A/N its back again but double the length. I got some positive feedback after I removed it so decided the lemon was okay to leave as is. Sorry if you already read this chapter just skip past the lemon to the fluff :D

She had gone back outside to find a payphone to call Ahmed who was currently in the process of giving her all sorts of grief. "Listen I'll be back tomorrow early afternoon and I will give you all the details then, you know I can't go into it now."

"Be sure you are and make sure my car is undamaged."

She had to laugh at that one, "Relax Ahmed your vintage Jag is still pristine. Is Graham still having kittens?

"I talked him out of reporting you missing; he thinks you're off having an immoral liaison with a young man."

She thought of Altair's mouth, 'If only...'

"Good thinking Ahmed. Got to go now I'll see you tomorrow okay?"

"The world awaits your story Miss Thorpe, call me when you get back to the hotel and be careful."

"I'm always careful condoms and spare undies are the first thing I pack!"

Back in her room she wrote a short text message to Graham confirming what Ahmed had told him already, apologising for not being in touch but was distracted and what not. She looked around at the small undecorated room, then to the window. Still keyed up from her encounter with Altair the idea of sitting alone in her tiny room felt unbearable and so she decided on going for a stroll along the surrounding streets.

It was late in the evening and most of the stalls had closed but a pair of traders who were still packing up called her over to view their goods. It was mostly crap but she enjoyed the friendly banter from the men so resolved to buy something anyway. Then something caught her eye... "What is this?"

It was a small silver dagger with no handle, most of it had allegedly "rusted" but there was something engraved on the grip.

"You have a keen eye; this is an authentic throwing knife a weapon wielded by only the highest ranking soldiers in the order that used to live in the fortress."

It did look old but she was fairly certain he was bullshitting her but still it was a nice looking thing. "And how much would you want for this thousand year old treasure?"

He went through his usual routine, "Business has not been good and I need to take home some profit for today so I will make you a very good offer... 27,000 pounds."

As always her immediate reaction to prices was shock but then she remembered where she was, "I assume you mean Syrian pounds?"

Misunderstanding her obvious astonishment at the price he decided to barter, "Yes, yes Syrian. I could let you have it for 26 but any lower and I would be making a loss."

She doubted that very much for something he either "found" in the ruins or made for pennies but 25 pounds British was not an unfair price for something she had taken such a liking to. "No, your first price was fair; I needed a second to convert it to my own money that's all."

They concluded the transaction and exchanged a few more friendly words before Maria returned to her room to examine her new purchase.

She sat on her bed and turned it over in her hand. The symbol on the grip looked like a big letter A but it was hard to make out the detail inside the character. She had always loved weapons especially swords and blades whenever she travelled she usually managed to find something to take home with her, even if it was a pain in the arse getting it delivered or clearing customs.

She put the blade on the small table beside her bed and switched off the lamp, there was still enough light from the street to see around the room but she had no interest in its meagre contents. She had her eyes closed and was back up in the castle with Altair.

Her sexual experience wasn't vast, a couple of awkward fumbles at uni and semi-serious relationship with a guy from the news room didn't amount to much and those experiences combined didn't amount to anything when she compared to what had happened to her body earlier.

Simply remembering his touch aroused more feeing in her than any man ever had, she wanted him in the worst way and in a few hours he would be beyond her reach. If only I knew where he was... But she did know where he was and that made her think of Malik, wonder if he had woken up yet. That should have been enough to cool the fire she felt burning in her belly but it wasn't.

She got up from the bed and snatched a nightgown from the top of her bag. 'A nice cold shower is what you need.' It wasn't what she needed but it was all she had and if the wife tales were true it should help to "soothe her".

She stepped into the stream of cold water and shrieked when it hit her flesh but forced herself to endure it. Her teeth were already chattering when she stuck her head under the flow, "Fuck this I'd rather be frustrated!" whipping her head away from the icy fingers of the water.

Stepping out of the tub she dried herself in world record time, throwing on the nightgown and running to her travel bag, tossing things over her shoulder as she searched its contents. "There's a sweater in here somewhere, come to Mama." There was indeed a sweater and she thanked God for it, a huge baggy woollen number she had stolen from Graham on their first night on the road, when she found out how cold Syria got at night.

As she considered which trousers she would add to the ensemble she heard a light rapping on the door, 'That knock has Felix written all over it.'

She pulled the door open and used it to shield her body. "Altair..." She took a few steps back from the door and waited for him to speak. He took one step towards her but never spoke. She watched him for seconds, the longest seconds she had ever experienced. He advanced further into the room and closed the door behind him but maintained his silent observation.

Her mouth opened to speak but nothing came out.

'Say something Maria' but she had nothing to say and why should she it wasn't her who had knocked on his door, admittedly because she didn't know where his door was but still...

'He's waiting for me to let him know I want this.'

She considered her appearance and wasted a few seconds trying to figure out how to look sexy with wet, wavy hair and a nasty sweater, and concluded you can't. All she had to work with here was attitude so she went with that.

She took hold of the sweater and lifted it over her head, letting it drop to the floor beside her.

He twitched, it was almost enough but not quite. This is guy who had grown up in a very conservative society, sexually at least; she knew she was going to have to be more direct.

She had no need to be insecure it was evident he wanted her he made no attempt to mask his desire; it was plastered all over his gorgeous face and that gave her the confidence to do what she did next.

She smirked trying to look braver than she felt then raised a trembling hand, crooked her finger at him, enticing him to her.

His jaw hardened and as he closed the distance between them Maria had a split second to see the look in his eye and wonder if she was in over her head.

'I'm playing with fire...' then he was upon her wrapping one arm around her waist the other controlling her head and bringing their mouths together in a rough collision. She guided her hands into his hair and let his mouth banish any doubts she had.

She felt an exhilarating rush of energy course through her body, as with their kiss before every nerve was sensitive to this man's touch, to his presence. She gasped when she felt his teeth against her lips; nipping them forcing them to part for his eager tongue.

She pushed his jacket off his shoulders and down his arms, letting her hands roam along the ridges of his muscles. His mouth separated from hers to explore her neck, the gentle caresses of his tongue against the sensitive skin brought sounds she had never heard from herself; she was practically whimpering.

His hand slid under her nightgown instantly finding a spot far more sensitive than her neck, she gasped and stiffened against the contact. He pulled his head from her neck to examine her face; she was perhaps surprised by the speed he was moving but she was not unwilling to feel his touch. He smiled at her before once more claiming her mouth. Her moans grew louder as his fingers continued to tease her with and each moan his own desire flared.

He felt her body begin to spasm as he brought her closer to her climax and he shifted his free arm to the small of her back to support her. Her arms were thrown around his neck clinging to him. He broke the kiss to look at her face to watch as she surrendered to the pleasure.

She met his gaze and wasn't the least surprised to see smugness creeping into his amber eyes now burning almost golden. She wanted to stop, slow down and take control of her senses but his feet were currently kicking off his boots and her hands had just taken off his T-shirt and she knew it wasn't going to slow down. She unbuttoned his jeans just before his hands took hold of her hips and picked her up; she wrapped her legs around his waist and heard him groan through their kiss as her hips came into contact with his.

He carried her to the bed and straightened up his body to finish removing his jeans as she slipped her night gown over her head. His eyes raking over her body, taking in every curve and peak, he slowly lowered himself back on top of her. His mouth caressing what his eyes had just savoured. She began to wonder how he could be so calm until his face came back up to hers and she saw he was just as affected by this as she was.

His face above hers as his eyes again asked for her permission to continue. How had they gotten so far so fast? In this whole encounter he hadn't spoken one word and yet she was lying beneath him giving him her consent. At least now it was slow, she could catch her breath and gather her racing thoughts, but what thoughts, since he had stood before no thoughts of anything other than him had entered her mind, he had consumed her wholly and Maria had gone along with it willingly.

Their bodies joined with one slow graceful thrust of his hips but his strokes became more forceful as their mouths became greedier. The pace increasing at the same rate as her gasps and his soft breathy moans. She felt him tense, felt his muscles tighten up against hers as he thrust one final time, speaking the only word he would utter to her that night, "Maria..."

He collapsed onto her body and lay there for a time enjoying the feeling of her skin next to his. He was still supporting most of his weight on his arms and knew she wasn't uncomfortable.

She felt his breath against her neck and his fingers still tangled in her hair and knew that no matter how long she lived she would never meet another man like him. He would leave soon to return to his room and in the morning she would drive out of his life forever. She had never cried over a man in her life and she didn't now but lying here now thinking of them parting brought her close to those forbidden tears.

He shifted his weight from her and she readied herself for his excuses but none came. He lay on his back and pulled her body in close to his, snaking an arm around her waist and kissing her hair. A soft smile played across his features as he felt her snuggle up beside him, they would lie here together and sleep, he had no more desire for them to separate than she did.

When he felt her move against his body he tightened his grip on her waist, they were sharing a single bed and if she moved too much she would likely fall. He was accustomed to getting out of bed as soon as his eyes opened but he had been awake for a while and was happy to lie here and listen to the sounds of her breathing. But now it seemed the sounds of the city coming to life were on the verge of rousing her. There had been far too little of this in his life and he found himself willing the day away, hoping to extend the time he had with her.

Her face rubbed against his chest and her soft breath mingled with the hairs on his chest tickling him. She lifted her head and was greeted by his smiling face, "Finally you are awake, I thought I would have to lay here and suffer your snoring indefinitely."

He pulled her on top of him until her body lay flush against his and placed a small kiss on her nose, she nuzzled her head against his shoulder, "I liked it better when you never spoke."

He chuckled softly against her hair, "Yes, I recall how much you enjoyed my silence."

She rested her chin on his chest and teased, "I wouldn't say you were the best but you did okay." Her hand went between their bodies and followed the path of the hair on his chest downward, "You did rush a little."

The scar on his lip twitched, "Are you suggesting I need more practise?"

"It couldn't hurt..."

She sat on the edge of the bath pulling her trousers over her feet and feeling stupid. After they made love he had gotten out of bed and dressed with no hint of modesty but she had wrapped a sheet around her naked body and gathered up some clothes hiding behind the excuse she wanted to shower first. He had seen through it of course, his amused expression told her as much but was too much of a gentleman to tease her about her sudden shyness.

She emerged from the bathroom moments later and found him gone. "Oh fuck you very much!" She felt a mixture of disappointment and anger rise in her stomach reaching her throat, this would normally fuel her words with the appropriate levels of venom but he wasn't here to hear those words. "Great he still has Ahmed's fucking keys!" She plopped herself down on the bed with a dramatic wave of her arms and considered how she could retrieve the keys while retaining her dignity when she heard the door handle jiggle.

She sprang to the door pulling it open, the sight of Altair trying to open the door with his elbow while balancing coffee and bagels was something to behold, she didn't know whether to laugh or cry. In the end she settled for laughter, "I thought you had made good your escape while I was dressing." Taking the coffee from him and moving aside to let him in.

"Why would I want to escape it was me who sought you out Maria?"

"You know the whole awkward morning after thing..." she shrugged and took a mouthful of coffee to hide the grin now plastered across her face.

"We started our day as we ended the last, if at a slower pace. There was nothing awkward about it."

"Yeah, I was talking about once the sex is over and you need to find something to talk about." He was looking at her as though she was telling him the moon was made of cheese, "Okay never mind, you obviously don't suffer from wham, bam thank you ma'am syndrome."

He raised an eyebrow and continued to chew his breakfast. His legs stretched out in front of him looking even longer than normal because of the low couch. He noticed the blade on the bedside table, "Stealing our artefacts to sell to foreign dealers?"

"Mmhhmm, I was hoping to retire at thirty, a girl has to have a plan..."

"I'm sorry if my arrival at the castle interrupted your scavenging."

"Well actually it did but by then I already had a bag full of loot so there was no harm done." He smirked and her brain was invaded with lustful thoughts. "Actually I think I was the real victim, I paid 25 quid for that thing."

He reached for the small knife and examined it, "It's real enough but the assassin's used a great number of these so it's not valuable."

She shimmied across the couch and took it from him, "I don't care I like it. It's going home with me even if I have to stash it in Graham's luggage to get it there."

She leaned back against the couch and slashed at the air a few times. His head rested beside hers, "It's a throwing knife Maria, the reason it has no grip is to keep it light all its power comes from how you throw it."

She turned her head to him genuinely interested and about to enquire further but the proximity of his face to hers distracted her, "So... it's a throwing knife?"

Another smirk, "Yes, a throwing knife."

'Stop fawning over this guy Maria, this is not what you do.'

"You have to give me Ahmed's car keys, he's expecting me in a few hours and I won't get far without them."

"You're leaving so soon? That disappoints me I had hoped you would stay a while longer, you can't have all the information for your story yet."

"I'm not going to report anything about what happened my colleague believes I'm holed up in some hotel room with a strange man and I see no reason to change that."

"The keys are in my apartment, come there with me. We'll stop in to check on Malik and I'll drive you to Dimashq."

She knew refusing his offer would be the polite thing to do but to hell with polite she wanted more time with him.

Making their way to the hospital having collected the keys Maria saw Felix and another young man coming towards them across the car park. Altair greeted them both in English and introduced her to the stranger. "Kadar this is Maria Thorpe, Maria this is Kadar he is Malik's younger brother."

The boy stepped forward to her and kissed both her cheeks, although surprised by the mainly European gesture she returned his greeting. "Thank you for what you did, I owe you a great debt Miss Thorpe."

"Anyone would have done the same Kadar and please call me Maria."

He nodded and graced her with a beautifully warm smile; Maria reckoned he was probably ages with Felix only he wore it better. With his gorgeous dark skin and hair combined with his huge deep blue eyes he was already attractive the next 5 years would only cement that.

"Are you going in to see Malik? He is awake but still heavily sedated."

She looked at Altair and shook her head, "I think it's more appropriate for me to wait outside, it should only be close family who see him right now."

"Altair told me you held him for hours in the back of a car and found them emergency care, I think you have earned the right to see him and I believe Malik would like to see you, he asked if we had made you welcome earlier."

"I'll pop in then so long as he is up to it."

Her words were cut short by a loud bang followed by the sounds of car horns and screeching tyres. All three men immediately ran in the direction of the disturbance and Maria went with them.

"You should wait here Maria we don't know what this is yet but it sounded like a mortar attack." As if to confirm his words another bang followed by screams cut into the air.

"I don't want to be here alone; I'll stay out of the way."

"You must do exactly as I say and keep your head down."

They ran to the edge of the city and Maria noticed most of the people were running in the opposite direction. The closer they got to the point of impact she could see why. There were people in the street some of them bleeding and dazed some of them running around trying to put out small fires. She saw a woman run with a boy in her arms, she hoped they were escaping and not hurt.

She heard the whistling of another shell in the air and felt her arm being tugged pulling her behind a parked van. This close the impact was awful to hear, her ears were ringing and her throat was filling with dust.

"They are being incredibly deliberate with their strikes mentor; so far they have only struck buildings we control."

Altair nodded to Felix and said only one word, "Abbas."

Kadar stood, "They know one of his attackers was injured Altair, they will look for him in the hospital."

Maria was stunned, they were in the middle of bombs dropping and these men were having a discussion about what the targets were.

"We need to move him. Felix you gather the brothers and bring them here to us. Kadar you go to the hospital and get him out of there."

Another shell landed at the other end of the street forcing them to take cover when it cleared Kadar addressed Altair. "I can't leave you here alone; they will only shell for so long."

Maria had an idea, "Is there anyone at the hospital who is friendly to us and who speaks English?"

Altair pulled her closer so she could hear them speak, "There is a woman called Nima, she will be at the front desk. Tell her the Master asks her to assist you and she will do as you wish."

Kadar placed a hand on her forearm, "What do you intend Maria?"

Her expression was cold and Altair found himself feeling grateful she was on their side, "They may look for Malik but they will find only a dead man."

Felix gestured to her, "We should get moving."

She turned to go with him when she felt a hand on her arm pulling her around to face him. He looked uncertain, "It will be okay I want to do this, I want to help."

Altair leaned in to her and kissed her head, "I'll see you soon."

Felix ran with her to the edge of the houses, behind them she could hear the crackle of sporadic gunfire and she knew the battle was closer to Altair and Kadar. Felix pointed in the direction of a huge blue building; it looked like an aircraft hangar. She could see men emerging from it and piling into cars. "I have to go tell them where to go. The army are nowhere near the hospital yet you will be safe. Do whatever you have planned then stay there; it will be the safest place."

They parted and she made her way across to the hospital, behind her she could still hear the sounds of conflict and if anything it seemed to be escalating. The hospital was a hive of activity but no panic anywhere to be seen, they all seemed to be rushing around preparing but it was ordered chaos and Maria wondered bitterly how much experience they must have of this sort of thing.

She approached the desk and addressed herself to a young woman behind it, "I'm looking for Nima is she here?"

A plump middle aged woman came over to her, "I am Nima."

Maria led her to the other side of the desk and whispered the words Altair had given her.

"What is it you want to do?"

"The army may come here to find Malik; we have to kill him before they get here."

A/N action is so difficult for me to write :(