Prelude to a Kiss

Chapter 5

Darkness has decended over the ruins of the city...

In the middle of this dark, desolate place it's incredibly hard to imagine that a civilization millenia before, believed this to be a sacred necropolis.

From prior run-ins with the place, the sand almost swallowing me, is the only way I can describe it and a statue whispering gibberish to me, I don't doubt them Ancient fellas for a second.

And still, even after adopting Evelyn's analysis of the place- "Such theories are poppycock! Anyone with an ounce of sense would dismiss it as modern myth devised to attract looters!" - I still can't see past the fact that these ruins are wreathing with something evil.

As if to assure me my thoughts are correct, darkness is begining to crawl over the city. I've just made a fire and as I sit here alone I'm confused, I abandon my curse theory and give in to the thought that has been incessantly eating away at me all day.

Jonathan was just teasing me over liking his sister.

Wasn't he?

I prod the fire; the ashy smell of burning twigs are not overpowering but certainly pungent, so much though that it causes me to cough. I watch the debris of the fire spilling over the rocky outline I made and sigh heavily when movement causes sand to spill over onto the flames.

I causally glance to my left, and when I see Beni settling down next to me with a 'plop', I sigh again.

I can't be bothered telling him to move.

Yet.

I look out across the horizon; outside the boundaries of the city, and I look at the peaks and dips of the sand dunes that are orange by day and dark at night. By nightfall, the desert is almost unrecognisable; it loses it's heat, and the sand has a blue hue to it from the moon.

I watch as this blue hue slowly decends onto the desert before me, almost washing away it's once golden glow.

Beni must know not to speak to me. I'm not enjoying the company. I hear another person join us and disturb my peace. It seems that even in the desert a guy can't have a moment alone!

I glance to see who has joined the silence, and it's Jonathan; he's looking exhausted even though I can guarantee he's done nothing.

Upon sight of her brother, my thoughts turn to Evelyn, and I wonder what she's doing. I'm just about to get up and investigate when I see the Americans approaching us.

"Say O'Connell, what d'you reckon these babys'll fetch back home?" asks the light haired one, whilst examining a jar. A fall back into my seat heavily.

"We hear you boys found yourselves a nice gooey mummy!" exclaimes the one with glasses. Sarcastic bastard. "Well, congratulations!" He sits down opposite me, grinning.

"You know, if you dry that fella out, you might be able to sell him for firewood!" pipes up the one that doesn't speak, causing raucous laughter.

If one of them stands out to me, it's him. He rarely speaks, but is quietly cocky. That's the thing though- he's confident, and acts like he hasn't got a damn thing to prove. Silently dangerous. He strikes me as the kinda guy that you wouldn't want to cross, and probably for good reason, but it doen't mean that I'll back down over a damn thing that concerns him though. The problem with people like him is that one day, they're too confident, and some hard-knock comes along and knocks 'em for six.

"Huh-huh." I reply, mimicing his laughter, equally as sarcastic. I turn to Jonathan as I absent-mindedly poke the fire. He's deep in thought.

It's tense between us all, until we hear shuffling sand. Four pairs of hands reach for their guns, and then release the grip when a female voice exclaims-

"Look what I've found!" I look over my shoulder to find her beaming at something in her hands. I glance at the Americans, and none of them have looked up.

"You're in her seat." I tell Beni at Evelyn's arrival. He laughs. It's being round those Americans! Well, it isn't like he had much respect in the first place. Or like he followed orders... "NOW." I tell him forcefully. Ignorant bastard.

That's another thing that I've noticed- the Americans ignore Evelyn. They act as though she isn't there half the time, and when they do it's to always call her 'Miss' as though to let her know that they don't think she should be here. I dunno if it's 'cos she's a damn sight smarter than them all combined but it's just plain rude.

Beni scrambles away to my right, muttering. Evelyn steps over the makeshift seating and sits down inbetween me and her brother, still chattering away, beaming at what is in her hands.

In her presence, I feel ready to go- set for more digging or whatever she can throw at me. We all seem dead-beat but she seems wide awake.

"Scarab skeletons. Flesh eaters. I found them inside our friends coffin, they stay alive for years feasting on flesh and corpse."

I take one out of her hand and look at it. It's very light- hard to imagine that it ate anything at all, never mind the mummy we found.

"Unfortunately for our friend, he was still alive when they started eating him."

At that, all three Americans look up from cleaning their jars. Evelyns sight flickers for a second to the jars, and the cocky one grins.

"Found them today." He brags.

A small smile appears on her face.

In comparison to their finds, ours are highly inferior. I look at the finely crafted canopic jars in longing. All we have found is a mummy and some scarab skeletons- they have a set of canopic jars and one of the most sought after books in history!

Just my luck. Hmph.

I can't help but feel competitive, afterall, in this line of work you have to be. I overheard Dr Chamberlain earlier telling the three men that they needn't worry, as what knowledge could a woman possibly pertain!

He has no respect for the diggers he has employed; he did send them to their deaths and refers to them as natives. What he fails to remember is that we are merely visitors on their soil, in their land.

"I suppose Mister Chamberlain hasn't told you what those jars contain?" I direct at the sandy haired man.

"Nah." He tips it upside down. "Nothing but sand. We checked."

I smile to myself at the fact the Egyptologist hasn't kept his team properly informed. "Those are canopic jars, gentlemen." I tell them earnestly, trying to sound sincere as one of them puts his hand inside the jar. "They contained the vital organs of the deceased."

I giggle to myself as he removes his hand speedily and pulls a face.

I look back at the skeletons in my hands and watch Jonathan quickly put his back, disgust etched upon his face as well- at both things.

"So somebody threw these in with our guy, and they slowly ate him alive?" observes Rick, looking from the scarab then to me.

"Very slowly." I infrom him, grinning slightly. I have to admit that I am enjoying the fact that I am making the male members of the party feel unwell!

"Well he certainly wasn't a very popular fellow when they planted him, was he?" chirps Jonathan, looking digusted.

As look at the scarabs in my hands, it dawns on me that the last person to see these scarabs was the poor man in that sarcopghagus. He saw them as they were eating him alive. A shiver runs up my spine, leaving me ice cold regardless of the fire before me. The torture of being encased alive, being slowly eaten and suffocated...I can hardly stand the thought or imagine the excruciating pain he must have gone through. I suddenly feel a wave of empathy for the chap, and view him as a human being not as a find.

"No. Probably got a little to frisky with the pharaohs daughter." I quip, grinning. Jonathan grins back, mirroring my smirk. Evelyn looks distracted and then rolls her eyes at our boyish behaviour.

I notice at that, the cocky guy leans across, nods in our direction and gestures at Evelyn before whispering something to Henderson. All three of them lead in raucous laughter.

"Got something to share, pal?" I dare him, with definate challenge to my voice. I raise my eyebrows. I'm not having some cocky son of a bitch slandering what we say, or anyone in our team for that matter. Henderson hushes up at my challenging tone. I don't know what he said, but I gather it was about Evelyn.

"Daniels was just-" begins Henderson, raising his hands defencively. Daniels shoots him a glare and he soon shuts up.

"S'pose I don't?" He replies, spitting in the sand next to him casually, eyes glazing over.

I survey the men around me curiously. I hear Jonathan gulp and turn to him, still eyeing the scene before us. I noticed Mister Daniels tell Mister Henderson something earlier, but I thought nothing of it. It must have been something as it's clearly offended Rick. I'm curious to know what it was.

"What's going on Jonathan?" I whisper urgently. "They are not going to have a fight!" I think for a second, then ask- "Are they?"

"I don't know old mum." He replies, watching the situation also. Afterall, my brother should know when a fight is about to occur; he does cause many.

We both turn when Beni gets up, and quickly chatters-

"I'm just going to see the Egyptologist!" and with that he scarpers.

"You needn't worry, as I'll look after you." Jon reassures me. "I think it's over you, to be honest."

"I haven't done anything!" I exclaim, incredolously but still in a whisper. I always cause problems, to say the least. But this is just ridiculous! I can't have done anything!

I know my brother, and I know that if I weren't here he'd have scarpered just like Beni did by now.

It is clearly a visual face off; Rick's body language has altered dramatically. He is sitting bolt upright and his sharp blue eyes are staring at Mister Daniels with obvious malicious intent. Daniels is glaring right back, blatantly hard faced. I am beginning to feel very worried now, and I want to know what this is over.

There is no sound apart from the fire and Evelyn and Jonathan's hushed conversation.

"Oh, 'cause I think you do." I argue, not braking eye contact with Daniels. I have had enough with them thinking they own this site, just because we gave one site to them! He's gonna share what he just laughed at.

"Really?" He answers, face tightening. "You're one jumped-up jackass, d'you know that?"

I stand up at the insult, as does Daniels.

"Honestly!" Exclaims Evelyn, judging by her tone seemingly unimpressed at the choice of language.

"Listen boys, this ain't worth the hassle." begins Burns quickly as he puts on his glasses and jumps up as well.

"Anyone fancy a nightcap?" interjects Jonathan uneasily. He's ignored. If this is going to get nasty, then so be it. I look at each of the Americans in turn. The comment was made after my quip about the Pharaoh's daughter. I have an idea of what it was.

"Daniels, you say something about me, or anyone who's here with me, and you'll regret it." I growl menacingly.

Daniels laughs and nods at Evelyn. "Alright there Miss? You look a little flustered." He grins at me, a sour expression on his small, fat face.

"What are you implying?" demands Evelyn, getting up and standing next to me. I admire her getting up and standing up for herself; She's a few steps behind me. I can sense the british-ness from her. Well, you know what I mean. I hear a sniff, and I sense that Jonathan is behind her.

"Nothing, Miss, nothing at all." He smiles at her. "You'd be best going back to your books Miss, let the men deal with this little misunderstanding."

At that, I snap and grab him by the collar of his shirt. Gritting my teeth I swing- I hear a satistfying crack as my fist connects with his smug face, I watch as he staggers back, clearly shocked and clutching his bleeding face.

Evelyn's hand on my arm stops me from doing anymore, and I look down in shock at her. "BOYS!" She shouts.

"Don't you dare!" I was shouting, knowing that one of them was going to act. I grabbed his arm as he swung but I was too late. I am still holding onto Rick's arm firmly, trying to act as a barrier between him and Daniels. Rick looks at me in surprise and I turn to the Americans. All three are on their feet and Henderson and Burns are proceeding towards us. Daniels looks up, radiating fury. I glare at him right back, daring him to come any nearer to me and O'Connell. Jonathan is cowering in the background.

"Don't you even know what he said about you?" thunders Rick from behind me in disbelief.

Daniels laughs at him, and I know it's taking every ounce of self control Rick has not to charge past me and hit him again.

"I don't know what you're laughing at, Sir, but I think your site needs your attention." I tell him frostily, raising an eyebrow.

At that, he retreats but continues to glare and hold at his nose. His companions follow him, shocked at the events but hard faced.

I hear Jonathan from behind me exclaiming-

"Well that was bloody productive!"

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