Well, actually... Alec’s eyes narrowed on his friend’s back as he rode before him, the despot had sold him into slavery, just of a different kind. Especially when one considered that the whole reason for coming to this god-forsaken country in the first place was to avoid getting married.
Alec made a promise to himself right then and there. If he should ever get out of this predicament, he would return to England, assume his responsibilities and never again listen to that ill-begotten… vying for an adequate description, he glanced at the figure in question swaying precariously on his mount ahead of him… the traitorous bastard could barely stay seated on the camel he rode.
He sure as hell was never letting him handle it ever again. Alec glanced back again at his current “wife”, The Plague, and shuddered. She reminded him of a damn crow with her black garments flapping in the breeze. Hell, all the responsibilities he’d avoided thus far in his life were preferable to this.
Strands of a little ditty that Samuel was entertaining himself with drifted back on the wind, there was nothing he’d like to do more than strangle the man right now. The fool had even let his hat fall back from his head. It was left to dangle on his back while his copper-colored hair glinted in the sun.
The idiot would have sunstroke before long and Alec wasn’t even a bit inclined to save him from it. Worse yet, he wished it on him. Hell! He was only amazed it hadn’t happened yet. It would be among the highlights of this journey.
What a fool he’d been. He should have sold the piece of scrap to the old man at the card table for five quid instead of traipsing out into the middle of the desert to avoid his fate…
He felt like a puppet being toyed with, first the pressure to marry, and now to find a way out of the state. He could just imagine the look on his mother’s face if he were to introduce the Plague to her as his wife. The thought actually lightened his mood until he turned around again.
“Oh, God,” he groaned. He certainly had a better understanding of the saying… When choosing your demons, the known is better than the unknown.
Alec blew out an exasperated breath as he turned back around. The only thing left to him it seemed was to find out exactly what Samuel knew about the predicament he’d placed him in. If nothing else, he wanted to get a few things clarified.
He urged his mount forward, easily catching up with the drunken despot and whispered loudly. “Did you know they called her The Plague of Egypt?”
“Ho-ho, I’m impressed.” Samuel nodded. “Your understanding of their language is much improved since we started.”
“You’re not denying it?” Alec accused.
“Come now Alec, you really believe that?” Samuel looked at Alec with all the surprise his reddened eyes could muster. He was teetering on the back of the camel, the effects of the strong drink still apparent.
Watching him, Alec wondered for a moment if he would lose his seat, then a thought occurred to him. “This is because of the dancing girl in Amsterdam, isn’t it?” he charged.
“What?” Disbelief registered on Samuel’s face. “Really Alec, I’m appalled you’d even think so. I happen to like bearded ladies.”
“You married me off to The Plague of Egypt to get even, admit it.”
“No.” It was a statement, not a denial, more like a denial to admit denial.
Alec’s eyes narrowed as he considered him.
“Besides, I told you not to think of it as a marriage.” Samuel waved his hand in the air as if mimicking nothing, a paltry nothingness at that. “For God’s sakes man, it’s merely an act of transport. Once in England you can simply annul it, if that is even necessary.” He paused, as if contemplating the merit of this new idea and then continued, “I’m not sure the heathen practices of this country are even acknowledged by the laws of our courts. Unless of course... no.”
“Unless, what?” Alec said picking up conversation where he left it. He was truly exasperated now.
“Just don’t, you know?”
“No, I don’t know.” Alec emphasized the word “know” increasingly concerned that he did indeed know what his friend was getting at.
“C’mon man, you know!” Samuel leered at him. “Consummate it.” He chuckled as he urged his mount forward putting space between them, his laughter drifting on the wind.
“Bloody Hell!” The expletive was heartfelt. Alec glanced at the figure completely swathed in black that rode behind them and cringed. Oh God! How could this be happening to him?
Urging his mount forward he chanced yet another glance back at the woman riding behind him, his bride. His only recollection of her during the ceremony was that she was shoulder height, didn’t appear to be too heavy under all that covering, and that he’d been glad he hadn’t had to touch her and risk catching any diseases.
That was it… all he could remember of his wife, he thought disparagingly and now he was married to a bundle of shoulder height black cloth with the plague. God help him, he thought, as he tried to recall more. It was as if his memory had been encased in fog. Perhaps it was trauma or sunstroke?
~*~
The sun beating down on him was merciless and despite the breeze, the smell permeating the air was God-awful. Alec was only mildly surprised that the stench emanating from the camel he was riding on wasn’t attracting vultures.
The hulking beast seamed to read his mind and bellowed at the insult. In all fairness he allowed, smelling his shirtfront, he might be partially responsible for it. What he wouldn’t give for a bath or some shade! God, this land was ruthless, he thought disparagingly as he swallowed a sip of bitter water from a sheepskin flask he carried.
It was almost as hard to swallow as what Samuel had done to him. Alec still couldn’t believe how the bastard had sold him out, and to think… He’d actually been relying on Sam’s ability to charm a snake, which was why Alec now felt as though he’d been ensnared in its coils.
Alec continued to scan the horizon for a sign of the tribesmen that he feared would follow them from the camp. Dark shimmers seemed to dance in the distance as waves of heat played with his vision. It seemed he could conjure up the dark images wherever he looked, the illusion made worse by the prickling awareness of being watched.
Of course, he thought, looking back at the woman. He was being followed by a demon straight from hell. Perhaps that’s why he couldn’t shake the feeling.
They had ridden now in an easterly direction for hours, when it occurred to Alec that their “guide” followed them in the back and Samuel who was sleeping bowed over in the saddle, was leading them.
“Bloody Hell,” Alec swore, could something else possibly be so glaringly wrong? What an idiot he was to just barely notice. It must be the strain of the day. He hadn’t eaten anything but a mouthful of dry bread and Lord knows most of that he’d inhaled, literally. He felt lightheaded from the heat and had a sharp twinge in his neck. That he’d been peering over his shoulder at The Plague repeatedly surely hadn’t helped.
Cursing under his breath he rode forward and nudged Samuel. The braggart didn’t stir. Just plopped his head back and emitted a loud snore.
“For the love of God!” Alec leaned over and shook him.
“Aaugh… yeah, that’s it love.” Samuel murmured in his sleep.
Alec immediately released him in horror, leaving the sleeping man swinging crazily in the saddle. Alec reached over and caught him by the shirtsleeve before he fell. Forced to practically haul him up by one arm he yelled as loudly as he could while seriously contemplating strangulation. “Samuel, wake up!”
“Huh?” A bleary-eyed Samuel looked up at him. “Oh, hi Alec.”
The fumes from his breathe alone where enough to intoxicate someone. Alec choked and held him at arm’s length.
Groggily, Samuel smacked his dry parched lips together. “I don’t feel so well.”
“Good!” Alec smiled as he placed him, none to gently, back in the saddle. “Listen Sam, we need to talk to our…guide, about where the hell we are?”
“Because idiot!” Alec snapped. “I don’t speak the language.”
“What, you’re not English? Aahh… I told you that our guide speaks English… Could it be that the bashful groom is just scared?”
What the hell was the lunatic raving about? When had he told him? Alec wondered. Did he mean the fast explanation that he’d given him before dropping the little tidbit about marrying the…. The Plague?
“You told me she spoke several languages, you bastard and conveniently abstained from mentioning English.” Alec eyed him with more than mild irritation. “And for the record… I’m not scared of anything!” he added menacingly.
“Yes, but, English is a language,” he pointed out with his finger as Alec turned away from him in disgust. Samuel chuckled to himself, served him right. That would teach him to set him up with a woman with more facial hair than the two of them put together.
The continuous sway of the camel stirred his stomach. “Uugh... I don’t feel so good.” Samuel moaned.
Alec rode back towards the guide with purpose. It was well past time he took control of this situation. Just one question plagued him. How in the hell did a man go about asking a woman for directions?
“Do?” Alec’s voice squeaked. How the hell had that happened? His voice hadn’t done that since adolescence. “Umm…hmm.” He cleared his throat. “Do you have any idea where we are?” The harsh comment possibly could have been phrased better. He winced at his own words.
“Yes.” The voice was silken, a soft caress.
He was taken aback by the effect it had on him. He felt desire rush to his loins. Unbelievable!
How in the hell could he react like this? C’mon man, he said to himself. This was the crow with the plague. Remember? He’d been out in the sun too long. One incredibly short word uttered with the most erotic accent he’d ever heard and his insides turned to mush. Well no, quite the opposite in fact, his breaches felt tight. “Bloody Hell!” He cursed softly.
“Hum-um,” he cleared his voice and tried again. “I’ve noticed that we’ve been traveling without benefit of direction. If you know where we are—” he paused, aware he sounded like a complete idiot. This wasn’t what he intended when he decided to take charge of the situation. “Where are you taking us?” He blurted out.
“There is a small oasis at the base of the hill just over the rise. We’ll stop then.”
Her voice was so smooth it washed over him in ripples. It was almost difficult to comprehend what she was saying. Didn’t he have a question? Oh, yes. “Hum-um, should you not be leading us there?”
“The camels know where the next water is to be found, they will lead us.”
Like honey, her voice was like honey. What was he thinking…? Don’t even think about consummating this thing. A crow with the plague, remember... Camels? Well hell, at least now he knew who was in charge. The damned camels! Alec turned and watched astounded as Samuel fell off his.
Unbelievable!
Alec stopped, looking down on the fool in disgust. It took several tries to get the idiot back into the saddle, not an easy feat considering his state. “If you fall again, I’m just throwing you over the damn thing.”
“I owe you one.”
“You owe me more than one after today… Trust me.” Alec remarked as he straightened him in the saddle.
“Oh, have mercy, stop shouting.”
“I’m not shouting,” Alec yelled a little louder.
“Oh God,” Samuel groaned. “I think I’ve been poisoned.”
“Then someone beat me to it.”
“Alright, I confess, I could have probably offered the Sheik a note. It’s just the man was so desperate it seemed the perfect solution at the time. Just please… please stop screaming.”
“Since when did marrying me to the Plague of Egypt become a perfect solution,” Alec growled.
The only thing that prevented Alec from reaching over and shoving him off the camel was that the oasis appeared in front of them. It had at least fifty trees surrounding a pool in the center. A rocky hill rose up behind, creating a natural barrier from the harsh desert. It looked like a slice of heaven. They both watched in wonder as the camels took them to the water’s edge.
“Oh, thank God!” Samuel moaned as he slipped off the camel and fell face down in the grass.
Alec left him as he was. He was doing well not to strangle the man right now. He certainly didn’t need to tempt fate. He slid down and stretched his legs as the beast he’d ridden started to drink.
“Where would you like to set up camp?” The voice said behind him.
It sent shivers down his spine when he turned around to see the black clad figure right behind him. “Aaugh!” The noise escaped him as he fought the urge to jump back. He tried to hide the slip by clearing his throat. “Ah, how about here?” His voice sounded strange to his own ears.
“I think we’ll have a better night if we stay up on the ridge.” She pointed to an area on the hill above them.
Her arm looked like a wing unfolding with the scarves draped across it as she moved. He took another step away from her. The effect of her voice on him was at odds with the vision that she presented. The combination made his reaction all the more disturbing.
“We’ll have a better view of our surroundings and less snakes to worry about while we sleep.”
“You’ll get no argument from me,” Alec agreed.
“Me either.” Samuel rolled over. “I think I’m lying on a snake.”
“You are a lying snake.” Alec stalked off.
Chapter 6
Alec lay back in the grass, his head and shoulders supported by the base of a large tree trunk. The aroma of something wonderful tantalized his nose. “Aahh,” this was more like it, he folded his hands behind his head as he listened to his stomach rumble. The goat cheese he’d eaten when they started to unload hadn’t kept his hunger at bay. The scent of whatever she was cooking had his stomach growling in anticipation.
He looked up at the sky through the palm fronds high above him, surprised at the tranquil beauty. It certainly was not what he’d expected to find after his ordeal. He rolled the muscles in his shoulders as he made himself more comfortable. It had felt good to work them, even if it had been in an effort to remain calm.
He’d hauled everything the camels had carried up the slope, tirelessly working until most of his anger dissipated. He’d set the tent up, avoiding at all costs anything to do with the woman. Samuel hadn’t been good for much besides moaning.
Alec glanced over at Samuel who still lay in the grass. Now it seemed they were both doomed, Samuel to a horrid death from what he had consumed and Alec to a different kind of plague altogether. Alec looked away, the idiot deserved to have some kind of bloody disease after what he done to him.
On cue, Samuel raised his head from his comatose state on the grass and sniffed the air. “What’s that smell?” he winced. “Uugh… I’m going to be sick.” He dragged himself weakly into the bushes.
Alec smiled at the sound of retching. “Serves you right!” he laughingly said in the general direction of the quivering bush. “I’m going to see if The Plague needs anything.” There was only a groan in response. Alec climbed the narrow path leading to the ridge.
She was sitting in front of a small fire with her back to him. At the sound of his footsteps, she adjusted her headscarf. By the time he arrived, she was completely covered. Damn! What could she possibly be hiding? He wondered as he crouched down beside her.
It was the closest he’d dared get to her since their arrival. “Smells marvelous,” he inhaled deeply.
“Thank you,” she replied softly.
Her voice washed over him again, the effect almost hypnotizing. He watched almost paralyzed as she reached out to stir the contents in the large pot. With morbid curiosity he looked down at her hands afraid of what he might see.
Much to his great rel
ief they were not scarred or covered with sores. They were, well… perfect. He hadn’t really noticed women’s hands before now, but her hands were truly lovely. He also couldn’t help but notice how they gripped the ladle, her fingers so delicate… her movements so gentle. He felt the stirring in his loins again. Bloody Hell, what was wrong with him?
Do something else man! Alec ordered himself as he stood, running a hand through his hair. “Can I help with anything?” he asked, glad that his voice held.
“I could use more water,” she held a small clay pot out to him.
Alec spent his time walking to the pool inventing ways to get her to take the damn black covering off her head. When he realized what his mind was preoccupied with, he was appalled. What was wrong with him? You’d think he’d never seen a girl before.
He had to stop this nonsense. He busied himself with filling the pot, still so distracted by thoughts of the woman, that he was surprised when the mound, face down in the grass, spoke up.
“I don’t know if it’s a good idea to leave her alone with the cooking.” Samuel mumbled weakly.
“Why do you say that?”
“According to the Sheik, she burned down the whole village one day when she was left to tend the cooking fires.” He rolled over so that he was splayed face up across the ground.
“Really?” Alec noted that since Samuel had started to confess, it was like a river un-dammed, other truths just kept rushing out.
Samuel pulled himself up on an elbow. “They say she’s like Medusa.”
“Medusa… the one with snakes for hair?”
“That’s the one… Some say that if you look upon her, rather than turn to stone, the opposite will happen.”
“The opposite?” Alec’s brows rose.
“Yeah, the opposite” Samuel whispered conspiratorially, deciding to spill it all, “a man’s pride will shrivel up.”
“Pride?”
“You know…Pride.” Samuel glanced at him meaningfully.
“Oh, pride…” Alec nodded his understanding, “and the Sheik just offered up all this information while he was trying to marry the girl off.”
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