Blood of the Nile (19 page)

The car came to a
standstill at the mouth of a natural desert hot spring. For several minutes,
Shahad sat, humbled by his surroundings. The water hole encompassed a vast area
with a handful of large rectangular-shaped structures dug below the surface of
the earth. Well-to-do Egyptian families utilized the underground tunnels for
centuries as burial chambers for the dead.
Shahad’s
father, his father before him, as well as several other ancestors were
enshrined in one of the sacred tombs. It seemed fitting that this particular
spot served as the stage for his return to glory. Like the prodigal son, his
forefathers would welcome him back into the family fold with open arms.

Finally, Shahad
exited the vehicle, covering his face with a scarf to shield him from the
brutal sun. He opened the rear door in one fluid motion, then cocked his head
to one side and let the material dramatically fall away. Bearing his coffee-stained
teeth, he smirked at the couple in the back seat as a form of intimidation.
Then he pointed the gun at the limo driver, who hadn’t move from the front
seat, and shot off two rounds of ammunition. One bullet hit the man in the
throat, the other between his temples.

Before Husani
could make a move, Shahad aimed the weapon at Maliyah. “Don’t do anything
stupid, son. I will shoot her.”

Chapter Twenty

The Final Blow

The drive home
should have lasted no more than twenty minutes. Yet in Maliyah’s estimation,
much more time had passed since they fled the press conference. On the highway,
she noticed that the limousine started to veer east into the desert, instead of
south toward the shoreline near her father’s home. Those were her first clues
that something was amiss. She glanced at Husani, whose eyes darted left to
right as recognition spread across his face. He shot up out of his seat and
stared out the window, taking in his surroundings. Then, he used the palm of
his hand to beat on the glass divider that separated the front and back seats.
The window was sealed with a tint so dark that they couldn’t quite make out who
or what lie on the opposite side.

“Tariq!
Lower the glass this instant!”

Husani’s
fist pounded on the
partition for several minutes. He let out a slew of expletives in Arabic.
Still, the chauffeur failed to respond. Maliyah could make out two distinct
shadows through the glass and wondered who was behind the wheel. Had Shahad
commandeered the driver? Regardless of their protests, the vehicle kept its
course as if nothing was out of sorts. Maliyah’s heart began to race. Sweat gathered
at the base of her skull. She opened her purse and found a handkerchief to wipe
off the dripping perspiration. Then, she noticed her cell phone peeking out
from one of the pockets. Maliyah grabbed it, and immediately dialed Ramses’
number. She waited for the call to connect, even though she knew it was
hopeless; they’d ventured too far from civilization. Cellular service in the
desert was spotty at best, and the further east they traveled, the less likely
they were to reach anyone who could help.

“No cell coverage.
What do we do now?” Maliyah asked, looking to her cousin for advice.

“I’ve got a shotgun
holstered to my ankle,” Husani said as he lifted his pant leg to show her the
weapon. “But play it coy. I don’t want those bastards up front to be tipped off.”

As the car
continued to creep along the deserted highway, Maliyah suddenly realized where
they were headed. She could make out the outline of a watering hole in the
distance, as well as several tall stone figures that shot up toward the
horizon. The Aziz family crypt was just ahead along the perimeter of the sacred
pool of Amun. No doubt Shahad had planned a dramatic end to the cat and mouse
game they’d been playing for the past month.

The limousine came
to a rolling stop in front of a natural hot spring, which was populated by a
few scattered people who had come to pay their respects to the dead. One woman,
in particular, caught Maliyah’s eye. She wore a long, azure blue gown made of a
shimmery fabric. Her dark hair had been pulled back away from her face. Several
damp gray strands clung to her hairline as a result of the humidity. When she
turned to face the approaching vehicle, her weathered features came into focus
and Maliyah instantly recognized her as Anat. A moment later, the back door
swung open and Shahad appeared, a gun brandished in his hand.

Before either of
them could react, Shahad aimed the weapon toward the front seat and shot off
several rounds of ammunition. Maliyah couldn’t see the driver through the
tinted glass. Nonetheless, she knew he was dead. Then her uncle turned the
weapon on Maliyah and cocked the trigger again.

Husani’s
jaw dropped once he came
face-to-face with his father. A look of shock was etched into his
normally-stern expression. His mouth moved as if he wanted to say something, but
no words escaped his lips. Then, he shoved Maliyah back against the seat, away
from the pistol’s aim. Unfazed, Shahad shifted his hips and repositioned the
gun so that it pointed directly at her head. “Don’t do anything stupid, son. I
will shoot her.”

By that time,
Anat
had started toward them. As she came around to the
right side of the vehicle, Shahad handed her the weapon. “Keep this aimed at
them, while I get them out of the car.” The killer spat the order out at Anat.
She took the gun from him and did as she was told, although her hands shook with
nervous apprehension.

Shahad grabbed for
Maliyah first. He took hold of the lapels of the blazer she wore and yanked her
out of the limousine. As her body was thrust from the car, her forehead came
into contact with the pointy edge of the door. Suddenly, everything went black.
Blood tricked down her nasal passages and she grew limp in her uncle’s arms.

“What have you
done?” Maliyah heard her cousin ask through the foggy haze of
semi-consciousness.

“Shut up!” Shahad
roared at his son. Then, Maliyah felt two fingers apply pressure to her neck.
“She still has a pulse. She’ll be fine. But if
you
want to live, you’ll help me carry her to shade.”

***

“Why are you doing
this?” Husani asked, Maliyah’s shoeless feet held firmly in his grasp. With Shahad
cradling her head, Ramses watched the two men carry her toward a shady spot
underneath one of the stone monoliths. She was unconscious. A drop of red
liquid slid from her nose into her mouth, which caused Ramses’ own blood simmer
to a boil. Claws and razor-sharp teeth sprang fourth, primed for attack. If
Shahad hurt his mate, he’d rip the man’s jugular out of his throat.

However, the
vampire showed considerable restraint, forcing the demon inside into a dormant
state. Their best defense was the element of surprise, and so far, Shahad
hadn’t been tipped off by his presence. Ramses arrived moments after the
limousine and for the past ten minutes, the tan-colored Jeep he drove in on sat
parked behind an adjacent structure, hidden from view. Luckily, he’d been able
to track the limo’s whereabouts. Before his death, Anwar installed a GPS
device, so that it could be located in case of theft. That’s how the vampire
had found them. He only hoped that he’d be able to cool his jets long enough to
listen to what Shahad had planned. Then he would swoop in and strike down the unsuspected
bastard before he knew what hit him.

Instead of hearing
the details of a plan, Ramses felt as if he were eavesdropping on a very
private conversation. “You abandoned us decades ago. Why come back now?”

“Surely I don’t
expect a family reunion,” Shahad answered rather matter-of-factly. “I only want
what’s mine.”

“So this is about
money?” Husani repeated, as he set Maliyah’s body down below the shadow of an
unmarked tomb. “Why didn’t you say so from the beginning? Salma and I would
have happily paid to see you disappear for good!”

“It’s too late for
that now,” Shahad shook his head with authority as he scrubbed a hand over his
wiry beard. Then he took the gun from Anat, who stood a few feet away. “I got a
call from a friend at the police station this morning. The coroner is issuing a
new death certificate. Anwar’s death will officially be ruled a homicide. I do
hate to implicate family and friends, but I’ve got no other choice.”

“”How
do you mean?”
Husani crinkled his brow in
speculation.

“
Anat’s
hasty departure already looks suspicious. Who’s to
say she wasn’t having an affair with my brother? Maybe she’ll decide to
blackmail his daughter for money. If that were to occur, this whole fiasco
could end badly.”

“But that doesn’t
explain what happens to me?”

“Why of course it
does!” Shahad sneered into his son’s ear, yet refused even a glance at his scorned
paramour. “You’ll foolishly come to your cousin’s aid. Like one of those
horrific Clint Eastwood westerns, a shootout will ensue, resulting in both your
deaths. By the time the authorities get wind of what happened
,
I’ll be long gone from here.”

Without warning,
Shahad cocked the pistol and fired, hitting Anat straight in the chest. The
maid’s eyes sparkled with tears as she stared up at her lover. However, the
look of betrayal on her face was short-lived. She soon collapsed, crumpling over
onto the sand. Her hand was nestled to her breast. A dark blotch stained the
iridescent blue fabric of her dress.

Anwar’s brother
showed little remorse as he watched the woman keel over and take her last
breath. Once he knew the shot had killed her, the maniac turned the weapon on
Maliyah. Ramses was poised to jump out of the Jeep and attack, when he heard
Husani’s beleaguered plea.

“Don’t. Kill me
first.”

His father
laughed. The sound was loud, deep from the belly. “Not a chance. I’m saving the
best for last.”

At
Shahad’s
words, the vampire leapt from the vehicle. Keeping
his alter ego in check, Ramses stalked toward the tomb. But by the time he
reached them some five hundred meters away, a scuffle had already broken out. A
moment later, bullets were fired. Ramses dove to the ground, covering Maliyah’s
body. As the dust settled, he lifted her up off the sand and examined her from
head to toe. Luckily, he found no injury, other than the gouge in the center of
her forehead and the blood dripping from one nostril. Thankfully, she was still
alive.

Next, Ramses turned
toward Husani, who held a small revolver in his grip. His lower lip quivered,
but his eyes remained fixed on the elderly gentleman who sat slumped over
against a stone structure nearby. He’d shot his own father. Blood oozed from
bullets that struck various parts of his torso. Nonetheless, the man continued
to fight for his life. Ramses would right that injustice.

The vampire kicked
a handful of rocks out of his path, and carefully set Maliyah back down on the
soft earth. Then, he approached his best friend’s brother. He placed the palms
of both hands over Shahad’s ears, and tilted his chin up, forcing the bastard
to meet his gaze.

“For Anwar,”
Ramses said as he snapped the man’s neck.

Chapter Twenty-One

The Proposition

Maliyah riffled
through her purse in search of the small vial she’d shoved to the bottom
several weeks earlier. Her hands shook as the wheels of the plane skidded
across the runway, preparing for take off. Eventually, she found the bottle of
Xanax her doctor had prescribed, twisted off the top, and downed one of the
tiny pills. As she swallowed the medication, Maliyah closed her eyes. A blur of
images replayed in Maliyah’s mind, reminding her of the whirlwind of events
that had transpired in the last few days.

Three days prior,
she had relinquished much of the family fortune in the hopes of drawing out her
money hungry uncle. The son of a bitch had not only murdered her father, and
made numerous attempts on her life; he was also the underlying cause of her broken
heart. Had it not been for his antics, she would have only stayed in Cairo a
handful of days. Not nearly enough time to let
herself
fall head-over-heels for Ramses Shakir.

The two lovers had
overcome so many obstacles. After everything they’d gone through, Maliyah
thought that nothing could keep them apart. Of course, in the beginning, she
had doubts. The man was a vampire, after all. But somewhere along the way, her
feelings had changed. The experience had altered her outlook on life. Maliyah
had resigned herself to one simple fact: she was madly in love with Ramses.
That was all that mattered. She refused to dwell on the uncertainty the future
might bring. To make their relationship work, she’d have to accept his true
nature and take things one day at time. If only Ramses reciprocated her
feelings.

Unfortunately,
Maliyah never got the opportunity to share exactly how she felt. After the
confrontation with Shahad, Maliyah had been rushed to the hospital with a
concussion. Semi-conscious throughout the brutal exchange at the sacred pool of
Amun, the injury to Maliyah’s head had rendered her helpless and weak. She
could hear, but not see or react to the events around her. Needless to say, she
cheered inwardly when Ramses dealt the final blow that shattered every bone in
her uncle’s neck.