Inhaling deeply, she gave him a slow nod, ready for his instructions. He would have a lot of explaining to do afterward.
“The photo,” Xander said flatly, his shoulders slumping in defeat.
Leila frowned, annoyance taking momentary precedence over the suffocating dread. A masked madman was literally threatening to kill them. They didn’t have time for this nonsense.
“What photo?”
“The one in your room. I asked you about it, remember?”
Leila sucked in her breath through her teeth. Why did he have to be insufferable now, of all times?
“He wants the papyrus, not a picture.”
“Leila, it’s the best I’ve got. Just go get it.”
She couldn’t miss the exasperation in his voice. He was being serious. She didn’t see how the picture would satisfy this lunatic, but if that’s what the man wanted, then she would do it and pray for the best.
“Your half hour starts now,” Black Robe reminded her.
She scrambled to her feet and ran.
Her mind raced faster than her legs, trying to make sense of the situation. That man knew way too much about them. Spies. Who was the spy? The Step Pyramid loomed above her, the crumbling remains of a Pharaoh’s dream. She hammered down the wooden planks of a boardwalk leading from the Step Pyramid to the parking lot.
Out of the corner of her eye, a dark form perched on a boulder near the base of the pyramid. She slowed to a stop. Judging from the man’s hat and dark uniform, he was one of the site’s security guards.
How could he not have heard all the commotion? Leila threw a glance over her shoulders to make sure no one was following her. She wasn’t supposed to get help, but now that the opportunity had presented itself, it seemed the right thing to do. Let the police handle it. She left the boardwalk and approached the resting watchman.
“Hello? I need help,” she panted as she neared the guard, who didn’t even acknowledge her. He remained slumped in his spot.
She repeated herself, but he didn’t budge. Her heart pounded. The clock was ticking. Frustration and desperation overrode any etiquette as she put a hand on his shoulder. The man slid out from under her palm and onto the ground in a heap, revealing black splatters of blood on his shirt. His lifeless corpse stared up at her with blank eyes. She gasped and jumped away.
Her stomach churned as she retreated backward. The situation took on a whole new level of seriousness. The man’s threat was real. Xander would be dead if she didn’t make it back. She whirled around and ran down the boardwalk as fast as her legs would carry her. All intention to get help evaporated. She couldn’t even ask Neal. Neal knew everything. What if he was helping the grave robber?
She didn’t stop running until she arrived at the dorm, images of the dead man flashing before her eyes. The house was eerily quiet with its other occupants sleeping soundly, blissfully unaware of the struggle happening outdoors. She lingered in the doorway, her lungs burning and her abdomen screaming in pain. She was used to the hard labor of excavating, but it had been some time since her last 5K run. She wanted to collapse on the spot.
An image of the corpse’s pale face, blood oozing from his nose, flashed before her eyes. With it, she recalled the man’s warning against asking for help.
With a deep breath, she stumbled into her room. Her hands shook as she rummaged through the desk drawer, not bothering to keep quiet. Maybe it would wake Emma up. But what if Emma was the spy?
I always make things worse. Just get back to Xander before something happens to him.
She found the broken frame buried under documents that had been carelessly tossed on top. Desperately hoping she wouldn’t return to another murder scene, she slipped the picture frame into her bag and headed back out to the desert.
When she arrived at the small gathering of thieves and their horses, she saw a small fire had been lit in the center of the group. They had been joined by several others in similar dress, their faces also hidden behind scarves. Gasping for air, she prayed she was on time.
“Well, we didn’t think you were coming back,” Black Robe drawled from his spot near the fire as she approached. She glanced between the men, searching for Xander, but she didn’t see him anywhere. How many of these guys were out there? Her eyes flitted to the ground. Xander lay on his side, hands and feet bound together. With a jolt of panic, she noticed he wasn’t moving.
“What… what did you do to him? I’m on time. I made it on time!” She marched up to Black Robe and shoved the picture frame into his hands. Ignoring the stares following her, she approached Xander, who made no sign of life. A small, dark line of blood trickled out of his nose.
Once again she saw the guard’s lifeless face, and her shaking knees gave out. After a moment to gather her strength, she heaved herself up enough to kneel beside Xander’s unmoving form. Her throat tightened. She was too late.
“He wouldn’t shut up,” Black Robe said from behind her.
She glared up at him as he turned the picture frame around in his hands, his eyes squinting.
Leila shook her head in exasperation. The picture idea had been stupid. What was Xander thinking? Now she was stuck with these guys. Any minute and she would have to start begging for her life.
To keep herself busy, she pressed two fingers to the side of Xander’s neck. Her heart fluttered with relief when his skin throbbed gently against her fingertips.
“This picture was in your room?” Black Robe barked.
“Yes,” Leila croaked, unable to bring herself to meet his gaze.
The man cursed under his breath. “I should have seen it.”
Leila blinked. He spoke as if he had already been in her room to search. She lifted her face to him. “What do you mean?”
“I was always suspicious you were hiding something.” He turned his back to her and snapped his fingers at his thugs.
Cold prickled over her skin. So he was the one who broke in. Who nearly killed her in a chokehold.
The men jumped up and began putting out the fire with heaps of sand and preparing the horses for their departure.
“Hiding what?” Leila pressed, only for her question to go unanswered. The thugs came over and picked up Xander, ignoring her. She struggled to her feet, every muscle in her body on fire.
“Where are you taking him?” she demanded breathlessly as they slung him over a horse’s back. Her heart pounded. She had nothing left to defend herself with. She was exhausted from the run, and her knife and pepper spray were long lost in the sand.
“He’s coming with us so we can keep an eye on him.” Black Robe glanced over at her and paused, one boot resting in his horse’s stirrup. “As are you. We need to talk.”
