She put one foot in front of the other and caught up with her new friend. Rabia kept surprising her. At first, the woman was an enigma. She was stoic and unreadable. But since they had first met, the local had opened up a bit and shown Zahra a piece of herself — her personality. She didn’t think people like Rabia possessed a disposition other than being a stone-cold killer twenty-four-seven, so she was pleasantly surprised to discover more about who the woman behind the sniper was.
And she was already starting to think she’d make a good, long-term friend.
“Hang on,” Ali said suddenly, pointing. They all stopped. “I see something.” He was looking through a pair of sleek binoculars. “Down!” he hissed, dropping to his stomach. Everyone followed his lead.
“Rabia,” he said.
“On it,” she replied.
Zahra was only a couple of feet behind her, and she watched the professional intently, keen on learning something useful. There was one thing that Rabia didn't do, and that was flinch. She never displayed any nervous jitters. Even Zahra still got the shakes on occasion.
“See him?” Ali asked.
“No, where did you—” The pause told Zahra that her target had just come into view. And the sound that followed, like a pair of two-by-fours slapping each other — said that she saw enough of him to take the shot. She got up onto her knees. “Threat neutralized.”
Baahir got to his feet and helped Rabia up. “That was impressive.”
She shook her head. “Killing is never something to marvel over.”
“I didn’t mean—”
“I know what you meant. Just don’t do it.”
Rabia headed off.
Baahir leaned in close to his sister. “Is she always this intense?”
Zahra’s hands found her hips. “Want her number?”
Everybody was breathing hard by the time they made it to the top. Once there, Rabia confirmed her kill — easy to do considering the amount of blood and brain matter that had been scattered all over the Saharan landmark. No one else paid the gruesome scene any attention, however. Everyone else was staring at the hole in the top of Gebel Dist.
“It exists,” Ali said, letting his words trail off.
A breeze whipped by just as he uttered the words. It crawled up Zahra’s spine and pushed her forward. She knelt in front of the narrow, steep stairwell and contemplated what to do next.
“I think it would be wise for Elyas and Tajj to stay here and keep watch,” Ali suggested. Both men looked at their boss and nodded. “There are still enemies nearby.”
“I agree,” Rabia said. “I assume there is only one way in or out, and we would be at a serious disadvantage if this entry point was overtaken by unfriendly forces.”
Zahra nodded and bit her lip, thinking hard.
“What’s wrong?” Baahir asked, eyeing the opening.
Zahra chuckled. “What
Baahir scratched his hair, causing sand to fall from it. Zahra stood and brushed it off.
“You sure it’s just Khaliq and one other guy down there?”
Her brother nodded. “One hundred percent.”
“Four against two,” Ali said. “I’m comfortable with those odds.”
“Plus, whatever else is down there,” Zahra added. “I have a feeling there will be some nasty surprises along the way.”
“What makes you say that?” Ali asked.
She looked at him, then turned away. “Experience.”
Zahra pulled her flashlight free, clicked it on, and began her descent.
After struggling down a spiraling stone staircase, the group came upon a circular chamber roughly forty feet in diameter. Zahra stepped aside and allowed Baahir through. He became entranced by the artwork put on display, jerking his own flashlight around the room. In doing so, he unconsciously wandered into the center of the room before it could be cleared of any dangers.
Zahra, Rabia, and Ali stayed close, lights aglow, but held back near the entrance.
“Baahir!” Zahra hissed. “We need to be care—”
He took another step backward, and something clicked beneath his foot. He spun, raising his fists, but didn’t find anything to fight. The others fanned out, closely inspecting the ceiling and walls. Even they didn’t find anything.
Baahir picked up his foot, revealing a cylindrical notch in the floor.
The sound of grinding stone picked up overhead, and a dozen or so palm-sized objects fell from newly agape openings.
One of them fell onto Baahir’s right shoulder, and he shuddered as he felt it start to move. He tried to see it, but it was too close. Just a blur.
He was about to scream out, his eyes widening as the huge black orb began walking over his shoulder, but suddenly a flash of metal flew across his vision. He flinched, but the weapon
And the knife had sliced a small wound into the meat of his shoulder.
He pulled back. The injury stung, but it was better than dying at the hands of — whatever the insect had been.
“Um, thanks?” Baahir said, unsure of what to say.
