Time crawls by, and I force myself to work through my task list. The team could have a huge discovery at any moment, I remind myself, and that will make this all worth it.
It’s late afternoon when I emerge from my tent, restless and frustrated. The heat has barely diminished. If anything, the sun feels more intense, lower in the sky but somehow more direct.
I find most of the team gathered near the excavation site. Georgia has her team spread out across the area, and they’re having what looks like a strategic discussion. Maps are unfurled on a folding table someone has dragged out from the work tent. Everyone is pointing, debating, discussing.
This is good. This is progress. Planning the next phase of excavation.
I walk over, careful to keep my distance, to not hover. Just observe.
“…structural indicators suggest the main chamber would be here,” Yasmin is saying, pointing to a section of the map. “But the pottery distribution implies regular activity further west.”
“Ritual deposits?” Omar suggests.
“Possibly. Or domestic areas. Storage.”
Georgia is listening intently, her hair pulled back in a messy bun, her shirt dusty and sweat-stained. She looks completely in her element.
I’m about to take a few steps back, not wanting to feel like I’m hovering again, when I notice movement in my peripheral vision.
Lois, walking slowly toward our group. She’s still flushed, still fanning herself, but now she’s also swaying slightly.
“Georgia, dear,” she calls out, her voice weaker than before. “I think I need to…”
She doesn’t finish the sentence.
Her knees buckle, the piece of cardboard falls from her hand, and she crumples to the ground like a puppet with cut strings.
CHAPTER 9
GEORGIA
“Lois!”
I’m on my knees beside her before I fully register moving, my hands hovering over her body, not sure where to touch, how to help.
“Give me space,” Dr. Akkhad orders, appearing with her medical bag. Her voice is calm, professional, but I can see the intensity in her movements as she kneels beside Lois.
I scramble back, my heart hammering.
This can’t be happening. Lois can’t— She was fine this morning. Tired, yes, but fine.
“What do you need?” Calvin asks Dr. Akkhad, his phone already in his hand. Calling for help won’t make much of a difference, though. It’s four hours here from the city, another four hours back. It’s not like an ambulance will do much for us.
“Water. And get me that folding cot from the medical tent. We need to get her out of the sun.”
People scatter to follow orders. Khalid and Edmond return with the cot, setting it up quickly in the shade of the dining tent. Calvin appears with water bottles. Fatima hovers nearby, wringing her hands.
And through it all, I can hear Ella crying in the distance, frightened by the commotion.
I should go to her. But I can’t leave Lois.
Dr. Akkhad is checking Lois’s pulse, her breathing, taking her temperature with a digital thermometer from her kit. Lois’s eyes flutter open, unfocused and confused.
“Wha—what happened?” Her voice is weak.
“You fainted,” Dr. Akkhad says gently. “Just lie still. I’m checking you over.”
“I’m fine. Just the heat…”
