Curse of the Pharaoh: A Brock Stone Adventure

A wild, high-pitched roar pierced the air. Stone turned around to see the leopard flying at him. Acting on instinct, he threw himself backward and drew his knees to his chest. As the leopard shot past him, he kicked out and caught the bit cat full in the midsection, sending it tumbling through the air and right into Balthus. Balthus screamed as the leopard savaged him.

Stone landed hard on his back. He rolled over, regained his feet, and ran for the door. He wished Gideon could have seen that kick. Dalha would have enjoyed the awkward landing. A pang of sadness pinched his throat at the thought of his old friends. He shook the pain away and kept running. He burst through the stern door and into the dark engine room. The mechanical roar of the engine was earsplitting.

“Trinity!” he shouted. Something flashed through the air. He ducked and the razor-sharp khopesh missed his head by inches. “Watch it!”

“Sorry. I thought you were Balthus.” Rose shrugged.

“He’s spending time with his cat. Where’s Trinity?”

Rose pointed to a ladder set in the wall and an open trapdoor above it. “You’ll come out beside the paddlewheel,” she said. “You’ll have to jump down and swim for it.”

“What about you?”

“I have to stay, or else Amir will get suspicious.” Rose forced a smile. “Besides, deep water terrifies me. I’ll hide down here, say I ran from the leopard. I’ll be fine.”

“But he’s a criminal,” Stone said.

“So am I. Or did you forget?” Rose planted a quick kiss on his lips. “Goodbye, Lord Rockwell.”

“Goodbye, Desert Rose. Sorry about before.”

“You did what you had to do.” Rose’s voice cracked. “Get out of here. If you are caught, all my hard work will have gone to waste.” She gave him a shove, then turned away fast.

Stone rushed to the ladder and climbed up to join Trinity. She stood clutching the rail and gazing at the ever-shrinking dock behind them.

“We’ll have to swim for it,” Stone said. “If we go now, the chaos will be a perfect distraction.”

Trinity blanched. “I can’t swim that far.”

“Just keep your head above water. I’ll get you to shore.”

Trinity nodded. Before she could change her mind, she turned, climbed up onto the rail, and made a graceful dive into the dark waters of the Nile. Before Stone could follow, he saw movement behind him. Balthus had climbed through the trapdoor and was charging at Stone, knife held aloft. His face was a mask of blood. Deep scratches drew angry red lines across his face.

“You will die!”

Stone seized Balthus by the wrist before he could bring his knife down. With his other hand, he grabbed the crime lord by the belt and lifted him over his head. Balthus realized what Stone intended. His eyes popped.

“Don’t do it! Please! I have money! I have girls… beautiful young… Aieee!” Balthus let out a bloodcurdling shriek as Stone threw him into the teeth of the giant paddlewheel.

“You can’t afford me.” Stone ran to the side rail and dived into the water.

Twenty minutes later, exhausted and waterlogged, Stone and Trinity crawled ashore half a mile upstream of the docks. The Sawyer had continued on its way, with the guards on shore none the wiser.

Shoulder to shoulder, they rested against a palm tree and regained their breath. Soon, Trinity’s ragged gasps turned to shallow laughter.

“What’s so funny?”

She pointed at his face. “Your beard.”

His hand went to his chin. His false beard had come half off.

“It looks like you’ve got a wet rat clinging to your chin.”

“I have to admit, I have looked worse.” He reached to remove the beard, but Trinity pushed his hand away.

“Let me do it.”

“Thank you. Very kind.”

With one vicious yank, Trinity tore the beard free. It felt like someone had ripped his face off. Stone put his hand to his cheek to make sure he had any skin left.

“That hurt.”

“Good. I owed you for that nonsense at the club.” She grinned wickedly. “Now the mustache.”

Stone didn’t bother to argue. If it made things better between them, it was a small price to pay.

The sound of hooves caught his ear. A few seconds later, figures appeared in the dark. A lanky man with red hair and an attractive blonde woman in a dress. They were riding camels. Behind them, another rider led two more camels.

“Alex?” Stone said. “What is this?”

“This is the transportation Rose arranged.” Alex introduced Iko, who helped them mount up and guided them back into town.

As they approached their hotel, they drew more and more odd looks. When they dismounted, two passing women flashed scandalized looks at Trinity. She looked down at her damp clothing, gasped, and tried to cover herself with her arms.

“Stone, give me your jacket.”

“I left it in the river. It was weighing me down.”

“Alex, I need your coat.” Panic rang in Trinity’s voice.

“Whatever for? I think your outfit is lovely.”

“Alex!” Constance’s warning tone was all the encouragement he needed.

What a sight they made. Stone in his sodden clothing, and Trinity dressed in harem pants and a man’s jacket. They hurried to their rooms, chased by laughter and scandalized comments.