Editing Isabelle Eberhardt (section)

==Later life and death==
After a short time living with Ehnni's family, the couple relocated to Algiers. Eberhardt became disappointed with Ehnni, whose only ambition after leaving the army appeared to be finding an unskilled job that would allow him to live relatively comfortably.{{sfn|Mackworth|1977|p=149}} She increased her own efforts as a writer, and several of her short stories were printed in the local press. She accepted a job offer from ''Al-Akhbar'' ({{langx|en|The News}}) newspaper publisher Victor Barrucand in March 1902. Eberhardt became a regular contributor to the newspaper; ''Trimardeur'' began appearing as a [[Serial (literature)|serial]] in August 1903.{{sfn|Chouiten|2012|pp=59–66}} Barrucand and Eberhardt formed a friendship, though Barrucand was frequently frustrated with his new employee's work ethic. Eberhardt's articles arrived irregularly, as she would only write when she felt like doing so. Her job paid poorly, but had many benefits. Through Barrucand's contacts, Eberhardt was able to access the famous [[Zawiya (institution)|''zawiya'']] of [[Lalla Zaynab]].{{sfn|Mackworth|1977|p=153}} Eberhardt spoke highly of her time with Zaynab, though never disclosed what the two discussed;{{sfn|Mackworth|1977|p=158}} their meeting caused concern among the French authorities.{{sfn |Clancy-Smith|1994|p=248}}

Eberhardt and Ehnni relocated to [[Ténès]] in July 1902{{sfn|Mackworth|1977|p=164}} after Ehnni obtained employment there as a translator.{{sfn|Mackworth|1977|pp=158–160}} Eberhardt was incorrigibly bad with her money, spending anything she received immediately on tobacco, books, and gifts for friends, and pawning her meagre possessions or asking for loans when she realised there was no money left for food. This behaviour made her even more of a pariah among the other European residents of the town.{{sfn|Mackworth|1977|p=179–180}} Eberhardt would frequently leave for weeks at a time, being either summoned to Algiers by Barrucand or sent on assignments. She was given a regular column in his newspaper, where she wrote about the life and customs of Bedouin tribes.{{sfn|Mackworth|1977|p=169}} Both Ehnni and Eberhardt's health deteriorated, with Eberhardt regularly suffering from bouts of [[malaria]].{{sfn|Mackworth|1977|p=171}} She was also probably affected by [[syphilis]].{{sfn|Waldman|1999|p=290}}{{sfn|Blanch|2010|p=269}}

Barrucand dispatched Eberhardt to report on the aftereffects of the 2{{nbsp}}September 1903 [[Battle of El-Moungar]]. She stayed with French Foreign Legion soldiers and met [[Hubert Lyautey]], the French general in charge of [[Oran]], at their headquarters. Eberhardt and Lyautey became friends and, due to her knowledge of Islam and Arabic, she became a liaison between him and the local Arab people.{{sfn|Chouiten|2012|pp=59–66}} While Eberhardt never ceased protesting against any repressive actions undertaken by the French administration, she believed that Lyautey's approach, which focused on diplomacy rather than military force, would bring peace to the region.{{sfn|Mackworth|1977|p=192}} Although details are unclear, it is generally accepted that Eberhardt also engaged in espionage for Lyautey.{{sfn|Belenky|2011|p=103}} Concerned about a powerful marabout in the [[Atlas Mountains]], Lyautey sent her to meet with him in 1904.{{sfn|Bodley|1968|pp=162–163}}

At the marabout's ''zawiya'', Eberhardt was weakened by fever. She returned to [[Aïn Séfra]], and was treated at the military hospital. She left the hospital against medical advice{{sfn|Bodley|1968|p=164}} and asked Ehnni, from whom she had been separated for several months, to join her.{{sfn|Chouiten|2012|pp=59–66}} Reunited on 20{{nbsp}}October 1904, they rented a small mud house. The following day, a [[flash flood]] struck the area.{{sfn|Bodley|1968|p=164}} As soon as the waters subsided, Lyautey launched a search for her. Ehnni was discovered almost immediately, saying that Eberhardt had been swept away by the water. Based on this information, Lyautey and his men searched the surrounding area for several days before deciding to explore the ruins of the house where the couple had stayed.{{sfn|Mackworth|1977|p=222}} Her body was crushed under one of the house's supporting beams. The exact circumstances of her death were never discovered. While suspicions regarding Ehnni have been raised by later biographers, Eberhardt had always believed she would die young and may instead have accepted her fate. Mackworth speculated that after initially trying to run from the floodwaters, Eberhardt instead turned back to face them.{{sfn|Mackworth|1977|p=223}}{{sfn|Chouiten|2012|pp=59–66}} Blanch argued that due to Eberhardt's history of suicidal tendencies, she probably would have still chosen to stay in the area even if she had known the flood was coming.{{sfn|Blanch|2010|p=269}} Lyautey buried Eberhardt in Aïn Sefra and had a marble tombstone, engraved with her adopted name in Arabic and her birth name in French, placed on her grave.{{sfn|Aldrich|1996|p=158}}{{sfn|Bodley|1968|p=165}}