Arrival
"You're up
already?" Evy asked with
disbelief, stifling a yawn as she sat beside the fire. "You've made breakfast?"
Amanda handed a steaming cup of tea
over to Evy, who took a sip and closed her eyes in pure joy. She breathed in the scent of bacon, and
opened her eyes to see a plate of bacon and biscuits in the hand that Amanda
held out to her.
"Mmmm." Evy said with a grin as she took the plate,
inhaling gratefully. "Maybe I could
get to like you."
"I was hoping to bribe you
with food." Amanda confessed with
a wink. "I thought it would take
more than breakfast, though."
"When she's pregnant, she thinks
with her stomach." Rick said, assuming
a pouty expression when she pulled her food out of his reach as he tried to
take one of her biscuits. "Wasn't
there something in the vows about sharing?"
"Hey, food." Jonathan exclaimed. "It's about time we had someone who can cook
on one of these things."
"I can cook." Evy said defensively, noting the blush that
took over Amanda's features when Jonathan sat cross legged beside her.
"Whatever." Rebecca snorted as she joined the
group. "You'd burn water, Evy. In fact, I'm pretty sure you have."
Ardeth smiled as her heard the
banter passing between what had become his extended family. He looked at his wife, frowning when he saw
the paleness of her features. She
didn't think he'd heard her leave the tent early, didn't know he'd heard her become
violently ill. She sat now, nibbling on
a biscuit with little enthusiasm. He
tugged on the braid she'd twisted her hair into, catching her smile as she
turned to look at him.
"We've been followed from Cairo." He announced. "I saw smoke from their fire this morning."
"Where?" Rick asked quietly. He wasn't surprised.
"Someone camps not far from
here. I have sent some of my men to
intercept."
"Then we should get going." Rick said, rising. "We want a head start."
It did not take long to break
camp. Amanda was loading her bag onto
the camel when Jonathan stepped up to assist her. She let him finish the task, blushing when he turned to look at
her.
"You're not going shy on me, are
you now?" He teased as he stepped
forward, laughing when the step back she took brought her up against the side
of the camel.
"No." She replied defensively, her gaze focused on his left
shoulder. "I've never…I mean, I've
don't usually…oh damn!"
She stood up on her tiptoes and
placed a quick kiss on his mouth. His
hands closed over her shoulders but she stepped away quickly, a grin on her
face.
"Now we won't spend the rest of
the day wondering if it's going to happen again." She said, stuffing her hat down on her head quickly.
"You're wrong about that, my
dear." Jonathan promised. "It's not a matter of if. It's a matter of when."
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Beni lowered the binoculars down
from his face, an evil grin playing across his face as he watched the small
caravan make its way across the sand.
They were going exactly where he wanted them. Soon he would have the books, and would raise Imhotep, as he had
promised the dark god Anubis in return for his life being spared in the
treasure chamber of Hamunaptra. He'd
been a mere breath away from death as the scarabs had begun to feed, when he'd
cried out for any god that would spare him.
He'd gotten Anubis.
He'd saved Beni, but had not
freed him from Hamunaptra, knowing someday he may need him to do his
bidding. After the defeat of the
Scorpion King Anubis had decided he needed a new champion. He'd wanted Imhotep, but the Hom-Dai
prevented him from using him directly.
He needed someone to raise him.
When the O'Connells had raised the City of the Dead from the sands the
second time, they had unknowingly granted Beni his freedom. He'd been told to take what he needed from
the treasure room to finance his endeavor.
His first attempt to raise Imhotep had failed. He'd used the wrong tool, Molnar, a man that had his own
interests. It had been disheartening to
watch how easily the Medjai batted him down.
He'd failed in Cairo as
well. Now the O'Connells and the Medjai
probably knew he was alive. He had not
planned to kill the boy, just torture him to get the information he
required. But the screaming virago that
had jumped upon his back, beating against his head with her fists, had foiled
that. He'd finally subdued her, but the
rest of the household had been alerted by her screams. He smiled as his pictured O'Connell's
outrage at the attack on his son. He'd
waited a long time to get his revenge on the American. He blamed him for his current predicament,
conveniently forgetting that Rick had done his best to get him out.
He raised the binoculars again,
focusing on the one with the red hair.
He'd gone for her first, thinking it best to use her to subdue the
Medjai leader. She'd proven to be better
suited to battle than he had thought, easily foiling the first plan. He dismissed the idea of using Evelyn
O'Connell. He had learned through his
sources that she was expecting a child, and even he would not sink so low as to
harm a pregnant woman. He smiled as his
view settled on the dark haired lovely that had attacked him so abruptly in
Cairo. Anubis had promised him a
reward…maybe she would do. If she died,
so be it. But if not…
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"I hate this place." Rick said, a scowl marring his handsome
features as he stared down at the City of the Dead. "Tell me why I haven't lined it with dynamite and blown it to
bits?"
"Because we are usually running
away from it so fast we don't have time to destroy it." Jonathan said grimly. "But I don't see why we can't take the time
now."
"I am starting to agree with
that idea." Ardeth said seriously. "If we can locate the body before anyone
else, then we should consider that option."
Evy, Rebecca and Amanda
exchanged horrified glances. Despite
the danger that Hamunaptra represented, there were still many things the city
had to tell them about ancient times.
The historian within could not stomach the thought of destroying over
3000 years of history.
"Men." Amanda said to Evy quietly.
"No matter the country, or the culture, they all think alike."
Rebecca smothered a laugh. She had grown to like Amanda in the short
time they'd been in the desert. She
pulled her weight, and never complained.
She could tell that Jonathan was completely enthralled by her, and she'd
watched carefully, not certain if Amanda was using him to get in with the group
or not. Amanda hid it well, but Rebecca
could tell the feeling was mutual, that Amanda was just as smitten with
Jonathan.
Later that day:
"So, where do we start?" Amanda asked, her gaze sweeping around the
chamber with awe.
"Where does one hide a 3,000
year old corpse?" Jonathan asked,
rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Rick,
you start lining the place with that dynamite.
We can start looking."
"You can't mean that." Amanda said quietly.
"Last resort only." Rick said with a grin, even though you could
see by his expression he would dearly love to blow Hamunaptra to smithereens.
Hours later Amanda wiped a layer
of grime from her face, scowling at yet another passage. She'd lost count of the rooms they had
searched. She leaned against the cool
stone wall with a sigh, taking a moment to rest. She gasped as the wall that had been supporting her gaze way, causing
her to tumble back into blackness…
"Where'd Amanda go?" Alex asked.
"She was here a minute ago."
"Probably looking for gold." Evy muttered, placing a hand against her
aching back.
Amanda had landed in a pile of
dust, sending up a cloud of the stuff.
She coughed, covering her mouth and nose until the dust cleared. She stood slowly, brushing off her backside
as she looked around. She sighed as she
saw yet another corridor. She looked to
the left, the right. There was only one
way to go, so she headed in that direction.
The corridor ended in a small chamber, and a gasp escaped her lips as
she saw the body resting atop a slab in the center of the room.
She'd found him.
