Sands Of Passion

Sands Of Passion

By Janice Greenlee

Copyright 2011 Janice Greenlee

Smashwords Edition

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Chapter One

Rainwater streamed down the glass of the third floor window where a young woman stared out at the lighting streaking through the late afternoon sky while thunder rumbled close by causing the building to shudder. The storm had moved in quickly, causing people in the street below to scurry into store fronts or doorways to avoid the rain and risk of electrocution. The woman had come in about half hour before the downpour began to submit her article for the weekly column she wrote, glad she had beat the unruly weather.

Golden blond hair frizzed out of the thick braid, which was her typical style, from the humidity in the air and she was thankful it hadn’t gotten wet otherwise her backside would have been soaked until she went to bed that night. Light blue eyes blinked against the brightness from a stream of light that seemed to strike close by. Shaking her head to bring her senses back to the activity in the office, she picked up the article from her desk and walked into the editor’s office.

She was aware of the stares she got when she walked across the room. Since she was the only woman in the office she knew the men were, well, men. That’s how she felt. She was use to men treating her differently. Here it was because she was a writer, but also because the men enjoyed looking at her though she didn’t understand why. Her father called her beautiful but she felt she was far from it, comparing herself to an old spinster schoolteacher she had as a child.

If these men only knew what she really wanted to do with her life, they would be quite surprised. She kept her private life well away from the office as she really didn’t wish to associate with these people when not working, not that she was unfriendly, just that she didn’t have much in common with these men. Her friends who knew her well were not surprised by her wishes. They knew that she had gone to university in Boston to study archeology which was quite a feat for a woman. Desire to go on a dig with her father was what drove her and this job at the newspaper was just to help make ends meet until her father returned or, sent word for her to join him on his latest expedition.

It had been about five months since she had heard from him, which wasn’t unheard of, but she was getting worried. He was getting older and she worried about him when he was in the heat of the rainforest or in the Egyptian desert. Usually a short letter or telegram would arrive every few months to let her know he was still out there searching for his next big discovery, but not this time. She hadn’t even heard from her father’s assistant, Henry.

Standing at the door of her editor, John Flynn, she knocked quietly. Turning to look back into the main office, she saw that every man turned quickly from her direction to look at papers, or filing cabinets or anything that caught their eye to avoid being caught staring. One man, James who was walking through the large office was trying so hard to look at something he didn’t see the pile of papers on the floor and tripped over them. Stifling a giggle, the woman watched as the man went sprawling across the floor and the papers flew in every which direction.

She jumped when a booming baritone voice from the other side of the door shouted for her to enter, though she should have been used to it by now and turning the knob on the door, she pushed it open and stepped in to the inner sanctum as it was referred to around the office. Heavy oak bookcases lined the walls, filled with books, folded up newspapers, magazines and loose papers. Several stuffed animals, which once were alive, also lined the shelves as Mr. Flynn was an avid hunter. To attest to that, a large stuffed boars head was mounted to the wall above the man’s head.

When the latter raised his head to look up at her, she had to stifle another giggle as she thought how much he resembled the boar above him. The only thing he was missing was the tusks protruding from his mouth. Instead, a cigar seemed to be permanently wedged out from one side of his mouth as he spoke from the other.

Jenny Adams, he said factually, though smiling. Is it that time of the week already?

Yes sir, she said, stepping up to his desk. Proudly, she laid the small stack of papers on the desk in front of him before she sat in the leather chair that faced him. This is the end of the current story. I already have the next story completed. I just want to proofread it one more time before I start submitting the chapters.

Good. You bring a lot of readers in with your stories and breaking them up into pieces keeps them buying more papers each week. Has there been any news on your father?

Shaking her head she sighed, No. I’m trying not to worry but this is the longest he has been out of contact.

Jeremy will surface. He always does, said John, leaning back in his chair and folding his hands behind his head, sweat soaked through the underarms of the dark blue shirt he wore. I’ve known him a long time. He’s strong and knows what he’s doing. But we all worry when he is away. Especially since Elizabeth….

He didn’t finish since the issue was still so fresh, but Jenny finished for him, Died.

Missing her mother was getting easier to deal with as time went by. Everyone who knew them would say ‘she’s in a better place’ since the woman had suffered before her death. It was a disease she had picked up when she had gone with her husband on his dig in Turkey. It had settled in her lungs and she was in so much pain before she died that the doctor had given her morphine to help, but it didn’t seem to work much at the end. She had coughed up blood continuously in the last days, and since it was contagious, Jenny didn’t get to say goodbye to her mother as she had been quarantined for the last two weeks of her life.

John Flynn knew that Jenny would follow in her father’s footsteps even as a child. She was always digging in the yard, or somewhere odd. One time they found her digging in the cemetery at the end of the city, not for bodies, but for things people had dropped during funerals. She had found a ring that a woman had dropped at her husband’s funeral several years previously. The woman was so happy to see the ring again that she tried to give Jenny a twenty dollar gold piece but the girl wouldn’t accept it saying proudly it was practice for her future. As a sign of her appreciation the woman had left a grant to the University of Jenny’s choice as a reward since her parents didn’t really make a lot of money to send her.

Your father will call for you soon enough, Flynn said puffing on his cigar. That diploma won’t burn a hole on your wall. It will go to good use soon. I see great things in your future.

Thanks, she said smiling. I’m heading out as soon as the rain lets up.

Come for dinner? Glynis is making lamb stew.

Thanks anyway, she said. I have some writing to do. I’ll just curl up with some paper and pen in front of the fire.

Nodding and knowing the girl too well, You know where to find us if you want a real home cooked meal.

Rising, she made her way around the desk, kissed his cheek that was furthest from the cigar and then left the room. He watched her leave, but not for the reason the rogues in the main office watched her. She was his goddaughter and he knew that losing her mother was rough and then her father leaving right afterwards was really hard on her. He hoped that his dear friend Jeremy was safe, at least for the girl’s sake.

John Flynn and Jeremy Adams had met while at university together in Boston and became fast friends. After their first year, they moved out of the boarding house they roomed in and rented a small house near the school where they could study privately without the other boarders disturbing them. They both studied hard and both held part time jobs, John at the local newspaper office and Jeremy at the library on campus. In their third year they were introduced to two young ladies that worked for the university as secretaries, Glynis and Elizabeth. At first the women thought the men were boring as all they did was study and work, but when the first dance of the year rolled around, they were taken in by their charm and grace on the dance floor.

Towards the end of their last year, they both purposed to the ladies and a double wedding was planned to be held at the chapel on campus a week after graduation. Jeremy and Elizabeth went on to London after that so he could intern for an archeologist at Oxford and John and Glynis settled in Philadelphia where he actually lived and he took a job at the newspaper there.

After Jeremy finished his year of internship, they moved to Philadelphia also to be near their good friends though his time there was short as he was on the path to becoming a well know archeologist. Elizabeth stayed home most of the time, John and Glynis keeping her company. She would joke that John was her second husband since she was with him more than her own husband. Then when Jenny came along she devoted her life to raising her with the help of John and Glynis, who couldn’t seem to have any children of their own. Elizabeth was proud of her husband and didn’t mind him tramping off half way around the world to discover old relics and once Jenny was off to university herself, the woman was eager to join him as it let her see different parts of the world. It was a blow to everyone when she became sick, not just to her husband and daughter who loved her, but to John and Glynis who were family also.

The storm had been quick moving and by the time Jenny was ready to leave a half hour later, the rain had stopped and left a fresh aroma in the air, though it left the road a muddy mess. Luckily she walked down the wooden sidewalk in front of the newspaper building to the next block, turned left and went down another block past the dressmakers shop and the grocer to the small house that she lived in, all along not having to leave the wooden sidewalk at all.

After her mother had passed away, she couldn’t live in the big house when her father was gone, so she took the money she made from the newspaper and moved into this small house which was cozy enough for her. In the year eighteen eighty-two not many women worked for a newspaper or had been schooled in archeology and Jenny Adams was very happy that she was an independent woman doing both.

Going into her bedroom, she slipped out of her dress and shoes and into her father’s thick robe which still smelled like him. She combed her hair out of the single braid, brushed it out and then braided it up into two braids before going out to the parlor to sit in front of the fire which she had stoked before changing. Pulling some paper and a pen from the side table, she then sat and stared into the fireplace as the flames changed from blue to red to orange, dancing merrily on the pieces of wood.

Absently she ran the edge of the feather of the pen back and forth across her lips as she watched the flames and thought of her father. He had wanted a son to carry on the family name and business. When Jenny was born he was happy he had a girl but a girl couldn’t go out on digs in the middle of nowhere. He and her mother had tried to have more children but it never seemed to happen. As Jenny grew up, she showed her father how interested she was in archeology and when she made it to university he was very proud of her. He had told her when he left on the current expedition he would send for her, but he hadn’t written since he left.

Shaking her head back to the present, she made a mental note to go to the post office the next day to see if anything had arrived, telling herself if she hadn’t heard from him by the end of the week, she would go find him. Mr. Flynn wouldn’t be happy with her but she had enough stories to keep him happy for a while. Perhaps while she was on the trip, she could come up with more stories.

Dipping the pen into the ink, she began to write where she had left off the previous night, the story of a cowboy in Montana country where he fights with Indians and deals with coyotes on a cattle drive. When she wrote her stories, she would become absorbed in them, putting herself in the characters place, living their lives. Remembering the stories her father would tell her she would combine those stories with her characters and she had come to really enjoy writing, almost as much as digging to find artifacts.

Traveling would help bring stories out of her as she spoke with people and their lives. Knowing she needed to stay near home, she would travel on the train to other states just to see how other people lived. The big city of Philadelphia had always been her home, but she longed to travel to other places, and since her job afforded her the ability to travel for weeks at a time, she seized the opportunity. The furthest west she had been was St. Louis and from there, she rode a riverboat down to New Orleans and back to St. Louis before returning on the train. Stories were stored in her brain or on paper for the future for her to pen when she needed them. She doubted that some men even had the amount of stories to tell as she had tucked away.

As the fire died out, she put away her writing and headed to bed, not being stingy with her wood, just not wanting to put any more if she was heading to bed in a little bit anyway. There she said a small prayer for her father, where ever he was, hoping he was safe and finding all the antiquities his heart desired.

Friday, after she had been to the post office and the telegram office and found nothing from her father, she went around to her house and picked up her writing. She carried the thick stack of paper tied up in a leather envelope to the newspaper office where she marched into Mr. Flynn’s office without knocking. A gasp could be heard from behind her as the men watched her interrupt the boss in the inner sanctum.

Closing the door behind her with a sigh, she laid the paper laden envelope on John’s desk.

What’s this? he asked gruffly pulling the ever present cigar from the side of his mouth and held it between two tobacco and ink stained fingers.

Six months worth of stories, Jenny answered proudly. I have decided to go find my father.

John Flynn looked up at her in shock, stood, letting his fists land in a loud thud on the desk and shouted, What?!

Mr. Flynn, I need to find my father. It has been too long without a word from him or from Henry. Even if it’s just a quick line to say everything is ok, it has never been this long. I need to make sure everything is alright.

John nodded his head in agreement, I understand, but I don’t think you should be going by yourself. Let me hire a man to go with you.

No, thank you. I want to take off tomorrow for New York on the train and there is a ship ready to leave on Monday for Alexandria. There is no time to wait for you to hire someone. I’ll hire a guide when I get there to take me to the pyramids where Father is digging.

Mrs. Flynn will string me up if anything happens to you, the man before her said though he knew she was serious about not waiting.

I’ll be careful. Tell her I insisted on going, which I am, but I would suggest not telling her until tomorrow after the train leaves, she smiled deviously.

The rotund man came around the desk and gave her a hug. I want you to wire me as soon as you get there. I also want you to wire me every week so I know you are okay. If I don’t hear from you I will send someone after you.

Going to his desk, he unlocked a drawer and pulled out a steel box. Pulling the fob watch from his pocket on the ever present thin chain that looped around a button on his vest, he revealed a key hanging on the backside of it. Unlocking the lock from the box, he pulled out a stack of bills and a small derringer pistol. He also pulled a small velvet bag from the box.

I want you to take these. The money you will need to get supplies and to hire someone to take you to Jeremy. The pistol may come in handy at some point. Keep it hidden on you somewhere and don’t let anyone know you have it. This small bag has the bullets for the gun. Keep them safe also.

Thank you, she said. I’ll find a way to pay you back.

No, you won’t, he chuckled. That’s your pay for all the stories you have here. Just bring back more stories for me.

Throwing her arms around him again, she squeezed him, Thanks again. I’ll stay in contact and let you know when I find Father.

Tell him I’m upset that he has put you through so much worry.

Nodding her head, trying not to cry, I will.

Gathering up the money and the gun she slipped them into a pocket in the folds of her dress before opening the door to find everyone in the main office staring at the door in anticipation of her departure. She knew they had heard Mr. Flynn yell and she could imagine what people thought had happened in there.

Wanting to give them something to talk about, she went over to her desk and began to take a few things off and put them into a satchel she had sitting under the desk. She was well aware of the men watching her and she smiled inwardly. Glancing up she noticed Mr. Flynn watching her also, smiling smugly.

Taking a few steps towards the door, she turned smiled, Goodbye gentlemen. I hope to see you again sometime.

Before walking out the door, she winked at Mr. Flynn and then left. Walking down the stairs, she patted the pocket where she had put her new treasures. She was off on a new adventure and she was looking forward to it.

Chapter Two

The heat and humidity caused Jenny’s clothes to stick to her body as she stood on the deck of the steamer ship she had rode upon to get to Alexandria from England. As people disembarked they glanced at the woman standing in trousers, a shirt and a vest looking at the ancient city sprawled before them. The captain walked up to her side and stopped to look at the sight before them, hands clasped behind his back.

He was a tall thin man that looked all of sixty years old. His hair and beard were white, the latter stained with tobacco stains below his mouth. During the voyage he and Jenny had spent a lot of time together, Jenny asking him questions of his life, taking notes for future stories.

It’s a beautiful sight. I never tire of seeing it, no matter how often I sail here. To think this city has been here for over two thousand years, before Christ was born. I’m glad to see it is being rebuilt after the bombings, he said breathing in the hot air filled with aromas from the sea and the city. Do you know where you will be staying?

Yes. I had wired ahead from London to the Hotel Alexandria and reserved a room for the next two nights. After that I will be traveling to Cairo on a train.

Well, I wish you well and I hope you find your father. I had enjoyed his company in the past.

Thank you. When I find him I will let him know you send your best, Jenny said. I have enjoyed your company and your stories.

Captain Crawley tipped his hat and wandered back towards the engine room. Jenny plopped her father’s old hat on her head, picked up her satchel and walked down the gangplank to the dock which took her to the dirt streets of the city. She had already made arrangements for her trunk to be delivered to the hotel by one of the porters from the ship so she would most likely arrive before her trunk did.

Walking down a wide street in the direction she was given from the Captain she passed makeshift tents in front of buildings where men and women were selling their wares. She passed fresh fruit, vegetables, rugs, jewelry, bread, meat, even live animals; anything you could want to buy you could purchase there on the street. You didn’t have to buy them in a store. As she walked along, she was barraged by small children looking for candy or money or any kind of handout that the tourists could give. She had planned ahead and brought several bags of small candy to hand out. Digging in her pockets she pulled them out and dropped several pieces into each hand that came her way. Delighting in the way each child’s face lit up at the sight of the treasure in their hands, Jenny laughed out loud.

A smooth baritone voice with a slight accent startled her from behind, You really should not encourage them. They will expect it whenever they see you.

Turning to see who would dare speak to her in such a disapproving manner, her speech seemed to escape her as she looked into the deep blue, almost black eyes of the most handsomest man she had ever seen. He was tall with black hair that lay around his shoulders in waves with dark olive skin, not typical skin tone for Egypt. His smile, ringed by a mustache and minor beard was wide with white teeth that gleamed from his dark face. He was wearing the typical white galabya under a black abaya with gold embroidery down the front opening, with jeweled rings on his fingers and necklaces that lay on his chest and he stood there looking at her as if he was waiting for her to speak.

Um, she looked him curiously as he smiled at her, not sure what to say to him since she had forgotten what he said that made her mad, and then an excited little girl in a dirty blue dress ran into her as she slid on the dirt. The satchel and the bags of candy fell to the ground as Jenny’s instinct kicked in and dropped everything to hold the girl up before she went sprawling in the street.

Dusting the girl off, she picked up her bags of candy and gave the girl a couple of pieces. The girl curtsied and ran off, while the tall man picked up the satchel and was handing it to Jenny.

That is one reason why we don’t encourage handing out trinkets to the children. They either get hurt or greedy. One day they will grow up to expect something from travelers and possibly even kill them for money, he said watching her.

Sense seemed to flood back into her as she felt she was being attacked by him. I beg your pardon, she said trying to control the anger rising within her. What I do with my belongings is up to me. I will not have a man speak down to me!

Unphased by her reaction, the smile remained on his face as he put his hand out and touched her hand, I’m sorry madam. I did not mean to upset you. We are just trying to stop the influx of theft and injury from the street children. I was just trying to offer some words of advice so you would not get hurt.

Emotions ran through the young lady dressed as a man as the man who stood before her dressed as Egyptian royalty touched her hand. A shock raced through her body as she looked up into his eyes and a blush spread across her face. Shame registered in her head also as she knew he was just trying to help, so not sure which emotion to run with at the moment, she mumbled a quick apology, snatched the satchel from his hand and practically ran to the hotel entrance which was about half a block away.

Before entering the building, she looked back to see that he was still standing in the same spot watching her, smiling. Going inside, she was surprised to see the lobby was in regal French fashion with red and white brocade covered chairs with red velvet curtains at the windows. A red velvet round settee sat in the middle of the large room. Golden cherubs graced the walls as sconces for the candles and a large one stood in a corner by the front desk as a fountain as water spewed from a vase into the bowl below.

Stepping up to the desk, Jenny removed her hat and tucked it under her arm before she tapped her knuckles on the counter to draw the attention of the man behind the counter who was reading a newspaper. He laid the paper aside with much rustling to show his annoyance until he looked up into the blue eyes of the woman dressed like a man. He was in his fifties and he had seen a lot of different people come through the lobby, but never had he seen a woman as beautiful as this one wearing men’s clothes.

What can I help you with? he smiled, playing with the tips of his mustache.

I’m checking in. My name is Jenny Adams. I wired ahead for a room.

He stood clumsily and pushed the registration book towards her, Oh, Miss Adams! We have been expecting you.

Taking the pen from his shaking hand she signed her name to the book and then reached into her pocket and pulled out some money. Why have you been expecting me?

It’s not often we get the daughter of a famous archeologist in our hotel. We have had your father stay with us several times, the man said with excitement and then continued, Please, let me say that you are as beautiful as your father had described you.

A blush covered her face again. She wasn’t use to being described as beautiful or at least not by men other than her father. Thank you. Have you heard from my father? Has he sent word on when he is coming back?

No, I’m sorry. Were you expecting him?

I haven’t heard from him in six months and I’m worried. I came to find him.

I’m sorry to hear that Miss Adams. I hope no harm has come to him, the man said with sincerity as he placed the key to her room into her slightly tanned hand. We all like him here. You are in room ten. Top of the stairs and to the left. Dinner will be at six o’clock in the dining room.

Jenny glanced at the door and saw the handsome man from the street peering in. Leaning over towards the gentleman at the counter she whispered, Do you know who that man is at the door?

Glancing over at the door he nodded his head at the man in greeting then turned back to Jenny and whispered in return, That is Prince Masud Hamdi. He is a Sultan from the southeast. He comes up here often looking for workers. It is said his family dates back to the Pharaohs. Was there a problem with him, miss?

No, she said, deciding not to make a scene about it. He helped me on the street. I just wanted to know who he was. Thank you.

Plopping the hat back on her head, she ignored the man at the door and as she started up the stairs she pondered on why a Prince would be interested in her. He must be educated because he spoke perfect English with just a slight Egyptian accent mixed with a British one. A smile tugged at her mouth as she thought of the touch that made her aware of his manliness and her womanhood. It wasn’t anything she had ever thought of before. In the past she had never dated, even while away at school. She had concentrated on her studies so she was naïve when it came to men.

Unlocking the door to her room, she set her satchel down on the green velvet spread on the bed and went to look out the window which was layered with lacy sheers and