:o Greetings again! Glad people still seem to be enjoying it, I'm still enjoying writing it so yay!

Duchezz – I hereby initiate you into the Order of the Filthy Bunny :)  Anyone else want to join? It involves – er – looking at Kurtis a lot. hehe

One note concerning swearing – I understand that some readers don't like the use of strong language, I totally appreciate that and I try to only use swearing when I feel that's really what the character would say (I refer to the end of chap 8). I only use language that I feel serves the story and never mean to offend. If anyone has suggestions about ratings I will be glad to hear them – I'm from the UK so not that familiar with the US style ratings on the site.

Anywho! Just a short one for now, short but (bitter)sweet :)

Chapter 10: Lost

I'd had one too many soakings that day, and by the time I had dried off from the most recent one it was getting late. I decided to go to bed. I didn't have the patience for another confrontation yet, and I certainly couldn't face Kurtis after he'd humiliated me. I didn't know how I was supposed to react to him now. Why did he have to keep making everything so difficult? Maybe Croft Manor wasn't big enough for both of us after all.

In the morning I went downstairs cautiously, hoping I wouldn't have to face Kurtis for a while, but he was nowhere to be seen. He'd probably gone out to clear his head. That was good; we both needed some space. I made a cup of tea and went back upstairs to the library to distract myself with some work. The gold medallion was missing from the desk; perhaps Kurtis had taken it to his room to study it closer. I sat down and reached to turn on my computer, but it was already on. A written document was open on the screen.

I read the first couple of lines, and went cold. I ran along the hall and threw open the door to the room where Kurtis had stayed. All his things were gone. I checked in the drawers and cupboards just in case, but it was no use. He'd packed up and left. I ran downstairs and out into the garden. At the gate I stared up and down the road, but there was no sign of him. Of course there wasn't. He could have left at any time during the night, and probably wasn't even in the country any more. Blinking hard to clear my eyes, I made my way back to the library, where I sat down and read the whole of the letter.

"Dear Ms. Croft,

Just writing to thank you for your hospitality over the past two days. My business trip seems to be over now, but its been interesting, and fairly useful, if not all I'd hoped. Apologies for not saying goodbye in person, but I didn't really want to show my face again in case you removed it.

Anyway, since I've repaid my debt to you, there seemed to be no point in hanging around. I get the message. I may love a challenge, but I'm not a complete idiot. If you're not ready or willing for there to be anything between us, I can't make it happen. It's probably best that we just keep out of each other's way.

You've probably noticed by now that I've taken the medallion, and the CDs with your research files. Don't worry, I copied the files onto your computer first. Seems fair to both start with the same odds.

Maybe I'll see you in Turkey.

Regards,

Kurtis."

I sat unmoving for a long time. I felt as though my heart had dropped into my stomach. I realised how true it was that you don't know a good thing until it's gone. Congratulations Lara, I thought. You really showed him who's boss. He had tried to keep the tone of the letter light, but his hurt showed through regardless. The comment about repaying his debt stung me the most, reducing what had happened between us to business. I had saved his life in Prague, and he had saved mine here, and that had created a special kind of trust that ran deeper than the annoying similarities in our personalities and our mutual physical attraction. But I had tried to ignore that bond, and now he was gone. I must really have wounded his pride if he wouldn't even tell me he was leaving. What would I have done if he had? Would I have asked him to stay? Told him that he was right, that I wanted him more than anything else I could remember? Probably not. My pride would have got in the way again, and I would have let him walk away from me without realising what a mistake it was until later. Kurtis must have known this too, and that's why he kept away, saving himself some dignity. I put my head in my hands. I was a real piece of work. I didn't know what I was so afraid of. Losing my self-control, maybe, or letting someone else have that kind of power over me. I didn't want to fall in love with Kurtis, convinced that to do so would make me weaker, so I'd tried to avoid the kind of contact that might make that happen. The rational half of me governed when it came to matters like this, and as a rule I only directed my passionate side towards the pursuit of an artifact or a foe. But now that voice was speaking up inside me, arguing against my reason. Maybe you're already in love, it said, and you're weaker if you don't do something about it. I told it to shut up. I had always worked alone and been better off that way. But there was no denying that just the thought of going for the rest of the day without seeing Kurtis made me feel more than miserable.

I scanned through the letter again, and let my eyes stop at the last sentence. "Maybe I'll see you in Turkey," I read aloud. There was a glimmer of hope in that line. We both had business to take care of in Cappadocia, and moping around here wasn't going to help anybody. It was time to start packing.

* * *

Poor Lara. *sniff* She didn't even get chance to break anything over his head!

Next chapter - Turkey here we come!