Chapter 25
"You wished to see me, Captain Mallory?"
Olivia paused in the doorway of the room as a sense of foreboding settled upon her weary shoulders. The stern-faced captain sat at one end of a dining table and waved her in, while Irfann, Magdah's older brother stood by his side like a servant. Olivia felt appalled at the treatment of the kindly elderly brother and sister but wisely kept her opinions to herself for the moment. Instinct prompted her to keep her emotions guarded, since the captain could be a potential ally.
Thomas waved a hand, indicating for Olivia to sit down. "Thank you for coming, Mrs. Merriweather. I apologize for disturbing your much needed rest, but Dr. Groves has requested this meeting, not I."
Olivia almost sank into the chair with relief, a reaction she carefully kept hidden.
"Dr. Groves asked for us to be here?" she asked nervously.
As if summoned by his name, Nathanial appeared in the doorway. "Yes, I thought it best to inform you both on the outcome of the operation."
As he walked around the other side of the table, Olivia studied him with a critical eye. He was young, probably in his mid-thirties with dark brown hair that had a tendency to curl. His face was ruggedly handsome, but Olivia thought that his best feature were his eyes – colored dark like chocolate but so unusually expressive. She felt the first pangs of unease when he seemed unable to meet her gaze. Her fear increased when she saw his soiled and wrinkled shirt. The sleeves had been rolled up and the fabric was stained with crimson splotches. He appeared to be exhausted and with a heavy sigh, he sat down in the chair across from Olivia and raked a hand through his unruly hair.
Perhaps sensing that both Olivia and Thomas were looking at him expectantly, Nathaniel sat up and folded his hands on top of the table. Olivia tried hard not to notice the darkening to maroon stains under his fingernails.
"I'll be brief but honest, knowing you both would appreciate my candor," Nathaniel began slowly.
"Indeed," Captain Mallory quietly agreed. "Go on."
"I am sorry but…" Nathaniel looked at the captain and then to Olivia. "The prognosis is not good. Besides substantial blood loss, there is a raging infection that this man's already fatigued body has been fighting for over two days. I hate to deliver such grim news but I feel I must state for the record – I doubt he will live through the night."
"I see," Captain Mallory sighed heavily and rubbed a hand over his face.
Olivia thought it odd he seemed to be upset about the news and watched as he waved for Irfann to leave the room, as her mind reeled in shock from the news.
"Are you certain there is nothing that can be done?" Captain Mallory's voice seemed unusually hoarse.
"Quite," Nathaniel gently replied. His glance briefly touched Olivia's face, the emotions swirling in his eyes more eloquent than any spoken word. "Even if I did have the necessary supplies with me to help the… man, in the end it still may be too late. All that I can do now is watch over him, make him as comfortable as possible and… wait."
Tears welled up in Olivia's eyes and she lowered her gaze, struggling to maintain her composure. Not now, not after all they had been through in such a short time… she would still lose Nabil in the end.
"It is in God's hands now," Captain Mallory stated sadly and rose stiffly from the chair. As he extended a hand to Olivia, he addressed the doctor. "I appreciate your dedication to the well-being of this man, Doctor, and would appreciate it if you were to let me know if anything changes. Immediately."
"Yes sir," Nathaniel replied and stood up, bidding them both good night.
Olivia stared at the captain's hand through a blurry haze of unshed tears, her mind and heart still reeling from the news. Weary beyond words, she took it and allowed herself to be escorted from the room, wishing she could lean against Mallory for just a moment. Instead she tapped into the incredible well spring of internal strength she had found deep within herself and slowly walked down the hallway.
Captain Mallory made small polite conversation, letting her know how much he had appreciated her written statement regarding the incident at the Giza pier. "I've had several men investigating the events that had transpired there for my own piece of mind," he confided.
Olivia returned a polite but emotionless reply, her mind numb and her heart aching with sorrow. It was a cruel and unfair turn of fate and Olivia would find a way to rally against it once she was in the privacy of her room. She needed time to think.
Captain Mallory abruptly stopped his prattling when they came across Magdah and Irfann conferring in the hallway several feet in front of them. Cringing at the potential orders the captain may have issued the brother and sister, Olivia was more than surprised when he instead offered them a cordial good evening.
Gallantly, he showed her to her room and after seeking her reassurance that she was all right, Captain Mallory said good night and closed the door softly behind him. He left Olivia staring thoughtfully after him, wondering why the color of his eyes seemed so familiar to her.
~*~
It had all started with an urgently whispered command.
"Wake up…istayqaza, ya sitti" an unfamiliar voice urged. "You are needed."
Olivia pulled herself from the comforting realm of sleep and stared up in astonishment into the face of Irfann looming over her. She frowned over his odd appearance in her room and would have slipped back into the waiting arms of slumber but he persisted, poking her gently on the shoulder.
"You are needed… ija, ija. Come now," Irfann boldly pulled back the covers and held out his hand to Olivia.
"What's going on? Where are you taking me?" Despite any half-hearted reservations about Irfann's mysterious intentions, Olivia climbed out of the bed and threw on a small robe to cover her nightgown.
The older man never answered her and instead pulled her out of the room and through the dappled moonlit hallways towards another section of the house. She hurried after him, bombarding him with a multitude of questions that he couldn't seem to answer. He only offered her a reassuring smile and finally stopped at a small chamber at the end of one hallway. He opened the door and gestured for Olivia to walk in.
"You are needed," he repeated and once Olivia was inside, he closed the door firmly behind her.
Olivia peered through the dimly lit room and her eyes grew round with shock when she saw Nathaniel and Magdah hovering over Nabil's weakly struggling body. She hurried across the room, a protest forming but when she saw Magdah applying a compress to Nabil's shoulder wound; it died and was quickly replaced with curiosity.
"What's going in here?" she demanded and stood by Nathaniel's side.
"I find it amazing that sometimes in the most unlikely situations I can still learn something new," Nathaniel replied softly and pointed to Magdah. "She is using the homeopathic approach in medicine and I must confess that I am intrigued."
"A fresh poultice should be applied every three hours and his body cooled with jasmine water every hour," Magdah instructed. Olivia watched as she crooned softly to Nabil as the persistent fever that ravaged his body seemed to have taken a stronger hold on him.
"I would love to know the ingredients in one of those poultices," Nathaniel eagerly asked.
"I would love to know why you're doing this." Olivia felt ashamed as the head of jealousy reared its ugly head. Exhausted from the events over the past few days and needing to rest, she felt off balance and struggled to understand exactly why Magdah was interfering. Hadn't Nathaniel said there was no hope? To save herself from further heartache, Olivia had believed the doctor's words and had quietly accepted her new fate that had been fashioned by her earlier actions.
Both women ignored Nathaniel's murmured excuse to leave the room and Olivia walked over to Magdah, intrigued as she started to bathe Nabil's fevered body with scented water.
"Have you given up then?" Magdah asked when Olivia sat down on the edge of the bed. She kept her gaze focused on the swirling cloth as it glided over the shallow rise and fall of Nabil's chest.
"I don't want to," Olivia softly confessed. "But Nathaniel said…"
"Any fool can plainly see what has happened between you and this warrior," Magdah handed Olivia the cloth and slowly rose to her feet. "I ask again, are you giving up? What does your heart tell you? Or will you listen to the thoughts of another and what his mind perceives as the end?"
Olivia didn't need any time to think about her reply. "At first my heart refused to believe what Nathaniel had told me," she whispered. "The possibility of losing Nabil after everything that I had gone through… I had fought for him for so long."
"The battle is not over yet but now, there are others who wish to see this warrior live," Magdah smiled secretively and pointed to the basin of water. "Aid sometimes comes from an unexpected source. Continue to bath him and I will return shortly with some fresh water and a cup of tea for you."
Olivia smiled up at the older woman as her hand absently stroked back a few tendrils of hair from Nabil's face. "I don't know how to thank you," she began softly. "You've given me back my hope."
"His presence in this village will bring hope to the hearts of many," Magdah stated quietly and glanced at Nabil. "We have been all but forgotten by the Guardians of the Desert and yet it does my heart good to see that Allah still works in mysterious ways."
Olivia frowned at the cryptic meaning behind Magdah's words but was unable to ask for further clarification since she quickly left the room. A soft groan of pain from Nabil caught her attention and she soothed him as best she could, whispering to him again like she did on the ride to Sedment. Focused on comforting him, she was unaware of the pair of eyes that watched her from the doorway and how they narrowed in rage.
~*~
Sleep did not come easily for Allan that night and as he paced the small confines of his room, he was at the mercy of his turbulent and vengeful thoughts. Reluctant witness to what had transpired earlier in the warrior's chamber, Allan had silently slunk away, ruminating about the possible ramifications.
Olivia had allies now, something that Allan hadn't anticipated and it hindered his plans in forcing her cooperation. Random thoughts of kidnapping her and taking them back to England seemed to be the most logical and what better way to ensure the success of these plans than to rid himself of the most important ally first?
"So how does one kill a warrior," Allan mused and walked over to the room's small window.
With an unappreciative gaze, he looked outside, missing the subtle yet beautiful shading of the sleeping village that was bathed in the muted colors of silver, gray and black. As the hours passed and night progressed towards dawn, Allan's hastily constructed plans solidified as did his courage. The once debilitating feeling of desperation was now fed by a sudden inner well spring of courage, greed and the profound belief that he was doing what was right.
Allan would reflect in hours to come, however, that it had been a shame that his self-exultation only lasted for a brief shining moment in time. He would never be able to aptly describe the shiver of apprehension he felt race down his spine when one of the shadows had moved, solidifying into the hulking dark figure of a man. He had leaned farther out of the window, willing his mind to register what his eyes had refused to acknowledge and to his dismay the man had melted back into the night.
~*~
A/N – Again I thank you for all your reviews, they're greatly appreciated. Bear with me as I continue to wind this story down but I am gearing up for the sequel. To all of you who have read, left reviews or lurk, may you have a safe and joyous New Year.
Now for the shout-outs:
Deana – thanks for the review and email, as soon as I can I shall reply. I'm stuck on the next chapter for this and can't figure a few things out. I'll email you soon, I promise! Lol
Dawn – as always thanks for reading and I'm glad you liked Ardeth being reunited with Ardeth. Things may be peaceful at the healer's compound for now but fate has a way of testing a new found love…heh heh
SerenaFehr – I do appreciate the review and hope the next few chapters will live up to your expectations. Allan's weasel-like ways aren't over yet, I'm afraid.
Karri – It's great to be back and I thankee for the review. I hope your fandom has been treating you well? ;)
Kathy – Thanks for being such a faithful reader and I'm glad to be able to update this so soon, to keep the story fresh in your mind. ;)
Trudy – Allan worse than a dung beetle? LOL! Well I'll just have to make you change your opinion of him in the chapters to come…heh heh [eg] Nabil and Olivia's story isn't over yet, there's more to come as they grow closer together and yes, fall deeper in love. But Nabil has secrets and ultimately one has to wonder – will these secrets tear them apart?
Bug – thank you thank you thank you again for the permission to use your warriors, as you can see life with me won't be boring. LOL Kedar and Zaki will play an important part in the chapters and adventures to come and I promise not to play too rough with them. ;)
Patty – Glad to see you checking in and ask and ye shall receive – another update. ;) Olivia loves Nabil and has sacrificed so much but I think it's worth it, don't you agree? I'm sooo glad this couple has become a favorite amongst the readers and as their adventures continue, I hope I can maintain the spark that has flared up between them. True love will have to conquer all…
Thanks to everyone for reading, by the way if anyone has some ideas on how Olivia will react to Berin, let me know? LOL That's where I'm stuck…;)
Patty 2003-12-28 26 Anonymous You have made me so happy!! Olivia loves Nabil!
Yay! But is the poor boy still in surgery?
The exchange of "Warrior/Healer" between Ardeth and Asiya always grabs my emotions = love it!
Don't stay gone so long, kiddo. I miss you and your great stories.