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The Borchardt residence

Perhaps roaming that close to the house hadn't been the brightest of ideas. To make an attempt to enter through the window without alerting anyone had been an even dumber one.

And now because of his so called bright plan, Samir now not only had a bump above his right eye, but also a cut to show for it. If his brother saw him like this, he would never hear the end of it.

Elisabeth re-entered the room, carrying a brass bowl with a piece of soft looking fabric hanging over its side. She sat down on the bench next to the Medjai spy and pulled a tiny bottle out of her back pocket.

"Is there a reason why you decided to use the window as an entrance point instead of the front door?" She asked him as she unscrewed the cap of the medicinal looking bottle.

There was one, but it wasn't a very good reason. He simply hadn't been in the mood in making this seem like an official visitation. Mostly due to courtesy of his brother, whose only order still was for him to keep tabs on the woman.

Last time he'd told Elisabeth that it had been Ardeth who had sent him to Alexandria to spy on her, she'd been incredibly upset. He really did not want that to happen again.

No, it was better if she was under the impression he was there just to visit her as a friend and not as someone who was suppose to be watching her every move.

"Let's just say I heard some rather unsettling stories about some old lady who works here." Samir replied.

The upper right corner of Elisabeth's mouth twitched slightly. "That sounds about right."

She took the cloth from the bowl and pressed it against the now open bottle, gave it a quick shake and set it back down. "Although I don't think you could have scared her as much as your brother did."

That almost sounded like a compliment and he couldn't help but smile for real this time.

Back home in his village, Ardeth was the one who got all of the attention even before he became Chieftain. All the women fawned over him. Gave him small gifts such as flowers and fruits. The men accepted him as one of their own and the younglings looked up at him.

Had Samir been but a year or two older than his brother, all of that would have gone to him. But unfortunately this was not the case. Within his tribe he would always stand in his brother's shadow.

At least until the time would come when Ardeth would find himself a wife and have a family. Perhaps then their heads would turn his way and acknowledge the things he had done for the safety of the people.

"What are you doing with that?" Samir suddenly leaned back and his eyes diverted to the cloth she was holding near his face.

The woman frowned. "For that cut above your eyebrow. This is to make sure it doesn't get infected."

"Infected?" He repeated her then huffed. "That will not happen. It doesn't even hurt."

Elisabeth rolled her eyes and moved her hand towards his head. He caught her wrist mid-air and pulled her arm down. She threw him an annoyed glance. "Come on, Samir. This will not hurt. It will only sting for a moment and then it is done."

They held each other's gaze for a couple of seconds and finally he gave in with a deep sigh. He let go of her hand and finally she could start treating the small wound she'd inflicted upon him.

This evening had been such an embarrassment on his honour. To think she had not only managed to actually surprise him as he sneaked into the house, but knocked him out of a window with her bare hands. This was something nobody was ever to learn of. Especially his brother.

A gentle and warm touch shocked him for a mere second. He looked straight ahead as Elisabeth held the side of his head with one of her hands, to make sure he wouldn't move.

This wasn't the first time they were seated this closely together. Only it somehow felt different this time. She wasn't looking directly at him, her gaze focused on the cut above his eyebrow. But he couldn't help stare at her.

He hated this. The fact that he was here to spy on her. Which was weird, considering he had mislead her so many times since knowing her in order to get information or ask for her help with certain situations.

"Ai." Samir suddenly hissed loudly, as the cloth dipped in alcohol touched his skin. He jerked back.

Elisabeth chuckled. "You are such a baby."

"Baby?"

"I hardly touched you." She added, reaching for the same spot once more.

With a grimace he moved forward and let her take care of it properly this time. It still stung, but he kept his jaw clenched as she patted the cut a couple of times. He was certain she was purposely taking longer than was necessary.

After that was done, she dropped the cloth back into the brass bowl and dunked it under water before wringing it out. Quietly he let her continue to clean the area above his eye, which took even less time than her prior action.

"There. All done." She smiled as she lowered both her hands.

"Thank you." He replied softly. There was an odd sense of absence now that she was no longer holding his head. He kept his eyes on her and Elisabeth cocked her head sideways with concern.

"Are you sure you're alright? I didn't hit you too hard, did I?"

Samir didn't answer her. Instead he moved closer, until the space between them was almost non-existent. This was as close as he'd ever gotten to her. He inhaled deeply. Her scent was sweet, like a flower, as was what he always called her.

"Samir,-" She breathed.

"Zahrah." His voice low and heavy.

"What are you doing?"

He felt his heart beat rapidly in his chest. His gaze dropped for a quick second towards her pink lips. "Ana mao'gab beki. I like you."

Elisabeth placed her hands against him. "I've known you for almost five years, Samir. Now you decide to do this?"

"Would it be wrong?" He didn't want to talk. He wanted to press his mouth against hers.

"You never tried to before." She said.

"Maybe I have changed?"

"Pfft, you don't change. You have secrets, but you always behave the same way."

She was talking too much and he could feel the spell he was under slowly slipping away. "Remember two years ago?" He then asked and Elisabeth blinked.

Of course she knew what he was referring to. But that situation had been different and he hadn't meant anything with it. It had only been a display of gratitude for what she had done. Besides, that was two years ago. Nothing else ever happened afterwards between them, nothing that showed either of them wanted something more.

Cairo, Egypt, 1922

It was turning out to be one of the strangest winter months she'd seen in years. December hadn't been as cold as the year before, but January was a different story. Alexandria had closed the harbour due to severe gales hitting the coastal area and they said Port Said was next on the list.

Inland things were different, except for that day when hail covered the city of Giza. Hail. A bizarre phenomenon. The last time that occurred was back in 1915.

For the first time since forever, Elisabeth was actually wearing a scarf as she roamed the streets of Cairo. It seemed none of the locals cared much for this change in weather either.

Not that it would last. The cold winds of January often vanished by the time February came around. This too would pass, but for the time being it annoyed almost everyone throughout the city.

Once again she checked the note Menna had given her. A short grocery list of items she'd forgotten to purchase the day before. Seeing as Menna wasn't the youngest and with treacherous weather, Elisabeth had offered to do the work for her.

About half an hour later she had managed to get almost all of the supplies she was suppose to buy. The winds had once again picked up and the desert's sand blew almost violently through the city streets.

It was then she saw someone familiar near one of Cairo's new General Practises. It was a small place, build not too long ago by some French man and was mainly used for those with minor illnesses.

"Samir?" She called out to him the moment she was a couple of feet away.

The young man turned around to face her. She hadn't seen him since the summer, he had changed quite a lot. His hair was longer and his features sharper than before. But his expression did not bode well. Something was wrong.

"Zahrah?" He replied sounding slightly confused. "What are you doing here?"

"What am I doing here? I live here, remember?" Elisabeth replied. "The question his, what are you doing here?"

Samir did not have time to talk. He had to get inside this building and soon. The hospital had denied him access and the other doctor who usually helped them, was out of the city.

"Nothing,- just, hanging around Cairo." He tried to sound casual as if him being there was a normality.

Only it wasn't an every day occurrence and Elisabeth knew that. Samir was only in Cairo whenever he was there for business or for an errand. Not to mention his face revealed there was much more going on than he was willing to share.

"Okay, well if that is all. I shall leave you to it. It was good to see you again."

She was about to step away but felt something grab a hold of her shoulder. When she turned around, she stared straight into Samir's concerned face.

"I'm sorry, Zahrah. It is my mother,-" And this time Elisabeth was convinced he wasn't lying to her.

Quietly she listened to him as he explained to her why he was standing in front of this particular building. She could tell he was still reluctant to tell her everything, therefore she only asked him simple questions in return.

However, it soon became clear that he was unsure of what to do next and the fact that he lived with his family somewhere out in the desert wasn't very convenient in this situation.

In short, his mother had fallen ill and she wasn't the only one within the tribe. One of the elders, who functioned as the tribe's physician, was in need of certain medications in order to treat the sick. Most of the supplies they had were all used up by now and so far Samir had had no luck obtaining them.

Elisabeth wasn't sure how she would be able to help him, but she doubted any of the practises nor the hospital was willing to part with medication unless they got to see an actual patient. Another part of her wondered how Samir's village normally handled a situation such as this.

But then again, he had said there was more than one sick person. It was not her place to question him, not today. She'd never seen him this distraught and she had known him for almost three years now.

"What kind of medication does your village elder need?" She asked him.

Samir took out a piece of paper from his shawl and handed it to her. It was written in Arabic, which wasn't necessarily a problem only that she did not recognize most of medical words jotted down.

Nonetheless, she might know of a way to help him out now. If getting medicine was all he wanted, then she knew who to contact about it.

"Meet me here at nightfall." Elisabeth told him.

::::::...::::::

Night had already fallen by the time she almost made it back to the spot where she'd told Samir to meet with her again.

She couldn't remember the last time she had run this much in a single day. The linen bag filled with small bottles filled with some type of liquid and bottles containing pills.

By the time she arrived, Samir was already there and she wouldn't be surprised if he had actually been waiting since the moment she left him there earlier today. He jumped up the second he spotted her, his eyes wide and his hands were shaking as she handed him the bag.

"That should be enough for at least twenty people." Elisabeth said out of breath. "One pill every day, after a meal. No work, a lot of sleep and rest. Your village elder should know what the other bottles are for."

The man seemed at a loss for words. He had no idea how she had managed to find or obtain the medicine, but he wasn't going to ask. He was thankful enough that she had helped him without wondering whether or not he'd been telling her the truth.

"Zahrah, I,-" Samir paused. There were no words to express. So instead he grabbed her arm and pulled her with him into a dark alley.

Once they were out of sight, he grabbed hold of her face and before Elisabeth knew what was going, he lowered his head and touched her lips with his. It was a swift peck but it was the best way he could think of to thank her for her help.

"Thank you. You are a good friend."

The Borchardt Residence

"You didn't mind it then." Samir reminded her.

"That because you were only thanking me. You told me so yourself."

The Medjai shrugged. "Maybe I lied."

Elisabeth clenched her fists and turned her head away. "Samir, please." Her voice was soft and pleading.

Something hit him suddenly seeing her like this. Perhaps he had gone too far with his actions. But was it really a bad idea? He had known her for a long time. She was a smart and kind woman. Well, at least to the people she cared about.

He could already hear his brother's voice in the back of his mind. She is a thief, a foreigner. She lied to you about learning of Hamunaptra and you want to court her?

Knowing Ardeth, he would not approve of Samir's choice. Even if he did not always agree with him, he did care for his older brother. But at the same time he was beginning to see Elisabeth as something more than just a friend.

Was this the result of having spied and following her around for the last couple of months, since Ardeth acquired her services?

"I am sorry, Zahrah. I will not push any further." He gave her a weak smile and moved back to his original position.

Despite what his brother thought, there was no point in pursuing his own wishes if the woman didn't return his feelings in the first place.

"I will not try to kiss you again." He then added. "Until you ask me to."

Elisabeth narrowed her eyes and shook her head. "You are unbelievable. I should dunk this bowl of water over your head."

She stood up from the bench and walked across the room until she reached her father's desk, where she set the bowl down. Samir followed her example and as he went her way his eyes roamed the room.

It wasn't the first time he'd been in here, but he was never going to tell her that. It had been years ago after all. No need to dig up things from the past. He stopped a couple of feet from her and glanced at the parcel in front of him.

When he looked back up, he caught Elisabeth looking at him.

"I am going to Minya." She told him.

"Minya? Why are you going there?"

A smirk appeared on her face, as if she was rather proud of herself. "Because the American went there with the French Legion last year, thus it might be the best place to continue the search."

Al-Minya. She really knew more than she initially told him or his brother. If he hadn't come by tonight, would she have told him the next time they'd met? Probably not. She really was like a sand cat. Swift and cunning.

"When are you leaving?" Samir asked.

But the woman didn't answer him. Instead she leaned back against the desk and crossed her arms. "Why do you want to know?"

"You're forgetting that you have a duty to report everything you do or discover to akhi."

She waved her hand at him. "You now know. You can tell him where I'm going."

Something told him that she was already aware of the fact he was assigned to spy on her this very evening. But why she'd decided on telling him about leaving for Minya, surprised him. Perhaps the woman no longer cared whether or not she was being followed.

"Oh, I will tell him. But I am also going to come with you. Based on what happened last time, leaving you alone is a disaster waiting to happen."

"Is this about what happened in Alexandria? Or because I kept secrets from you?"

Samir huffed. "Both."

It didn't take long for Elisabeth to give in. Whether or not she were to tell him the date, it was something he could easily figure out on his own. And with Samir joining her, she might discover a thing or two quicker than on her own.

Even though there were some things she still couldn't tell him. Such as the fact that she knew the American's name. Richard.

On one hand she felt guilty for still keeping things from Samir, but she justified it by convincing herself it was only for the best. If Ardeth Bay got wind of what she knew, he would most surely cut their agreement short. Money wasn't something she was interested in anymore.

Not the money he would give her for this task. No, she wanted to see if the rumours about the books and treasures, she'd found in her father's document, were true.

"Two days from now. I'll be leaving Port Giza with a barge. You better not be late."

The trip to Minya is on and Samir is joining her.

But Ardeth will be back in the next chapter!

Hope you all enjoyed and I would love to hear your thoughts.