Hamunaptra appeared to
be deserted. Rebecca hoped that was
not the case. She hoped she had not
overestimated Ardeth. She watched Hamand
as he gave orders to his men, stationing them at various lookout posts.
Jonanthan watched from
his concealed perch above the group. He
laughed inwardly at the idea of posting lookouts when those they were looking
out for were already inside. He frowned
when one of the men jerked Rebecca forward. He saw the bruises on her face, the blood staining the ropes that bound
her wrists. His fingers tightened on
the trigger, fury almost controlling his actions when he saw the man respond to
something Rebecca said with a slap that knocked her down.
Rebecca cursed
herself, her cheek stinging from Hamand's blow. She shouldn't have laughed, but his obvious nervousness at
entering the City of the Dead brought it out of her. She had to keep her wits about her, and she couldn't do that if
she was knocked senseless every time she offended him.
Jonathan saw Rebecca
struggle to her feet, jerking away from the hand that reached to pull her
up. He watched her with pride as she
looked at her captor with scorn. When
they disappeared into the entrance of the city he turned his attention to the
men left behind. He knew he had to wait
until they were further inside the city, where they would not hear the
gunshots, but that didn't mean he couldn't have them in his sights, did it?
The darkness of the
city after the brightness of the desert momentarily blinded Rebecca, and she
stumbled into the wall. Hamand turned
back at her cry, the torchlight making his face appear evil as he reached back
a hand to pull her forward.
"Tell me where
you hid the gold." He said, his
hand coming up to stroke her cheek lightly. "Tell me now, and I promise to end your life swiftly."
"It's by the
tomb." Rebecca answered, jerking
her face away from his touch.
"You had better
not be lying to me. It is just you and
I now. My men are not here for you to
frighten with ghost stories. I will not hesitate to use force."
He stepped closer,
pressing her back against the rough stone wall with his body.
"Or whatever else
I deem necessary." He promised,
his breath hot in her face.
Rebecca could not
evade him when he crushed his mouth down on hers. His hand came up to grip her throat, cutting off her air. She twisted; trying to break free as the
lack of air made her weaker.
A wind rushed down the
corridor, followed with a moaning sound that made the hair stand up on the back
of one's neck. Hamand released her
abruptly, leaving her to gasp for air as he looked around wildly. The wind was strong enough to cause him to
stagger back, though it did nothing to harm her. It ended abruptly, leaving an unnatural silence in its wake.
"Let's
go." Hamand said, sounding less brave.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Down by Seti's tomb,
the same wind blew through. Rick raised
his pistols, but Evy laid her hand on his arm.
"There's no
danger." She assured him. "They're here."
"No danger,
right." Rick laughed. "Every time that wind blows, danger
comes right along behind it."
"Someone is
coming." Ardeth warned.
They crouched behind
the sarcophagi, seeing the torchlight coming down the stairs. Two figures reached the bottom. The moment they did, hundreds of torches
flared to life around the room, filling it with a warm glow.
"He knows we are
coming." Hamand said, pushing
Rebecca so that she sprawled at his feet.
He pulled a knife from
his robe, pressing it against her throat. He pulled her to her feet, bending her back over a sarcophagus.
"Where is the
gold?" He asked, looming over her. "Tell me now."
Up in the desert
Jonathan fired, taking down the first lookout. He killed another before the third had even pulled his pistol from its
holster. He ducked behind a pillar to
reload as a shot whizzed by where he'd been before. He reloaded quickly, popping up just in time to see the man duck
behind another pillar. What he didn't
realize is that from Jonathan's position atop the roof, the man didn't really
have any cover after all. He whistled,
firing as the man made eye contact with him.
"Gotcha." He said, hopping down from his perch.
The gunshots echoed
down in the city. Hamand turned,
removing the pressure of the knife just enough for Rebecca to feel safe enough
to swing at him. He deflected her blow,
gripping her chin in his hand as he raised the knife again.
"Your friends are
too late." He gloated. "Your blood will soak this floor before
they make it to the door."
Rebecca saw Ardeth
approaching. Relief flooded through
her, but she kept her gaze on Hammand's.
"I
lied." She spat, "There is no
gold."
"Bitch. You will suffer untold agonies before I let
you die!"
He raised the knife,
only to be halted by Ardeth's voice.
"If you move, you
will die." Ardeth warned, his tone
dangerous. "Release her."
Hamand swung around,
bringing Rebecca in front of him as a shield. Both Rick and Ardeth had their rifles raised, but were unable to fire
without hitting Rebecca. Evy approached
from behind, a dagger in one hand, a pistol in the other.
"I will kill your
whore, Medjai." Hammand
sneered. "When Seti rises I will
make you pay for touching her."
"How about I kill
you instead." Evy suggested, her
gun suddenly against his ribs.
Hammand froze, unable
to believe the woman had crept up on him. In one swift motion he swung his elbow back, connecting with Evy's
side. The weapon fell from her hand as
Rick's yell of rage filled the room. Rebecca felt the knife press against her throat as Ardeth raced
forward. She knew he would be too late.
There was a roar as
wind filled the tomb. The ground began
to shake, and Rebecca was wrenched from Hammand's grasp by the force of the
wind. A twisting whirl of sand enveloped
her captor, raising him from the ground. A scream tore form him as the knife clattered to the floor. Rebecca was deposited before the doors of
the tomb. They opened, releasing a
bright light that bathed Hammand in its fiery glow. The flesh on his face began to melt away, and Rebecca screamed as
he disintegrated before her very eyes, until she could take no more and buried
her face in her hands.
Ardeth did not look
away until the last piece of the enemy was gone. When he was sure there was no more danger he made his way against
the wind to where Rebecca sat on the floor.
The wind died down,
but the glow from the open doors of the tomb remained. Standing outlined in the light was the
figure of a pharaoh. Evy gasped, for
she had seen this face in her visions, and she knew it to be Seti. He smiled, looking at both women and nodding
regally. The light slowly faded,
leaving an open, empty doorway.
A noise from the
stairway made them all turn. Jonathan
swallowed hard, having witnessed the same event.
"It seems I
arrived just in time."