Page 109 of Dangerous

“Not now, Mia,” Adam said, coming to stand beside her. “I’ll discuss this with you and Bouchard later. Right now we need to get the hell out of here.”

* * *

Adam was entertaining himself with thoughts of how he would thrash Bouchard when they passed out of the narrow corridor into the open air.

“This is where I leave you, brother,” Muhammed said.

“Where will you go?” Jibril’s voice sounded hollow, as if he were tempted to go with him.

“We have made a most excellent deal with the Turks. They need an armed escort when they go to collect their next pay caravan.” The man’s smile faded. “Go with them, Jibril. There is no future here. Assad is master, but of a dying empire.”

Jibril nodded with obvious reluctance and said something in Arabic before turning away.

“Thank you for everything you’ve done for my son,” Mia added, dropping a kiss on Muhammed’s cheek.

He bowed low, and disappeared into the night.

“Come,” Bouchard said, pushing past them. “I told Beauville only to wait until an hour before dusk.”

“What?” Mia demanded, hurrying after him. “Why? You didn’t tell me that.”

“Did you think I would risk the lives of all my men for you?” The Frenchman threw the words over his shoulder. Adam could see the man was frazzled and more than a little worried. He could only imagine what Mia had been up to in his absence.

“How far to the ship?” Adam asked, hoping to head off a squabble between the mercurial captain and his dictatorial wife.

“It is less than an hour and most of it easy walking,” Mia assured him, sliding her hand around his waist. He winced and she jerked her hand away. “What is wrong? Are you hurt?”

“It’s nothing.”

“But what happened? Should we stop so I can—”

“Darling.”

“All right, Adam.” She paused. “Is not Jibril wonderful?”

Adam snorted. “He is certainly something else.”

Mia frowned.

“Mia, we can’t stop to talk, my love,” he urged. “We can speak of everything when we are safe on the ship. I’d hate to go through all this and find no ship at the end of it,” he muttered almost to himself.

* * *

For a while, everyone walked in silence, the only sounds those of heavy breathing as they stumbled over rocks and shrubs in the near darkness.

Ahead of her Bouchard and Jibril were engaged in a conversation that was becoming increasingly heated.

“I’m assuming my stepfather paid you to do a job—a simple job?” Jibril’s voice sliced through the darkness.

“Shhhh!” Mia hissed.

Bouchard muttered something Mia couldn’t quite hear. She prayed they would make it to the boat before the arrogant young men began to fight in earnest.

Each step became a struggle and she realized they must be close to the shore because the path had become increasingly sandy. Ahead, the men’s voices rose again. She had to take three steps to every one of theirs in order to catch up.

“Jibril!” she whispered.

“What do you mean you don’t know?” Jibril demanded, as if he hadn’t heard her.