Raging Storm {book 2 in SOSfanfic series} [ON HOLD]

Desert's Doing

One word. It starts with H. Reyna used it to describe the desert.
Hot.
Hell.
Home.

It had been four days and they were entering the actual desert now.
Her territory.
The land of heat strokes, dehydration, scorpions, camel stink, madness and of course, the infamous sandstorms.
Death.
Home.

For four days Reyna had tried (unsuccessfully) to see the charted route they were taking, talking to the riders (not the ones she could previously name), making acquaintances, preparing herself for the desert, and trying to ignore the much delayed appointment she had with introspection and her conscience. She wanted to be in the dunes when she tackled the greatest demon of all: her mind.

Karim slowly pulled his camel besides hers as they beasts trudged on. Reyna suspected he did that because he couldn't recognize her under her headscarf, not because he had forgiven her for the tea trick.
Reyna rolled her eyes. Four flipping days! He could forgive her now! How long was he going to hold a stupid grudge? It was only salt. Not poison.

Deciding it was high time to determine the results, Reyna unwrapped her headscarf and let it hang around her neck.
Karim glanced at her, frowned and kicked his camel to walk faster, and away from Reyna.

Tying her headscarf back again she smirked at him. Childish feud...

"Is that you?" Mr. Ambrose growled out from atop his camel, which was approaching hers.

Reyna rolled her eyes again. One of these days she was going to get blind.

"Yes!" She moaned dramatically, "it is I!"

It's as if she could hear Mr. Ambrose grinding his teeth.

"No need for hysterics. I was just wondering that I had neither seen you nor heard from you since half a week. I was rudely awakened from my bliss moments ago when I saw that you were still here. I thought we left you behind."

Reyna tugged at the reins to halt her camel.

"Well I suppose I can leave then...." She said in a sing-song voice and began to turn her camel around.
"I rather miss those swimming pools..."

"Don't be daft!" Mr. Ambrose snapped at her, trying to freeze her in 50°C.

"Excuse me," Reyna spoke indignantly, well much as one could be on top of a stinky camel, with one hand on her hip, "but have you ever been to one of the pools?"

"I'm not talking about the pools." Mr. Ambrose grit out. Slowly. While mangling his reins. Oh dear.
"You couldn't possibly be leaving!" He sounded like a dog about to bite.

"Well give me one reason to stay! You repeatedly insult me, that is when you're talking to me, you don't allow your men to speak to me, you don't tell me where we're going, and on top of all that you yell at me when I try to leave!" Reyna cried out.

She wasn't serious. All these things went bothering her enough to matter but they were bothering her- just very little. Very very little.

Mr. Ambrose was silent. Finally, with a taut tone he said,"Your pay."

"What?"

"You can't leave because you haven't been paid yet. You wouldn't leave now." The son of a djin managed to sound cool and collected in 50 degrees while an assassin was complaining to him!

Reyna grit her teeth at first but then sighed and turned her camel around.

"Damn you, you insufferable sadistic curdled sack of milk." She muttered.

She kicked her camel to make it move. So did Mr. Ambrose. They were side by side. After travelling for some time in silence, Reyna tried to tie her headscarf properly. As she twisted she caught a sight of Mr. Ambrose for the first time in four days.