“David? Where are you going?”
I struggled to wade through the slogging swamp of fog. David, come back. David.
“He’s with the nurse. He’s as small as a kitten. David!” Her voice floated down the corridor after departing footsteps.
My arms ached, and my head pounded with a deep throbbing. A warm hand caressed my shoulder, and a man’s beard tickled my cheek. “Michal, wake up.” A soft, wet kiss painted my lips. “The king is here. Wake up.”
A dark form hovered above me, and I squinted in the streaming sunlight, wondering if I floated on clouds. I opened my mouth and my jaw cracked. Ittai brought a wineskin to my lips. His white teeth glistened inside a grin as wide as the Great Sea.
He wet a cloth and swabbed my face. “I rode all night to find the king. He was way up north, beyond the land of Issachar, up near Mt. Tabor. He couldn’t come right away. They were fighting the Syrians, but I dragged him back as soon as I could.”
“Where…” I parted my parched lips and mumbled, “my son?”
“He’s alive.” His image faded between sultry, black clouds.
“He’s alive?” I tried to focus.
A gentle kiss closed my eyes. “Yes, he is. And he looks just like David.” The kiss moved to my lips. “And he’s as precious as you.”
“Where’s?” Dizziness engulfed me. “David?”
Footsteps and commotion disturbed my aimless wandering through feverish fog.
“My king, we did everything we could. The baby came too early, and her insides were torn by the sudden delivery.” The midwife’s voice dripped like a warm honeycomb.
A rough hand touched my cheek. “I will fast and pray for her. Interrupt me if she wakes.” David’s disembodied voice drifted away.
My dream body grasped for him but missed. Instead of David in my arms, a rough boulder bounced off a cliff and pressed on my chest. David! Don’t you believe the baby is yours? What about your promise?
“What are you doing here?” Abigail’s pinched voice squeaked with tension.
“I’m her bodyguard,” Ittai replied. “My job is to watch over her.”
“Not while I’m here. Out. I saw you kiss her. Shall I tell the king?” The door slammed, and Abigail brushed the tear from my cheek.
* * *
I rubbed my eyes as Abigail kissed me good morning.
“David is here,” she said.
“David?” I blinked, dazed. “Where?”
Abigail dropped my hand and led David in. She hugged him around his waist before tucking and straightening his tunic and brushing his beard. “Have you slept? You haven’t cleaned your beard.” She crinkled her nose and flicked ashes off his shoulders and sleeves. “You should at least wash your hair.”
David appeared not to hear her. He held my gaze, his look not quite benign, almost resentful. I steeled myself. Abigail had talked to me while I lay delirious. I’d been sick more than a month. During that time, David had taken my son with his nurse to the palace in Hebron and left me with Abigail.
He crossed the room in two strides and lowered himself onto the bed. His unruly hair poked in disheveled spikes, a fine grey dust clouding the russet tint. He reached for me with shaky hands and collapsed on my pillow, his unkempt face inches from mine.
“I want my baby.” I glared at him. “Where is he?”
“Is that all you have to say to me?”
We stared at each other for several long moments, our breathing uneven, his stale breath fanned my face and mine blew back through my fuzzy mouth. I’d had plenty of time to think, to remember. He had argued with Abigail and suspected the baby was Phalti’s. He hadn’t kissed me nor comforted me. Ittai had. And now, Ittai was gone. Abigail told me David had made him his armor bearer, that Ittai had requested the change.
He drew closer and pressed his nose against mine. “I prayed and fasted until the LORD granted me your life. I don’t know what I would have done… had you d-died.”
My heart softened, and I reached for him. “My baby.”
His palm covered my cheek. “Our baby. He’s small, but perfect. I named him Ithream, in honor of your father.”
“My father?” Ithream meant ‘exalted by the people.’
A shy smile crinkled his face. “Yes. The people loved your father. He stood head and shoulders above all men and was rumored to be the most handsome man in Israel when he was young. Now is the house of Saul joined to my house by our son Ithream.”
“But…” A cold shiver trailed down my spine. My father was David’s enemy and had been rejected by God. David meant to do him honor, but I feared the name described my father too well. He regarded the people more than the LORD.
David squeezed my hand. “Ithream may be small now, but he’ll grow to be a tall, strapping man.” He kissed my forehead and yawned. “He and his nurse should be arriving later this evening. I’ve already sent a messenger to the palace.”
I rubbed his beard and tried to untangle his hair as he fell asleep. “Thank you, David. I love you.”
Abigail stepped in, followed by Naomi with a tray of food. They helped me from the bed. My legs bent like willow branches, and my arms flopped like numb vines. After they bathed me, washed my hair and cleaned my mouth with mint and myrrh, my head cleared and my stomach growled with hunger. I bowed my head on the table and gave thanks to the LORD for my deliverance, my baby’s life and David’s care. The flatbread, lentils and toasted grain never tasted better. Even the sour goat’s milk brought life back to my limbs.
“Abigail, how can I thank you?” I said.
She bowed her head. “I am honored to serve you, my queen.”
I waved my hand. “My friend, do not call me queen. Call me friend.”
Tears shone in her eyes. “Friend.” She clasped my hands. “We both worried for you.” She looked at David who snored in the bed. “He stayed with you every night, praying in that corner. And I stayed with you in the daytime.”
“Then why didn’t he speak to me?”
Abigail laughed. “Men. Strong and silent, that’s our David. Do you remember Chileab playing his harp for you?”
Her words brought a smile to my face. “It was all like a dream. I dreamt of harps, and deserts, camels, smoke, and angels, fluttering wings, and soft voices. And I smelled David, a lot.” A bubble of laughter tickled my chest, and both of us fell to giggling.
“That must have been when you dreamed of the camels.”
“Oh, and the snore—troops of disgruntled horses, blowing their lips and shaking their manes, saliva dripping.”
We laughed again. “And how about grunting lions, you talked about giant cats purring, golden eyes and tawny manes.” She patted my back. “I am so glad you’re well. When you started coming around last evening I went to get David, but he insisted on praying until the morning.”
She and Naomi helped me to the garden to walk and exercise.
That evening the milk nurse brought Ithream to me. His head barely larger than a pomegranate, he nursed sufficiently and was alert, although he breathed with a persistent wheeze. Billows of love flooded my chest as I gazed into his honey-sweet eyes and stroked the soft, reddish down on his head.
David had washed himself and broken his fast. He looped an arm around me. “See, didn’t I tell you he’s perfect?”
“Yes, he looks a lot like you.”
“Unlucky boy,” he said and tickled Ithream with his beard. Ithream gurgled and kicked his feet with delight.
Alone with David and Ithream, I finally felt a sense of belonging and accomplishment. And I hoped David would always be as pleased with me as he was this moment. Oh, thank you, LORD, for bestowing upon me my own son of David.
* * *
My older sons embraced their baby brother. I reminded them to be careful with him because of his weakness in breathing. They marveled over him and missed their sister, Anna.
Eliah cried most pitifully, “I want my sister back, Eemah. Where is she?”
“Where’s A
bba?” Gaddiel whined. “Uncle Ittai said we can visit him, is that true?”
“Children, we’ll just have to be happy here. Uncle David has given you a wonderful home in his palace. You will grow up as princes. Abba and Anna have to stay in the Eastern Palace. Maybe he’ll let you visit someday, but right now, there’s a war going on and it would not be safe.” I neglected to mention that there would always be war going on.
I drafted a message to Phalti to let him know about my son’s birth, requesting him to bring Anna to see her new brother.
Daily, I waited for a reply, and when I saw Ittai practicing with my boys, I pestered him. He grimaced. “Didn’t David tell you?”
“Tell me what?”
Ittai took a deep breath. “Phalti is not allowed to visit or correspond with you. He is fortunate he is still alive. He has taken Rizpah to wife, and David is deeply offended.”
My stomach clenched with a pang in my ribs, but I sat still. David, being Saul’s successor, should have all of his women.
Ittai squeezed my hand. “Be glad David is merciful and has not put Phalti to death.”
By taking Saul’s widow, Phalti made himself my father’s kinsman redeemer, entitled to raise seed for my father. Phalti also made himself the stepfather of Saul’s two young sons and a danger to David should he make a claim for the throne. But Phalti had no such intentions, unlike Abner. And I couldn’t begrudge him happiness, especially since I could no longer be his.
Shortly after I returned to Hebron, Maacah delivered a baby girl named Tamar. And even though David delighted in his sons, there was an extra spark in his eyes when he talked about his new daughter. I rejoiced for his happiness, but was miserable with missing my own daughter.
If only I alone had his children, he’d cherish me and we could be our own little family. Would we ever be happy like David’s parents were? I cradled Ithream to my breast and kissed him. A tear dropped on his tiny nose.
Chapter 29
Job 32:1 So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes.
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David jogged at a fast pace with a troop of recruits. He led them through a grove and scaled a wall without breaking a sweat, his battle-hardened muscles propelling him easily as he urged the men forward. Coming to a clearing, he raced across the meadow and scattered a herd of goats. The grunts and huffs of the boys lagged behind him.
He pushed them harder, lengthening his stride, and shouted, “Move, move. Faster, knees up.” He charged to the foot of a pile of boulders. “Scale to the top and down twenty times.” The walls of Jerusalem would be steeper, higher and better defended.
Arms and legs burned as he climbed the rock wall. Joab and Abishai cracked whips at the laggards. The pain in his limbs invigorated him, and stinging sweat washed away domestic conflicts. Unburdened by wives, his nephews rode all day, slept in the fields, and devoted themselves to warfare.
Blessed, yes, with six women, four infants, and three older boys, actually five if he counted Michal’s twins. He wiped away Maacah’s strident voice. She begged and whined for him to sleep with her each time he visited Absalom and Tamar. His head hurt just thinking about her.
And Michal. She had been unusually quiet, almost fearful that her happiness could not last. His heart tightened for her, yet he had to pay attention to his other wives and children too. She’d have to learn her place. David gripped the handholds and scraped his body over the ledge, ignoring the bruises and cuts. A warrior should not be burdened by the desires of women. Especially not a king, God’s king.
He scaled to the top of the boulders and yelled at the struggling recruits. Uriah the Hittite, a rugged young man, leapt to the top after him. A veteran of David’s exile in the caves, he nevertheless trained with enthusiasm, even while his companions sat around polishing their weapons. He had once saved David’s life in the craggy cliffs of the Judean wilderness when Saul’s men had him trapped.
David waved to him. “When do you think these boys will be ready for Jerusalem?”
Uriah wiped his brow. His face flushed bright pink, and sweat dripped off the ends of his straw-colored hair. He pulled on his light brown beard. “Another month at least. Jerusalem will be tough. It is a fortress, well-guarded, perched above natural valleys. I’ve scouted it. The walls are at least five cubits thick.”
“I will take it from the Jebusites. It will be the City of God, where I can rule Israel in peace. It is my destiny.” David surveyed the meadow below, his gaze stopping at his palace. “My palace on Mt. Zion will overshadow this provincial one. I shall bring the Ark of the Covenant and place it on the highest hill in Jerusalem.”
He called for the men to line up. “In a month, we march on Jerusalem. The man who opens the city gates to me shall be my commander-in-chief. Now train long and hard.”
David dismissed the men and walked back to the palace with Uriah at his side.
“My king,” Uriah said. “I have given thought on what you told me about your God. I am ready to disavow the Hittite gods and goddesses and believe only in the God of Israel.”
David clasped his shoulder. “You have gladdened my heart.”
“Will you attend my circumcision? It would be an honor, my king.”
“I will.” David was proud of the young man. How many nights had they spent at his fire talking about God while Uriah clung stubbornly to the Hittite pantheon? David kissed him on both cheeks. “When will you take a wife?”
* * *
Abigail found me in the nursery with Ithream. “The LORD has delivered Jerusalem into David’s hands.”
She gave me the details as I rocked Ithream to sleep while he wheezed, his breathing sounding like tiny whistles. He was a little over a year and a half and not walking yet. I worried he would always be weak because of his early birth.
“Did you hear that?” I tickled his red curls. “Your father’s coming home.”
Abigail sat to tell me the details. The bloody siege had lasted all winter, a long and gruesome campaign. The defenders on the wall shot arrows and threw rocks. Occasionally they had sallied in the fields. But at the end, Joab had diverted the water sluices and crawled through the tunnels. He had marched the men triumphantly through the city and opened the gates for David.
I stared at her. “And now that murderer is his commander? What about Ittai?”
“Ittai only cared about stopping the slaughter of the inhabitants,” she said. “They were given a chance to leave with the clothes on their backs or stay and become loyal subjects.”
“How did Ittai accomplish that?”
“You don’t know? David swore a blood oath when Ittai saved him from the men of Gath. They would have hung him for killing Goliath and murdering the two hundred men, um… well…” She blushed. “Anyway, I shall let the other women know. David plans on making Jerusalem the city centered on worshipping God.”
David? Blood brothers with Ittai? How come neither of them ever told me?
Talk around the women’s compound centered on the type of palace David would build and who would have the rooms of pre-eminence. Maacah boldly proclaimed she should have the largest accommodations because she would be the mother of all the rest of David’s children.
“David should kill the whole lot of them, sons of Saul, that’s who they are,” she said loudly, strutting all three cubits of her tiny body and flipping her long hair with a toss of her head. My face hot, I ignored her as I handed Ithream to his nurse.
“David is not like other kings,” Abigail said. “He is a true follower of Jehovah. Each man is responsible for his own sins and not for those of his fathers.”
Maacah pouted. “Well, my father would have killed all of them, starting with the lunatic daughter of Saul. No one in the house of Saul should draw another breath.”
I balled my fists. “We are not threats to David. We do not desire his kingdom. If anything, I’d be suspicious of you and your son. How do I know your loyalty isn’t to Geshur?”
�
��At least I have David’s flesh and blood son. You keep delivering bastards. I counted your months, Michal. All of us know Ithream is Phalti’s son.”
“He was born prematurely.”
Maacah looked at her fingernails and licked her lips. “You know, I’ve a thought. Girls?” She looked around to make sure all of David’s wives were in hearing range. “It just occurred to me that Michal has borne a son to David’s servant, the dirty Philistine captain of the guard.”
“I don’t have to listen to this.” I fumed and turned to leave.
“She has cuckolded not only our husband but her sainted scribe, Phaltiel.” Maacah’s laughter screeched to the skies.
“You take your lies back.”
“I can’t take back the truth. I’ve seen that guard look after you. What did he do? Get in your dress? Is that why you sent him away? Guilty. Guilty.”
I gritted my teeth. “What about the way you tried to corner him? You lascivious wench.”
She flung her fluffy hair with a smirk. “Ah, jealous, aren’t we?”
“I’ve nothing to be jealous over you, concubine.”
She drew her lips back in a thin sneer. “Try, queen mother. When my son Absalom becomes the next king, you shall be consigned to the dirtiest dungeon.”
“David has two sons ahead of yours, Amnon, and Chileab.”
Maacah lifted her chin. “Shows how little you know.” She blew a smirk and swiveled her hips. “My father protects David’s northern trade routes, and my son shall be king.”
* * *
“Eglah.” David led me by the hand. “I’ve captured the palace and had it cleaned. Now it is time to move in. I want you to be the first to see it. I will, of course, extend it as my family grows.” He kissed me. “We will have many more children, won’t we?”
To Maacah’s chagrin, David placed my sons in the area closest to his—a set of rooms to house the boys, a dining area, and a kitchen. Ithream and his nurse had their own room. He selected a tower which overlooked the palace wall and moved me into his bedchamber.
Abigail was next to Ahinoam with Abital close on the other side. Since David gave me authority to assign the rest of the rooms, I placed Maacah and Haggith in the nether sections closest to the scullery. But when he asked me to manage the harem activities, I begged off, and he turned to Ahinoam and Abigail, his next two senior wives.
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