Don't kill me! So incredibly sorry this took so long!!! See, the rest of the story hinges on Chapter 10, and was having trouble with 11 and 12, so I spent a lot of time rewriting, and I couldn't post 10 until I knew I didn't need to rewrite it...But just had a brilliant flash so hopefully my writer's block will go *poof* in the near future...Also having massive trouble with writing fight scenes...any tips?

Chapter 10

Believing

"We can get it back, if you want," a voice said from beyond the doorway.

Evelyn's breath caught in her throat. She must be dreaming again. The voice couldn't be real, it couldn't be. She willed herself to wake up; she couldn't bring herself to trust her own ears. "I'd probably have to go back to prison, though," the voice continued.

He stepped through the doorway, saw her sitting there with Jonathan. Ardeth's presence didn't even register. She looked so frail, so sad.

Evelyn stood, unwilling to believe it. If she did, she'd just be disappointed when she woke from this dream. "Rick?" she said quietly. "Is it really you?"

"It's me, Evelyn," he answered.

They stayed like that for a moment, neither one moving, then Evy began to walk across the room again. Rick met her halfway, and swept her into a hug, holding her so tightly Evelyn felt her bones might break. She didn't mind. She didn't care, as long as Rick was alive, as long as he was here. "I'm so sorry," he whispered, pressing kisses into her hair, forehead, lips, everywhere. "I'm so sorry."

"Never do that again, okay?" Evelyn smiled. He smiled too, his teeth white against the beard that now shadowed his face. "Is your head all right?" she asked, fingering the bandage above his eye.

"It's fine. I'm fine. Everything's fine. Are you fine?"

"Now I'm fine. How did you get out? The lawyer said-"

"The lawyer doesn't deserve to get paid. Jonathan's the one I owe. He gave the warden some of the treasure in exchange for my release."

"Oh, Jonathan!" Evy cried, beginning to tear up again. "How can we ever-"

"Don't worry about it, old mum. Never been more glad to give away money," Jonathan said with a lopsided grin. His baby sister was all that mattered, not gold, not jewels, not an unlimited supply of wine, women and song...well, maybe he was just a little sorry.

Ardeth stood, clearing his throat. "Oh, it's you," Rick said curtly. "Is something wrong?"

What a welcome! Maybe they weren't so fond of him, after all. "The Creature has risen," he said simply.

"How?" Rick said with alarm. Ardeth thought he saw Rick clutch Evelyn even tighter, if that was possible.

"We do not know. The city has not been disturbed. There have been no reported sightings of him. But Evelyn has informed me that she has been dreaming of him, and that you have both collapsed-"

"What?" Rick asked Evelyn, tuning out Ardeth's exposition*. "Are you okay? What happened?" Where Ardeth had expected to hear protest against O'Connell's own moment of weakness, he instead heard concern for Evelyn. He'd known that he cared for the woman, that had been obvious. But as he watched the pair converse quietly, he realized that O'Connell was in love with her. An odd sense of deja vu came over Ardeth as he watched them.** He shook it off, however, impatient to deal with the matter at hand.

"Are you sure you're all right?" Rick asked Evelyn for the third time, after she'd explained her fainting incident. "He didn't hurt you?"

"No, it was the other way around."

"I knew you had a mean right hook."

"Well, I had a good teacher."

Ardeth cleared his throat again. He felt like shouting, "The evil undead has risen! This is not the time for flirting!" He resisted the temptation, however, and continued, "We must find a way to stop the Creature, before it is too late."

"No, uh-uh!" Rick protested. "We're having nothing to do with it! That's your job, remember?"

"This cannot be coincidence, O'Connell! You're in this whether you like it or not!" Ardeth replied angrily.

"The last time Evelyn almost got sacrificed! I'm not going to put her in that kind of danger again!"

"We are all in danger, O'Connell! If we do not stop the Creature..."

Tired of their squabbling, Evelyn sighed and rolled her eyes as Rick and Ardeth continued to argue. A chill passed over Rick as Evelyn left his side and went to join her brother. Rick's senses went haywire as he watched her hug Jonathan. He tuned Ardeth out. Something was off. Evelyn looked Rick in the eye from across the room, and he saw nothing there. Something was terribly wrong. Evelyn was gone. Her eyes were empty.

His bizarre suspicion was confirmed a moment later when Evelyn suddenly backed away from Jonathan, brandishing his gun. "Hey!" her brother protested, but she shoved the barrel in his face and he shut up quickly.

"Evelyn?" Rick asked timidly. She was gone, he could feel it. What was happening?

A resonating chuckle boomed uncharacteristically out of Evelyn's mouth. "Ha! Soon Nefertiri will be but a memory. She does not deserve to live. Not after what she did to us."

"It is the Creature," Ardeth whispered. He reached for his gun but Rick stepped between them, giving him a look that told Ardeth he would soon follow Imhotep to hell if he hurt Evelyn in any way. Evelyn, however, seemed oblivious to Ardeth's murderous intent. Her attention was focused completely on Rick.

"I always knew you would get in my way," she continued in ancient Egyptian. "I should have killed you when I had the chance."

"What's she saying?" Rick asked Jonathan.

"Uh-uh-I don't know," he sputtered. "Something about a--um, death, death to the--death to the bunnies! Death to the bunnies, that's it!"

"Somehow I get the feeling that's not it!"

"Foolish Medjai," Evelyn's newly deep voice snarled. "You will not stop me this time."

"Um, Medjai?" Jonathan faltered. "You will not--you will not stop me?" he translated clumsily.

"You and Nefertiri deserve each other. Never have I met two more misguided souls. How the two of you defeated me I have no idea."

"Uh, uh, I know that one! Souls! Souls!"

"And the rest?" Ardeth asked impatiently.

"I think I caught--Nefertiri, wasn't she, wasn't she a princess or something?"

"Now I will have my revenge. You and your sweet Nefertiri will pay. Catch, Medjai!" With that, Evelyn slowly removed her engagement ring from her finger and tossed it at Rick. His quick reflexes snatched it out of the air without a second thought.

Suddenly Evelyn shook her head and sank gracefully to a sitting position on the floor. She looked down at the gun in her hand and flinched.

"Oh, God, I didn't shoot anyone, did I?" she asked fearfully.

"It's okay, Evy," Rick said carefully. "Just give me the gun and everything will be fine." He walked slowly toward Evelyn, ready to take the gun by force if necessary.

"Rick, I...I don't know what happened."

"Shh, it's not your fault. It's okay. Just give me the gun."

"Oh." Evelyn looked down at her hand, still clutching Jonathan's gun, as if she had forgotten it was there. "Of course." She unclenched her fingers and handed the gun to Rick.

He took it and calmly pointed it straight at Evelyn's head.

------

*Hee hee. Those of you who have watched the director's commentary for TMR will get this:)

**Of course, referring to the fact that this isn't the first go round at the game we call life for any of these characters:) Hmm, perhaps the subject of a future fanfic (hint, hint)...

You know how I love reviews...Let me know if it made sense:)