The old woman’s wrinkled hands rose and covered her mouth. She stood shocked and shook her head in disbelief. Benjamin wrapped an arm about her shoulders to console her. Tears appeared in Elizabeth’s eyes and a single tear trailed down her cheek.
“We’ll talk more later, but for now, I want to go relax and have a cup of wine.” Hanan walked away, not wanting to revive hurtful memories.
***
The breeze blew softly through the veranda. Shaded from the sun by the veranda’s roof, Hanan felt what little energy he still had vanish as he settled into his chair beside Micah’s. He reached over and pushed on its arm to make it rock then watched somberly until it slowed to a halt.
“Here, sir.” Ruth walked out of the house with his wine. She poured him a cup and waited. The boy peeked out from behind her tunic then eased back until only one of his eyes could be seen.
Hanan saw him, chuckled, and drank his wine. The boy walked around his mother and stepped toward Micah’s chair. When he reached out and touched it, Hanan immediately turned. “No... Not this chair.” His tone was harsher than he meant it to be.
The young mother grabbed the boy, her eyes wide with fear. “I’m sorry, sir. He meant no harm. I’ll make sure he never touches it again.”
Staring at the child, Hanan shook his head in frustration. “I’m sorry. I know... It’s just... Never mind.”
With the boy in tow, Ruth walked into the house. She returned shortly carrying a wide, deep bowl of water. Setting it at Hanan’s feet, she reached for his sandals.
“What are you doing?” He tried to straighten in his chair but her hold on his right foot kept him leaning back.
“Washing your feet, sir.” The young woman never stopped as she spoke. Holding his right foot over the bowl, she dipped a cloth into the water and began to wash him.
At first he was taken back, but the soothing feel of the water flowing over his foot made him relax. He moaned lightly as she gently rubbed and massaged his foot. Once finished with the right, she lifted the left foot and rubbed. Again, he moaned in pleasure.
He sat gazing at her, realizing how different she now looked compared to when he first saw her in the brothel. Eating regularly had taken away the look of starvation and filled her cheeks and body with life. She was bathed and her comely face was no longer dirt stained. Her wide round eyes shined like black pearls and the long, raven-black hair about her head and face was thick and full. Against his will his gaze flowed over the contour of her body. When her eyes rose to look at him, he averted his gaze like a boy caught looking where he shouldn’t.
She removed the water bowl and let his feet rest on the veranda’s stone floor.
“Thank you, Ruth. That wasn’t necessary, but it did feel good.”
A soft smile crossed her lips. She carried the bowl back into the house. Again, against his will, his eyes followed the movement of her tunic as she walked. He turned and watched her enter the door then saw the child standing in the doorway, staring at him. Hanan nodded curtly and the child spun, racing after his mother.
Exhaling in a hard blast, Hanan settled back into his chair, refilled his wine cup and shook his head in exasperation. Sending her here may not have been a good idea, he thought, gaze drifting to the distant mountains.
***
Weeks became months and Hanan filled the majority of his days on the veranda, reading Micah’s collection of books again or walking through the orchards. The men in the watchtowers grew accustomed to his daily presence and always knew he could be found at a favorite olive tree. When the Sicarii leader grew restless and sullen, he worked in the fields of his estate, clearing them of the largest boulders he could carry. Exhausted by the end of the day, he returned home feeling better yet never fully rid of the bleak thoughts that haunted him.
The child, David, reached his third year of birth and though he rarely talked when Hanan was about, the boy would silently stand half-hidden behind a door or his mother’s tunic to stare at the giant. Sensing he was being watched, Hanan often turned to find the boy gazing at him. But when Hanan nodded to him, the child fled. Ruth attempted to keep David away from her master, yet the boy seemed drawn to him.
When bored, Hanan ventured into Nazareth to sit at Uriah’s wine shop and listen to the latest political gossip. The day after the Sicarii unleashed their coordinated attacks across the nation, the prefect had ordered mass arrests in retaliation for his auxiliary soldiers and local officials having been slain. Pilate had to squelch any uprisings and prove his worth to the emperor. The majority of arrests were Zealots, blamed for the assassinations, yet none of Hanan’s men were ever apprehended. The Sanhedrin council offered a reward for information about whomever had killed their priests, although, the Sicarii were suspected. But no one stepped forward to collect the money.
Every third month or so Simcha ben Mudash arrived in Nazareth to brief Hanan on recent news and report the activities of the Sicarii’s young commanders. Incidents had occurred of collaborators being killed which bore the signs of Sicarii assassinations. But Simcha was never able to confirm the rebellious commanders had issued the orders without Hanan’s approval.
“Tensions are rising over rumors that Rome will increase taxes again to pay for its indebtedness. There is even talk of Pilate possibly taking funds from the temple treasury,” Simcha advised one afternoon while drinking wine with his leader.
Such talk greatly disturbed Hanan. He could see the storm building on the horizon, and when the tempest struck, it would be the opportunity for his young lions to incite war from one end of the country to the other.
Chapter Twenty-Five
The kitchen was hot from baking all morning, but Ruth wanted to surprise everyone with special breads and pastries for their evening meal. It had been difficult at times, keeping the oven coals at the right heat while kneading and preparing the doughs between quick runs through the house to finish other duties. She smiled inwardly at her accomplishments and leaned back to wait for the last batch of pastries to finish baking.
Ruth glanced at the corner of the kitchen where David enjoyed playing while she worked. She straightened and anxiously looked about the room. Her stomach tightened and fear engulfed her.
“David?” Ruth bent to look under a table. “Sweetheart, where are you?” With quick steps she moved from room to room, checking every place her son might hide. She began speaking in a slightly raised voice, not wanting to disturb anyone in the house. But now she loudly called his name where ever she walked, not caring who she bothered.
Elizabeth rushed to her from another room, eyes narrowed in question. “What’s wrong?”
“David’s gone. He was with me in the kitchen while I was working then vanished.”
“He can’t be far. I’ll find Hanan and Benjamin to help search.” Elizabeth hurried to the front door as fast as her cane allowed.
Ruth made a quick round through different rooms, searching under furniture while she called out his name. When the boy wasn’t found she burst toward the front door, afraid he wandered off and was lost. She took three steps out of the house and almost ran into the back of the elderly woman.
“Oh, no!” she gasped, eyes spread wide in terror.
“Silence... and be still,” Elizabeth urgently whispered, holding her left arm out to prevent Ruth from moving past her.
Looking over Elizabeth’s shoulder she observed Hanan standing thirty feet ahead with his wide back to them. His left arm was out and held behind him, gently motioning for them to wait and not move. Ten feet in front of Hanan, Ruth saw David’s back as he stood motionless with arms by his side staring at something in front of him that she couldn’t see.
***
Hanan’s attention was focused on the boy. He crept forward, moving up behind the child in painstakingly slow steps. The last thing Hanan wanted was to startle the boy and have him bolt in fear, making the coiled, bla
ck desert cobra strike.
Sweat ran down Hanan’s face and stung his eyes, but he forced them to remain open to watch the snake’s every movement. He eased out to David’s right, still behind him and stopped when the boy no longer stood between him and the hissing, venomous cobra. The snake laid coiled three feet in front of the boy.
Black desert cobras were different from other cobras of the land. They seldom raised their heads to produce a hood before striking and preferred to remain coiled with head down while loudly emitting a hissing, huffing sound.
From the size of the coiled mound Hanan knew the black cobra was an adult at least three feet or more in length with enough lethal venom to kill David within minutes. The snake’s hissing grew louder as it repeatedly swelled its body and forced the air out. As it moved, the black glossy scales along its thick body shimmered in the intense sunlight. The hypnotic effect of the shining scales held the child’s attention but Hanan feared the boy would move any moment.
***
Ruth stood with Elizabeth’s left arm about her shoulders; her right-hand holding Ruth’s right arm, forcing her to remain still.
She watched her son and prayed he would be safe yet still unaware of the snake because David and Hanan had blocked her view. But as Hanan moved to the right, her worst fears rose, and she wanted to scream.
“Hush, girl, and be still. I see the snake in front of your boy,” the elderly woman whispered.
Ruth saw Hanan’s right arm move. The back of his robe swayed, and she realized he was removing something from the small of his back. Moving slow, his right hand rose even with his head.
One moment Hanan appeared still then the next, his actions came as a blur. A glint of steel flashed. The big man spun to his left, aiming low, sweeping the boy up into his muscled right arm as he leaped away from the snake. When he stood safely away, he turned with David in his arm to see the cobra. The glossy black, coiled mound writhed about the large dagger driven into its center. Hurrying as best he could, Benjamin came around the house with a hoe in hand and finished what Hanan had started. Eventually, the cobra’s body drew to a halt.
Terrified from the ordeal, Ruth raced to take her son from Hanan, but the boy refused to leave the safety of the giant’s arms, tightly hugging his neck as he cried in fright.
She watched Hanan hold David in his right arm and gently rub the boy’s back.
“You’re okay now. Don’t cry. There’s nothing to be afraid of... You were very brave,” Hanan whispered in the child’s ear.
Ruth wept, unable to control herself. She stood with arms extended. Eventually, the boy leaned out and went to his mother’s arms.
“Thank you,” she said to Hanan, choking from her emotions.
The big man nodded, glanced at her and the boy and walked away as if nothing had happened.
Ruth gazed at him, warmly smiled, then left for the house.
***
“That’s a big snake,” Benjamin said, looking at the four feet long cobra he had stretched along the ground. His gaze drifted to the Sica laying nearby. “And that’s a big dagger.”
Hanan remained silent and carefully lifted the Sica by its handle. Venom might be on the dagger and needed to be washed away.
“I’ve heard of men who carry such weapons,” the old man said. He leaned on his hoe and cast a wary eye at Hanan, then poked the cobra with his hoe. He grinned. “A man can’t believe all the stories he hears.”
“It’s been years since we’ve had a snake so close to the house.” Hanan let his gaze drift about the area. “The odd part is that these cobras are nocturnal and rarely come out during the day.”
Hooking the snake’s body with the hoe, Benjamin grunted as he lifted it to waist level. “Heavy thing. I’ll get rid of it, sir.”
“Bury the head if you don’t mind. I don’t want the boy to find it and accidentally scratch himself with the fangs.” Hanan patted the old man on the shoulder. With a final glance across the land, he walked into the house, disturbed without reason.
***
The demon sat in the shade beneath the limbs of a tree, his yellowish eyes squinting against the glare of the afternoon sun. The scowl on his leathery face added wrinkles to the ones already present about his eyes and along his cheeks. His top lip curled and several of his rotted teeth came into view. He slowly shook his head in disgust as he watched Hanan enter the house.
“Oh, Hanan, you trouble me.” Abaddon rose to his feet and adjusted the cowling of his robe. “One day you’re a fine, butcherous animal, skinning a man alive without guilt, then the next you’re killing my pets, worried about some little bastard child... I had hopes that your friend’s scourging would finally bring you over to me, but I misjudged. I suppose it’s time to step up my game.”
Staring at the door Hanan had entered, the demon spat on the ground and started for the road.
***
Ruth laid the pastries and bread on the table next to the other food she had prepared. By Hanan’s order, everyone sat at the same table for their meals rather than separate master and servant tables. Elizabeth and Benjamin stood glancing about the room, eager to eat but waiting on Hanan and David’s arrival.
“I will get them. Hanan said they would be on the veranda.” Ruth wiped her hands clean on a cloth and left.
Walking through the house, drawing near the veranda, she expected to hear the man and boy talking. The silence puzzled her. Rather than call out their names, she slowed her pace and eased to the veranda door. The sight she saw made her gasp yet stirred her heart.
The big man laid back in his chair, head tilted back, mouth agape, lightly snoring with arms crossed over his chest and legs fully extended with ankles crossed. But in Micha’s chair next to Hanan sat David, fast asleep, leaning on the chair’s arm with his head resting upon his arm. She swallowed the lump of joyful emotions that formed in her throat. Wiping tears from her eyes, she quietly walked around the chairs to stand in front of them.
She was about to speak when Hanan’s eyelids slightly opened.
“I’m sorry, master. I will talk to my son about getting into the chair.”
Hanan stretched his arms, sat up properly and rubbed his face to wipe the sleep from him.
“No. It’s only a chair, not an altar. The boy did nothing wrong. He may sit there anytime he wishes.” Carrying his gaze to David, a fragment of a smile formed on his lips, then vanished.
“I’ve been thinking. If you have no objections, and since I have nothing else to do around here, I would like to begin teaching David how to write. As he grows, I could teach him to read and speak other languages as I was taught.”
Covering her mouth with her hands, Ruth happily nodded. Her eyes grew wet and she slid her hands over her face to conceal her tears.
Hanan’s brow lowered as he canted his head to gaze at her face. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I won’t do anything if that is what you wish.”
She lowered her hands and shook her head, smiling wide. “I would appreciate you teaching him to read and write. Please, do so.” Ruth swept her long black hair away from her face and wiped her eyes. “When he’s older, if you wish, you could show him how to clear rocks from a field.” Her smile brought a glow to her cheeks.
“Who told you about the rocks?”
“Elizabeth... She saw you the other day in the field and told me how Yosef trained you to become so strong.”
Rising from the chair, Hanan glanced about the veranda. “The old woman talks too much.” He walked around Ruth but paused at the gentle fragrance of baked bread in her hair. He inhaled deeply before moving on. “We better go eat. I don’t want Elizabeth and Benjamin to die of starvation.” His voice held a tender tone.
Ruth lowered her gaze to the stone floor, embarrassed at her thoughts when he slowed behind her. “Yes,” she replied in almost a whisper. “I’ll wake David and be there short
ly.”
She raised her face to watch him leave, but he stood staring at her with an engaging gaze.
He slowly turned away, and as he did, she thought she saw his lips form a piece of a smile.
***
Hanan kept his word and began to teach the boy whatever he could grasp. Learning Greek was made a game, though, David only mumbled his words in the beginning. Writing was taught by using small sticks to scribble in the dirt. When David grew frustrated at not being able to form his letters, the big man would snap the sticks in half, roar like a lion and chase the boy about the area.
The first time they walked to a field, David lifted rocks no bigger than his palm and cast them away. Although they only flew less than five feet, Hanan applauded and encouraged him to throw more. “Soon, we will find bigger rocks to carry from the field,” Hanan proudly said.
They were returning to the house one evening when David reached up with his right hand to take hold of the little finger of Hanan’s left hand. Hanan’s first instinct was to pull away, but his heart surprised him and enjoyed the boy’s touch. They walked to the house for their evening meal and Hanan regretted the moment would soon end.
“One day I must tell you a story my uncle Yosef used to tell me about the Spartans. Have you ever heard of the Spartans?” he asked, grinning as he looked down at his little friend.
Curly hair flying as the boy shook his head, he gazed up at the giant with innocent large, round eyes.
Hanan’s grin spread into a wide smile.
From within the house Ruth watched their approach. Her bottom lip curled inward, and she swiped at her eyes, not wanting Hanan to see her tears of happiness.
***
After the evening meal, everyone sat on the veranda enjoying the cool breeze. Hanan drank wine and few words were spoken as they relaxed and gazed at the moonlit landscape. When Elizabeth went for oil lamps, Hanan asked if she would wait before lighting them. He wanted to relish the gentle light of the moon and gaze at the painted land.
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