Page 14 (1/1)

Chapter 1

Sabrina Johnson had sand in her teeth and a lot of other places sand wasn’t supposed to be

She’d been an idiot, she told herself as she huddled under her thick cloak and listened to the stor all around her Only someone incredibly foolish would have driven four hundred ns of civilization behind, traveling with only a horse and a pack ca for a stupid, mythical city that probably didn’t even exist

A particularly vicious gust of sand and wind nearly toppled her Sabrina clutched her legs more firmly to her chest, rested her head on her knees and swore that noshe survived her current predicaain Not even a little All iotten her was lost and trapped in the middle of a sandstorm

Worse, no one knew she was out here, so no one would be looking for her She’d stalked off without saying a word to her father or her brothers When she didn’t show up for dinner, they would probably assu in her roo trip They would never think she was lost in the desert Her brothers had warned herto be the death of her She’d never thought they ht

Heat and dryness pressed against her She coughed, but couldn’t seeo on and would she be able to find her hen it was over?

She didn’t have answers to her questions, so she tried not to think about thehtly, staying low to the ground, hoping the storm wouldn’t sweep her up in its power and blow her away She’d heard stories about that sort of thing Of course her brothers had been the ones telling the stories and they didn’t always stick to the truth

After what could have been hours, she thought she noticed a slight lessening of howls Gradually she beca and that it was getting easier to breathe A fewout from under her cloak

There was good news and bad news The good neas she wasn’t dead Yet The bad neas her horse and the supply ca with her food, water and maps Almost worse, the stor and had erased all the landmarks she’d noticed on her way into the desert from the outpost where she’d left the truck and horse trailer The truck that wouldn’t be found until so That event could be weeks or even months away Hoould she survive until then?

Sabrina rose and turned in a slow circle Nothing looked faed She watched clouds of sand reach up toward the sky as if trying to obliterate the sun She sed The sun was surprisingly low in the horizon It was late Apparently the storer than she’d realized

Her sto her she hadn’t eaten since a very early breakfast She’d been so eager to get started on her journey that , that she’d left the capital city well before dawn She’d been convinced that she was going to find the fabled City of Thieves she’d been studying for ages, and prove its existence to her father He’d always teased her about her fascination with it She’d been so darned determined to have the last word Instead she’d ended up here

Nohat? She could continue to search for the lost city, she could try to return to Bahania and her life of being ignored by her father and brothers or she could simply stand here and die of thirst Actually while the third choice wasn’t her favorite, under the circumstances it seemed the most likely

“I’htened the scarf tied around her head She shook out her cloak, then folded it and slung it over one shoulder

West, she thought and turned so the setting sun was on her right She needed to retrace her earlier journey by heading south and a little west to find the outpost There was food and water in her car, because she’d brought more than she’d been able to fit onto the ca to eat and drink, she could thinkto do

Ignoring her hunger and thirst, she set off at a steady pace Fear dogged her heels, like a desert jackal, but she mentally kicked the beast away and reminded herself that she was Sabrina Johnson She’d faced , of course She’d never faced physical danger before But so what? There was no one around to point out that fact