The Exodus Quest Read Online Free PDF Page A

until Naguib’s cheeks grew warm. He scowled and walked across the officer’s line of sight, giving him no choice but to notice him, though he still didn’t get up. ‘Yes?’ he asked.
    Naguib nodded at the eastern crescent of hills. ‘I’ve just come from the desert,’ he said.
    ‘If they’ll pay you for it.’
    ‘One of the guides took some tourists out last night. They found a girl.’
    ‘A girl?’ frowned the officer. ‘How do you mean?’
    ‘I mean they found her body. Wrapped in tarpaulin.’
    The officer set down his glass, stood up. A tall man, beautifully presented, razor-cut hair, manicured nails, a silken moustache, making the most of his uniform. ‘I hadn’t heard,’ he said, suddenly earnest, offering his hand. ‘Captain Khaled Osman, at your service.’
    ‘Inspector Naguib Hussein.’
    ‘Are you new here, Inspector? I don’t recall seeing you before.’
    ‘Six weeks,’ admitted Naguib. ‘I was in Minya before.’
    ‘You must have done something pretty bad to get posted here.’
    Naguib gave a wry grunt. He’d been investigating military equipment on the black market, hadn’t dropped it even when the trail had led him to the top, not even after he’d been warned off. He hated Egypt’s culture of corruption. ‘They told me it was a promotion,’ he said.
    ‘Yes,’ agreed Khaled. ‘They told me that, too.’ He glanced around. ‘You’ll join us for some chai ?’
    Naguib shook his head. ‘I need to get back to the station. I just thought I’d ask if you’d heard anything.’
    Khaled shook his head. ‘I’m sorry. I’ll ask around, if you like. Keep an ear to the ground.’
    ‘Thank you,’ said Naguib. ‘I’d be most grateful.’ He returned to his Lada feeling cheered. His wife always said that a drop of courtesy could solve a world of ills. She knew what she was talking about, his wife.

THREE
    I
    Gaille unlocked the Discovery and climbed inside. She sat there for a moment, breathing hard, studying herself in the rear-view. Her tan, headscarf and local clothes gave her anonymity if she wanted it. She could drive away and no one would ever know. Only that wasn’t quite true. She’d know.
    She grabbed her camera from the glove compartment, hurried out and back through the ticket hall where the police were still hiding, her heart pounding, chills fluttering across her skin. Stafford and his companions were still hemmed in on the platform, wrestling for their luggage with two youths. She stepped up onto a bench, wielded her camera like a weapon. ‘CNN!’ she cried out. ‘Al Jazeera!’ Attention shifted instantly to her, a wave of hostility, quickly replaced by fear, people instinctively ducking their faces, not wanting to be captured on film. She panned around to the men from the Central Security Forces. The officer scowled and snapped out orders. His men hurried out, opened a precarious corridor with their batons that Stafford, the redhead and Gaille all hurried down, out to the Discovery.
    ‘What are you waiting for?’ yelled Stafford, slamming the passenger door behind him. ‘Get us out of here.’
    ‘What about your porter?’
    ‘Fuck him,’ snapped Stafford. ‘Just get us out of here, will you?’
    ‘But—’
    ‘He’s one of them, isn’t he? He can look after himself.’
    The CSF men were waving them away, as though they couldn’t guarantee them protection much longer. Gaille thrust the Discovery into gear, surged away. Traffic was gridlocked the way she wanted to go; she turned left instead. The streets quickly narrowed, aged, turned into a bazaar, forcing her to slow right down, wend her way between irritated shoppers. With all the twists and turns, she quickly became disoriented. She leaned forwards in her seat, scanning the skyline for a familiar landmark by which to navigate.
    II
    Captain Khaled Osman kept his smile fixed to his lips as he waved off the police inspector. But it vanished when he turned to his men. ‘Time for a patrol, I think,’