Flight of Souls

Chapter 6 – Warning Ignored

Revised

"They looked pretty serious to me!" Steve Richter, one of the archeologists argued.

"Look," soothed Ethan Lancing, "this is exactly what the museum curator said would happen. He said a bunch of Arabs would ride up, threaten us with death and dismemberment and leave. He also said they wouldn't dare to anything to us – it would be too embarrassing to the government to have foreign scientists murdered! It's just a bluff, don't worry about it."

"So what happens when they come back tomorrow?"

"They won't. They'll keep an eye on us, probably, but there isn't really much they can do if we don't leave of our own free will."

"I don't know," confessed Tia. "It seems pretty creepy to think that these men have been watching us."

"Well that, sweetheart, is probably just because they want to catch a glimpse of you in your knickers."

Tia glared at Ethan, ignoring the strangled chuckles from the rest of the team.

Ardeth cursed under his breath. He'd come back to listen, figuring that the men would discuss the warriors' visit, and he would have some idea of what they meant to do. It looked like they were going to have to k ill them all. Damnation. Ardeth closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He hated the thought of killing men who'd been deliberately misled, which it appeared these men had been.

So the curator had told them that the Medjai's visit would be a bluff, had he? Grimly Ardeth realized he had no choice. He could not allow them to continue to dig, and he apparently wouldn't be able to frighten them into leaving.

Some years ago Imhotep had risen for the first time. He and the man who had then been curator of the Cairo museum, had explained the reasons for their actions to Rick O'Connell, Jonathan & Evelyn Carnahan, and the American's who'd found the Book of the Dead. The group had asked if it was right to kill innocents to prevent Imhotep from being resurrected. Dr. Bey and Ardeth had answered in unison. YES. Dr. Bey, a cousin of Ardeth's, had been killed shortly thereafter as a direct result of Imhotep's rising. Ardeth thought of his kinsman. He owed it to him, as well as the other people who'd died as a result of Imhotep's evil to do his duty this time, even if it meant killing these young American men.

Sir Randolph Varne sat consuming a hearty breakfast in his luxurious Cairo flat. He was pleased with himself. With a minimum of fuss he'd arranged to rid his son Robert of that unsuitable girl. Those odd golden eyes! It had only taken him one glance to see who she was, or rather, who she'd been. He snorted. A poor university professor's daughter was scarcely a match for the son of Sir Randolph Varne, even without considering the past. No, it was best this way. He'd strong-armed Tierney into sending an exhibition to the Tirza site, and to give Tia DeWitt a place on that team. It amused him to send Tia to that particular place. And the Medjai would take care of everything. They always had. They always would. The thought that he'd sent six men to their deaths along with the girl didn't trouble him at all.

The whole team was jumpy the next day. Tia found herself scanning the area again and again, looking nervously for any sign of the riders. Even Ethan, who was the most vehement proponent of staying, looked jittery. They made very little progress on the dig. Still, the day dragged on and on, with nothing noteworthy happening. As the sun sank lower and lower on the horizon, Tia gave up on the notes she was taking and went to start some water boiling. A soothing cup of tea was what she needed.

She had just started to steep the leaves when once again she heard the shouts of the mounted warriors. As she watched in horror, one leaned out almost casually, and swung his sword at Steve Richter. A moment later, Steve's limp body fell beneath the hooves of the horse, which continued to gallop into the archeologist's camp. Terror stricken, she leaped to her feet and started to run, hearing pounding hoof beats close behind her. She hadn't gone more than twenty feet when a hard hand suddenly grasped her upper arm and lifted her into the air. She was hauled face down across the saddle of the galloping horse with a jolt that knocked the wind out of her. A hand came down hard on her back and pinned her there. The cold voice she'd heard the previous day spoke again. "Be still if you want to live."

Gasping for breath, Tia couldn't have moved if she'd wanted to. The horse turned and headed back toward the camp. The man called out something in Arabic and the horse slowed to a walk and stopped. She pushed at the side of the horse in an attempt to relieve the discomfort of the pommel of the saddle lodged in her stomach, but the man's hand came down on her back again and she subsided. She could see nothing but the side and legs of the black horse. She could hear nothing but the voices of the Arabs speaking to each other. Were the others dead? Surely they hadn't killed them all!

Ardeth scanned the small area, counting the bodies. Yes, there were six. He'd rescued the girl on impulse, hating the thought of killing a woman. He wondered a bit ruefully if it had been a mistake. Well, mistake or not, he could hardly kill her now in cold blood.

"Salim!" Ardeth called, "take a few men and round up the team's horses. If they have no distinguishing features, bring them along with us. We'll come back in the morning to bury the bodies and cover the dig site. Best to do it in daylight so we can be sure there will be no trace." Receiving a nod of assent, Ardeth nudged his horse into a canter and rode to the Medjai's temporary camp.

As the horse sped up, Tia again tried to ease the pain in her midsection by shifting her weight. This time her captor hooked his hand in the waistband of her trousers and yanked her toward him, further onto his lap. "Be still," he ordered. "It is only a little further." Now that the hard saddle pommel was no longer sticking into her stomach it wasn't so bad. Unfortunately, the easing of the physical discomfort only increased her mental anxiety. What would become of her? She was increasingly aware of the indignity and vulnerability of her position, face down in this man's lap. She hadn't assumed this position since the last time her father had spanked her as a child, and as a grown woman she found it even more distressing.

Ardeth rode into the small camp and stopped. Taking the woman's arm again, he lifted her off his lap and set her on the ground. Her feet gave out from under her and she collapsed in a heap next to the horse. He looked down at her. "Do not bother to run. I can catch you before you go ten paces."

Tia sat on the ground and watched wide eyed as the tall Arab dismounted. "What will you do with me?" she managed to gasp.

Ardeth flicked a glance in her direction and began to strip the tack off Midnight Song. "I am not entirely sure. I hadn't intended to take captives."

"You killed everyone else?"

Ardeth looked at her again. "Yes."

"But why?"

Ardeth placed the saddle on the ground then draped the bridle over it. "Some things need to stay buried."

"You killed six people in so that we wouldn't dig anything up? Are you insane?"

"Insane?" Ardeth finished with the mare and gave her an affectionate slap on the shoulder as she moved away a few steps to graze on the scraggly grass. "No, just cautious."

"Cautious!" Tia's voice had a slightly wild edge to it. "Dear God! That's an excuse for murder? Do you take such great pleasure in killing?"

Ardeth closed his eyes briefly then crouched on the ground a careful few feet away. He fervently hoped she would not become hysterical. While he would not argue that any woman who had witnessed her companions being killed then had been carried off herself by their killer would have reason to be overcome, it still did not mean he wished to deal with it. "Were any of those men special to you?" Ardeth asked as calmly as he was able.

"Special?" Tia asked, disconcerted.

"I see you are not wearing a wedding ring," Ardeth said, "so I assume that none were your husband."

Flustered, Tia replied, "No, of course not."

Ardeth leaned slightly closer. "I am sorry for those men's deaths. I take no pleasure in killing men whose only crimes are ignorance and arrogance, and as I am beginning to suspect, were lured there on purpose."

"What do you mean?"

"One of your friends was told by the museum curator in Cairo that we would appear, but our threats were merely bluffs. Is that not so?"

Tia looked startled. "Why yes, how do you know?"

Ardeth raised his brow. "I was about fifteen feet away from your fire listening. Very creepy, as you say?" Tia flushed and said nothing. "The curator of the museum in Cairo knows precisely where not to send archeologists, and he also knows that the Medjai warriors do not bluff." After a moment of silence he spoke again. I am Lord Ardeth ibn Ahmad ibn Asim, War Commander of the Bey Tribe of the Medjai. Those outside the tribe often know me as Ardeth Bey. May I know your name?"

Tia bit her lip. "Tia DeWitt. May I ask again, Lord Ardeth, what is to become of me?"

Ardeth got to his feet. "I am the War Commander, Miss DeWitt, not the leader of the Tribe. My grandfather, Lord Asim will decide your fate. I must speak with my men. Do not attempt to leave this camp area. You will be watched constantly, and if you attempt to escape, you will be brought swiftly back." With a slight nod, Ardeth strode off in the direction of the other Medjai warriors, leaving Tia alone.