"So," Rick mused, as we slowly walked the boat later that night. "How'd you find me? Who told you where I was?"
"It's not hard to find you Rick. Just gotta fallow the trail of damage."
"Oh really?"
"No not really. Last I saw you, you were in Giza. So I started there. And low and behold, there you were...locked up and getting ready to be hung."
"Come on now Ellen." Rick sighed, rolling his eyes. "I'm fine. Stop hovering on it."
"Hover? Oh I'm not hovering. This is me, not hovering."
"Oh really."
"Listen mister, since you dragged me on this...thing, I have a right to be over protective, bitchy and...if I want to, whine however much I damned well want."
"I thought the job of being over protective went to the older sibling?" Rick asked. "And wouldn't that be me?" He added, pointing to himself as we came to a door and stopped for a moment.
"Since when have you ever looked out for me?" I asked as I pushed pasted him and walked into the dinning deck.
I heard Rick sigh as he fallowed me, heading to a table where i saw Jonathan. "Since right now..." He mumbled.
"Quit playing with your glasses and cut the deck, would you, Burns?"
"Without my glasses I can't see the deck to cut, can I, Daniels?" Burns replied as Rick and I reached the table, looking down at them.
"O'Connell! Sit down, sit down, we could use another player." Jonathan said.
"Talking to me or him?" I asked, and Jonathan smirked.
"Me." Rick snapped, stepping in front of me and to my right. "And, no thanks. I only gamble with my life, never my money." Rick replied.
"Liar." I piped up, and all the men turned and looked at me as I reached out and pulled out a chair, placing it beside Jonathan and another man, before sitting down. "You've gambled with my money a fair few times if I recall." I smirked up at him, before turning back to the game, and flashing a smile at Jonathan, as he slowly leaned over and showed me his hand.
"Comes with the perks of being my little sister." Rick mumbled angrily.
"So that's your sister," The man to my right asked, looking over me. "What a beauty. You married yet?"
"Excuse me?" I snapped, looking at him angrily before I was pulled upwards and out of my chair.
"That'll be enough of that." Rick warned, pushing me behind him protectively as the man looked away, clearly a little worried for his safety..
"Just ignore Henderson." Daniels said with a small smirk directed at me. "Say O'Connell." Daniels continued. "What if I was to bet you five hundred dollars we get to Hamunaptra before you?" Daniels asked, smirking up at Rick.
"You're looking for Hamunaptra?" I asked softly, looking at them a little shocked.
"Damn straight we are." Henderson replied, grinning.
"Hmm. Who says we are?" Rick asked.
"He does." All three Americans pointed at Jonathan. He looked up at us with a apologetic expression.
Sternly, I crossed my arms over my chest and looked down at him. "You idiot why would you go..."
"Well I didn't think..." He interrupted me, before he was cut off by Daniels.
"Well, how 'bout it?" He asked."Is it a bet?"
Rick smiled and said, "Alright, you're on."
"You can't be serious." I snapped, looking at Rick.
"Aren't I always." He smirked.
"What makes you so confident, sir?" One man with glasses asked.
"What makes you?" I demanded, sensing more and more of my brothers attitude coming out in me after being with him for so long.
"Oh...we've got us a man who's actually been there." Henderson replied with a smile.
"Oh, what a coincidence, because- -" Jonathan began, but quickly, before Rick could act, I reached out and kicked his chair, stopping him mid sentence. "Who's play is it? Is it my play? I thought I just, um..." Jonathan said quickly. Rick quickly put a hand onto Jonathan's shoulder.
"Gentlemen, we've got us a wager. Good evening, Jonathan." He tightened his grip on Jonathan's shoulder rather ruthlessly, before leaving.
"Honestly, you boys and your bets." I smiled, going to sit back down and join the game.
"Ellen!" Rick called.
"Right! Night boys." I smiled, jumping back up. "Jonathan." I added, earning a small wave from the man as a fallowed Rick who was headed for the next table, where Evy was sitting reading a book. "I think I'm going to go to bed." I said softly, sensing what he didn't need to tell me.
"Right." He nodded, leaning over and giving me a quick rough hug. "Night."
"Night." I smiled, stopping as he continued to walked towards her. I watched only for a moment before I ventured away, leaving them to their talk and entering the deck below, going right to my room and jumping down on the bed.
"Great...no pajama's..." I groaned, rolling over onto my side and looking around. I waited no more then fifteen minutes before rising up and venturing over to Evy's room, hoping that she would have something comfortable to offer me.
"George Bembridge, in 1860..." I heard her mumble as I reached her door, peering in to see her dressed in a long white and flowing nighty with a book in her hands. "In 1865 was...Oh for heaven sake girl it wasn't that good of a kiss anyway!" She cried out in frustration.
"Would this kiss be the one you shared with me brother?" I called, venturing in.
"Oh Ellen! You scared me half to death!" Evy called out, jumping slightly.
"Sorry." I apologized. "I just came to ask if you had anything I might borrow to sleep in?" Puzzlement crossed her face. "Well...since I was so abruptly kidnapped by my brother I didn't get to pack anything and..."
"Oh! Oh yes, yes of course there should be something right there in my suitcase." She explained, pointing to it on the floor near the door.
"Thanks." I smiled, venturing over and starting my search. "So...How'd your chat go with Rick?" I asked, glancing at her for a moment.
"Oh...very well." She called, exaggerating.
"Sorry to hear that." I chuckled, pulling out an almost identical nighty only in a cream color. "He can be hard to handle."
"How to you manage it?" She asked as I turned and faced her.
"Years of experience." I laughed, earning a smile. "Well...see you in the morning then?"
"Right. Good night." She smiled, before she continued reading as I ventured out of her room and into the hall, before crossing over a few steps into my room.
I didn't make it nearly two steps into the door way before i heard Evy gasp. "Evy?" I called, sticking my head back out and looking to her room. "You alright?" I asked, turning around and heading back.
"Where is the map?" I heard a man ask suddenly as I got closer and closer. Slowly, I peered into the room to see a man dressed in black with a claw in his hand pressed against her cheek.
"It's...it's there." Evelyn stammered, gasping for breath as he held his free hand on around her neck.
"And the key? Where is the key?" He demanded as I slowly entered the room and crept up on him.
"The key? The key? What key?" Evy asked, just as I came up behind him and raised my arm up high and made a fist, before slamming it down on the top of his head.
"Evelyn!" Rick shouted suddenly, jumping into the room and crashing into me just. "Ellen!" He yelled out, gun's raised as he turned and looked to see the man in black holding Evy in front of him, the claw to her neck again. "Move!" Rick yelled suddenly, turing my way as I hit the floor fast, before he started firing on a man who had opened the window and was about to shoot, hitting the lamp that had been on the wall in the process and igniting the room.
"Oh great!" I moaned, looking up as Evy took hold of a candle stick and smashed it into the man's face.
"Let's move!" Rick yelled as I scrambled to my feet, jumping behind him with Evy behind me before he started firing at the window once again just as a man appeared.
"Go!" I yelled, pushing Evy out into the hall, as we both started running.
A loud gasp erupted from Evy, as she stopped in front of me and spun around. "The map! The map! I forgot the map!" She yelled as she ran.
"Relax," Rick said, stopping her, "I'm the map. It's all up here." He pointed to his head
"Oh, that's comforting!" Evy said as he pulled her down the hall with me following behind closely. The whole of the boat was starting to burn as people ran around, screaming and shouting, while the men in black appeared from no where, trashing everything in sight as we landed on the deck on the boat.
"Hold on to this," Rick said, thrusting his gun bag into Evy's hand, before pulling one free and handing it to me. "You remember how to use this thing?" He asked.
"Oh how could I forget!" I yelled angrily. Quit suddenly gun fire erupted and started slamming into the wall that we were leaning on, narrowly missing Rick's head if Evy hadn't pulled him aside. "Thanks." He muttered, before looking to me. "Ready?" I nodded quickly, before we stepped forward and started shooting, with Evy behind us.
"Rick we really should get off the boat!" I yelled, reaching into his gun bag for another set of bullets as he continued to fire, while I looked around at the raging fires that surrounded us. "We should jump!" I suggested loudly.
"Can you swim?" Rick asked, turning towards us, his glance landing on Evy.
"Of course I can swim if the occasion calls for it!" She screamed loudly.
"Trust me- -" Rick began, as he reached over and grabbed her in his arms. "- -It calls for it." He finished before tossing her over board, before he too was about to join her. He was stopped however as a man in black jumped up over the rail and landed on him, sending him back to the floor.
"Rick!" I screamed out, spinning around and watched as the pair got two their feet and the man in back started to slam my brother with his fist. "Rick!" I yelled out again, fallowing after them as Rick hit a pole and the man started choking him. "HEY!" I yelled, as the man quickly turned and faced me, before I slammed my fist into his face, before screaming out in pain as Rick took over, kicking the man into a room that was ablaze.
"What are you waiting for, you idiot? Jump overboard already!" Rick yelled at me, pushing me slightly.
"Gee! Your welcome!" I yelled, shaking my hand slightly as it stung with pain.
"Ellen, NOW!" He cried out.
"Not without you!" I yelled, grabbing hold of him and pulling him along with me.
"O'Connell! O'Connell!" We both turned to see the warden coming towards us, where he reached up and latched onto Rick, shaking him. "What are we going to do? What are we going to do?" He asked in panic.
"Wait here! I'll go get help!" Rick answered, before he and I both jumped over the edge. Only a moment later, the fat man joined us in the water as we waded towards the shore, reaching it safely, joined by Jonathan.
"Everyone okay?" Rick called.
"Okay? Okay! We've lost everything!" Evy cried out. "All of our tools, all the equipment! ...All my clothes!"
"O'Connell!" Quite suddenly I turned fast, hearing my last name being called as I looked to the other side of the river, where the American were all gathered. "Heeeeeyyy!" A man started yelling, running into the water slightly. "O'Connell! It looks to me like I've got all the horses!" He looked triumphant. Whoever this man was, he deserved a punch.
"Hey Beni!" Rick yelled back. Apparently he knew this man. "Looks to me like you're on the wrong side of the RI-VER!" I couldn't help it and I flat out laughed happily, bringing a smile to Rick's lips as we looked over to this Beni character who looked as if he didn't believe Rick, then studied his surroundings, cursed in some other language and kicked the water.
"Beni?" I asked, looking to Rick. "As in...Beni?" I yelled, knowing that it was the one and the same man who had left my brother to die years before.
"Yeah...that's him."
"Why that stupid little..."
"Ellen!" Rick called, as they started to walk off without me.
"Yeah, yeah. Coming." I called angrily, storming off to fallow them.