Free The Amulet of Power by Mike Resnick Page B

not immediately.”
    The men’s expressions registered disappointment.
    “There is an Englishman onboard,” continued Omar. “His name is . . .” He turned to Lara.
    “Kevin Mason,” she said promptly.
    “His name is Kevin Mason,” repeated Omar. “He is a friend of Lara Croft’s, the son of a great scholar, and a worthy scholar in his own right. He may prove useful in our search for the Amulet. I want you to make sure that no harm comes to him on his journey to Khartoum.”
    “If Lara Croft is not on the boat, why should any harm befall him?” asked the other man.
    “The Mahdists may have spies aboard the boat right now. They will surely send more when it stops at Abu Simbel. He is the only Englishman aboard, and it is known that Lara Croft escaped Cairo in the company of an Englishman. If they capture him, they will surely torture him to find out where she is. If he tells them, they will be waiting for us when we arrive at the Bortai Hotel. If he does not tell them, they will almost certainly kill him. It is your job to make sure this does not happen. You will protect his life with your own.”
    The men’s disappointed expressions were replaced by looks of fierce anticipation at the thought of fighting their enemies aboard the
Amenhotep
.
    Omar uttered a low command, and the camels dropped to their knees. He walked over and mounted the smallest of them. Hassam followed suit. Gaafar handed a leather crop to Lara and climbed onto his own camel.
    “Have you ever ridden a camel before, Lara Croft?” asked Omar.
    “I still have the saddle sores,” she replied with a self-deprecating laugh.
    “Just hook your left leg around what you would call the pommel of the saddle,” said Gaafar. “Lock your right leg over it, hold the reins in your left hand, and if you wish him to run, hit him with the leather whip, and yell ‘Hut! Hut! Hut!’ “
    “Until such time as someone actually starts shooting at us,” answered Lara, “I plan to hold the reins in my left hand, tuck the whip in my belt, and tell my camel to walk slowly and gently.”
    “We will walk until it becomes necessary to run,” agreed Omar. He turned to one of the men who had been waiting on the shore. “Leave the saddles on the other two camels. Gaafar, lead them by the reins until we are well away from the river and any dwellings.”
    “Then what?” asked Lara.
    “Then we will turn them loose. They’re herd animals; they will follow us.”
    “Rather like a spare tire,” she suggested.
    “Exactly,” said Omar. “We hope we won’t need them, but if we do, you’ll be very glad that we have them.”
    “And if any small group should stumble across our tracks, this may cause them to think that we’re six instead of four,” added Gaafar. “It might cause them to think twice about attacking us.”
    “I assume you have your route planned?” asked Lara, looking at the seemingly endless desert that began half a mile inland from the river.
    “Certainly,” replied Omar. “The Nile goes all the way to Khartoum. We will ride inland, but parallel to it. There will be oases along the way, and once we are well into the Sudan, there will be friendly villages as well.”
    “How long will the trip take?”
    “That depends on how long it takes the Mahdists to figure out where we are.”
    “Inshallah,”
said Hassam.
    “Inshallah,”
agreed Omar and Gaafar.
    “You remain silent, Lara Croft,” observed Omar. “You do not know what
Inshallah
means?”
    “I know,” answered Lara. “I’m just not buying it.”
    “I do not understand.”
    “It means, ‘if God wills it.’ I’m afraid that’s too fatalistic for me.” She stared at Omar. “No offense, but I believe in making my own fate. You can say
Inshallah
, Omar. As for me, I say: Let the enemy beware.”
    A smile crossed Omar’s homely face. “I like you, Lara Croft. Even if I didn’t, I would still risk my life for you, because of what you have promised us. But it is rare to