CHAPTER FOUR

The next morning, everyone was ready to make the next leg of the trip. The plan was to get to the oasis and drop off the Jeep, then stay the night, trying to contact the archaeologists in case the message was wrong, even though most knew it probably was not. The next morning, they would begin a trek towards the dig site, but they would stop five kilometers away to camp. The day after, they would visit the camp, and hopefully solve the mystery involving the strange creature.

"Aaron, do you have the next step planned out yet?" Angelica asked.

"Our professor is good at finding us well-paying jobs at other colleges, but I don't know. I like dealing with people, and not just students. I'm thinking of moving to Paris or London and leading historical tours. That way, I'll deal with anyone who decides to have a paid tour," Aaron smiled.

"Sounds good," Peter smiled. "I'll be taking those tours one day, whenever I settle down and make the proper funds to do it. I might just bus around or something, but that seems a little over rated to me."

"In what way?" Daniel asked, adjusting his glasses after the Jeep took another vicious bump.

"Well, you never know who you'll meet. You good meet the woman of your dreams, or you could meet the next psycho of the world, the guy who's going to kill you with a lamp and burry you in shoe boxes. Either way, it's crazy. Why take a bus everywhere in the continent taking their routes? That's why I like Amelia: she makes her own path. No one can tell her exactly where she's going to go. Why'd you agree to go to the site, anyway?" Peter asked.

"Well, I knew Mike really wanted to, and if he didn't get to go, he'd drag me back out here. No offense, Mike, but I can only do the world's largest desert once," Amelia smiled. Mike nodded in understanding.

"I wasn't the only one depending on the dig site. Daniel, isn't this a part of your training?" Mike asked. Daniel nodded.

"Um, my last professor told me to go to some digs if I could. So, this is my third dig in two months, and I have another planned when we get back," Daniel replied. Mike nodded as the group held on for another major bump.

"Sorry!" Vlamir called from the front.

"Perfectly fine with us, since we all would love to have hernias when we get home," Kevin groaned loudly.

"Kevin!" Angelica whispered fiercely.

"Oh, right, we're perfectly fine," Kevin grinned sarcastically.

"I take you wanted nothing to do with this trip?" Amelia asked. Kevin nodded.

"I make him go with me to help me with the bigger jobs, and since we're in the Sahara, I think we'll have some of those. He's just mad because he's missing some business opportunities. In my mind, if they want you they'll wait," Angelica said sternly.

"I agree," Daniel smiled. "I received scholarships without even trying, and that's a lot like a business opportunity. They only select a few recipients."

"Thank you, Daniel," Kevin smirked. He hated being here with anyone or anything, and he wasn't afraid to show it wherever they were, be it a bathroom break or in the Jeep surrounded by people who chose his wife to come with them. He was surprised that no one had said anything to him about his attitude, but he thought that everyone considered his wife's warnings to be enough, at least until they heard them bickering at camp.

"Why did you even drag me here? 'Big job' my rear end, Angelica!" Kevin exclaimed.

"Well if you hate being here this bad, there's a plane. Take it as far away from me as possible!" Angelica bellowed.

"Fine, maybe I will!" Kevin spat back. Sure enough, when he went to speak with Vlamir, he was met with the same response.

"I am not the one you should be telling. I don't care who goes or who stays, as long as you do not leave the decision to me. Tell Mike or somebody, I'm just the tour guide," Vlamir whispered. Kevin told Mike, and Mike agreed: whoever wanted to leave needed to leave then or stick it out. Sure enough, the plan had only one taker: Kevin, and Angelica spat curses at him until the plane was out of sight. Then the group was put up for the night in a small building with cots in it. Everyone told stories happily, except for Angelica, who was still very angry.

"Are you going to be okay?" Kelsey asked. Angelica shrugged.

"We've been headed for a divorce for the past six months. He's so money-hungry that he doesn't remember our dream. We both wanted to open a free clinic in a third-world country, just to give back, but now he's all financial this and money that. It's ridiculous to me that we're even still together. I still want that dream, but if I bring it up, I'm afraid of what will happen. Maybe I should make this a part of my decision to not be married to him," Angelica sighed.

"Is that really what you want? Have you talked with him about what you're feeling?"

"No, but I've dropped hints everywhere. I even started looking into the costs of transport, and suppliers, and everything we would need to make it happen. He thinks I'm crazy, though, and he told me that I was insane to even get quotes because 'the salesmen will make you buy'. There aren't any salesmen involved, and he would know that if he read the information I gave him. He's just not interested in me anymore, just money money money. I'm sick of his greedy ways," Angelica spat. She then grew silent, so Kelsey moved away from her and rejoined the group. A few minutes later, Kevin walked in with a massive bandage over his eye.

"What happened?" Angelica gasped.

"The plane went down!" Kevin exclaimed. "It's a miracle I'm even alive with the way he was flying! He claimed an engine went out. Bull! I know what that sounds like!"

Everyone looked to each other with an annoyed glare, but no one complained as Kevin rejoined the group and began controlling the conversations. Soon, people grew tired of it and began checking their packs and readying themselves for bed. When Kevin finally shut up, it was because everyone else was asleep, and most had headphones on their ears, drowning him out. After he took the hint, he lay there awake for a few minutes trying to decide what he should do, and he finally decided to stay with the group and check out whatever they were trying to find. It was better than trying to fix the airplane, and he figured it would be faster to. So, he stayed, even though no one wanted him there.