A few hours later, the sentries gave warning that there were four people approaching on horseback and all the Medjai tensed getting ready for a fight just in case it wasn't the O'Connells. Finally, the sentries yelled that it was the O'Connells and all the Medjai relaxed.

"Rick!" shouted Kadin excitedly as the O'Connells and Jonathan Carnahan entered the camp.

Rick dismounted and threw the reins over his saddle and that was all he had time for before he was enveloped in a bear hug.

"It's good to see you Kadin," said Rick returning the hug and then clapping his friend on the back.

"I am so glad you aren't dead."

"Yeah, well, let's just say that reports of our death were greatly exaggerated," said Rick dryly but with a smile.

"Mark Twain," Ardeth murmured to himself surprised his brother had even read Mark Twain. Would Rick ever stop surprising him? Ardeth wondered. He hoped not.

"Kadin," said Evie. "Meet my brother Jonathan Carnahan."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," said Jonathan politely shaking Kadin's and then the rest of the Medjai hands trying not to show how nervous he was to be surround by so many fierce looking warriors at once.

"It's nice to meet you to," said Kadin the other Medjai always murmuring the same.

"We had better get on the road," said Ardeth loud enough to be heard over all the chattering. "If we want to make any distance today."

The others Medjai nodded and began breaking camp quietly and effectively. In what seemed no time at all they were on their way and were soon several miles away from Cairo and out in the middle of the desert and riding towards home.

~~~Rick and Evie~~~

Three months later, across the sea back in London two men, one young with blond hair, gray eyes and a face that was still round with baby fat, and one old with black hair, slightly long, green eyes and long angular features approached the home of the O'Connells. Both men sat military straight and were wearing military uniforms. "So why do you think O'Connell never responded to the drafting letter?" asked the younger man whose name was Charles Heathersleigh the third.

"There could be any number of reasons," said the older man whose name was George Hastings. "He might not have been home when the drafting letter arrived. I've known Rick for a number of years and he loves to travel."

"Could it be because he's a coward?" the younger man suggested sounding extremely cynical for one so young.

"No," George said firmly but calmly refusing to respond to the young pup's comment with the outrage he was feeling. "Rick O'Connell is one of the bravest most courageous men I know. He was a member of the French Foreign Legion and was involved in a number of border skirmishes where he acquitted himself honorably, even saving my life and those of others on several occasions. He's one of the best men I've ever seen with almost any type of weapon, guns, knives even bows and arrows. Rick always hits his target dead center."

Charles contemplated this and was amazed at the older man's faith in his friend his opinion however, was that Rick O'Connell was nothing but a coward who was trying to avoid the draft.

The two men reached the O'Connell mansion and George knocked on the front door. A few minutes later it was opened by an older gentleman who was at least sixty if he was a day and too old to be drafted. "We're here to see Rick O'Connell," George announced.

"We're from the drafting board coming to see why he didn't report as ordered," Charles added.

"Come in," said the older gentlemen and who led them to the living room. "I'm Robert Barrett. Why don't you take a seat and let me get you some tea and then we can talk."

The two men sat down on the couch stunned by the briskness of the old man's greeting and at the way he had avoided the subject so neatly.

~~~Rick and Evie~~~

A few minutes later Barrett returned with pushing a teacart before him. "I'm sorry I took so long, but I'm afraid my old bones don't move as fast as they once did," Barret apologized setting out the tea things.

"Where is Rick O'Connell?" Charles demanded ignoring his tea. "He was ordered to report to the drafting board more than a week ago."

"I'm afraid that is not going to be possible," said Barrett calmly. "Rick and his family went to Egypt more than three months ago. The usual family vacation, as they go to Egypt every year to see a friend of theirs and to do some archeology. However, Rick telegraphed me saying they weren't going to risk taking a boat back because of the rumors of German U-boats sinking even more ships in the last few months."

George nodded seeming to accept it; Charles on the other hand did not. "They went to Egypt in the middle of a war? I find that hard to believe not unless they were leaving to avoid the draft."

Robert shrugged and said, "I can't see Rick leaving to avoid the draft. The man I know would never do such a thing. The O'Connells probably just wanted to take one last vacation as a family before the war and the sinking of ships made that impossible for who knows how long and then they couldn't get back."

"So why are you here?" asked George.

"Rick asked me and my wife Edna to look after the place until their return. Keep up the house and garden that kind of thing. We were glad to do it," said Robert with another shrug. "Of course, he has us look after the place every year, because when they go on these vacations they are gone for most of the summer. They only return when the school year is about to start up again. We even have a bomb shelter down in basement just in case this pace gets bombed."

Charles who had been about to say something shut his mouth with almost an audible snap for Robert Barrett had just shot down his argument and probably didn't even realize it.

"So Rick and his family are in Egypt?" asked Charles. "Why go to Egypt every year for vacations when there are so many places you could go."

"Rick grew up in an orphanage in Cairo," George told the younger man. "His parents were killed by a fever that was going through the Egyptian population at the time. I think Rick considers Egypt more his home then America for that was where he grew up."

"Then why live in England?"

George shrugged, "From what I know his wife was asked to run the London museum for she is an expert on Egyptology and reads, writes and speaks both Egyptian and Arabic and so they went where the job was offered for Rick could run his import/export business anywhere. Besides, both Rick and his wife Evelyn are half English and so have English citizenship."

Charles nodded still not completely satisfied, but there was really nothing he could do about it, except have Rick O'Connell arrested the minute he set foot back in England, but he really had no grounds in order to do that for as far as he could tell the O'Connells had left England long before the draft came into effect or was even a rumor. Besides he didn't have that kind of authority, as much as he wanted to be out in the front where the action was much to his shame the first time he had tried to shoot a gun when he was a young man he had almost shot himself through the foot.

Ever since then his father had never let him anywhere near a gun and had insisted that if he had to join the war effort then he could sit behind a desk and do his part for the war there instead of the front line—in other words he was nothing but a glorified paper pusher and deep down he was ashamed that he wasn't doing more for the war effect which was what made him so flaming mad that this Rick O'Connell should escape the draft just because he had supposedly gone on vacation in Egypt and then couldn't get back because of the Germans.

"Well I suppose we should be going," said George rising to his feet and shaking Barrett's hand. "Thank you for the information."

"You're welcome," said Barrett with a smile before escorting the two men to the front door and showing them out.

~~~Rick and Evie~~~

"You know it really burns me up that O'Connell escaped the draft," said Charles as he got into the car on the passenger side.

George sighed and shook his head at Charles persistence. "Charles when are you going to get it through your head that Rick just went on vacation not to avoid the draft but just so maybe he and his family could spend some time away from the war and the bombs constantly dropping on London. I mean Rick has always been known to travel and when they left he probably knew or at least guessed that within six months traveling would be impossible."

"I still think he ran to avoid the draft," said Charles stubbornly.

George just sighed and shook his head. George knew that when Charles got an idea in his head whether it was right or wrong it was nearly impossible to dislodge. George just hoped the younger man didn't go spouting off this nonsense and getting Rick in trouble for no reason at all.

~~~Rick and Evie~~~

Two months later, Egypt

Rick O'Connell had begun to go out on patrols with Ardeth and some of the other Medjai. It hadn't been as hard as Rick had expected it to be to convince his brother to let him do patrols with him and the others. Rick had just explained that he was going just a little stir crazy and he felt like he wasn't pulling his weight. When he and his family were only staying for a short time it was one thing, but if they were going to be accepting the Medjai hospitality for any length of time he needed to feel as if he was doing something productive and to help out where he could.

Ardeth had given in without much argument understanding how Rick felt and besides it would be good to ride with his brother, even if it was only on patrols. Also, Rick's Arabic had improved to the point that he could converse in the language as if he had been born speaking it and that meant that he would be able to converse with the Medjai who only spoke Arabic and no English and be able to warn them of danger in the same language. Most people who came looking for Hamunaptra were foreigners for the people of Egypt knew better then to come looking for a place that was supposedly cursed. Most Egyptians were very superstitious and would avoid places like Hamunaptra like the plague and that of course worked to the Medjai advantage.

One day, Ardeth, Rick and a small group of Medjai were patrolling near Hamunaptra when several of them saw dust trails and the sound of motors heading straight for the city. "Oh no," groaned one of the Medjai whose name was Baghel's which Rick had discovered not long after he had started doing these patrols that the name meant ox. The name fit, Rick decided for the Medjai was big and very strong. He had seen Baghel pull more weight than a whole team of men could manage together and he was also someone that Rick would trust at his back for he just had honesty and dependability written all over him. "And here I was hoping this would be a quiet patrol."

"Be careful what you wish for," Rick joked. "You just might get it."

"Let us just observe for now," said Ardeth calmly. "If they start digging then we will intervene and scare them off, just like we always have and we will only kill if we must."

The others nodded and they rode a distance away and set up a camp of their own.

~~~Rick and Evie~~~

Meanwhile, back in Hidden City, Evie looked up from the dress she was helping to sew with several other woman when her stomach suddenly started to rebel. Eve tried to fight down her queasiness and with an effect managed to get her stomach to obey her head. When the Medjai women had discovered the she knew how to sew Evie had been invited to join these women who had a kind of sewing circle. Since most of the community's clothes were made by hand by the women of the community the women needed all the help they could get. These women were experts at what they did and some even sold to others in the community to earn a little extra money for their households.

Suddenly, Evie who had been concentrating on stitching as small as possible while the other woman chattered around her stopped as that queasy feeling came back with a vengeance.

"Excuse me," said Evie gently putting her sewing aside.

"Evie are you okay?" asked a young woman who was working on her wedding robe.

"I'm just a little queasy," said Evie. "I'm sure it's just something I ate for lunch. If you don't mind can I use your facilities?"

"Of course Evie," said an older woman. "They're just down the hall, third door on the left."

"Thank you," said Evie and tried not to rush to the bathroom.

~~~Rick and Evie~~~

When Evie emerged a few minutes later all the women noticed she was still looking a little green around the edges.

"Perhaps you should go see one of the healers?" the older woman whose name was Sabra suggested.

"No, I'm fine," Evie insisted.

"You are not fine and if you are coming down with something it is better to get it treated now before it gets worse. Besides, what will your husband and our king think of us if we do not take care of you?"

Evie nodded and gave in with a silent sigh in front of Sabra's determination for in her present state she just didn't have the energy to fight it.

"Here, I will go with you," said Safa another of the women taking Evie by the arm.

The other women nodded and watched the two women leave with worried frowns.

~~~Rick and Evie~~~

"Mrs. O'Connell I've run every test I can think of and I believe you are pregnant," the healer informed her an hour later.

"But that's impossible," Evie protested. "My doctor in London said I would never have another child after Alex was born. Having Alex did something to my ability to have anymore."

"Nevertheless, you are pregnant so perhaps your doctor in England was wrong."

"But Alex is fourteen years old and I've never been pregnant since he was born," Evie protested.

"Perhaps it has something to do with you being killed and then being brought back to life at Ahm Shere," the healer suggested. "And it has just taken this long for your system to realize it."

Evie considered this then nodded for she and Rick did tend to stay on the go a lot and that would have been hard on her system that had already been compromised with the birth of Alex so perhaps the healer was correct.

"I hope your husband will be pleased," said the healer.

"He'll be very pleased," said Evie. "We always wanted a large family. My husband is an orphan you see and he always wished for brothers and sisters so when we got married we agreed we wanted at least three children if not more. He'll be very happy when I tell him the news."

The healer nodded looking pleased with Evie's answer. "If you follow instructions what I will give you to take will help with the morning sickness."

"Alright," said Evie still seeming to be in shock at the news that she was pregnant, but then again who wouldn't be considering she had never again been pregnant after Alex.

"I know this is a shock, dear but at least it's a pleasant shock," said the healer patting Evie on the arm in sympathy.

Evie nodded not responding seeming lost in a world of her own.

~~~Rick and Evie~~~