Someday
By Jeannette Hetfield
CHAPTER 2
Jensa moaned with displeasure as she felt something prodding her side. Rolling over onto her stomach, she hoped it would stop. If I'm dreaming, she thought, this has to be the most annoying dream of all time! The prodding continued and then the talking began.
"Jensa, it's time for you to get up."
Jensa's only response was to moan again and with one quick movement, yanked the pillow out from under her head and then covered it in a futile attempt to shut out the noise. "Go away," came a muffled, groggy demand from under the pillow.
"Do I have to pour water on you, Jensa?" Kerri threatened.
Jensa jerked up and angrily pointed a finger at the James' housekeeper, but Jensa considered her to be a close friend. "Don't you dare!"
"I'd do it and you know it."
"Fine! I'll get up." Jensa threw back the covers and stormed into her bathroom to brush her teeth. Kerri followed close at her heels.
"Why did I have to get up so early?" Jensa asked sticking the toothbrush in her mouth.
"Trust you to have already forgotten. In one ear and out the other." Jensa glared her at impatiently. "Remember we agreed to go to the souk today?" Jensa nodded, picked up a glass of water, sipped a few drops to rinse out her mouth and spat. As she wiped her mouth dry with a hand towel, she noticed in her mirror that Kerri was inspecting the damp clothes she hanged on the back of the door from her previous meeting with Ardeth. "Jensa, why are your clothes wet?" Kerri ran her hands over the damp material.
Amazed at how quickly the lie formed in her mind and fell out of her mouth, Jensa answered, "When I stepped out of the bathtub last night, I pulled my robe from the hook, forgetting that the clothes were underneath. They fell in the water." Jensa watched Kerri nervously in the mirror, and not even realizing she was holding her breath, exhaled.
Kerri laughed. "You always were a klutz."
"Am not," she said a little too defensively.
"You sure are in a mood this morning! Now hurry. We have to get going." Kerri handed her the rumpled clothes and left her room. Jensa threw the now almost dry clothes over the back of her vanity chair and began dressing. As she was rifling through the clothes in her closet, she couldn't find anything that pleased her. Then she remembered the pretty black, lightweight cotton dress Ardeth had once seen her in and complimented on how pretty she looked in it. Quickly, she yanked it off the hanger and pulled it on. Something was missing. She glanced back to her closet.
"Ah, yes. The green cardigan. It matches my eyes." After pulling it over the dress, Jensa was quite pleased with her appearance. Jewelry would have been a nice touch, but she opted only for emerald drop earrings and Ardeth's ring. She'd have worn more, but the heat swelled her fingers to a point where the rings wouldn't come off, however, she didn't mind if that happened with Ardeth's ring.
"I'm never to take it off, " she said to herself in the mirror. "Oh, dear. I am a lovesick puppy wondering if my appearance is suddenly good enough and pretty enough for Ardeth." Jensa shook her head with some embarrassment as she stepped into a pair of black pumps and felt herself blush even though she was the only one in the room. She had, of course, been hoping to see Ardeth in the souk and had chosen his favorite dress on her to wear. "Silly girl, Ardeth doesn't just go wandering aimlessly around in the souk looking for his lovesick girlfriend!" Skillfully, she threw her dark brown hair up into a ponytail and secured it with a green silk ribbon. "The finishing touch." Jensa stuck her tongue out at the mirror, grabbed her black straw hat, black purse and headed out the door down to breakfast.
"Hungry, dear?" asked Jennifer James, Jensa's mother.
"Famished." She plopped down in the chair and eagerly began devouring her hot meal. Soon, her father and brother Michael joined them. Kerri ate with the family because she was considered to be a part of it even after just one year as their housekeeper. Jensa often referred to Kerri as the sister she never had.
"So, will the two of you be heading into the souk today?" asked Mr. James.
"Yes, Daddy."
"Hey, I'd like to go with you…if that's all right," her brother said.
"Sure, tag along." Jensa smiled warmly at her brother. Michael was a good brother to Jensa and she loved him dearly. Unfortunately, Michael had been floundering for some time now. At twenty—two, Michael was considered to be the ne'er do well of the family. He'd been out of school for about four years with nothing to show for it. He'd also picked up the habits of heavy drinking and gambling. The James family was pretty well off as far as money was concerned, so he was content to spend it at his leisure. Once they got back to America, however, Mr. James was determined to do something about Michael's lack of interest in anything and try to make a respectable man out of him. He thought perhaps sending both he and Jensa to school to learn about Egyptology would give Michael direction.
"There are a few things I need to do in town. What do you say I drop you off in the souk for a couple of hours and we meet around noon for lunch?"
"Sounds like a plan to me." Michael nodded as he took in a mouthful of eggs. Within the hour, Jensa, Kerri and Michael jumped into the car for an outing that wouldn't soon be forgotten.
* * *
"Okay, so we meet at noon right here then have some lunch," said Michael.
"Where do you want to eat?"
"I know this great little casbah—--"
"Oh, no, Michael. You are not dragging Kerri and I into a casbah," Jensa said, holding her hand, palm up in a firm manner.
"Why not?"
"Because it's a dirty, dingy bar. Let's have lunch at the Kenoba Hotel. They do serve lovely food there and they even have a bar, so if you feel like going on a drunken binge and passing out, we can rent a room for you to sleep it off in," Jensa said sarcastically.
"You're funny, Jen."
"I know," she smiled sweetly at him.
"Okay, lunch at Kenoba. Got it. I'll bid you ladies good day." Michael spun off leaving the two girls to fend for themselves.
"Your brother is exasperating," Kerri said as they strolled through the souk, stopping at each little shop to browse.
"Tell me about it." Jensa reached up to scratch her cheek. The silver ring from Ardeth glinted in the sunlight. Kerri grabbed her hand and studied the ring.
"Where did you get this?" she demanded. "It's beautiful!"
Jensa felt panic-stricken for a few seconds. Another lie spewed from her mouth. "I found it outside our house. Finder's keepers." Jensa nervously pulled her hand away from Kerri's grasp and turned around to the shop in front of her pretending to admire the little stand of red fez hats. Typical, they couldn't have stopped in front of something better than these ridiculous looking hats.
"You're lying, Jensa. Tell me where you got this ring, or do I already know?"
Jensa gave Kerri a sidelong glance. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said too forcefully.
"You're not a lying kind of a person and I will say you are one of the most honest people I know. It must take something pretty serious to make you lie." Kerri knew exactly where the ring had come from. Jensa looked over at Kerri's small frame. They were about the same height, give or take an inch. Kerri was just under five feet with Jensa being at five feet. She had a pert little nose, although she complained that it was too big and had the feet to match. Kerri was terribly self—critical of herself. With blond hair and brown eyes the color of chocolate and cute lips shaped like a heart, Kerri was really quite pretty. Her petite features were attractive, but she could be quite domineering and was the exact opposite of her looks at times. Although Kerri was the housekeeper, she seemed so much more. At first, Mr. and Mrs. James weren't too sure about whether or not Kerri would work out, being so young. She was only four years older than Jensa, but had proven she had a steady head on her shoulders. The James' wouldn't have been able to turn her out. Kerri had spent most of her childhood in and out of orphanages and decided to take a chance when their job opening of housekeeper was available. So far, Kerri had worked out splendidly and she and Jensa got along so well together being close in age. She had now been with the family for one year and she hoped to continue as long as she was able to. "I'm not going to rat on you, Jensa. Please know that whatever you tell me stays between us."
"You swear you won't tell Daddy?" Jensa clasped Kerri's hands between her own in a pleading manner.
"Cross my heart." She wrenched her hands from Jensa's and made a criss-cross sign over her heart.
"Ardeth gave it to me."
"I'd guessed as much. When?"
"Last night."
Kerri's eyes widened. "Last night?" she repeated. "You mean to tell me that you went out with Ardeth after the argument with your father about him?"
Jensa defiantly held up her head. "Yes, I did."
"To the oasis, no doubt?"
"Our usual spot," she said insolently.
"Does that explain the wet clothes?" Kerri was too smart for her own good. Jensa nodded curtly. Kerri looked disappointed. "You lied to me."
"I had to. Are you going to run and tell my father?"
"I'm not a tattle tale, Jen. I'm just disappointed that you thought you had to lie to me. We're closer than that."
Jensa said resignedly, "You're right. I'll tell you next time."
"Next time, huh? You plan on still meeting with Ardeth at all hours of the night?" Jensa nodded curtly again. "Well, don't blame me when you get caught. You're on your own. I'm almost afraid to ask how your clothes got wet."
"I merely fell into the water."
"You can't just fall in. There has to be a reason."
"We were playing a game and I fell in. It's that simple."
"Mm hmm."
"Do you disapprove as well?"
"Jensa, I haven't worked for your family for very long, so I've never actually met him and from all the nice things you say about him I can tell he's a very nice man, but the point, is that he is a man and you're a girl. I'm not speaking ill of him, but I can see your father's point of view. You know the Med-jai are dangerous."
The shopkeeper of the fez hats looked at the girls curiously with mild fear in his eyes. Jensa whispered harshly, "Why don't you say Med-jai a little louder? I don't think anyone heard you."
Kerri took Jensa by the elbow and pulled her further on down the busy street. This time, she lowered her voice loud enough for only the two of them to hear. "I'm only thinking of your safety."
"I'm perfectly safe with Ardeth. I couldn't be safer with anyone else."
"Yes, I know how capable he is, but that's not the safety I'm talking about."
Jensa gaped at Kerri in horror. "You don't trust me," she surmised.
"No, I trust you. It's him I don't trust."
"I can't believe it. You too? First, you say he's nice then you say you don't trust him. Am I the only one in this country that has ever given him a chance? Whose side are you on?"
"Yours, of course."
"No, you're not," she accused. Jensa pulled her arm away from Kerri and ran ahead of her.
"Jensa, where are you going?" Kerri exclaimed.
Jensa ran hurriedly through the crowds and turned down an alleyway to hide from Kerri. Not five minutes later, she saw Kerri go by. Jensa kept herself hidden in the shadow of the building so she wouldn't be seen.
She was so angry with Kerri that she just needed some time by herself to cool down. What was she going to do? Jensa felt miserable. Everyone was against Ardeth, but why? He had been nothing but kind. She sighed heavily and headed back the way she came, having felt confident that she lost Kerri. Just as she was about to turn out of the alley, two men stepped in front of her blocking her path. Both were Egyptians. Each wore long white robes with blue tunics over them. A matching blue turban complete with a veil revealing only their eyes sat atop their heads. One was short and the other was about a foot taller. Jensa vaguely thought the short man's eyes looked familiar, but couldn't place him. They were looking at her rather strangely. Jensa suddenly felt trapped and afraid, but found her voice. "Excuse me, gentlemen," she said quietly.
"Do not excuse yourself, Miss James," the tall man said.
"Um, do I know you two?" The two men exchanged glances and took a step towards her. She tried to remain as calm as possible. "Can I help you with something?" she asked in a shaky voice.
"Yes, we believe you can," the tall man spoke again.
Jensa backed slowly up, hoping she might be able to get around them. She walked widely to the right of the short one, but he grabbed her arm and she could feel his long fingernails pushing into her skin through the thin fabric of her cardigan. "Let go of me!" she demanded. The tall man's response was to pull out a piece of cloth and a little glass bottle from his tunic pocket. Chloroform! Jensa stared in horror as he wetted the cloth down. She did the only thing she could think of; Jensa rose up her foot and kicked the short man in the shin. He yelped in pain and grabbed his leg. Jensa took off down the opposite end of the alleyway. There was an old door she spotted and headed for it in a dead run. The tall man's long legs quickly caught up with her. In a few short strides, he tackled her to the ground. Her hat fell off of her head and her purse was thrown to the side into a puddle of muddy water. She struggled as hard as she could to free herself from his grasp, but he was incredibly strong. He wrapped his arm around the front of her shoulders and dragged her back towards the short man. She was momentarily shocked as he cursed at her in Arabic. Jensa tried her only other option. "Help me!" she screamed, but that was her only vocal attempt. The tall man brought the cloth up to her face and covered her mouth and nose. Jensa struggled to the very end. Waves of darkness consumed her and she lost consciousness.
The tall man picked Jensa up and flung her over his shoulder. They disappeared behind the door that Jensa had tried to escape through. It was rotting and split halfway up the middle. The short man took one last look around and assured himself that no one had seen anything, stepped through the doorway and quietly shut the rotting door. He missed the little girl peaking her head around the corner. She had seen everything, but she looked to the adults around her. Who would believe this little girl's tale?