DISCLAIMER:JQ belongs to HB I am only borrowing the characters for fun ARCHIVERS: I'd be honored AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is a Race Fic. Come on you guys, we need MORE of them! I have done my best to do justice to all the characters in TRA even if I don't always spell their names right. CATAGORY: Hmm, the start of the adventure part that led to all this Angst. BLOOD AND JADE: PART 2 BY SHENSA swndc@sprintmail.com QUEST COMPOUND JULY,10 The phone rang shrilly rousing Race Bannon rudely from a lazy early afternoon nap. The book he had been reading toppled to the floor with a thud as he reached for the phone. "Quest residence, Bannon speaking" He yawned hugely as he waited for the other party to speak. There was a long moment of silence and he scowled irritably at this unwanted intrusion on a rare day off. The voice on the other end of the line spoke tentatively, devoid of its usual throaty purr. "Race? It's Jade I...I need your help." He set the phone down slowly, face grim his eyes colder then the winds off a glacier. He remained still as stone for a time, thinking back to all the mistakes he had ever made in his life; coming to the conclusion that this would have to be his biggest. "You're nothing but trouble lady but I owe you one." Then after soundly cursing himself for a fool. He jogged quickly up the stairs to his room and began to pack his gear. The three teens raced for the house at breakneck speed not slowing their pace as the narrow space loomed closer. The pounding of their feet and the slap of their backpacks the only sound they made. Then suddenly with a burst of speed a red-haired streak leaped ahead crossing first. "I win! I get first dibs on Questworld!" Screeched Jessie breathlessly a second before her pursuers collided shoulder to shoulder in the doorway. The two boys burst through and went flailing across the floor and into a small stack of neatly piled luggage. Race came down the stairs as the thuds echoed throughout the house. He raised an irritated brow when he took in the sprawled teens and his scattered gear. "Man, Hadj' are you sure you don't want to try out for Varsity?" questioned Jonny rubbing a newly bruised shoulder. "Hi dad!" came an excited voice. "What's all this?" asked Jessie as she planted a quick kiss on his cheek and gestured toward the suitcases. "Yeah Race, where are we going?" "Not we Jonny, me" he replied dragging the kid off a suitcase and then hoisting Hadji to his feet. The Indian boy gave-up trying to rewind his turban and dropped the whole tangled mess into his backpack. "You? where are you going?" asked Jessie suspiciously, emerald eyes narrowing a fraction. Race took a deep breath. "I'm headed to Cairo Ponchita, just for a couple of days. A...friend has gotten themselves into some hot water and asked if I'd help out." "Another pal from your infamous agency days I suppose." Race didn't say a word, the less they knew the better. "Cairo and the land of the pharoahs" spoke Hadji with all the mystery of a tour guide leading his charges through the dusty tomb of some dead Egyptian king. Jonny and Jessie shuddered turning less than enthusiastic looks upon their friend as they remembered their last experience in that mysterious land. "Well, I won't be doing much sight-seeing this is strictly business; no camel rides or Nile cruises for this cowboy." "Camel rides make me sea-sick" complained Jessie "and that smell sure didn't do much for me either." "That's a good one Jess', how can a camel make you sea-sick?" "Well my friend, they are called 'The Ships of the Desert'" answered Hadji cryptically. Race left the three teens bickering in the lobby as he headed toward the library to make a final call to Benten. He checked his watch, not much time left. He should be at the airport by now checking the Ghost and reviewing his flight plan. "Quit draggin' your feet Bannon, it's too late to turn tail now" he muttered. "Dad?" He turned to face his daughter "what's-up Ponchita?" "I thought I'd ask you the same thing" she answered pointedly. "Who *are* you going to meet in Cairo?" came the level question. He decided he was too tired to make-up some crazy story to hide the truth; besides this was Jessie, she deserved a straight answer. Hell, he bet she probably already had most of it figured out anyway. Her gaze was just a little too bright and she had her jaw set at that same obstinate angle Estella employed just before her stormy temper cut loose. "Jade's gotten herself into trouble with some business associates and she needs a little assistance." "Uh huh, so in other words Jade has stolen something she wasn't supposed too and now half of the criminals in the free world are on her tail and she can't charm her way out of it so she calls *my* father to come riding in on his white horse and save the day" she finished nastily. He laughed despite himself, ruefully shaking his head; beauty and brains, not to mention a wicked sense of humor just like her mom. "Well, you always were smarter then the average bear Ponchita and you know how I feel about white horses." "Dad! Give me a break!" "Jessie listen to me" his eyes grew cold and serious as he caught her gaze, with one stride he narrowed the gap between them. "I like this even less then you but it's something I have to do. I don't trust her any more then I'd trust a blind guide dog in a quicksand obstacle course. But I owe her one and I always pay my debts." The hard edge of his voice left no room for argument. He took a deep breath. "Now how about rounding-up Jonny and Hadji and heading to the airport. I'll be taking the Ghost, you can help with the pre-flight?" "Sure...I'll get the guys." "I'm going to miss you dad" she hugged him tight. "I'll miss you too Ponchita" he held her in a big bear-hug. "No slackin' on your homework while I'm gone, promise?" "I promise" she murmured against his shoulder. "Dad, I don't want you to go. I...I have a bad feeling about this." *You and me both Ponchita* he thought silently. He looked at his watch. "Time for lift-off podners, can't miss my window. I don't suppose I have to tell you three to behave yourselves while I'm gone. No giving the good doctor any gray hairs." "Well, we figure we've done a pretty good job with you, so my dad should be safe." "Funny kid" he grabbed Jonny in a headlock. "You're the only one with any sense around here Hadj' keep these two in line for me will you?" "I will do my best Race but who can say if it is the rock or the stream that yields to the other." "Well...whatever, just stay out of trouble." Jessie caught his arm. "I don't suppose it will do me any good to tell *you* to be careful." "You know me Ponchita, I'll be as careful as a lightening-bug in a dynamite factory." She scowled in exasperation "cute dad." He let out a whoop as the plane roared down the runway; struggled for a brief moment against its bonds then charged free leaping into the air. God he loved this plane, sure the Dragonfly was a great machine and it could beat the Ghost hands down but the Leer was strictly his and that made all the difference in the world. As the silver jet rocketed across the Atlantic he grinned and reached over, searching through a small case in the seat next to him. Soon the sounds of Led Zeppelin echoed over the drone of the engines and the rush of air against the Leer's sleek sides. But not even the plaintive wail of Stairway to Heaven and the thrill of the jet could drive away the uneasiness that settled like a storm cloud over his mood. He touched down in Cairo already finding himself facing the blazing furnace of an Egyptian summer day as he taxied the Ghost across the baking tarmac. It was a far cry from the gray drizzle and welcoming green of Scotland where he had stopped to refuel and lay-over for a few hours after the Atlantic crossing. Waves of heat rose so shimmering thick that the ground crew looked like nothing more then deformed shadows. The desert winds mixed with the trail of the engines whipping-up dust devils that scoured the ground and anything unlucky enough to get caught in their path. The gauge read a balmy 101. "At least its a dry heat" he muttered sarcastically. He pulled the Ghost up in front of a glistening new hanger far away from the hub of everyday commercial traffic and cut the engines. Before him waited a small ground crew and a white sedan with his welcoming party. He gathered his gear and opened the door, bracing for the blast of hot air. It was like slamming into a brick wall. *It had to be July, what would have been so wrong with October?* He questioned irritably as he stepped onto the tarmac ignoring the heat working its way through the soles of his boots. A tall thin man with a drooping paunch stepped from the comfort of the air-conditioned sedan. Squinted against the blinding glare of the sun off the sides of the jet and mopped his brow with the handkerchif clutched in his fist. "Ah, it is good to have you back in the land of the pharoahs Mr. Bannon. I trust your family is healthy and well? Again I apologize for your last visit." "Not to worry Kadesh, it's all forgotten by now" lied Race. He flashed his passport and the set of diplomatic papers. He hadn't given up all his perks, it still paid to have friends in high places." Inspector Kadesh perrused the documents before handing them back to Race with a grin. "Well, I am satisfied that everything is in order here. Enjoy your stay in Kemet Mr. Bannon. I hope it will be more pleasant then your last" he chirped cheerfully. "I wouldn't be so sure about that" muttered Race as he left the smiling official standing in the bright glow of the Egyptian sun. END PART 2: Blood and Jade