‘It will make it harder for them to follow. There is an old Bedouin camel-trail not far from here. If we can make it to there, then we will be safe.’ He took the vehicle up the side of the dune in much the same way as he had done that morning, only this time there was no laughter, and she was horribly aware of the stain darkening the fabric of his shirt.
‘I need to stop the bleeding. Does this car have a first-aid kit?’
‘Under the seat. Leave it. They’re still behind us.’ As they reached the top of the dune, he glanced in the mirror and gave a faint smile of triumph. ‘But not any more. They didn’t tackle it at the right angle and they have rolled to the bottom. Let’s move.’
‘Your arm—’
‘Hold on.’ He took the vehicle down the other side, driving with more care than he had during daylight hours. ‘Tell me who they are. Who are those people?’
‘I don’t know. Someone working for my uncle. It’s always someone different. To be on the safe side, I just suspect everyone.’
Karim muttered something in his own language, and then switched back to English. ‘Are you telling me that he employs different people to kill you?’
‘I did tell you that my life was under threat, but you didn’t believe me.’
‘Reasons might have helped.’
‘Never mind that now. Oh, God, there’s blood everywhere.’ She dug around under the seat, found the first-aid kit and flipped it open. ‘You’re going to have to stop so that I can look at your arm, Karim.’
He ignored her. ‘Talk to me, Alexa! Why would your uncle want you dead?’
‘It’s complicated, and you need to concentrate on driving.’
Rummaging through the first-aid kit, she pulled out a bandage. ‘Is the bullet in the wound?’
‘No. I’ve already told you, it’s just a scratch. Answer my question. What are we dealing with here?’
‘Cain and Abel,’ she muttered, and he glanced at her sharply.
‘Jealousy between brothers? That is what this is about?’
Alexa ripped the packaging from the bandage. ‘His brother—my father—is dead. I’m the last remaining obstacle between him and the throne of Rovina.’
‘He already rules Rovina.’
‘As Regent. He wants to rule in his own right. He’s always wanted that. If I reach my twenty-fifth birthday, then I take over as ruler. He isn’t going to let that happen.’ She steadied herself as the vehicle plunged and bounced on the uneven ground. ‘You need to stop so that I can see what I’m doing.’
‘We’re not stopping until I decide that it’s safe.’
‘Then I’ll just have to bandage it over your clothes. I’m sorry you were hurt because of me.’
He glanced towards her, his eyes gleaming dark and dangerous in the dim light of the car. ‘I’m sorry I didn’t believe you when you said that you were in danger. When it is safe, we will stop and you will start talking. And this time I’ll be listening hard.’
Her hands shook as she bandaged his arm. ‘We won’t be safe until we reach the Citadel.’
‘We will. The desert is a very unforgiving place for those without knowledge. This is an old Bedouin route. If we drive along here, we will reach the caves and we can rest there.’ Karim reached out a hand, punched a number into a satellite phone and then proceeded to speak rapidly in a language that she didn’t understand. When he finally broke the connection, she looked at him expectantly.
‘What was that about?’
‘I have asked for a security team to pick up those men and question them.’ His expression was grim as he gripped the wheel with his hand and drove hard and fast through the desert. ‘There may be others.’
The caves formed a dark, forbidding labyrinth at the base of the huge sandstone-cliffs. Alexa leaned forward, peering through the darkness. ‘We’re going in there?’
‘Yes.’ Karim parked the vehicle out of sight of the road and winced as he reached for a torch and some blankets. ‘No one will look for us here.’
Alexa felt her stomach lurch at the thought of all that dark, confined space, but said nothing. She knew that they needed to get out of sight, and she was worried about Karim’s arm. ‘Let’s go, then.’
She followed him into the entrance of the caves. ‘Shall we just stop here?’ Her voice echoed and he flashed the torch towards the back of the cave where the rocks narrowed.
‘Through there is a smaller chamber. We’ll spend the night there. It will be warmer.’
And darker and more closed in. Alexa stood for a moment, finding it impossible to make her feet move. Then she remembered that they were in this situation because of her, and forced herself to follow him through the narrow gap, reminding herself that she wasn’t locked in.
There was a way out.
Karim checked that the ground was dry and then dropped the blankets. ‘Sit down.’
‘ You sit down. I need to look at your arm.’ She undid the emergency dressing she’d applied and waited while he pulled off his shirt. Blood oozed from the wound, and she cursed softly and pressed down hard, staunching the flow. ‘It’s bleeding a lot. I’ll clean it and dress it, but I suspect that it could have done with some stitches.’
‘So blood is yet another thing that doesn’t frighten you?’
‘Don’t be ridiculous. Can you shine the torch on this so that I can see what I’m doing?’ Removing what she needed from the first-aid kit, Alexa swabbed the wound and took a closer look. ‘You’re right. The bullet just grazed the skin. I’ll clean it, but you probably need some antibiotics.’
‘And how can a princess, who supposedly isn’t interested in anything more than fast cars and high heels, be so adept at first aid?’ He watched as she carefully applied a sterile dressing to his arm and bound it firmly.
‘I’ve spent a lot of time working at the local hospital. William hasn’t invested any money in healthcare since he became Regent. The hospitals are struggling—no money, no staff. Morale is rock bottom. I help out when I can.’
‘You work in the hospital?’
‘As a volunteer.’ Alexa closed the first-aid kit. ‘I’m not trained, or anything. I would have loved to have been a doctor, but there was never any chance of that.’
He studied her for a moment, his expression forbidding. ‘Sit down, Alexandra. It’s time we talked about your uncle.’
Alexa sat down on the rug and tried not to think about the darkness. They weren’t closed in, she reminded herself. ‘I’m really sorry I got you into all this. I knew it was a mistake to take you with me.’
‘I didn’t give you a choice in the matter.’ He sat down next to her. ‘But clearly, I should have listened to you more carefully. I’m listening now, Alexa. Start talking.’ The silence of the cave closed around them like a protective cocoon.
‘I wouldn’t know where to start.’
‘Start with why you’re marrying the Sultan.’ He shone the torch towards her so that he could see her face. ‘It doesn’t have anything to do with the money or the status, does it?’
‘I’m marrying the Sultan because it’s my best chance of staying alive. You keep telling me that he’s going to lock me behind the walls of the Citadel, and that’s what I’m hoping for,’ Alexa said softly. ‘I want to reach my twenty-fifth birthday. I want to rule Rovina. Since my uncle took over, I’ve watched the country