Bette shut her eyes, and said a prayer of thanks.  They walked out into the sunshine. Bette eyed the contingent of men, scaling down the side of the mountain in which the cave had been built into.  They were led by a tall man, slightly red-headed underneath his helmet, based on the color of his beard.

“You Bette?,” the tall man asked, in a surprisingly cultured voice, posh British accent.

“Yes,”she responded.  On impulse, she stuck her hand out, to shake the man’s hand.  The man paused, then shook her hand.  Smooth, soft, she thought.  Not at all what she expected from a soldier.

“Thanks for rescuing us,” she told him.  He smiled, murmuring it was nothing.  “Actually, it was these guys here who did all the work,” he said nodding his head towards the smaller men surrounding him.  Bette was looking at them more closely.  She asked the tall man, “Nepalese?”  Although the man was wearing dark glasses, it was clear from the jerk of his head and slight laugh he was surprised at her perception. He nodded, then said, “Gurkha, actually.”

She cocked her head to one side, “Odd that they’re out here….”

“Well…they’re like my…um…personal security,” he explained, shrugging his shoulders.

“Oh…,”she began to eye the tall man a bit more closely.  Personal security for a man doing patrols out here in this dangerous place?

He led her to the shadows cast by the mountain, to a more protected side.  He was explaining that the Colonel’s men had asked for a re-scoping by another team of the path that Bette and the convoy were going to take back to the base camp, and he and the team leader agreed they were to wait for further instructions.   The tall man explained he’d volunteered to stay back with Bette and her security team while they did so.

He removed his helmet, which Bette could see bore another insignia, different from the Colonel’s men.  “Not US Army?,” she asked.  He shook his head, smiling.  “No…no… British.  British army,” he said.  “Time we pulled you yanks out of a spot of trouble, huh?,” he asked in a joking tone.

He extended his hand, “We haven’t been introduced…I’m Harry.”

“Bette,” she smiled, shaking his hand again, “But you already knew that.”

He laughed, “Yeah, I did.”  He put his helmet back on but briefly removed his dark glasses, to wipe them off.

As he did, Bette looked more closely at him.   Something familiar about him.

He asked what they were doing in the cave, and she was explaining that she was cataloguing some things, and documenting all the relevant information Mike and his team would need to track the smugglers of artifacts from that province.

“You’re risking your life for…art?,” he asked, incredulously.

She smiled, “Well…not just for art.  I’m helping a friend.”

He nodded, “You’re a good friend, then,” pausing, “And a true lover of the arts.”

The Colonel’s team was returning, and the team lead of her personal security was signaling to her that it was safe for them to head back to the base camp.

She shook Harry’s hand, thanking him again.  “You’re a brave woman,” he said warmly.

“I’m just trying to help the people here hold on to the art and culture that’s rightfully theirs,” she responded.

He nodded.  “Well…I’m sure our paths will cross again,” he said as they stood to walk towards the convoy.

She doubted it, but expressed her thanks again, as they neared the vehicle, then added, “Please: do look us up whenever you come to New York, next, ok?”

He nodded, “May be sooner than you think!,” then turned to join his team.  They waved at Bette’s convoy as it drove off.