34. SAHARA ADVENTURE SERIES — FOOTPRINTS OF BETRAYAL
A solitary figure stumbling across the Sahara sand towards Fort Murat brings a dormant conflict to the secluded fortress. The fort, already plagued by the uncertainty surrounding the generals’ rebellion in Tunisia, is a breeding ground for calamity. The French Foreign Legion soldier, Teuns Stegmann, a South African, harbours resentment towards the godforsaken surroundings and especially towards the commander, Captain Camus, and his second-in-command, Lieutenant Heidenfeldt. Both inspire revulsion in him, and he suspects something is seriously amiss. Patrols are not dispatched, discipline within the fort is lax, and Captain Camus is frequently intoxicated. A simple question from an Italian guard plants a seed of suspicion in Teuns’s mind.
The arrival of a stranger, claiming to be Captain Camus’s brother, is the spark that ignites the dry tinder of the fort. Teuns’s instinct screams at him that the man is lying, and he begins a desperate race against time to uncover the truth. As the fort descends into total chaos, Teuns must employ his loyalty and resourcefulness to navigate a web of betrayal. He defies his commanders, questions motives, and searches for evidence in a fort where mistrust and danger lurk around every corner.
Teuns makes several secret and risky decisions to save the fort. He discovers various signs indicating that this desert is not as innocuous as it is made out to be. But can he expose the corruption and betrayal in time to prevent a catastrophe? What secrets lie hidden behind the secluded walls of Fort Murat, and what shocking truths will be revealed in the bloody Sahara sand?
