“Slithered away, if I am any judge.”
“And your meeting with the other snake, it went well?”
“The prefect? Amazingly well, our mercurial Pilate has given me men, ten to be precise.”
“He has provided you a minyan?”
“Exactly, and authority to act in his name.”
“Another ring for your finger?”
“Alas, no, not this time. I must say the ring he put on my finger the last time we had dealings had its advantages. Unfortunately, our roles are reversed this time. I am not doing his bidding, he is doing mine.”
“And on the basis of no plan whatsoever, he has assigned you men and authority? How did you manage that?”
“I wish I knew. If I did, I would pack the whole Roman government along with the prefect himself onto the first ship back to that wretched peninsula of theirs.”
“That is a grand thought, Gamaliel the Messiah, but since that won’t happen, what do we do now?”
“Now we retire to my house, Benyamin will feed us, and then I will retreat into my study and have a long conversation with the Lord. I am missing something, Loukas, something small but exceedingly important.”
“And you are hoping a meal and this conversation you intend to have with…Do you actually think He will reveal the thing to you?”
“I sincerely hope so. I pray so. Otherwise, I will have one very angry prefect on my hands tomorrow. Remember, we are not Roman citizens and, if he wished, he could consign us to prison, to pull oars in a galley, or to hang on that hideous cross his people seem so fond of. And if he so chooses, he could do it on a whim.”
“Then let’s eat quickly and put your mind to work. Once, when I happened to be in Egypt, I had an occasion to examine a body taken down from one of those crosses. I promise you, it is not an experience you want to have.”
Gamaliel stopped so suddenly that Loukas, who followed him closely, nearly ran him down.
“Egypt, you said? Egypt, yes, that has to be it. You go ahead and inform Benyamin of our need for food and quiet. I will join you soon. I must be off.”
“Off? To where must you be off? Shall I come with you?”
“No, you go and talk to Benyamin. Also, I left some sheets on the table inside the front door for you. They are in Greek. You read Greek passably well, you said.”
“I read Greek like a native, not just passably well, Rabban.”
“Of course you do. Read through them and when I return, tell me what you think.”
Gamaliel strode away toward the steps by the Pinnacle and disappeared into the city.
***
Amun, an expatriate from Egypt, ran a small shop in the souk that specialized in metal ware. His reputation as a skilled craftsman provided a comfortable income, and he had become the unofficial leader of the expatriate Egyptian community. Gamaliel found him at his bench scoring a brass urn.
“Greetings in the Name, Rabban. What can I sell you today?”
“Amun, greetings to you as well. I need some information.”
“That is free, but limited.”
“Tell me what you know about an incense pot and a bowl. They would be marked with Hebrew letters and meant to be copies of those used by the high priest on Yom Kippur.”
Amun thought for a moment and smiled. “I wondered how long it would be before someone from the Temple came asking about those two items. Am I in trouble? The man who bought them said they were for a synagogue in Greece. I asked him why he didn’t buy them there and he said my reputation was such that he’d been commissioned to buy them from me.”
“And you believed him?”
“No, but he paid handsomely, so I obliged.”
“Who was this man?”
“His name was Alethos…somebody or other. Not his real name, I suspect, and he said he was kohen, a Levite living in Greece.”
“Can you describe what he looked like?”
“Medium in height, beard, dressed in the fashion of the north, if you know what I mean. That, even as he told me he hailed from the Hellespont. He must have thought me an idiot.”
“I see. It is odd, though, isn’t it? When a person deals with a merchant not from his own country, he assumes the man must be slow.”
“Or he doesn’t care. He is not likely to be found out. I am Egyptian, not Judean. He will think, why would I care? I will make his vessels and forget him.”
“Exactly. So, what do you hear on the streets, Amun? We have had a desecration in the Temple, as you have heard. We are told strange things by the higher ups associated with the palace. For example, the legatee from Egypt seems to have an opinion about our local murder. Why is that?”
“An interesting question, Rabban. You heard that? What else are you hearing?”
“That, my friend, is my problem. I am hearing nothing else. My friend Loukas has asked and no one can tell him anything. Who is missing? What rumors? Nothing.”
“All I can tell you is that the yeast of trouble bubbles in the dough of some merchants who trade in the dark.”
“The yeast…? Could you be less poetic and more to the point? Too many people have died in the past few days.”
“Very well, but you did not hear it from me. I have a trade to ply and cannot afford enemies, especially among my neighbors.”
“I will be discreet.”
“And I will trust you. There are certain Egyptians who sell in the souk. They are in a conflict with those from the far northeast who also sell there.”
“From Khorasan? Those people?”
“I believe so…yes from Khorasan. How did you guess?”
“Exactly that, I guessed. Many people sell in the souk, Amun. Fighting about what?”
“It is a territorial dispute about the marketing of a substance. It brings a high price—if there is no competition, even higher. The word is that this conflict has escalated to murder, and, even as we speak, dangerous men are on their way here from Alexandria and a similar number and kind from Khorasan also.”
“Khorasan, of course. Assyria, Parthia, and beyond. Contingents of thugs and enforcers?”
“Now it is you who wax poetic.”
“Hardly. Amun, I need you to do me a favor.”
“Anything, Rabban.”
“When this Alethos person returns—”
“Is that likely?”
Gamaliel felt the prickling on the back of his neck. “Oh, yes, he will be back, of that I am sure. When he comes in on some new pretense, I have some news I wish him to have. Something I let slip, you could say.”
Chapter LVII
Gamaliel returned home in a little under an hour, looking thoughtful. He waved off Loukas’ questions.
“We will talk after we eat.”
Supper had been set out for them, and they ate in silence. Afterwards they settled on soft benches. Loukas looked enquiringly at Gamaliel.
“Now will you tell me now what drew you away so precipitously?”
“Yes. I would have sooner, but I needed time to consider what to tell you. I visited a merchant I sometime patronize, a seller of metal ware. He is Egyptian—from Alexandria and. like you, reads scripture in Greek. It is a practice I do not approve of, by the way. Holy words should be read in the proper order and in Hebrew.”
“I know you believe that. Know this also, if Hebrew literacy were a requirement for one’s continued membership, half of the Nation, especially those scattered across the empire, would disappear from the census overnight. But that is not the point, is it? Why did you want to see this Egyptian metal worker?”
“It came to me, up on the mount. You mentioned what you’d seen in Egypt, and I remembered that Caiaphas complained that the Egyptian legatee had objected to my investigation into the death of the man in the Holy of Holies.”
“The Egyptian legatee, yes and so? I still don’t understand what possible interest a foreigner would have in our local murder?”
“My thought, exactly. What business is it of theirs to meddle in our affairs? Anyway, when you mentioned Egypt, I thought of Amun. He is the unofficial leader of and keeps close watch on the local Egyptian community. It seemed a logical place to ask questions but I had not acted on that. I do not know why, but I hadn’t, especially after I discovered the false vessels retrieved from the Temple. I hoped it would not be too late.”
“Did you learn anything useful?”
“Some, yes. I learned that he made the replica vessels inserted with the body to confuse us for a man who called himself Alethos. He told me a dispute had broken out in the Souk over the sale of a substance. He did not admit to knowing what it was but I assume it must be hul gil. He told me there were forces arrayed across the empire and heading this way to settle the dispute, it seems. That can’t be good. Beyond that, I am not sure. I need to think about it. What did you glean from the sheets I left for you?”
“Only what you’d already discovered. There has been a significant increase in the efficacy of hul gil reported here and there. Also, there seem to be two major sources of this newer variety.”
“Egypt and the mountainous Khorasan.”
“Yes. There has been an effort on the part of the people who raise the plants to restrict the efforts of the other.”
“A war.”
“That would be putting it a bit strongly. More like a serious competition between the suppliers. A plant is a plant.”
“People are dying in the streets of our city. Temple guards have been suborned and probably killed. The Holy of Holies has been defiled because of this…what did you call it…serious competition? No, we are seeing the beginnings of what could be a veiled but very deadly conflict with significant money at stake.”
“So, now what? Are we to insert ourselves into this conflict? If you want my opinion, I say no. I am a healer, not a fighter.”
“No, we will not be combatants. We have my minyan for that.”
“Then you intend to squelch the trade in it? How would you go about that?”
“I do not intend that either. Pilate, however, and the empire he represents, can try. The threat to his people and to the internal accord among its satrapies requires he do something. Caesar cannot have Parthia at war with Egypt, even at this level.”
“It all seems strange to me. I have dealt with the substance for years. It is a component of many palliatives. Never has there been a problem. Now, because of the changes it looms large and could cause a problem for the Empire? Are you sure of this? That marketing of the opiate is the root of all the murders, strife, and deception?”
“I am as sure as I can be. There is only one way to find out.”
“You mean to bring in this man who flits around the city as a priest, a merchant, a rabbi, and who knows what else.”
“Not just him, Loukas: him and the man or men who follow him. If Amun is right, they each have a version of the story and we need to hear both. We must find a way to lure them into the same place at the same time and then throw a net over them.”
“And how will you do that?”
“I will set a trap. I am hoping Ha Shem will give the killer a nudge in the right direction.”
“Does the Lord nudge? A prophet might be nudged, or a nascent Messiah, but a killer?
A loud rapping at the door interrupted Gamaliel’s response. Benyamin could be heard arguing with someone at the door. The rabban rose and joined his servant. Time passed. Loukas heard a murmured exchange but could not make out the content Gamaliel returned and found his place on the bench he’d just vacated.
“I had to instruct my minyan,” Gamaliel said.
“And? Surely, the presence of ten legionnaires roaming about will only drive our man into deep cover.”
“They will not be attired in their armor. I asked Pilate for the scruffiest men available and they are to be posted in the places I think most likely to lure the killer.”
“Wouldn’t the intelligent thing for him to do be to quit the city and wait?”
“If he were intelligent, he would have left days ago. He didn’t. Therefore, he is not intelligent, or he has unfinished business. You and I stand in his way.”
“We do?”
“If he thinks so, then yes, we do.”
“He wishes to silence us.”
“He does.”
“He will attempt to assassinate us.”
“I sincerely hope so.”
***
Amun, the metal worker, puzzled over the rabban’s request. He knew any attempt to plumb the old man’s mind would lead him nowhere. He had tried once before and failed. If he said the imitation Greek Levite would return, he would. At the eleventh hour he began to cover his display wares and put his tools away. The hearth had been banked down earlier. He would have bolted the door but, as the rabban had predicted, the man who called himself Alethos did indeed push his way in.
“I am closing for the day, my friend. Can you return tomorrow?”
“What? Oh certainly, but I would like to place an order, if that is possible.”
“Certainly. What is it you require?”
“A…candlestick. A branched candlestick…in bronze.”
“Size?”
“Size, of course, that is important.” Alethos described the item he wished the artisan to make for him in some detail. Amun had the impression he concocted the specifications as he spoke. “And, um…wasn’t that the rabban of the Sanhedrin in here earlier?”
“It was. He is a regular customer, mostly for items for the Sanhedrin. He is quite an interesting man. Do you know him?”
“Know him? No, not at all; by reputation only.”
“I can have your item in three days if that is satisfactory.”
“Three days? That will do, yes. The rabban has been investigating a murder, I hear.”
“He has. He mentioned something about it when he was here asking about the vessels he found in the Holy of Holies.”
“Yes?”
“It didn’t make much sense, not if you know the prefect. He said…I forget the details, but…”
“Yes?’
“Because of my position in the Egyptian community, he wanted to warn me. He said he believed the murderer of the man in the Temple was a…I can hardly believe it…”
“What?”
“Oh, yes. He said the prefect would be leaving the city for a time. Then he said he knew who the killer was and that he, that is the rabban, would report it to the prefect when he returned. So, the man’s capture must wait, of course.”
“He said that? He knows but has not told the authorities?”
“He said that.”
Alethos thanked the metal artist and left. He would not return in three days to collect his candle stick. He stepped out of the glimmering light from the shops. So, there it was, his exit visa, as it were. All that remained was the elimination of the rabban. Of course if the rabban knew, the physician would, too. That meant Loukas must be eliminated as well. Too bad, that; great healers are rare. Afterwards, he need only wait a day, tidy up a few details, and go home to collect his reward.
***
Gamaliel, for his part, saw Loukas off to bed, lit his lamp with extra oil, this time for the last time, he hoped. He had Benyamin bring him a pot of boiled water, and he dropped some of the leaves he’d purchased from the herbalist. He would see if the seller had told the truth about them and he would be refreshed with his mind stimulated as promised. He certainly needed both if he hoped to force the solution to this increasingly complex mystery out of hiding. He would do it even if it took all night.
And, as it happened, it d
id.
Chapter XLVIII
The sun had begun its transit from east to west on what promised to be a crystal-clear morning. Gamaliel’s front door faced north toward the Temple. From there he watched the sun rise above the walls of the mount to his right. He felt exhausted but at the same time exhilarated. A breeze lifted a handful of leaves and bits of straw and swirled them down the street and around corners. He thought it whispered to him, promised something, success surely, and an end to the investigation, a return to normalcy. He took a deep breath and called for Loukas to come and see the dawn.
“I have seen a dawn,” Loukas muttered from somewhere inside. “I have no need to see another. Do you always rise with the sun? If I had known that I would not have stayed.”
“Until this killer is in hand, I fear for your safety, and besides, I did not rise with the dawn. I never went to bed.”
“I appreciate your concern, and I think you worry too much. Please understand, I stayed to ease your mind. This will be the last time. I don’t like the hours you keep. Why were you up all night?”
“Because I had to. And now I know all.”
“Really? Well I must say for a man who has not slept, you seem remarkably spry.”
“I had Benyamin boil me some water and I made an infusion of some leaves I bought from one of the herbalists. He said it would refresh me and stimulate my mind.”
“And did it?” Loukas picked up Gamaliel’s cup and sniffed. “Tannin.”
“What’s tannin?”
“An extract from bark, among other things—like certain leaves—that is used to tan leather. Your refreshing drink reeks of it.”
Gamaliel frowned and motioned for the physician to sit. “You don’t think I have altered my insides? Tanned them?”
The two men sat at table to eat their morning meal.
“No, of course not. Tannin appears in small amounts in many things, most of them quite harmless. So, you have uncovered the killer. How did you manage that?” Gamaliel sat back and combed his beard with his fingers. His eyes narrowed. Except for the fact that his hand hid his mouth, he might have been smiling. “And did you think to notify the Roman authorities?”
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