Kamal leapt off his stallion’s back, relief flooding through him at the sight of Arabella.
“I believe you lost something, brother,” Risan said, bowing deeply.
“Release her,” Kamal said in a flat cold voice. She was staring at him, her hair tangled about her pale face, her eyes wide.
“I found her, Kamal,” Risan continued. “I will pay you for her.”
Kamal held out his hand, and Arabella, without a thought of anything except that he was there, took three steps toward him and pressed herself against his side. He felt a shudder run though her.
“You will be rewarded, Risan, for finding my property.” Her gratitude did not last long, he thought, feeling her stiffen. “I would pay you with the money she carries, but unfortunately it is stolen.”
Without another word, Kamal swung up onto his horse’s back. For a long moment he merely stared down at Arabella. Then he gave her his hand and pulled her up in front of him. His stallion, Timar, snorted at the extra weight, dancing sideways until he heard his master’s voice quieting him. “Put on the burnoose. It is chilly where we are going.”
Arabella did as she was told, wondering at the odd flatness of his voice. Anger, rage, she could better understand.
“Where are you taking me?” she asked after she had wrapped herself completely in the full white burnoose.
“Be silent,” Kamal said. He turned in his saddle and gave orders in Arabic to the men behind him.
Arabella watched the town of Oran and the harbor recede in the distance. They were riding inland, toward a range of mountains.
The horse lengthened his stride as they reached open ground, and Arabella felt Kamal’s arms tighten about her waist. She turned slightly, fatigue washing over her, and rested her head against his chest.
Chapter 25
Arabella snuggled closer, not wanting to leave the safety of her dreams, but his voice came again, his warm breath touching her temple. “Wake up, Arabella. You can sleep again, soon.”
“Kamal?”
His arms tightened about her. “Put your arms around my neck and hang on.”
She did as she was bid, aware that his stallion was quiet now. “Where are we?”
He did not reply until he had dismounted. “We’re at our camp.”
She raised her head from his shoulder and blinked at the activity. “It’s still night,” she said as he eased her to the ground.
“Yes. You slept for but an hour. Sit here until our tent is ready.”
Arabella sank to the rocky ground, wrapped the heavy burnoose more securely about her against the cold, and stared around her. They were on a flat stretch of ground at the base of rolling hills. One of the men was building a fire; another was lighting lamps and setting them at intervals around the area. She recognized Ali working with yet another man to erect a tent. She heard the snorting of horses and watched Kamal pull the saddle from his stallion and lead him into a small fenced-in area. What camp? she wondered. Why had Kamal brought her here? And where was “here”? She looked up at the sky, black as velvet, studded with stars that looked like sparkling diamonds. Everything was so quiet. It was as if they were the only humans on earth.
“Come.”
She looked up to see Kamal standing over her, his hand outstretched. She studied his set face in the flickering firelight.
“Where?”
He leaned down, grasped her under the arms, and jerked her to her feet. “I have a lot to say to you, my lady,” he said coldly, “and not in my men’s hearing.”
He was like a stranger in the long flowing white robe and hood that was secured to his head with corded leather bands. The boots slid off her heels and she moaned softly at the pain.
“I have not hurt you. What is the matter?”
“My feet hurt,” she said, not looking at him.
Kamal looked down at her booted feet, then shouted something in Arabic to one of the men. She took another step before Kamal, cursing softly, lifted her into his arms. He carried her into a tent and sat her do
wn on a cushion. The tent wasn’t large, but its slender poles held the tent ceiling above Kamal’s head. Animal furs were spread as a bed; thick carpets covered the rocky ground; a brazier of coals burned brightly against the night chill.