He walked to the back and poured Assassin some oats. I tried to read his mind.
Judd sneered, “So did you lie with her, like you did Brutus’s wife?”
I shook my head. “I never did any such thing with Scylla. Shale and I are just friends.”
Judd’s jealousy ballooned. “I don’t believe you. You’ve had your eyes on her since the day she arrived.”
I stared at him. “Is that the only way you can look at a young woman?”
Judd glowered. “Family secrets. You’ll find out soon enough.”
“Like what?”
Judd got in my face. “Stay away from her.”
I shoved him back. I didn’t need a fourteen-year-old kid treating me like a turd.
Judd stormed out of the cave, slamming the door. I waited a few minutes before leaving, to make sure he was gone.
A short while later, Shale and her father walked outside the house to sit in the portico. I wandered over to say “hi.” Brutus was smiling and Shale seemed upbeat. We made small talk before they proceeded down the road. Memories of my father returned, pleasant times on holiday when I was young.
As I watched Shale and her father in the distance, I lamented my father’s disappearance. Suddenly I longed to visit Dr. Luke, but I also worried about Shale and her animals. And why was she so afraid of Judd?
CHAPTER 22 MISSING
The next day I stared into Baruch’s empty stall. I ran over and checked to see if Judd had switched the donkeys, but Assassin was still where I’d put him. At least Shale’s dog and rabbit were in the cave. The animals followed me around. The dog’s favorite pig was squealing. What was his problem?
I would have to find out what Judd knew. I mumbled to myself a few choice words as I tromped to his quarters.
I banged on the door. “Are you there? I need to talk to you.”
When he didn’t respond, I rattled the handle. I’d about given up when the door opened.
Judd looked through the crack, sleepy-eyed. “What is it?”
“Open up, will you?”
He cracked it more.
I grabbed his collar and pulled him close to me. “Did you do something to that donkey?”
“What donkey?”
I let go of him. “You know what donkey—Baruch.”
Judd straightened his tunic, squinting in the sun. “I just woke up. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I forced the door open and looked around his room.
“Baruch is missing.”
“He’s probably out in the pasture.”
I shook my head. “No.”
Judd stepped out and ran towards the cave. We inspected each stall and then checked the pasture. The donkey wasn’t anywhere.
Judd said, “Someone could have stolen him, though I don’t know why. It’s not like he’s a prize animal.” He scratched his eyebrow. “Is Shale here?”
I remembered I hadn’t seen her since yesterday. “I don’t know. I assume she is.”
“Maybe we better check,” Judd said.
I didn’t think she would go off with Baruch and leave Much-Afraid and Cherios behind.
When we entered the back portico, Mari asked, “Is Shale with you?”
Judd said, “No.”
I shook my head. “Baruch is missing.”
Mari appeared worried.
I still didn’t believe she would take off without good reason. “We need to tell Brutus.”
Who was going to volunteer?
I heard horses approaching. “Is Brutus expecting visitors?”
“I don’t think so,” Mari said.
We walked to the side gate. Two Roman soldiers galloped towards us.
“I’ll get Brutus,” Mari said. She turned and went inside.
The soldiers tied up their horses. “We need to see Brutus,” one of the Roman guards said.
I motioned for them to follow and took them to his study. “Wait here and he’ll be with you soon.”
When Brutus entered, he and the soldier spoke in Latin, which made it difficult to follow the conversation.
Mari whispered, “Let’s go outside.”
Judd was still looking for clues.
“So as not to alarm Brutus, I told him that Baruch and Shale had gone for a morning walk. It could be nothing,” she reassured me.
That was true. Maybe I had panicked.
Scylla walked out and joined us. “Is something going on? Why is the cave door open?”
“Judd, I thought you closed the door,” I said.
“Don’t go blaming everything on me now.”
In the pasture, Much-Afraid was chasing sheep. Cherios sat preening on the bench.
“Put the animals in the cave and tell Shale to come see me, please,” Scylla said to no one in particular.
“Shale isn’t here,” Judd said. “And Baruch is missing.”
Scylla’s face turned ashen. “Find them.”
She stormed back inside yelling at me, “Daniel, if you can’t do your job, we’ll find someone who can.”
No one said anything, but it seemed odd she was more concerned about the donkey than about Shale. A few minutes later, Brutus took off with the Roman soldiers, promising to be back as soon as he could.
“Extend my apologies to Shale for leaving on such short notice.” He added, “I’m sure she’s fine. Just like me, can’t stay in one spot for too long without getting antsy.”
I worried the rest of the day. Was it because I knew her better than anyone else? She didn’t know the dangers that existed here, and she certainly didn’t know the area. I drove myself insane thinking about all the bad things that could happen.
Scylla called me into her room late in the afternoon when Shale hadn’t returned.
“Did you say something to her that drove her away?” she asked. “Did you do something to her?”
I shook my head. She looked out her bedroom window. “Search the road and the hills around the property. Maybe she fell, had an accident.”
I did as she suggested, but didn’t find her anywhere.
The sun was setting when Shale returned with Baruch. I ran out to the road to greet her.
“Where have you been?”
“Long story,” she replied. “I’ll tell you later.”
I took Baruch and led him to the stable. Judd washed down the donkey and cooled him off. I noted the poor animal was dirty, tired, and thirsty.
“They must have been down in the wilderness,” Judd said. “Baruch is very dehydrated. Why would they have gone down there?”
I shrugged. “I’m just glad they’re safe.”
Now that Shale and Baruch were back, the distance between Judd and me widened again. I was worried. Had I said something to Shale that upset her? What did Judd tell Scylla? One thing I did know, Shale would feel abandoned by her father if he didn’t soon return.
And another thing concerned me. Whatever mind reading ability I once possessed had left me, but I didn’t know why. One day I had it and the next day I didn’t.
CHAPTER 23 COMPROMISE
Hundreds of birds flew over the Sea of Galilee. They rode invisible currents as easily as I walked along the seashore. I picked up a pebble and threw it into the water. The ripples spanned out and lapped against the rocks. I had brought Nathan with me. He loved to run into the water holding up his tunic, peering into the receding waves looking for fish underneath the surface. Perhaps he found a connection with them. They couldn’t speak either.
I was thankful to have some quiet time away from Brutus’s home. I had lost the ability to communicate with Nathan in an extraordinary way. Feeling discouraged, I sought solace.
I didn’t know whether to tell anyone. Plus I was too upset about my last conversation with Shale to think about much of anything.
“Nathan, I’m going to walk up to that embankment and then I’ll come back, all right?”
Nathan nodded and waved.
“Don’t go anywhere. I’ll be watching you.”
>
He nodded again.
I walked along the shoreline. I noted the sun was behind me and a second shadow came up alongside my own, but no one was near me. When I stopped, the second shadow stopped.
“Can you see me now?”
I turned. I saw the old woman. She was wearing the same dress. Her balding head, hollow eyes, and sunken cheekbones seemed even grimmer in the bright sunshine. She had three fish speared on the end of a stick in her right hand.
“How come I couldn’t see you at first?” I asked her.
“I was here,” she said.
I shrugged.
“Where are you going?” she asked.
“I’m headed over to the embankment. I need to keep an eye on Nathan.”
The old woman came closer and the familiar smell of rotten eggs turned my stomach.
I trekked to the stone embankment that butted into the water as she followed me. Then I climbed to the top to get a better view, keeping my eyes on Nathan. The old woman stayed down below.
I sat on the ledge. “Who are you?”
“I’m your benefactor,” she said.
“Come on,” I objected. “You aren’t my benefactor.” I rubbed my nose—what was that foul smell? Must be the dead fish. I tapped myself on the head. “Are you okay—up here?”
The old woman laughed. “What do you want?”
I shifted my weight on the ledge. “I want my gift back,” as if I expected her to understand what I meant.
“To read minds?”
I swallowed hard. How did she know?
“I can give you that ability,” she said.
I looked at the strange old woman skeptically. “I don’t believe you.”
She laughed “You are upset with Shale. She’s met a man she calls the king, the one Christians call Jesus the Christ. You are troubled because you’re in first century Palestine. You are disturbed about events surrounding Yeshua and want to convince Shale he’s a charlatan. Is that enough?”
A sick feeling came over me. “How do you know these things?”
“Does it matter?” Her eyes twitched menacingly.
I stared at the fish on the end of her fishing pole.
“So you can give me back the ability to read Nathan’s mind?”
“Anyone’s mind,” she corrected me.
I looked across the water. Why did this bother me when so much good could come out of it? Nathan’s life would be more fulfilling and I would know things that Scylla and Judd had kept from me. And I could be a better friend to Shale. Still, I hesitated.
The woman keyed in on my thoughts. “Daniel, you are trying to be a better friend. Let me help you. I told you I was your benefactor.”
“What’s the cost?”
The woman laughed.
Something about the woman bothered me. She seemed evil. Finally I said, “I need to head back,” but I couldn’t resist thinking about the offer.
I scooted down the rock wall with her trailing me. Before I reached Nathan, she said, “Nathan is hungry, but you wouldn’t know that without being able to read his mind, would you?”
I stopped. All right. “What do I need to do to get the power back?”
“It’s done,” the old woman said.
When I turned, she was gone, as if she had never been with me. I saw only one shadow.
Was it true? I came up to Nathan. “Hey, are you hungry?”
He nodded and a smile crossed his face. I reached over and squeezed his shoulder. “Come on, let’s head back.”
CHAPTER 24 DIFFERENCES
Eleven Months Later
The days blurred into months. My mind-reading ability had become second nature and I hadn’t seen the strange woman again. Each day I tried to finish my chores early so I could spend time in the pasture with Shale—if she had time to join me.
She would generally search for me in the late afternoons—this had become our daily routine. Sunlight filtered through the trees and shone on us in scattered shadows.
Shale held Cherios in her lap and patted the rabbit’s back. Much-Afraid had become an expert sheepherder. Judd had invested lots of time teaching the dog. Because Much-Afraid did Judd’s work, his slothfulness was less obvious.
Baruch grazed nearby and Lowly the pig had been let out to pasture—at Shale’s request, though I insisted he stay far away. Shale didn’t care that he was an unclean animal. To her, he was a cute pig with a curly tail, as she described him.
Sometimes I’d ask her what Cherios or one of the animals had said, but I’d gotten used to being left out. Shale hinted that it annoyed her, like asking someone what happened in a movie that is ending. No one wants to tell you.
Judd always watched us—and I usually knew what he was thinking, but I didn’t care. I’d never kissed Shale or been alone with her—she was three years younger. Relations were forbidden before betrothal.
I worried more about something else I had discovered. There was a secret contract, a betrothal document between Judd and Shale. I’d overheard Judd and Scylla talking about it one afternoon. Could it be broken? I’d thought about searching for it in Scylla’s quarters so I could read it, but I was hopeful the contract would just go away or Judd would change his mind. Probably wishful thinking on my part, but it was like the big elephant in the room no one wanted to talk about—it was there, but no one mentioned it. Certainly Shale had never mentioned it to me.
Whether the contract was real or not, I knew if I defiled her, she would be shamed—could even be stoned. In the meantime, I had grown to love Shale—surpassed only by Judd’s envy. He did nothing to conceal his jealousy. He didn’t have to. His name was on the contract.
Recently, however, the sweet conversations between Shale and me had become contentious. I sensed restlessness in her. Her father had only been back once. I knew she wanted a relationship with him, but that was hard to do when she was in Galilee and he was somewhere else.
Shale’s longings were also spiritual. When her thoughts went there, I’d pushed her away. My interest in spiritual things had evaporated. Shale’s had only deepened. The gap between us had widened—not to Judd but to something more disquieting
As we sat in the pasture, Shale was absorbed in her latest drawing. I glanced over to see her artwork.
Two beings faced each other on top of a mountain. One was large and wore a black robe that unfurled across half the mountain. The other was just an ordinary, frail-looking man, half the size of the black creature. I leaned back and stretched. “Are you still thinking about that experience?”
Shale quipped. “I heard some women talking the other day in the village when I went shopping with Mari.” She studied her drawing. “I think they were talking about this man.”
“What makes you say that?” I asked.
Shale added shading to the dark creature. “They were discussing an itinerant rabbi who stays in Galilee when he isn’t teaching. One woman said he was a brilliant rabbi. Another woman called him a prophet. Still another person said she saw him heal her uncle, a paraplegic.”
“Who do you say he is?” I asked.
Shale focused her eyes on my face and spoke without hesitation. “I think he is the son of God.”
I rolled my eyes. “That’s a pretty bold assumption.”
The distance between us widened.
Shale was undeterred. “I was in the garden. I know this isn’t all there is. I saw him fight the darkness in the wilderness.” She bit her lip. “I wish I could see him again. Would you take me if I found out where he is?”
I should have known not to get involved with a girl who wasn’t Jewish. I probed around in the dry dirt with a stick. “I don’t know what I believe anymore.”
Shale shrugged. “Some things are worse than dying.”
“Like what?”
“Being alone.”
“You aren’t alone. I’m here.”
“No, Daniel. I’m not alone. But you are.”
I sat up straighter. “What do you mean?”
> “When I first met you, I was intrigued by your Jewishness—your spirituality. I grew up in a home where we didn’t believe in anything. I envied Rachel’s family, and when I met you, I saw that passion.
“You’ve walked away from your past. That the king is Jewish should be enough to interest you—to find out more. I don’t understand why you aren’t even curious about him.”
I felt my face getting hot. “The best thing about being here in first century Israel is being with you, Shale.”
Shale shook her head. “I can’t be everything to you. I believe more than this exists, and when we die, we will understand. I hope so, anyway.”
She was right. I didn’t care about my heritage anymore. I had everything I wanted. Money for my education and the girl I wanted. My special gift helped in lots of ways, too, not the least of which I could get whatever I wanted. Why did I need God?
Shale looked up from her drawing. “Can’t you find out where the rabbi is and take me to see him?”
I shook my head. “He’s a false prophet, Shale. We’ve had this discussion many times. If he were a true prophet, he wouldn’t cause riots or challenge the Sadducees or Pharisees. They know the Torah better than anyone—including him.”
“But Daniel, he’s Jewish. He heals people. I mean, you want to be a doctor. And he’s a rabbi. When is the last time you even met with a rabbi?”
“When my father was kidnapped.”
Shale’s face paled. “Is your father dead? You never told me anything about your father.”
I turned away. “He was killed by Arabs, we think, on a business trip—extremists.”
“Daniel, I’m so sorry.” Shale’s voice soothed me. She set her drawing aside and leaned into me. “Forgive me for judging you. I didn’t know.”
“That was the last time I spoke to a rabbi,” I said glibly.
Shale scooted on her knees and turned my head towards her. “You should meet this rabbi yourself. Don’t waste the opportunity, Daniel. We don’t always have second opportunities in life to do the important things. It’s too easy to squander what matters most for the sake of convenience. We could make the time.”
I shook my head. “No.”
Shale looked towards the house. “I must go.” She picked up Cherios and her artwork and walked to the gate.
Seventh Dimension - The King - Book 2, A Young Adult Fantasy Page 10
