Digging Deeper: An Adventure Novel (Sam Harris Series Book 1) Read Online Free Page B

going.  The penalties for being caught with an illegal diamond in Tamazia are draconian.  We fire anyone who gets caught buying one and hand the culprit over to the police.  I wouldn’t recommend a stay in a Tamazian jail.  They are dangerous and overcrowded.  Even so, there is always some idiot who thinks they can get away with it.’
    ‘I don’t like diamonds,’ said Sam. ‘I am very unlikely to be tempted.’
    ‘Excellent decision.  Can you read and sign your contract, please?  You must do this before you fly to Kardo.’
    Despite several attempts to obtain a copy of her contract before she travelled, this was the first time she had seen it. She reviewed the document before signing it as a matter of course.   After her conversation with Black, she was not that surprised to see that the conditions of service did not match those she had been offered in London. 
    ‘Bill, can I ask you some questions about my contract please?’
    ‘Sure, what’s the problem?’
    ‘Well, it says here that due to the shortage of suitable accommodation in Mondongo, I will be sharing living quarters with other people.  This is not what I agreed to in London.’
    ‘Ah yes, unfortunately our London office is about as much use as a condom in a nunnery.   Tamazia has been at war for twenty years.  There are almost no habitable buildings still standing and none that are available for rental.  We are building an annex at the Villa Alice staff house for you that should be ready in about six months.  Until then you'll have to share the house there with the other expatriate staff.  You’ll use whatever bedroom is free as they are all taken by other staff, but there’s always one person on leave, so you should have a bed.  Anyway, I understand you're going to Kardo so this shouldn’t be a big issue for you, right?
    ‘And my car?’
    ‘One of the purchasing agents is using your car.  But you won’t need that yet either, will you?’
    Sam was flummoxed at the casual ‘take it or leave it’ attitude but there was a feeling of inevitability about the arrangements.  She added a note to the bottom of the contract saying that as senior management, she had been offered private accommodation in Mondongo, but that under the circumstances, sharing accommodation for the first six months would be acceptable.  She worried that both her job relocation and her downgraded accommodation meant a lower status in the company but it was probably sensible to wait and see what transpired before making any decisions about staying.  She signed the contract.
    ‘By the way,’ said Bill. ‘You're leaving for Kardo tonight.' 
    ‘Tonight? I thought I was due to fly out tomorrow.'
    ‘No, you are leaving tonight.’
    Sam remembered her airfreighted belongings.  ‘Have any boxes arrived for me’?
    ‘When did you send them’?
    ‘Mr Shah sent them two weeks ago.’
    ‘Ha. Not a chance.  They’ll take that long to clear customs.  We’ll let you know when they arrive.’
    ‘That would be great.  Thank you.’
    ‘No problem.  By the way, staff members at the Gemsite camps are given soap, toothpaste and toilet paper once a month, which has to last until the next consignment.  Sometimes, the projects in the field run out of these and other basics, like tea, coffee and rice, and the staff have to wait for the next shipment from South Africa before they can have any more.  Have you brought any supplies from home?’
       On the advice of Mr Shah, and knowing from experience that most mines only stocked the most basic provisions like harsh soap and dandruff shampoo, she had packed lots of shampoo, moisturiser and other nice treats in her boxes.  She also knew from her travels in various countries worldwide that as a coffee drinking nation, Tamazia was unlikely to have drinkable tea.  So there was about a year’s supply of tea bags in her luggage and freighted boxes. 
    ‘I could open a shop,’ she replied.
    ‘Excellent.  You