Page 34 of Sands of Sirocco
Outside, mild temperatures welcomed her, a warm breeze sending a tendril of her hair across her eyes.She smiled and hurried down the stairs, gripping the handrail.She waited for a motorcar to pass, then crossed the boulevard, the clopping of horse hooves behind her.
Walking into the gardens at Ezbekieh, Ginger studied the split in the path before her.If Noah wanted her here, she had to trust he would find her.The gardens were among the most beautiful in Cairo and faced Shepheard’s.They also teemed with soldiers.The YMCA had set up a complex in the gardens to keep the soldiers occupied.The area included an open-air theater, skating rink, restaurant, cinema, and a swimming pool—and loads of other entertainment.
Both here and eight miles north in Zeitoun, the organization had worked tirelessly to give a wholesome alternative to the draw of the nearby Wazzir district of Cairo.Ginger wrinkled her nose.The epidemic of venereal diseases had been terrible among the soldiers.When the matron of the hospital where she’d worked wanted to give a nurse a punishment, it often meant an assignment to the VD wards.
Ginger inspected the landscape as she walked, greeting the couples she passed.It wasn’t difficult for the young English women of Cairo to find suitors these days.She crossed a bridge over a stream, then took a winding pathway through lush tropical plants, tall palm trees, and spacious lawns.
Still no sign of Noah.
Where was he?
The note should have been more direct.She wished he’d given her some clue where to meet him.
Someone bumped past her, moving at a rapid speed.A flash of white gleamed in the moonlight—an Egyptian wearing the traditional loose-fittinggalabeyahtunic.The wearer was a tall man with broad shoulders, who glanced back.He wore a turban, and a face veil covered his mouth and nose, leaving only a slit for his eyes.It had to be Noah.
She followed closely.The path wound at a curve to a more isolated area.It made sense he’d want to greet her out of the view of others, but she’d nearly lost sight of him.
A firm hand gripped her by the elbow and she stopped.Noah stood behind her, dressed in his uniform.Her joy at seeing him was replaced with fear.She looked uncertainly in the direction she’d been heading.
“Where are you going?”Noah’s voice was clipped, his dark-blue gaze following hers.
“I-I thought I was following you.”Her throat went dry.“Your note wasn’t the clearest.”
Noah’s brows furrowed, then his hand slid up to her bicep, pulling her closer to his side.“What did the note say?”
“Ezbekieh.”Now she felt foolish.Was it possible he hadn’t sent it?
Noah shook his head slowly.“I gave the concierge a note to give to you.But it was lengthier.”His fingertips had unbuttoned the holster of his sidearm.
“Then why are you here?”Ginger stepped back.
“Because I saw you leave.Naturally I was curious.”Noah narrowed his gaze.“And now I’m even more curious.Wait here.”
Ginger stayed behind while Noah moved forward, gun drawn.As he slipped out of view, Ginger held her breath.Whom had she been following?
More frightening still, who had replaced Noah’s note?
Someone had intended to waylay her in the garden.
A muffled cry broke the stillness.The sound of a scuffle followed.
Despite Noah’s instructions, Ginger rushed toward him.As she rounded the corner, Noah and the Egyptian came into view, caught in a struggle.Blood dripped down Noah’s arm, pooling on the cuff of his jacket.“Noah!”A knife lay on the path between them.
Ginger stooped for the knife and grabbed it, then ran toward them both.
The Egyptian looked at her.In his distraction, Noah threw his fist at the man’s nose.The Egyptian stumbled back, holding his face.Blood stained the face veil.Then the man turned and crashed through the hedges, fleeing.
Ginger ran to his side.“What on earth did he do to you?”
Noah winced, then replaced his sidearm.“As always, the company you keep is marvelous,rohi.”The tear of endearment he’d chosen for her, meaningmy soulmatein Arabic,made her heart settle, even as he removed the knife from her hand.
He wrapped the knife in a handkerchief and put it in the inside pocket of his jacket.“But thank you.Remind me in the future that you’re more useful in battle than I give you credit for.You looked like a wild warrior come to murder.One would never suspect such an elegant woman of such fury.”
She suppressed a laugh despite the gravity of the situation.Noah’s sarcastic demeanor was among the things she loved about him.The path was littered with the debris and branches of the shrubbery that had been broken in the Egyptian’s flight.“Are you going after him?”
“No, he’s gone for now.And I’m not about to leave you after that.”Noah’s eyes clouded.“There was something familiar about the man, even with that face veil.”
The hedge where the man had fled was still.The whole incident had been so fast, she’d hardly wrapped her mind around what could have been.Who would want to attack her?
