The Call of Camelot

Chapter 5 - Damsel in Distress

I felt like I had gone through the entire dictionary of British curse words, old and new, by the time I calmed myself down.  I was attempting to try and formulate a plan and figure out how the hell that bracelet had gone from being in a locked safe to my shoulder bag!

Eventually, after another hour of cursing and further pacing of my bedroom, I settled on what was, probably a really stupid plan. I picked up my phone and dialled the newest number in my phone book.

After a few rings, a groggy voice answered with some form of a sleep deprived grunt.

"Ambrose, It's Cara. I know it's late but I have a situation and I really need to see you, like, right now!" I exclaimed.

"Cara, it's one in the morning!" he grumbled back.

I didn't want to sound like a spoilt child that wasn't getting her own way, but faced with my current situation, I think I could be forgiven for the slightly desperate tone in which I answered him.

"Please! It's an emergency and I don't know what to do!" I really detest sounding like such a damsel in distress.

I heard him sigh and huff in obvious resentment, but felt such a sense of relief when he asked my room number and to expect him in a few minutes time.

The wait for him to knock on my door was torturous, I started to play in my mind the various scenarios of me showing him the priceless artefact in my bag. No matter what storyline ran through my imagination, each one ended in the same way.

Me sobbing unattractively in the back of a police car while an angry Ambrose watched as I was driven away, swearing to never again lay eyes on a red head and declaring his love for a smug looking Laura.

Ok, so that woman really, REALLY got my back up!

Just as I was deciding that my plan was a stupid one, two thumps sounded at the door and I welcomed a dishevelled and visibly irritated Ambrose into my room.

"For goodness sake Cara, what could be so important to make me rush down here in the middle of the night?!" he scolded.

Without a word, I walked to my shoulder bag, took the bracelet and tossed it on top of my bed covers.

"Not to sound cliche but it's not what it looks like!" I responded.

Ambrose took a moment, his gaze shifting from the artefact and settling on me. "Of course its not, I'm a good judge of character, Cara. I'd never have took you for a thief."

Now that definitely wasn't the reaction I'd expected.

"Oh my God, thank you!" was all I could think to say, bottom lip trembling and eyes filling with fresh tears.

Ambrose nodded, picked the bracelet up from the bed and played with it in his hands for a while before placing it in my bag and zipping it shut.

"There was a lot of excitement last night from your little discovery." Ambrose began. "But a lot of animosity as well."

"Why?" I responded, unable to veil my surprise at this statement.

"This hotel is filled with historians and archeologists who have spent decades, some, their entire careers, dreaming of a find like this one.  And here you are, someone who's never even set foot on a dig site before yesterday, making perhaps one of the most significant finds in years.  Within your first hour! Theres alot of people that are upset by that." he revealed.

"So, you think someone planted the bracelet in my bag to, what, get me kicked off the site? Have me arrested? Just because they're jealous!" I fumed.