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Second Chances

A sequel to Hope For The Future
By Ladybug


Chapter 15

It was an hour later before Emma could think clearly enough to speak. They had been riding hard through the desert, trying to put as much distance as possible between them and the city, knowing that they would soon be followed. Tate had left a note behind for Rick and Ardeth to find, telling them that Emma Bay would die if the amulet half was not delivered. Emma had slipped into a kind of “this is not real” mind freeze, thinking of Rashad and how it was her fault, her carelessness that had gotten him killed. In her way of thinking it would be one more thing for Ardeth to blame her for.

“Where are you taking me?” she asked finally once her thoughts began to clear.

Tate glanced down at her before him, his dark eyes cold and emotionless. “We will stop a few more miles over there, near that cliff to wait for your husband to arrive. He will hand over the amulet half easily enough.”

Emma twisted slightly and turned her head to look back at Tate. “I told you that you were barking up the wrong tree. My husband and I are estranged, but aside from that, you don’t know the Med-jai very well if you think he will just hand over the amulet to you,” Emma answered snidely, facing forward again. “This is what they were trained to do. To guard things that people like you can hurt others with.”

Tate remained quiet for several minutes. Emma had begun to think he wasn’t going to respond at all when he finally said, “You better hope to God that your husband does hand over that amulet, Mrs. Bay. Because if he doesn’t, then you will learn the meaning of true torture and your husband will watch.”

Emma shuddered and wondered herself at the outcome. She and Ardeth had been so distant, and now with this new riff between them, she even wondered if he would come for her at all. Rick would, but would Ardeth? Did he even care anymore?

“Why do you want the amulet, Mr. Tate?” Emma asked to get her depressing thoughts off Ardeth.

“Why to travel back in time and change history so that Imhotep is finally raised,” he answered quickly.

Emma shook her head sadly. “Your brother tried that and failed. What makes you think that you will be any more successful than he was?”

“My brother was a weakling!” Tate snapped. “He had no clue how to handle the power that was laid before him. I, however, have trained for this. I have studied and prepared. I have worked hard to achieve this goal.”

“And that goal is?”

“To have ultimate power! To rule the world!”

“And what do you plan to do with Imhotep once you have accomplished this goal?” Emma asked curiously, glancing back at him again. “Do you think he is just going to sit idly by and just let you take over?”

Tate gave her a harsh, cold look that made her shiver. “You need not worry about that, Mrs. Bay. Like I said, I have prepared for this. Prepared for many years. No one will stop me, not even Imhotep!”

Emma faced forward, another shiver racing up her spine. Geoffrey Tate was far worse than his brother. Gerald had merely suffered an image complex and wished to improve it by seeking something he knew nothing about. But Geoffrey wanted power, power that could destroy the earth as they new it and he knew exactly what he was doing!

A short time later, they stopped to rest and eat. While no one was looking, Emma slipped off the medallion that Ardeth had given her when he’d asked her to marry him and left it hanging on a bush, hoping that he or Rick would find it.


Ardeth, Rick and Evelyn cautiously entered the building that Rashad had directed them too. Coman waited at the door, standing guard against any possible attack.

“According to Rashad, they were here in this room,” Ardeth explained as they spread out.

“There is blood over here,” Rick pointed out as he squatted down to get a better look. “This must be where Rashad fought them,” he added as he examined the area.

“Rick, Ardeth,” Evelyn called to them both. She had wandered over to the far side of the room were a small table sat and found a folded piece of paper. Picking up the paper, she opened it up and quickly read the note. Rick came up behind her to look over her shoulder.

“Found something?” he asked as he glanced down at the note.

“It’s from Tate.”

Ardeth came up next to Evelyn and looked at the paper as Evelyn read out loud, “Ardeth Bay, bring the amulet half or your wife dies. You’ll find us in the desert.”

Ardeth cursed in Arabic as he turned away from Rick and Evelyn. His heart was slamming in his chest and his mind was nothing but a mass of chaotic thoughts of losing Emma. Allah help him if he lost her! He would never forgive himself.

“’You’ll find us in the desert,’” Rick repeated the last line of the note. “Pretty generous of him to give us such detailed directions.”

Ardeth turned back to face Rick and Evelyn, the pain of what was happening clearly showing in his eyes. “If Tate has Emma in the Sahara, I will find them. He knows this.”

“It sounds to me like he is clearly challenging you, Ardeth,” Evelyn observed while silently reading the note again.

Ardeth nodded. “If it’s a fight he wants, then I will gladly give it to him.”

“He obviously thinks that Emma is your weakness,” Evelyn added, glancing up at him.

Ardeth felt his heart twist painfully in his chest. “She is,” he whispered, softly turning away from them.

“Ardeth,” Rick began.

“Laa!” Ardeth cut him off. Turning back to face Rick and Evelyn, his eyes glistened with unshed tears. “I’ve been a fool.” He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. The dream he had had the night before flittered through his mind. You must lose before you can find! Ardeth Bay was terrified of the possible meaning to that statement. Would it take him losing Emma to make him realize how much she meant to him? How much he adored her and loved her to distraction? What hit Ardeth the hardest was the fact that he already knew these things, yet he let his male pride and the traditions of his people drive her away. His nostrils flared as he tried in vain to get a hold of his emotions.

“I apologize to you both for my behavior the last few days,” Ardeth began.

“Oh Ardeth,” Evelyn smiled through her own tears. She stepped forward and hugged him, letting him know that he had her support. “We love you and Emma both! We will find her and she will be fine. You will see. You both will be fine.”

Ardeth tightened his arms around Evelyn, hugging her back. “Thank you, Evy. I hope you are right.” He glanced up at Rick over Evelyn’s head as she stepped away from him. “I . . .”

Rick smiled as he reached up and rubbed the place on his jaw where a light bruise still lingered from Ardeth’s fist. “It’s forgotten, my friend!”

“Al sadeeq, al zameel (my friend, my brother),” Ardeth stated as their hands clasped in a firm handshake. Rick nodded his agreement.

“Let’s go find Emma,” Rick suggested as they turned towards the door and left the building, “before I turn into a blubbering idiot.”

They returned to the O’Connell home briefly, just long enough to gather supplies and for Ardeth to check on Rashad. He was resting and would be fine with a few weeks rest. Heading out on horseback, Rick, Evelyn and Coman followed Ardeth. Going on instinct, Ardeth headed east, towards the cliffs. He directed them to start looking for clues, anything that would indicate that a group had moved through the area recently.

After about an hour, Rick called out, “Yo, I think I found something.”

Ardeth turned his horse around and headed over to were Rick had already dismounted and was untangling something from some brush. It was a medallion attached to two leather strips. Ardeth dismounted quickly and nearly snatched the medallion away from Rick.

“Alhamdulillah (Praise be to God), she is still alive,” Ardeth whispered softly, closing his eyes as he clutched the medallion to his chest. He raised it to his lips and kissed it, then put the medallion around his neck.

“I take it that is Emma’s?” Rick asked curiously.

“Aiwa,” Ardeth answered. “I gave this to Emma when I asked her to marry me. She left it for us to find. We are going in the right direction.”

“Do you have any idea where Tate is headed?”

Ardeth shook his head. “Not really, I’m going on instinct here. They may be heading to the cliffs over there,” Ardeth replied as he pointed to a row of high cliffs in the distance. “Or he could be heading towards the dunes, that way.” He indicated with another point of his finger to the left of the cliffs.

“Sayada,” Coman rode up on his horse. “I have found their trail.”

Evelyn rode up just as Rick and Ardeth climbed back up on their horses. “We have a lead?” she asked.

“Yeah, I found a medallion that belongs to Emma, and Coman just found their trail,” Rick answered as they followed Coman.

Ardeth dismounted again and studied the ground. Following a trail in the sand was not an easy thing to do. Most could not do it, but Ardeth was the best and he quickly deciphered that there were at least twenty men riding with Tate. Somehow, he didn’t think that was all, but apparently that was all Tate had with him at the moment.

“It appears they are heading towards the dunes,” Ardeth said after several minutes. He mounted back up, and they followed the trail for several miles. It was beginning to get dark now and they would have to stop for the night. Ardeth balked at the idea, but knew that they would not find anything in the dark.

“We should stop for the night,” he said reluctantly. They dismounted and quickly set up camp. After eating a quick meal, Ardeth indicated he would take first watch, Rick the second and Coman the last. He wouldn’t be able to sleep anyway, not until Emma was safe.

Rick and Evelyn watched Ardeth walk off into the night. “He is really taking this hard,” Evelyn observed.

“I can understand that,” Rick answered. “He blames himself for what has happened. He feels if he hadn’t been so pigheaded about everything, that Emma would be safe at home right now.”

Evelyn frowned at Rick. “He told you that?”

“No,” Rick sighed, “but I’m learning how Ardeth thinks.”

“And how is that?”

“Like me.” Rick leaned forward and gave Evelyn a soft kiss. Evelyn smiled and snuggled up next to her husband as he wrapped a protective arm around her.

Ardeth stood beneath the moon and stars and for the first time, he did not even notice that they were there. His thoughts were on Emma as he looked out into the night. He breathed deeply of the cool desert air and wondered if Emma was warm. She got cold easily, he remembered. His jaw clenched as he thought of her under Tate’s control. If Tate had so much as put a mark on her lovely skin, Ardeth would kill him!

“Hang on, al ahibuk,” Ardeth whispered into the night. “I promise you, kalila, that I will not rest until you are safe in my arms again.” His heart pounded in his chest as he whispered his promise, a light breeze carrying his words and his scent out into the night to deliver them to his beloved.

Several miles away, Emma lay on a blanket, her thoughts on Ardeth. A tear trickled down her cheek when a whisper of a breeze flittered lightly across her face. Emma froze as she breathed in. She could smell him. She knew that it was impossible, but she could smell him. She thought she heard his voice in her head, but she knew that was impossible too. Ardeth was coming for her though, she knew this as if he had just told her himself. He was nearby and he was coming for her! A peace settled over her as she swiped at the tears on her cheeks. Suddenly she felt very tired. She closed her eyes and for the first time in several days, she slept with hope in her heart.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Chapter 16

The next morning, Ardeth sent Coman to the Med-jai village to deliver a message to Abdul. It told him where they were headed and for Abdul to come with several men, leaving the others where they were until needed.

Things started out well enough, as they quickly found Tate’s campsite. Ardeth also found a silver bracelet that he had given to Emma on their first anniversary. He had made it himself, spending many hours handcrafting the bracelet and the intricate designs on it. Ardeth breathed a sigh of relief, as it was another sign that Emma was still alive and doing well. As it turned out the campsite had only been a few miles from their own. How Ardeth had not spotted it while on watch, he’d never know, but it frustrated him that she had been so close and he hadn’t known it.

They traveled on for several hours until Tate threw them for a loop. The trail split. Half went towards the dunes; the other half went towards the cliffs. Instinct led Ardeth to believe that Emma was part of the group to head towards the cliffs, but with his emotions out of whack as they were, he couldn’t take any chances.

“We had best split up,” Ardeth commented after relaying to Rick and Evelyn of the trail split. “I’ll head over to the cliffs.”

Rick nodded and he and Evelyn were about to turn towards the dunes when they heard approaching riders. Turning towards the sound, they saw Coman returning with Abdul and two other Med-jai warriors.

“Any news?” Abdul asked as he rode up, bringing his horse to a stop next to Ardeth’s.

“We have followed the trail to this point. Now it splits. I am heading to the cliffs, Rick and Evy are taking the dunes,” Ardeth answered. He looked towards the cliffs and squinted as the bright sun nearly blinded him. Shoving his hand into the thickness of his long hair in frustration, Ardeth again remembered the dream. He shivered as he realized that the cliffs he was heading for were the very same cliffs in the dream.

“I want you and Karif to come with me,” Ardeth told Abdul. Turning to Coman, he said, “I would like for you and Amin to accompany the O’Connells.”

Coman nodded at his leader’s command, and he and Amin moved to flank Rick and Evelyn. Ardeth turned his horse and approached Rick.

“Good luck, al zameel,” he offered his hand. Rick clasped it in a firm handshake.

“Same to you, buddy,” Rick replied affectionately.

Evelyn moved up next to Ardeth and reached out to touch his arm. Ardeth turned his head towards her, releasing Rick’s hand.

“Emma is strong, Ardeth,” Evelyn smiled. “We will find her!”

Ardeth moved his hand to cover Evelyn’s that rested on his arm and smiled, “Thank you, Evy.” He leaned over and kissed her cheek.

“Alright,” Rick growled playfully, “get your grubby hands off my wife!”

Ardeth grinned and winked at Evelyn as he spun his horse around. “Yallah, imshi!” he called to Abdul and Karif, and they rode off in a gallop towards the cliffs and the only trail that led up to the top of them.

Ardeth, Abdul and Karif followed the winding trail up the cliff side. It was slow going, as the trail was narrow. One wrong step and they could tumble off the edge to their deaths. While they traveled, Ardeth informed Abdul about the amulet half that Rick had brought him several months ago to keep safe. He told Abdul that Gerald Tate had a brother who already had the other half and was holding Emma ransom for the one he had.

“What is so important about the amulet, Sayadi?” Abdul asked.

“From what Evelyn has been able to decipher, if the two pieces are brought together, the holder can use it to travel back in time.”

“Mumkin haada (is this possible)?” Abdul asked, stunned.

“Awia,” Ardeth answered, keeping his eyes glued to the trail ahead of him. They had to travel single file with Ardeth leading and Karif bring up the rear.

“But why?” Abdul asked flabbergasted. “Why would anyone want to travel back in time?” It was a concept completely foreign to the Med-jai warrior, whose entire life consisted of guarding evil things from the past.

“To change history,” Ardeth answered, glancing back over his shoulder. “If Tate can go back and change the outcome of Imhotep’s raising, then everything would change. We would have lost!” He faced forward again as they neared the top of the cliff.

“Allah help us!” Abdul breathed the quick prayer. “Where is the amulet half now?”

“In a safe place,” Ardeth answered vaguely. Abdul nodded, accepting the vague answer.

Moments later they cleared the top and Ardeth’s heart stopped in his chest at what he beheld. Tate sat on the back of his horse about 100 feet away, holding Emma with a knife to her throat. He was near the edge of the cliff and Ardeth had a flash of Emma going over the side from his dream. His hands trembled slightly as fear nearly overwhelmed him.

Tate’s men came up to the opposite side of them, barring any easy escape. Ardeth’s dark gaze met Emma’s and she smiled weakly at him.

“Are you alright?” he asked her in Arabic. Emma nodded her head, but didn’t speak. She didn’t want to do anything that might set Tate off.

“Welcome, Ardeth Bay!” Geoffrey Tate greeted with a smile.

“Release my wife, Tate,” Ardeth demanded. He was slightly taken aback by Tate’s looks. He had known that Geoffrey Tate was Gerald’s brother; he didn’t know that they had been identical twins.

“Off your horses, gentlemen,” Tate commanded, ignoring Ardeth’s demand, then, “Did you bring the amulet half as I requested?”

Ardeth snorted as he, Abdul and Karif dismounted. “You think I am a fool?”

Tate’s eyes narrowed in anger. “I think you wish to watch your wife tortured and die a slow painful death!” he growled.

Ardeth took a menacing step forward, but stopped when he heard the loud cocking of many guns. “You harm one hair on her head and there will not be a force strong enough to keep me from hunting you down!” He glared at Tate.

Tate’s horse pranced around impatiently as he laughed. “Well, my dear Mrs. Bay, looks like you were wrong! You are your husband’s weakness and I look forward to exploiting that weakness to it’s fullest!”

Taking the blunt part of the blade he held to her throat, Tate ran it across Emma’s cheek, his eyes on the Med-jai Chieftain. “Tell me where the amulet half is, Mr. Bay, or I will slice up your lovely wife, bit by bit.”

Ardeth took a quick step forward, fear showing in his eyes. “Laa!” he commanded, breathing in sharply. His eyes met Emma’s and she shook her head no, indicating she didn’t want him to reveal the hiding place.

Another time and another place entered both of their minds at the same time. Seven years ago, at Hamanaptra. Imhotep had Ardeth tied to two posts and was torturing him to get Emma to read from the Book of Amun-Ra, to break the hold that kept him mortal. Ardeth had commanded and then begged Emma not to read no matter what, forcing her to watch Imhotep torture him. Now, the tables were suddenly turned and Ardeth knew that Emma was silently begging him not to reveal the whereabouts of the amulet half no matter what Tate did to her.

Allah help him, could he be that strong? Maybe another time he could, but right now he was so riddled with guilt over how he had treated her the last week that he struggled within himself to do the right thing. The possibility of losing her nearly overwhelmed his common sense and sense of duty.

“Mr. Bay, you are trying my patience!” Tate snapped. “Maybe what you need is some encouragement.” And with that, Tate turned the sharp end of the blade over and sliced into Emma’s cheek. Emma screamed, a sound that nearly drove Ardeth to his knees.

“Laa!”

“The amulet half, Mr. Bay! Tell me the location now and I will release your wife!”

“Emma,” Ardeth breathed, nearly choking on a sob. His mind was in total chaos and he couldn’t think clearly.

“Noooo!” Emma cried out through the pain that burned her cheek.

“Laa, Sayadi!” Abdul commanded from behind him.

“Do you need more encouragement, Mr. Bay?” Tate asked as he started to put the blade to Emma’s other cheek. “I don’t mind marking up her lovely face some more.”

“It’s not far from here!” Ardeth shouted, nearly breaking down. His eyes locked with hers, begging her to forgive him.

“Ardeth,” Emma cried softly as tears poured down her cheek.

Tate held the blade frozen against Emma’s other cheek. “Yes?”

Ardeth took a deep breath as he took another step forward. “About seven miles to the north,” Ardeth pointed in the indicated direction. “You will find some hidden caves in a cluster of large rocks along a hillside.”

Emma shook her head sadly. “No Ardeth, please!” she begged.

“Shut up!” Tate snapped and pressed the blade to her cheek. Emma clammed up when she felt the sharpness bite into her skin.

“Please continue, Mr. Bay,” Tate informed him politely. “The exact location and I will release your wife.”

“There are five caves; the amulet half is hidden in the smallest one at the very back. There is a hollowed place in the wall, blocked by a large rock, you will find it there.”

Tate grinned as he nodded to his men to be ready to ride. “How the mighty have fallen, hmmm, Mr. Bay?”

Ignoring his insult, Ardeth glared at Tate. “Release my wife, now!”

“As you wish, Mr. Bay, after all, I always keep my word!” With that Tate put the blade away, grabbed Emma by the shoulders and twisted her around, shoving her off his horse toward the cliff’s edge. Emma landed on her feet, but was unbalanced. One step back would send her over the cliff’s edge.

“Emma!” Ardeth shouted as he took another step forward.

Tate laughed and spun his horse around. When he did so, his horse’s rear end bumped into Emma, causing her to lose what balance she had regained and sending her tumbling backwards. A high-pitched scream pierced the air as Emma began falling backwards.

“Laa!” Ardeth cried out as he sprinted forward towards Emma.

Knowing his leader as he did, Abdul grabbed the rope off his saddle and quickly tied a loop as he ran after him. Time seemed to stand still in that moment when Emma realized she was going over the side and that Ardeth would not reach her in time. Almost as if she accepted her fate, Emma quit flailing her arms as she felt her body free fall off the cliff’s edge.

“Emma!” Ardeth screamed as he dove towards the edge and his wife. He never saw the loop of the rope fly over his head, nor did he feel it tighten around his chest as he slid across the sand and over the edge of the cliff. He sailed over the edge after Emma, but it was too late. Ardeth’s own fall snapped to a sudden stop as Abdul and Karif held on for dear life above. Ardeth felt the crack in his chest, but ignored the pain of the cracked rib, as he couldn’t accept that his beloved was gone. The bottom of the cliff was not visible, they were so far up, and Emma was nowhere to be seen. Ardeth knew in his heart that no one could survive a fall like that. His ladylove was gone. “Noooooo!”

Ardeth felt numb as Abdul and Karif hauled him back up to the top of the cliff. In his minds eye, he kept reliving over and over the look on Emma’s face as she fell over the side of the cliff. You must lose before you can find! Those words would haunt him forever.

“Emma,” he whispered as tears blinded his vision. He had no will to live now. The very thing, the very person who gave him life, was gone, and as he began to realize this, Ardeth began to struggle against the rope that continued to haul him up to safety.

Abdul cursed in Arabic as he deciphered Ardeth’s intent. “Imshi!” he barked the order to Karif. Together they quickly hauled Ardeth up and over the side to solid ground.

“Laa!” Ardeth stood and fought to get the rope off him. “Let me go!”

“Laa, Sayadi!” Abdul grabbed his leader and friend by the shoulders and shook him. “Ardeth, I grieve with you, al sadeeq, but you cannot follow after her!”

Ardeth glared at his second in command. “Release me,” he growled and tried to push away from Abdul’s grasp. But Karif had come up behind him, blocking him from turning back towards the cliff’s edge.

“Ardeth,” Abdul began, trying to reason with his friend. “Emma would not want this, you know that! You are needed here, Sayadi. Yusuf needs his father now more than ever and the Med-jai needs its Chieftain. You are what holds us all together, al sadeeq. Your leadership is respected by all the Med-jai and we need you!” His words began to penetrate through Ardeth’s grief as thoughts of his son and what would happen to him if Ardeth were to give up. He stopped trying to fight his way back to the cliff’s edge and stood there, immobile.

“Seek your revenge, Ardeth, by hunting down Tate and his men before they gain control of the other amulet half.”

That got Ardeth’s attention as he straightened to his full height. He hardly noticed the pain of his cracked rib as a cold look of hatred entered his dark eyes. “Karif.”

“Aiwa, Sayadi.”

“Return to the village and gather the others. Bring them to the caves quickly,” Ardeth commanded as he moved around Abdul and headed towards his horse. Swinging up in the saddle, Ardeth turned to Karif. “Yanhaar imshi!” he barked gruffly.

Karif jumped forward as he hurried to his horse and leaped on. Spinning the horse around, he set off in a dead run towards the Med-jai village. Abdul swung up on his own horse and turned to Ardeth.

“He is mine, Abdul,” Ardeth informed him with a deadly calm. “Make sure the men know this.”

“Aiwa, Sayadi,” Abdul answered. “No one will touch Tate or they will answer to me.”

“Let’s go,” Ardeth commanded and steered his horse in the direction that Tate and his men had taken earlier.

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Second Chances - Chapters 17-18