Jack Higgins – Sheba

‘It’s worth a try, I suppose,’ Cunningham said.

Jamal stood beneath the shaft and Kane scrambled up on to his shoulders. Very carefully he pushed himself erect and raised his hands above his head. They just reached inside the shaft.

‘Now!’ he said in Arabic and Jamal’s great hands moved under his feet, lifting him bodily into the air.

Kane clawed desperately for a grip. Panic moved inside him as the Somali’s arms started to tremble and then his hands fastened into a crack in the rock, and he heaved desperately. A moment later, he was securely wedged in the shaft, his back against one side, his feet against the other.

He worked his way steadily upwards, pausing every so often for a rest. The rough stonework dug painfully into his back, but he hung on grimly, and gradually the opening of the shaft increased in size until he was resting a foot or so beneath the rim.

He quickly pulled himself over the edge and crawled towards the rope. At that precise moment, two Bedouins appeared from amongst the palm trees and stood in a patch of moonlight a few feet away from the shaft, talking idly.

He had flattened himself into the sand at the first sound. Now, he carefully inched forward into the shadows and worked his way into the trees. For the moment, there was nothing he could do for Cunningham and Jamal. The two Bedouins were armed and one carried a rifle crooked in his arm. It would be impossible to tackle both of them.

He got to his feet and walked quietly away through the palm trees towards the encampment. As he approached, he could hear singing. The Bedouins were squatting round a great, flaring fire and several of them danced together, weaving an intricate pattern in and out of the firelight. One man played on a herd boy’s pipe, another beat monotonously on a small skin drum. The rest sat cross-legged in a circle, clapping their hands in time to the music and swaying their bodies rhythmically.

He skirted the fire, keeping to the shadows, and moved in among the tents. The first two he examined were empty and he by-passed the largest one.

Two guards stood before a tent on the far side of the encampment. He circled round behind and crawled into the shadows at the base of the tent. He could hear movement inside, and then Ruth Cunningham murmured something he couldn’t quite catch and Marie replied.

He gently slackened one of the guy ropes and lifted the bottom edge of the tent a couple of inches. By lying flat on the ground, he could just see inside.

Marie was sitting on a sleeping bag, her back only six inches from him, and Ruth Cunningham was nearer the entrance.

Kane said softly, ‘Marie, don’t look round. Tell Ruth to keep on talking.’

Marie’s shoulders stiffened under the thin material of her shirt and then she leaned forward and spoke softly to the other girl. Ruth Cunningham gave a startled gasp and then she seemed to get control of herself. She started to talk loudly, discussing what had happened and speculating on the future.

Marie stretched full-length on her sleeping bag and half-turned her head so that she looked directly at Kane. Their mouths were only three or four inches apart.

‘I can’t do anything at the moment, I’m not armed,’ he said. ‘How are they treating you?’

‘So far, all right, but I’m not happy about the way Selim stares at Ruth. He looks as if he has the worst of all possible intentions.’

Kane tried to sound reassuring. ‘We’ll have to do something about that. I’ve got to rejoin the others now. Whatever happens, don’t worry. With any luck we should be back here in an hour to get you out.’ He started to move away and paused. ‘Tell Ruth her husband is fit and well.’

Marie’s hand slid under the edge of the tent and caressed his face gently. Her eyes were like dark water, full of dangerous currents that seemed to draw him in. He raised the edge of the tent a little more and she pushed her face towards him until their lips met. It was no kiss of passion – it was the kiss of a woman who loves deeply and tenderly, with every fibre of her being. For a moment, his hand tightened over hers and then he moved away quickly.

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