wouldn't," his handsome face twisted into a grin, and some of the unhappiness faded. "Would you like to come with me to see my grandmother? She has asked to meet you."

"Why?"

"She finds you fascinating," his smile tilted roguishly. "Would you like to meet her?"

"She sounds fun."

"She is and highly respected. I cannot imagine my grandfather succeeding as often as he had without her."

"Really?"

"Really," he opened the door, and they proceeded down the hall; no one stopped them as they stepped into the main streets of the town. Tully wasn't stupid enough to think that they weren't being watched, but as long as they kept a respectful distance from each other, then no one would interfere. "I did eat another one of your cookies."

"Eat the cookies before they're stale," she sighed, "but don't touch my bars or my jelly beans."

"Electrolyte jelly beans?"

"And iodine tablets," she agreed, "only use those if you really have to."

"I won't. Don't look now, but the captain is looking out his headquarters windows."

"Does he think he's subtle?"

"Probably, but he has nothing on my aunties."

Tully considered the many people in her life who would or would not spy on her. "My mentor was pretty good," she offered a laugh, throwing her head back far enough to angle a glance at a tall building with a dozen guards at the front door. Dietrich was standing at a window, only halfway behind a curtain and the weight of his gaze almost made her shrug her shoulders. "He once called me to describe everything I was doing and then told me to track him down."

"Really?" Yusuf's eyes widened, "what the?"

"Hmmm, it took me three days, but I found him." Oblivious to his confounded stare, she continued. "He was behind a waterfall, and I only found the mountain he was on because of the angle of the sun."

"The angle of the sun?" He repeated.

"Yes, see, he made a comment about the shadows I was casting, and I had to figure out the length of the shadow I was casting, and since I already knew the time, there had to be only a few angles that he could see my shadow, which narrowed down the...what?"

"You tracked a man across the mountains based on the angle at which he could see your full shadow?"

"More or less, it was more than that. He could also see different parts of my campsite, so that was more of a...clue...what? What's with the look?"

"I," he blinked, "you...why did your mentor do this?"

"To train me...as a park ranger." Tully grinned, "what?"

"Was it a hazing ritual?"

"No, it was just training."

"You...to train you to do what?"

"Well, information assimilation and deduction, and tracking. Once I figured out which hill he was one of, I just had to track him down."

"And you did?" Yusuf resumed walking, but with a curious expression on his face. "That sounds impressive."

"I guess," she shrugged.

"Your mentor trained you to be a park ranger?"

"Of course," she lifted the hat from her head, turning it around in stiffly bandaged fingers. "His mentor taught him, and he taught me. I earned this hat."

"I understand," he tilted his head to the sky, staring into the endless blue. "What did your mentor think of teaching a woman?"

"What?" Tully slipped her hat back onto her head. "Does that mean?"

"Men are fools," he pointed out, guiding her out of the city and toward his family's camp.

"If he ever objected to teaching me, he never mentioned anything. Of course, complaining about it would have been hella illegal," she reminded him. "And I'm not less capable than the others..well. My mentor went through a lot of trainees."

"Really?"

"Hmmm, I met one of them. Thought he was impossible to keep up with, but I didn't think so." Maybe he had been difficult to keep up with, but Tully had kept pace with him from the beginning without much trouble. She was good at her job and didn't see a reason why she wouldn't be a good park ranger or conservationist. "Buggy wasn't one of those sorts of idiots," she assured her friend as they approached the guards at the entrance of the camp.

"Buggy?"

"A nickname he earned," she shuddered and grinned as the children approached. "Say, that kid from before didn't get into trouble, did he?"

"No, my grandfather followed your example and was understanding." Yusuf straightened with pride. He turned as he caught sight of someone standing beside a camel. "Excuse me, I think that's someone I need to talk to. My grandmother is in there," he pointed to a larger tent. "They're expecting you."

"Right, what should I say?"

"Don't say anything you wouldn't say to your grandmother."

"You've never met my grandmother," she pointed out, knowing her voice was carrying a little. Shaking her head, she approached the tent and was gratified to find her entrance was allowed. Sitting comfortably in a small chair was an older, dignified woman who wore her years well and smiled when Tully pulled her hat off.

"Good afternoon," she figured that formality couldn't go too wrong here.

"Park Ranger Tulip," her English was smooth, smokey, and Tully's stomach twisted with jealousy. What a voice! "My husband speaks highly of you and your noble spirit."

"He...honors me," she tried. Her forte was with animals and wide-open spaces. "I only do what I thought should be done."

"Hmmm," the woman's dark eyes were filled with humor, and even in her advanced age, Tully could see why anyone would be enamoured with her. She wasn't just beautiful but clearly wiser than most. "My grandson speaks highly of you."

"He also honors me."

"You are American, yes?"

"Very."

"And my grandson explains that your duties are to cultivate the lands of America."

"Among other things, yes." Was this a job interview? What the hell did she want? "I'm a conservationist."

"This word I am not familiar with." The woman admitted, and Tully admired her willingness to admit ignorance.

"I'm supposed to conserve the land, prevent them from being destroyed by accident or on purpose."

The woman's eyebrows rose, and she turned her head as another figure entered. Tully turned as well, only for her jaw to drop as the most beautiful woman in the world made her appearance. The resemblance to Yusuf was uncanny .

"Uh," she closed her mouth, trying not to gape. Even Erum, her roommate from Freshman year who had been as close to royalty as you could get in Pakistan, couldn't have carried herself with half the grace and dignity as the woman before her.

"Mahasin," the woman introduced the newcomer, "my youngest daughter."

"Um," Tully swallowed as the woman took a seat. "Err." Fuck! She really looked so much like Yusuf; it was a wonder they hadn't been mistaken for siblings. Only a few years older than Tully herself, Mahasin carried an eternal beauty that wouldn't fade no matter the struggles she might face in the future. Momentary jealousy slipped out of her head as she shook her head. "It's nice to meet you."

"Thank you," her voice carried the same smooth, dignified quality that one could luxuriate in. When she reached over to lift Tully's hands from her hat, the park ranger momentarily lost the ability to speak. "Do they hurt?"

"Only sometimes," she answered and glanced back at the older woman. "Err...I'm not supposed to use them right now...doctor's orders."

"Yes, Yusuf is a doctor," the women exchanged a heavy, conflicted glance. "He said that you could find water for us."

"I think so." They knew more than they were letting on, and if Yusuf's warning had been at all accurate, they were more clever than they were letting on. Tully liked them a lot.

"You are clever and wise," the older woman said suddenly. "I do not object to an outsider, even an American, in the family provided they prove themselves to be wise and clever. I value those with intelligence and the cunning to use such intelligence. You have a simple face and a simple way of speaking, but I can see your intelligence."

"Uh?" Tully almost blushed.

"My grandson is a clever man, and you are a clever woman. I do not object if you find him...interesting."

Face growing hot, Tully refused to avert her eyes. "Ma'am, I'm not sure."

"You are not?" She smiled, "no? My husband admires a noble spirit, while I admire a clever one. We do not allow anyone to marry our children."

"I don't have a lot of money," she tried.

"Money will not replace brains," she waved a hand.

"I'm American." Tully knew something was wrong here; something had to be wrong. Even if her husband was open-minded enough to invite an American woman to dinner, chaperoned by a German officer, there was no way he'd want Tully to marry his grandson. She was missing something, and she had a feeling that it was a biggie.

"Your people are proving themselves to be adept at war. Have you not heard tell of Sergeant Troy and his men?"

"Sergeant Troy?" Sergeant Troy...Moffitt...Hitch and Tully! Tully knew these names, they punctuated her bedtime stories as a child, and their faded pictures hung in the memorial cabinet with dozens of others. "I am..new to the desert."

"Ah," she turned to her daughter, and after a few words, the woman vanished. In fact, everyone vanished, leaving the woman and Tully alone. "There is not a secret in this camp I do not know, Tully Pettigrew."

"Oh." Not at all surprised, Tully straightened and awaited judgement.

"I know that Yusuf is my grandson many times removed," the woman suddenly looked much aggrieved. "I know that you have been sent by Allah for a purpose, and you must find this purpose."

"What?"

"If you cannot fill this purpose, then you cannot return home."

"How...how do you know this? Even I don't...I can't figure out why I'm here."

"There are more of you in this desert," the woman raised an imperious hand. "I have received news of ghosts walking among us. Echoes of soldiers and men walking alongside the living."

A sudden cold chill swept through Tully's system, and shivering despite the desert heat, she looked instinctively over her shoulder. "Do you know where they are? Because if I'm here with Yusuf...and there are others, then I'm not in this alone. We're...we're in this together, and we can figure it out... together !" Her voice rose, and the crushing loneliness that she'd been avoiding came rushing back. Out of time and so far from home, she hadn't even realized that Yusuf was probably the only person keeping her sanity in check. "Please tell me if you know where I can find them."

"My spies lost sight of them, but I heard that they were going to a town called San Lorenzo."

"I don't," Tully shook her head, "I don't know San Lorenzo, but I'll find it."

"You must go with my grandson," she blinked, "you will need each other, now and in the future."

"You want me to marry him?" The blunt question wasn't enough to flap the unflappable woman.

"I have seen your...pack...and your strange device."

"Oh." If she'd unlocked her phone, there was absolutely no escape. "Has anyone else seen them?"

"Only I know," she assured Tully. "You both must discover what brought you here, or I fear you will be trapped forever."

"Trapped?"

"Many spirits linger in the desert. Men and women who came to fight or explore, and even to pass through, they stay, and they can never leave, and if you do not discover your purpose here...you will become one of them."

The chill from earlier returned with a vengeance, and Tully shivered again.

"I do not wish to see this of my beloved grandson, and I wish to charge you with his protection."

" Me ?"

"Yes," she stared down at Tully as if daring her to turn down her charge. Daring the American to profess an inability or unwillingness.

Tully opted for honesty. "I won't make any promises I can't keep, but I'll do my best." The dark eyes cut through her the way her husbands never had, and Tully was beginning to understand why they got along well. "I don't want to become a ghost."

"Then I will ask for nothing else," she nodded. "I have safeguarded your items, Tully Pettigrew, for now."

"Thank you," she leaned back, heart jackrabbiting wildly around in her chest before she forced herself to breathe slowly and calmly. "Thank you very much."

"Go," the woman straightened, "for any who ask." From beside her, she leaned over and passed Tully a bundle. "A gift."

"What?" Clothes?

"For any who ask," the woman repeated. "You cannot continue to wear one uniform."

"Ah...I guess not." They were nice clothes, and she had no idea how to put them on. "I...uh. '

"Go," she said, and Tully refused to scramble her way out of the tent. Standing in the bright sunlight, she blinked the spots from her eyes, only for the lean, unmistakable form of Dietrich to appear. He was standing a respectful distance away from the women's quarters, a visibly uncomfortable guard at his shoulder.

"Captain?" She eyed him with renewed suspicion. His attention was not on her. He didn't even seem to be hearing her, and following his gaze, found herself staring at the familiar form of Mahasin. "Oh, yeah, that'll do it." She waited until he turned enough to find her.

"Ah, Fraulein Tulip. I am not accustomed to tracking down wayward guests."

"No? I'm not used to my hosts tracking me," she hefted the bundle, ignoring his curious gaze. "But it's wartime, and we have to do things we're not used to. Right?"

"Yes," he paused and tilting his head seemed inscrutable for a few minutes. "The lady has given you a gift?"

"She said hearing about me one uniform was upsetting her." Tully tried to smile. "I think the prince is busy right now."

"Doubtless," he nodded, clasping his hands behind his back. "Frauline Tulip, will you join me for dinner tonight?"

"Dinner?" Tully remembered vividly why she preferred long hikes and the quiet of a mountain path empty of tourists. "I could eat."

"I would be honored," he said, leading the way out of the camp. Tully went easily, mind churning out different possibilities, chief among them that he was laying a trap at the dinner table. As they reached the edge of town, he spoke again. "Does it not seem curious to you that Prince Yusuf's grandmother would bestow such a gift?"

"Hmmm?" Tully shook her head, "no."

Game.

"You see nothing strange about it?" He was handsome when he wasn't being a tricky son of a bitch, and Tully repressed a smile.

"No."

"Why not?"

"He's a doctor; worrying about these things is his job."

Set .

"Ah, and you might not consider it...an overture."

"An overture," Tully blinked, "I don't think he knows music."

"Ah," Dietrich's smile was slow, charming, and cunning. Tully's own widened at the sight of it. "Of course, forgive me."

Match.