Page 118 of Sands of Sirocco
“And once we get to this Serapeum?”Ginger looked from Noah to Sarah.“Is there any plan to get Jack?”
What sort of a plan could there be?He didn’t want to worry her more than necessary.“I’m hoping they aren’t expecting us.Unless Victoria said something—”
“Which I maintain is entirely possible.I have no faith in that woman.”Ginger wiped her brow with her fingertips.
“But if she didn’t, they won’t know to expect us right now.Stephen is likely to be celebrating his triumphant return to society, and Osborne may still be looking for Sarah.Victoria maintained that Osborne was mostly alone there.And Jahi is dead.There may only be a handful of people guarding Jack, especially if he’s ill.”
A hesitant look crossed Ginger’s face.“But if we’re seen, they could kill him before we get close, Noah.”
“Which is precisely why you’ll be staying at a distance.I can’t sneak the three of us in anywhere.”The gelding’s ears pricked back and it stumbled in its steps.Noah surveyed the horizon.Nothing.The last thing we need is a skittish horse.
Sarah rode up on his other side.“Have you wondered at all why it is that they’re using the site of a major archeological find to hide their captives?”The canteen at her hip bounced lightly with each step of the mare.
“I’m not sure.Stephen and Lord Braddock were deep into the smuggling of antiquities, though.While Stephen’s deal with Lord Helton has resulted in the arrest of most of his associates, it wouldn’t surprise me if he’s still up to his neck in the smuggling trade in some way.”He rested his hands on the worn leather horn of the saddle, holding the reins loosely.Much as Sarah appeared to be trustworthy, he hesitated to tell her more than necessary or muse on hypotheses with her.
The heat of the day had started to climb into uncomfortable temperatures, and Noah settled into silence between the two women.Outside of an occasional pack of stray dogs and some flying buzzards, they passed no living creatures, the desolation of the desert giving him too much time to think.
What would it take to prove his innocence?
You’re not innocent.
But there was that gorgeous woman at his side, his wife.His chance at a future he now wanted so desperately that losing it would be soul-crushing.
Could he ever give her even half of what she deserved?
As they drew closer to the Serapeum, they stopped.Noah retrieved a pair of binoculars from his bag.There was nowhere to hide near here—the flat plain of the desert stretched before them.Their enemies had a similar disadvantage, though.In the wavy lines of heat rising at the horizon, Noah focused his attention on a tent pitched near the entrance to the Serapeum.If they had a guard watching at all, it was possible he took shelter from the sun in there.
He saw no one.
Noah wound the strap around the binoculars.“I’m going to walk from here.It will be the quietest way to get there.”He handed the binoculars to Ginger.“If I need you to ride in and help me, I’ll signal.If I’m not in your line of sight, I’ll send up two shots.But hopefully I can avoid that.”
Ginger nodded, and he wished he could see her beautiful face.But he could read the fear in her eyes easily enough.He wanted to comfort her, tell her all would be well.But a foreboding feeling hung in the stillness of the dry air, of sand and blood … and the ancient drumbeats silenced long ago in this valley of death.
Noah dismounted from the horse and gave Sarah the reins.Then he started forward on foot.
ChapterThirty-Eight
Astrong breeze whipped across Ginger’s face, cooling the sweat trails on her face and throwing sand into her eyes.She glanced in the direction Noah had gone, unable to feel settled.She could no longer see him through the binoculars.He’d approached a massive stone wall, then disappeared out of sight.
“You’re not entirely comfortable with his line of work, are you?”Sarah said, breaking her train of thought.
As she wiped her face, Ginger noticed the gnats swarming near the eyes of the mare.The poor creature had no way to easily repel them, but it didn’t seem to mind either.“It’s hard to feel that every time he walks away from me, it could be the last time I see him.”
“Yet you married him knowing that about him.”Sarah took a swig of water, swished it in her mouth, then spit it out.
Ginger wished she had a hat instead of the veil and shielded her eyes with her hand.The brightness of the sun was blinding.“I did.But I love him.I could hardly have avoided it if I wanted to be with him.”
“I suppose.”Sarah shrugged and pulled her face veil back into place.
Hadn’t Sarah said she was “crazy” about her own husband?Her remark was curious.“Why did you get married?”
Sarah laughed lightly, rolling her neck.Even with the burqa, she had the mannerisms of someone distinctly not native.“Mostly to prove to my father that I knew better than he did.”Her eyes glinted.“Turns out he might have been right.But, I don’t know.Even despite him being a bastard, I did more exciting things with Paul by my side than I ever dreamed possible.”
Ginger chewed on her lower lip.Jane Radford.Sarah Hanover.Even herself.They’d all struck out on their own.The results hadn’t been quite what they’d expected, nothing had been easy, and their dreams hadn’t been without sacrifice.
And then there were women like Olivia Hendricks and Lucy.Women who sacrificed what they wanted for what was expected and easy.
But they didn’t seem happy either.And they hadn’t really gotten what they wanted in the long run.
