Page 44 of Sands of Sirocco
Before Noah could answer, they were interrupted by the shuffling sound of footsteps.An elderly priest in vestments approached them.He bowed his head at Ginger and she curtsied.
“Shall we begin?”the priest asked in broken English.He pointed them down the aisle, toward the altar.
Just like that?No organ, no bridesmaids.Flowers or family.
Just Noah.
It was perfect.Just as it should be.
Noah took his place beside her and removed his hat.The priest began the ceremony.As the words poured from his lips, she held back a smile.She’d never thought that her wedding would take place in a language she didn’t understand.Let alone in a Catholic church.
She met Noah’s eyes.“I don’t understand a thing, you know,” she muttered to him.
Noah leaned toward her and whispered, “It’s Coptic.The closest language there is to that of the Ancient Egyptians.But the only words that matter are the ones we say to each other.”
His words produced a shiver.The ancient language of the people of this land—a land she loved and felt forever tied to.Now more than ever.
As it came time for them to say their vows, the priest resumed his English.Noah clasped her hands as she said, “I, Virginia, take thee Noah, to be my wedded husband …”
Goosebumps rose on her arms as she continued.Noah’s eyes didn’t move from hers, and the sound of the words faded into the furthest recesses of her mind.When Noah spoke, she barely heard him.He’d whispered these words to her when he’d been fading in the desert.There was no difference between what he’d said then and now.Except that there was a witness.
Her heart and soul already belonged to him.
When Noah finished his vows, the priest held out his hand for a ring to bless it.
The corners of his mouth curved in a smile and he reached into his pocket.“Since you’ve absconded with my mother’s ring, I had to come up with one of my own.”The ring in the palm of his hand was a simple delicate gold band, with the ankh symbol part of the design.The ankh was sideways, the bottom of it melting away into the band.
Tears misted in her eyes.“I love it, Noah.”
She stared at the ring, their hands together.“With this ring, I thee wed.In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”Noah’s voice was clear as he slipped it onto her finger.
Her mind went back to Lord Helton’s threats.She couldn’t bear the thought of losing Noah.Not now.Not ever.
ChapterSixteen
The sharp knocking at the door of Noah’s room in Shepheard’s came while he slept.He awoke abruptly, disoriented, reaching for the gun he kept beside his pillow.The soft feel of sheets over his body brought him back to the present, and he stood.He pulled a pair of trousers on, then made his way to the door.
Lord Helton stood there.He didn’t wait for an invitation to enter and pushed past, his booted footsteps thumping against the floor.
Noah closed the door, then turned on a lamp.He blinked as his eyes adjusted to the light, reading the tension of Lord Helton’s posture.Damn.Had he learned of Noah’s marriage to Ginger already?At least Noah had had the sense not to bring her back to his room, however much he’d wanted to.“What—”
“They’ve taken her.”Lord Helton faced him.A look of wild desperation had filled his eyes.
Noah reached for his jacket.His shoulder ached where he’d been cut the night before, the sutures feeling restrictive.“Who?”
“Victoria.They’ve kidnapped her.During the riots.I didn’t realize she was missing for some time.I thought she was out at a late dinner.”Lord Helton paced, going toward the window of the room.He glanced out, then pulled the drapery tighter.
Victoria?Kidnapped?Noah felt a reflexive surge of ire.“Do you know who took her?”He buttoned his jacket, his fingers feeling steadier now.
“A group of Egyptian nationalists calling themselves the Brotherhood of the Scorpion.”
A spark of disbelief simmered to the surface of Noah’s sleep-addled mind.The Aleaqrab?The same group whose assailant had attacked Ginger.“How did you learn of it?”
“They delivered a note an hour ago.Along with a message in her writing confirming the veracity of their words.”Lord Helton pulled a folded paper from his pocket, his hand shaking.“They tied it to a brick and threw the note through a window of my home.”
If the Aleaqrabhad attacked Ginger and then kidnapped Victoria, it was no coincidence.Both acts appeared to have deliberate targets that would affect both him and Lord Helton.
Noah took the note from him.It was written in Arabic.
