He would try a diplomatic approach this time. Make the peace, keep the peace. Even if it meant he would have to accept their terms—not that he had much of a choice. If he didn’t cooperate, he was certain Hawkins would give up on him, and then Jones would finish him off.
With his mind made up, Xander started slowly. “We’ve found Soliman.” Jones wasn’t going to be happy that Xander only thought he knew where Soliman was, but he would be persuasive.
Jones stepped forward, his arms dropping to his side, hands balled into fists. “Lies aren’t going to save you—”
Hawkins thrust her arm in front of the agent, stopping him. “Shut up, Jones.”
Xander winced against a stab of pain. “Before I say anything, I need you to promise me a few things.”
“We’re not making any promises to a traitor,” Jones spat.
Hawkins held up a hand again. “Jones, please.” Jones took a step back, and Hawkins returned her attention to Xander. “I’ll listen. But only if you give a sworn testimony.”
Xander locked his jaw. This was going to take time. But if that’s what he had to do… He nodded. “I’ll tell you everything. Under oath.”
“Good.” Hawkins gave him a smug look. “Let’s talk.”
CHAPTER 34
Time seemed to drag on, and Leila had no way of knowing how long she’d been in the room. It already felt like years. Even worse, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t shut her brain off. She couldn’t calm her racing pulse. She couldn’t stop the dread churning in her stomach. She couldn’t stop the ache in her heart as she thought of Xander.
Tears flowed freely, her mind taking her back to the fervent kiss they shared on the cargo ship, then back to Athens, to the stone wall where she and Xander had shared their last meal together. Maybe they shouldn’t have run from Jones. Maybe they would have fared better in his custody. Maybe she’d been wrong about everything. She couldn’t keep waiting like this, her mind tormenting her with all the situations she could no longer change. Overflowing with emotions, she stood and pounded on the door.
“Faris, you coward!” she screamed. “Where are you? Hiding? You better be. Because I’m going to kill you!” Her throat ached from crying and screaming. And her effort would probably be in vain. She was certain he couldn’t hear her. She was still deep inside the island. The guards might be near enough to hear, but what did they care?
She grabbed the handle and shook it, then pounded on the door a few more times. For good measure, she kicked it, then walked away, running her hands through her thick, salted hair. The tears threatened to burst out again, so she eased herself onto one of the moldy crates and cried into her aching hands. If only someone would come along and put her out of her misery.
Tap, tap, tap.
The sound echoed in the chamber, though too dull to be coming from inside her cell. She lifted her head, thinking it was footsteps. The tapping stopped and everything was silent again. For a moment.
Tap, tap, tap.
No, it wasn’t footsteps; it sounded like metal against metal. She stood and crept to the door, but the sound wasn’t coming from there.
Leila frowned, then called out, “Hello?”
The tapping stopped. Then, a small, tinny voice called out, “Who’s in there?”
Her mouth dropped open. She would recognize that voice anywhere.
“Soliman!” she gasped, turning around in circles. “Where are you? Are you okay?”
“Leila? Is that you? What in the name of Ra are you doing here?”
She followed the direction of the voice, leading her to a drainage hole in the floor near the left wall. The sound was muffled and had a terrible echo, but perfectly understandable.
“Are you okay?” she repeated.
“I’m fine, forget about me. You’re here! I… I can’t believe it. You’re not hurt, are you?”
“No.” She released a shaky breath. “I’m not hurt. I’m fine.” Fine? That was a huge, fat lie. She was anything but fine, though that was a conversation for another time. “You shouldn’t have come here on your own. You should have said something. There are a lot of people who would have helped you.” And there wouldn’t have been so many deaths. She wished she was in Soliman’s position—oblivious to the loss.
“Did you come alone?” he pressed.
Leila swallowed painfully. Before she could answer, Soliman continued, “Al-Rashid will see me tomorrow. I’m glad you’re here. We can end this together. He keeps his entire hoard on this island. I’ve seen it. This isn’t just a hideout, it’s a vault. Everything he’s ever stolen and traded. His collection is massive. This is our chance to take it all back. To put an end to his thievery.”
“I know. I’ve seen it too.” She took a deep breath. A part of her didn’t want to tell him about Drake, but the other part knew she had to. She couldn’t keep something like that from him. He had to know. But soon. If Soliman had already seen more of the island, then maybe he could reassure her of one thing.
“Did you see my mom and brother? Are they here?”
“Ah,” Soliman drew out the sound. “No. I’m afraid not. But Al-Rashid even has labs here. Archaeologists are working for him.”
She swallowed against the tight disappointment in her throat. “I saw.”
“Not only that, but Al-Rashid has plans to set off another bomb.”
“I know. Professor, they think you did it. They think you blew up the Egyptian Museum.”
“What? Me? That’s preposterous! It was Al-Rashid. You know he’s set me up.”
“I know. He sent me to get the Scrolls of Lysias, which is how I found your note.”
“Yes, of course you found the note. You see, once I realized what he was up to, I went to the archive and removed it. The scrolls have been destroyed. We don’t have to worry about anyone getting their hands on them. But that didn’t stop Al-Rashid. He’s the one who set off the bomb at the museum. I’ve seen the proof.”
“Really?” Leila gasped. That seemed too good to be true. “Proof?”
“Yes. I was so close, but Al-Rashid had me outnumbered and outgunned. He threw me in here. I haven’t left this room since. The guards once opened the door to toss me a bottle of water, but that was it. Leila, we need to get out. We can stop him before he hits his next target. He’s planted a bomb in London.”
