Treasure of Egypt

by Barbara Ivie Green

  With a groan he pulled away from her, abruptly ending their kiss. He stood, dragging a hand roughly through his hair. again. “I’m so sorry, Genevieve.” He practically shook with desire. “Please forgive me. I just can’t seem to trust myself around you.”

  Genevieve sat where she was, stunned again, utterly and completely speechless.

  “You’d better go back,” he whispered hoarsely, before tearing his gaze from her and turning around.

  She had been playing with fire, she knew, but never imagined that his kiss would ignite her so. So much for seducing him for information, why had she thought herself up to the task?

  She had the momentary urge to throw caution to the wind and go to him. Thank God, she now had a stiff spine… she practically ran away.

  Holy Hell! Alec expelled the breath he’d been holding after she left.

  ~*~

  Genevieve was more than a little relieved that Samuel was already asleep when she came rushing back. She wasn't up to facing his scrutiny after her botched attempt to seduce her estranged husband for information had gone awry.

  She’d been hoping a little flirting would loosen his tongue. It most certainly had, though not in the way she’d planned. Genevieve hated to admit it, but she was totally out of her league when it came to Alec.

  What else could she do? The map had changed everything. Her lip caught in her teeth as she looked down at Samuel. He was sleeping in his boots. She let out a puff of air and looked about her, separating him from the map would be problematic as long as he carried it on his person.

  If only she had a scorpion she thought mischievously. He’d be out of his boots quick enough then. Genevieve watched the unsuspecting man sleeping for a moment longer. She had no other alternative than let him keep the treasure map for another night, besides she had other things to do this evening than attempt to remove his footwear.

  Samuel had moved the trunk off the blanket in order to bed down where it had been. Strangely, it also appeared that he’d tied himself to the water bags. What a bizarre thing to do, she wondered at it as she carefully stepped around the area where he snored softly and began to slowly tug on the trunk’s handle. It made a horrible scraping sound as she drug it over a rock. There was no help for it; the trunk was too heavy for her to pick up.

  Samuel murmured, rolling onto his side. Genevieve paused, waiting to make sure he was still asleep. She breathed a sigh of relief when he started snoring again. Good grief, the last thing she wanted to do was have to explain why she felt the need to have the trunk next to her all of a sudden.

  Once he’d settled back down, she gently untied his rope and pulled the trunk past the water bags. Moving quickly, she retied the rope and then continued to slowly drag it toward the curtain. She was hoping to get it there before Alec returned.

  It was surprising that Samuel could sleep through the racket she was making, but then again, everything seemed amplified to her ears. Her breathing alone sounded loud enough to wake the dead. His comatose state was probably due to the many nips he’d taken from his flask after dinner, she decided.

  It took several more tugs on the trunk to get it safely behind the draped curtain. Genevieve waited, her ears still attuned for any noises made by either of her traveling companions. Once she was sure that she hadn’t alerted anyone, she lit the small oil lamp and eyed the trunk she had worked so hard to haul inside with her.

  What a difference a day makes she thought, reminding herself that it was only yesterday morning that the Sheik’s guards had taken the trunk away and informed her that she was to be married. It had been a shocking development to say the least, but nothing compared to the turmoil of seeing the map again.

  Winning it in a game of cards just might be the worst luck that she’d ever heard of, if that was indeed the truth. If they truly didn’t know what they had, then they probably weren’t even aware of the very real danger they were in.

  If they did know… she blew a soft puff of air out as she considered it. She’d been plopped right into the thick of it, as they say, and could not afford to let the trunk out of her sight, especially now that she knew what her companions were really after.

  Kneeling down beside the trunk, she opened it, sifting through the books on top. Everything looked fine, even though they weren’t exactly as she’d left them. The trunk had been jostled quite a bit lately. The book that mattered the most to her wasn’t among these anyway. She felt for the hidden latch and pulled it. A secret compartment in the lid opened up. She breathed a sigh of relief… it was still there.

  Genevieve removed the old book reverently. She opened the back cover and gently lifted the edge exposing a folded piece of paper hidden within the lining. She carefully unfolded it. It was an exact copy of the map that Samuel had shown her earlier.

  She tucked the map back inside the cover and set it aside. Genevieve started to pace back and forth, so lost in thought she almost didn’t realize that Alec had returned.

  Concerned that he might need another article of clothing… or something else entirely, she quickly placed the book back in the secret compartment and closed the trunk. She was careful not to make too much noise as she slowly dressed for bed and blew out the light.

  Sleep, however, would not come so easy. Her mind kept returning to how it had felt to be in his arms… and the feel of his lips.

  ~*~

  Alec arose, aware that he’d barely slept and that his back was there to remind him of it. Images of Genevieve had kept him awake the whole night. Damn it all to Hell! He was never going to be the same after this. Last night when she’d left him, he’d been hard pressed not to run after her, crush her to him and kiss her as he wanted.

  Oh hell! He groaned, a scowl knitting his brow. She’d been like warm satin in his arms, her response like liquid fire when he’d kissed her. The kiss, however, wasn’t the only memory that had tortured him all night long.

  When he’d returned she’d been pacing the area behind the curtain he’d unwittingly strung up. She might as well have not been wearing anything at all as the light from her lamp went right through the thin veils of her clothing while she undressed. God help him, he thought, as he remembered the strip tease she’d unknowingly treated him to.

  “Top of the morning to y—,” Samuel’s morning greeting was stopped in mid-sentence as he looked at Alec’s expression. “Oh, not so good again, I see.”

  Samuel looked around cautiously and then back at Alec, he seemed to be preparing himself for another attack like that of the previous morning. “Where is she?” He asked cautiously.

  “Relax,” Alex looked over at him with irritation. “There isn’t a pond to drown myself here.” He moved from the small brazier that he’d been sitting by. “Help yourself to some kaf.”

  “Ah, no thanks,” Samuel winced. The offer of a cup of Alec’s brew was indeed a threat. “I think I’ll stick with this.”

  Samuel did the unthinkable and uncorked a skin of water, taking a large swill he shivered all the way down to his toes as he swallowed. “Bloody hell, that’s about as tasty as drinking from a pig’s trough.”

  Thinking that the kaf may actually be better, Samuel picked up a cup and poured himself a good measure of the lethal brew. “Cheers!” he saluted Alec who rested against one of the camel’s saddles. It took him a few more seconds to choke it down this time.

  Desperate, he reached into his breast pocket, removed his flask and took a swig. “Aaugh…” He sighed after the generous libation, smiling at Alec as though the day were the brightest one he’d yet to see. He added some of the contents to the coffee then placed the old, silvered container back into his breast pocket, patting it as if it were a loyal pet.

  Samuel had a knack for finding the bright side of things. An optimist to the bitter end, Alec thought, feeling somewhat jealous of the ability. But then again, he wasn’t plagued. Damn him anyway.

  “What I wouldn’t give for some crisp bacon and scrambled eggs right now.” Samuel declared as he rubbed
his hands together with eager enthusiasm, as if the meal that awaited them wasn’t more of the dried meat and equally dry bread topped off with some rapidly molding goat cheese.

  Samuel shook his head looking at Alec. It didn’t take a genius to know there was something bothering him. Even appealing to his stomach hadn’t been enough to get his mind off the girl. There was nothing else for it… Samuel tried goading the disgruntled man instead. “Or some real kaf,” he pestered. The comment also failed to get a rise out of Alec. Something had happened last night, of that he was sure.

  Alec looked as though he hadn’t slept much. Samuel on the other hand had slept like a rock. “Aahh,” he breathed a contented sigh while stretching. “What should we do today?” He asked with excitement, as if riding through the desert in the blistering heat wasn’t their only option.

  Alec at least responded. He raised a brow and stared at him as the obvious answer.

  “That’s what I thought you’d say.” Samuel responded happily to his silent rejoinder with nary a care in the world. “Com’on Alec, it can’t be that bad. You were only gone five minutes... even you’re not that fast.”

  Alec gave him a look that said he wasn’t amused.

  Samuel was nonplussed as he continued. “Guess what I found?”

  Considering their relative isolation, Alec could hardly imagine. He raised both brows in response and replied irritably. “You found a horn-toed lizard?”

  “No.” Samuel’s enthusiasm remained undaunted by Alec’s surly response. “She does know how to read the ancient writings.” He smiled smugly as Alec gave him his full attention.

  “How could you know that?” Alec asked in a hushed whisper.

  “I looked through the trunk last night while you distracted her,” Samuel admitted. Though the way in which he did so sounded as though Alec were a willing participant of his scheme.

  “You what?”

  “I looked through—”

  “Yes, yes,” Alec interrupted him in a whisper, “I heard you. I just can’t believe you’d do such a thing.”

  “You can’t… Really?” Samuel seemed surprised by Alec’s look of disgust. “Ah, com’on Alec,” he rolled his eyes in response. “It’s not as if you’ve never done anything like this before. After all, we’ve spent the better half of the last decade in the service of her majesty doing just that.”

  Why did Samuel have to choose now to be himself? Damn it all to hell! Alec fumed inwardly. The man had outdone himself this time. “Is it too much to expect you to know the difference between spying on the enemy and spying on a hapless female who just happens to be under our protection?” he pulled a hand through his hair as he stood.

  Samuel continued his silent study of the book in his hands while ignoring him.

  Though Alec wished otherwise, admittedly his own curiosity was aroused. “So what was in the trunk that made you think that she can read it?” he asked in a hushed voice, while giving the fabric wall a cautious glance.

  “It’s filled with ancient writings.” They were both whispering now.

  “That is hardly proof that she knows how to read them.” Alec, incredulous that Samuel had actually gone through her things, again ran a hand through his bedraggled hair. What a debacle, he fumed to himself. While he was on the front line hard pressed to be honorable, Samuel was in the rear pillaging with abandon.

  “Then why drag that heavy chest everywhere?” Samuel pointed to the marks the trunk had left behind as if their existence were a mute testimony to what he was saying.

  “Sentimental value?” Alec interjected trying to deter Samuel’s fervor. He knew from experience that it was always better to keep a rational mind when dealing with Samuel’s talent for over dramatizing the facts.

  “I tell you she knows how,” Samuel replied adamantly before going to his bag to retrieve an old book from within. He came back to where Alec was standing with his pilfered prize. “Haven’t you noticed the way she treats that old trunk?” Samuel whispered conspiratorially as he opened the book showing Alec the writing of ancient Egypt, “It’s as though it were filled with treasure.”

  “Oh hell, you actually took one?” Incredulous, Alec stared as Samuel displayed one of Genevieve’s crusty old tomes. “She’s going to know you went through her things.”

  “She won’t even know it's missing. Trust me there are a hundred of these in that trunk.”

  The last thing Alec wanted to do was trust him. After all, it had been several conversations ending in “trust me” that convinced him it wasn’t ever a good idea. Frustrated with Samuel's lack of scruples when it came to his desire to find the treasure, Alec took the book from him and closed it saying, “It’s hardly proof… and even if it were, what difference does it make?”

  “It makes all the difference,” Samuel retorted, taking the book back. With as much indignation as a whisper allowed he exclaimed, “If it didn’t matter, why would she hide her knowledge of it?”

  “I can’t imagine.”

  Samuel opened the book to the page he’d been studying. “Look here,” he pointed to a symbol on the page that Genevieve had shown interest in the night before. “Why would she act as though it was new to her when it’s right here?”

  “I couldn’t say,” Alec’s voice held as much disinterest as he was capable of inflecting. Damn his hide anyway! His curiosity had indeed been piqued, but that hardly gave either one of them the right to go through her things. Samuel, true to form however, seemed to be immune to the implications of his actions.

  Alec could well imagine how Genevieve would feel about it. He had long since stopped questioning why he cared what she thought. Again, he pulled a hand through his hair in frustration. Tired of Samuel’s obsession with treasure and now treachery, Alec reached out again for the book and demanded in a loud whisper, “Let me see it.”

  “Yes, yes of course,” Samuel replied absently as he continued to scrutinize the page. It took a moment for him to look up and see Alec’s expression. Surprised at the anger he saw there. He pulled the book away from Alec’s grasping fingers and eyed him warily. “Why do you want it?”

  “So that I can return it,” exasperation laced Alec’s voice, “as any sane person would do.”

  “Are you implying that I’m not sane?” Samuel was taken back, seemly surprised by the insult.

  “Was I too vague?” Alec stated dryly. “Look at yourself, you have just violated her privacy, and stolen her property.”

  “Technically no… it was part of her dowry,” Samuel disputed the issue, “I’ve merely stolen your property, and I would prefer the term borrow.”

  “Then give me my book!” Alec lunged for it, “and technically… since my marriage has been annulled, so is my claim to her property.”

  “Then I call dibs.” Samuel pulled the book back from Alec’s grasp and placed it under his jacket for protection. “I think you should be rational about this… Just look at yourself. Since when do you act this way over a woo—man.”

  Alec grabbed Samuel by the shirtfront with both hands picking him off the ground. Samuel, still unwilling to let go of the book, used his free hand to hold on while he dropped his head and spun around. The tactic didn’t work out to well. Alec had him in a headlock before his next breath.

  Samuel was starting to turn an unnatural shade of red when Genevieve spoke up. “Am I interrupting?”

  Alec groaned. He could only imagine what she must think of the spectacle they made. At least the book was still concealed inside the blighter’s jacket. “No… not at all.” He said lightly while loosening his grip on Samuel’s throat.

  “Good morning, Lady Genevieve.” Samuel croaked while attempting to smile brightly at her. When he still couldn’t shake Alec he added in a hoarse whisper, “I say Alec, loosen up ol ’chap, you’ve won the match.”

  Reluctantly, Alec let go of the hold he had him in.

  “We’re just enjoying some exercise.” Samuel rubbed his throat, straightening his collar.

  Alec
decided it was best for now to go along with Samuel’s explanation of events. The last thing he wanted was for her to find out what the idiot had really done.

  “I was beginning to wonder if you’d spotted another specimen.” Genevieve replied as she observed the two.

  “Oh, yes the horny toad.” Samuel smoothed out his jacket while he glanced sideways, his eyebrows slightly raised. Alec returned the look with that of a warning.

  “Sorry to disappoint, but none sighted today.” Samuel turned back to Genevieve with a smile.

  “Well then, I’ll just leave you two to it then.” Genevieve responded with a glimmer of déjà vu’ shading the morning’s events as she left.

  “Put it back.” Alec pointed toward the tent after she had gone from view.

  “Your wish is my command, my liege,” Samuel bowed mockingly. “But if you think I’m riding double with you today, you’ve got another think coming.” He walked toward the curtain, pausing before it. “You might want to watch for her return since this is obviously important to you.”

  Chapter 10

  Unfortunately for Alec, she did return before Samuel had finished. Damning his luck, he stepped forward, blocking the path. “Genevieve may I have a word with you?”

  “Certainly, Sir Alec,” Genevieve accepted his invitation graciously as he led her further away from her enclosure.

  What was taking Samuel so long? Alec agonized. He hadn’t wanted to talk to her privately, avoiding it at all cost had been his original plan, but fate had intervened. He certainly couldn’t risk her catching the lecher in the act.

  Alec had no idea what he was going to say. He cleared his throat to speak just as Cupid bellowed for attention. Thankful for the excuse, he guided her toward the camels.

  “I think he wants some breakfast,” Genevieve smiled congenially as they walked.

  “Well… that’s what I wanted to talk to you about,” Alec nodded, grasping at straws. “I think that Cupid is well enough to carry weight again.”