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Clive and his men had ridden for three days to find the valley of the Medjai, and Clive was beginning to think that he would never see civilization again. It had never hit him before, the vast amount of sand that made up the Sahara desert. There was absolutely nothing as far as the eye could see, and he began to think that Zuhn had led them astray. They were plodding up a large sand dune early in the morning, when Zuhn stopped at the top, pointing down at the beginnings of a valley. "That is where you will find the Medjai," he stated. Clive's heart leapt with joy. Finally, he would be revenged! "Then let's get my fiancée and leave this sand-trap." He began to walk his horse forward, but Zuhn stopped him. "There are sentries along the valley! Do you wish to alarm them?" "Of course not!" "Then stay here. I shall take care of them and return to you." Clive gave Zuhn a hard look. "All right, you do that. But see that you don't double-cross me, or you won't get the rest of your money." Zuhn smiled grimly at him. "I would not betray you, for it would be my great pleasure to see the death of these Medjai, especially their leader." Zuhn clucked to his horse and trotted down towards the valley. Ardeth and Elizabeth had risen leisurely after their passionate night, saying very little, for this morning Ardeth was to tell the council and his people that Elizabeth was here to stay. They washed up and got dressed prior to Eleth waking up, sneaking in a kiss or two, before Ardeth left the tent. Elizabeth gave Eleth a bath and dressed him in clean clothes, combing his unruly tangle of curls just as Anara spoke outside the tent. "Elizabeth? Are you ready for breakfast?" "Yes, just," replied Elizabeth, trying to catch Eleth as he went running out to see Anara's sons. Elizabeth walked outside the tent door, and then the two women herded the four boys towards the eating area. They sat down to eat and Elizabeth noticed all the condescending glances she was receiving from the women, as they quietly whispered to each other. She turned to Anara, not knowing what to say. "Do not worry about things," said Anara as she patted Elizabeth's hand. "Ardeth will make everything turn out well." Elizabeth drew a deep breath. "I hope so, Anara." As they spoke, they saw Ardeth and Bakkar leading the council of men into the meeting tent. Ardeth glanced at Elizabeth and gave her a quick smile, then turned back to the elders. Elizabeth said a silent prayer that things would work out, and then she and Anara continued eating, making sure their sons ate their meals before going off to play, and quietly talked to each other as the morning wore on. Zuhn returned to Clive, smiling triumphantly. "All is secured. The guards will move no more." "Good," said Clive. "Everyone let your robes cover you up as much as you can," he said as he shrugged into his own disguise. When he finished, he looked around at his group of men, and they all looked like weary travelers, needing a place to rest. "Now let's go." They trotted quickly towards the valley, winding their way around sand dunes and loose rocks, trusting Zuhn to lead them. When they got to where the first sentry lay still in death, they slowed their horses to a walk, in case Zuhn had missed a stray Medjai guard. Soon they came to the point where they could see the tents in the distance, and vaguely make out the shapes of people as they moved in the mid-morning sun. Clive smiled to himself, thinking that the past five years had been a hell he never wanted to go through again, but that justice and a sweet reward would make up for it in the end. Ardeth and the council of elders entered the tent and took their respective spots as they sat in a semi-circle on the ground. There were a few moments of silence as Bakkar and the elders sized Ardeth up, noting the confident tilt of his chin, and a certain peacefulness in his steady gaze. Bakkar looked to the elders and they nodded their heads at him, signaling him to start. "Ardeth, it has come to the attention of the entire village that you have shared a tent with this Englishwoman." "You already know that we have joined as one long before this. You have seen my son," said Ardeth evenly. "I have brought him forth to be the next Medjai chief and as the law states, I must marry his mother." "My lord, you know that will not be acceptable," spoke up one of the elders. "You cannot marry a foreigner and so, your son will not be allowed to lead our people." "Where does it state in the law that I cannot marry a foreigner?" asked Ardeth. The elders looked to each other in confusion. "It has always been, that the Medjai keep within our own people, to keep the bloodline pure," frowned Bakkar. "And what of the warriors who lay with the harlots in Cairo? They are not Medjai, and yet, I am sure we have offspring by them," returned Ardeth coolly. "But no one wants to marry a harlot!" exclaimed another elder. "Elizabeth is not a harlot, and she will be my wife." "Leave her and the boy in Cairo, and you can see them as often as you wish," suggested an elder. "No. She stays here with me, as does our son," replied Ardeth. Bakkar could see that the young chief would not be as easily swayed in this matter, as he had been when they had almost made him marry Anara. "My lord," he said carefully, "perhaps if you were not our leader, it would not matter so much. But you have a duty to the people..." "...duty to the people!" exclaimed Ardeth. "I have done my duty as my father has, and his father before him! There is nothing in the law that states I have to marry one of my own. Elizabeth is the one for me. We already have one son and there will be another." "She is with child?" asked Bakkar anxiously. "I have lain with her several times since we met again in Cairo. There is no doubt in my mind that soon my son will have a brother." Ardeth looked around at the bewildered faces of the elders, seeing the uneasiness in their eyes, and frowned. "What is it that frightens you so about Elizabeth?" "She is one of the despised foreigners!" spat Bakkar. "She will betray us somehow! Do you think she can live the fancy life of the wealthy and suddenly give it all up to live as we do, here in the desert? She will enjoy it for a while, then she will long to go home, and force you to make a decision, whether to stay with your people, or follow her!" Ardeth sighed. "She will not do that. She has no home anymore. She is an outcast among her own people." "She will be an outcast here," replied another elder. "Ardeth, the people will not accept her. If you marry her, it will divide us, leaving us weak and vulnerable." "The people would accept her," started Ardeth slowly, "if the council would accept her first." This statement quieted the elders as they looked to each other for help. Ardeth was tired of arguing and decided to lay down the ultimatum. "Bakkar, elders, there will be no more discussion. I understand your concerns, but you must trust me when I say, that she will never betray us, and I will never leave my people." He could still see the doubt in their eyes and reminded them of his position. "I am the lord of the Medjai, and Elizabeth will be my wife." "I will not perform the ceremony," said Bakkar sullenly, as a last ditch effort. "Then we shall speak our vows before Allah under the stars. She will be my wife." Ardeth's voice rang out strong, leaving no room for debate, as the elders sat there in defeat. There was nothing more to be said, so Ardeth stood up, intending to leave the tent. "My lord, wait," Bakkar's voice stopped Ardeth in his tracks. "Think of what you are doing...." A scream from outside the tent made Bakkar's blood run cold. "Ardeth!" It was Elizabeth's voice. Ardeth quickly went out into the compound and froze at the sight that met his eyes. A group of hard-looking men had their horses in a semi-circle, their rifles pointed towards the Medjai warriors, and in the center stood Elizabeth, with Clive behind her, holding her tightly to him and pressing his gun against her temple. Clive saw Ardeth and turned towards him. "Well, the black devil is still alive. I should have had you hung that day." Ardeth slowly walked a few paces towards Clive. "Don't come any closer, old boy, or I will kill her," Clive' said, his voice as cold as ice. Ardeth stopped as his warriors aimed their rifles at Clive and Elizabeth. "Let her go," he said softly. "Oh, now there's a switch!" said Clive sarcastically. "I distinctly remember asking you to let her go last time we met, and what did you do? You took her from me, got her pregnant, left me and my men out here to die...and you want me to let her go? Sorry, but she comes back with me. I've got five years of my life to make up for, chasing her all over the world, and since I can't have your death to appease me, Elizabeth will be my reward for having been put through hell." Ardeth looked at the fear and repulsion in Elizabeth's face and made a decision. "Let the girl go, and you can have me." "Ardeth no...!" Elizabeth's cry was cut short by Clive's arm tightening around her throat. "Tempting, very tempting, but I've got to teach her a lesson, and as much as I would enjoy killing you, I think it would be a far better torture for you to know that she will live with me and bear my sons." As if on queue, Eleth came running from behind the tent, saw his mother with a gun at her head, and flew to her. "Mummy!" he cried as he sped towards Elizabeth. Ardeth intercepted him and picked him up, kicking and screaming for his mother. "Eleth, be quiet!" commanded Ardeth harshly. Startled by the tone in his father's voice, Eleth stopped crying, and turned towards his mother, hiccupping softly. Clive looked at Eleth, a malevolent sneer on his lips. "So, that's the little bastard, eh, Elizabeth? Looks exactly like his father, and since he does resemble his father so much, he can just stay here and live in the desert." "Clive, please!" begged Elizabeth. "Shut up, Elizabeth!" He jerked against her throat, making her choke. Ardeth's eyes blazed with fury, wanting desperately to rush to her aid, but he kept control of himself as he tried to reason with Clive. "We will follow you and hunt you down," grated Ardeth. "No you won't, for if you do, I will kill her." "Then you will have no reward, and the last five years will have been for nothing," stated Ardeth. "All right, you've got me there. But I could hurt her, and you wouldn't want to be the cause of it, would you?" Clive saw some of the anger leave Ardeth's eyes, and knew he would back down. "Look at it this way. You have your son, and I have my future wife. We both get something out of this deal. Now, if you will excuse us, we really must be going..." Clive began backing up towards his horse, keeping Elizabeth between himself and the rifles pointed at him. He loosened his hold on Elizabeth but kept the gun aimed at her chest. "Get on the horse, Elizabeth." Elizabeth gave Ardeth an anguished look, and climbed up on the horse. Clive quickly climbed up behind her, keeping the gun on her at all times. "Cheerio," he said as he wheeled his horse around and thundered out of the compound, with his men behind him. The Medjai warriors took aim at the backs of the bandits, but Ardeth put his hand up to stop them. "Do not shoot," he commanded. Bakkar came over to Ardeth as the dust from the fleeing horses settled. "Well, Ardeth, it looks like Allah intervened for us and made our decision. Your son stays, but the Englishwoman goes." "Mummy!" wailed Eleth, stretching his arms towards the distant horses. Ardeth looked at Eleth. "Do not worry, my son. I will bring your mother back." He then called for Anara, who came quickly over to him. "Anara, take Eleth to your tent." He handed his sobbing son off to her, and turned to his warriors. "Saddle the horses. We ride out to kill some bandits." Ardeth began to walk to his tent to get his scimitars when Bakkar stopped him. "Ardeth, let her go. She will be among her own people now. It is the will of Allah." Ardeth rounded on the elder. "No, it is not the will of Allah, and I shall rescue my wife." He stormed off to his tent, while Bakkar sighed and shook his head.
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