Louisse seemed disappointed when the figure vanished inside the sanctuary but decided to listen anyway; maybe she would learn something of Finn’s mysterious disappearance. She pressed against the wall and clung to the darkness, waiting for the woman to speak out her petitions to the God of the altar. Most of the young women were enthralled by Finn and it wouldn’t take long before she would learn of his antics by the infatuated prayers of some delirious young girl.
It took Louisse off guard when she heard two voices instead of one, the other contender was a male voice and it sounded like Hakham.
Now she really was curious.
*~*~*~*
Heather jumped with fright when she realised someone else had sought the comfort of Jehovah and the solitude and peace of the sanctuary in the early hours of the morning.
“Don’t be afraid, Heather; it’s only me, Hakham,” the old man’s voice sounded tired and drawn. “You seek Jehovah’s wisdom and guidance too for the blonde young man?” he rasped.
Hakham’s unexpected disclosure of his reasons for being in the sanctuary at such an early hour disturbed Heather.
“I... I’m just a little confused at the moment, Hakham,” Heather whispered, settling beside the old man with her legs dangling over the rock wall and intending to say no more, but Hakham’s kindness and powerful personality drew her without him saying another word.
“Sometimes I’m sure Finn has regard for me and then, like tonight, he seems evasive and distant, as if he couldn’t care what happens to me. I wish he would just come out and tell me his intentions and put me out of my misery, instead of getting my hopes up only to dash them again.”
Hakham took many moments to enter Heather’s pain and measured his words carefully. “Sometimes a man has to make decisions that affect the people he loves, decisions of honour and duty that forces him to think about the lives of others and not his own wants and desires. Jehovah has called Finn to follow him in a very particular way, a way that means he will lay down his life so others can live. They may not be deserving of his sacrifice, but Jehovah has spoken and sometimes it is difficult to understand His decision.”
Heather stared down at the deep clear water just near her feet and wondered what Hakham was alluding to. She tried to hold his gaze again when he began to speak, but she had to turn away as his gaze overpowered her stare.
“I will tell you something that must not leave the sanctuary. He has undertaken a very dangerous raid tonight and our people’s wellbeing depends upon him and his ability to complete his mission. However, the possibility of his return could be very doubtful and only Jehovah knows the answer.”
Heather gasped as if Hakham had struck her and drew in a quavering breath, stifling the desire to burst into unrestrained tears and express her shattering grief.
Hakham could see the pain rising in Heather’s troubled eyes, as if a thermometer was recording every degree of her escalating emotions. Convinced her safety valve was about to boil over, Hakham drew her into his fatherly embrace, allowing the safety valve to blow off securely, muffled in the old man’s arms.
Hakham let Heather’s heaving cries settle before he teased the silence with another whisper. “Finn has not disclosed his heart to you, because he wanted to spare you the grief and allow you to choose another to walk the way of the Altar Rose. His decision to obey Jehovah comes at a great personal price and his character and integrity are an immense example to all of us. If it is any consolation to you, Heather, he spoke very fondly of you and only Jehovah and Finn know the cost he paid to let you go.”
Heather’s weeping boiled over again, drifting across the sanctuary, but she stayed in Hakham’s protective embrace for long moments, soaking up his calming presence and together they prayed for Finn, pleading for Jehovah’s will and Finn’s safe return.
*~*~*~*
Louisse stood motionless, gripped with remorse and riveted by the stolen story and shattering emotion drifting over her. The impact of what she had just heard stabbed at her heart and a storm of guilt raged relentlessly in her mind. The young man who had selflessly served her fanatical selfishness had now offered his life so the family could live.
That included her.
Feeling worthless, she turned on her heels and silently dawdled back to her chamber, realising she may never see the blonde Raider again and just possibly, her dealings with the Alama Masu had something to do with his demise.
Returning to her darkened chamber, she bent to a sitting position and lowered her shocked figure onto the bed, struggling with the dead weight of culpability crushing at her chest.
Grappling with deep resonating guilt, she swivelled her body over her bunk and lay flat on the mattress. Figures of the noble Raider paraded across her mind in the dark, attending to her every whim and as she replayed the sequence with her feigned headache and Finn’s concerned response, another flood of guilt raged. Then Heather’s pitiful sobs and her confessions of love for the Raider assaulted her ears.
She was guilty of Heather’s painful cries, too.
In the presence of deep grief, Louisse silently cried out to Jehovah and pleaded for forgiveness. Then somewhere in the stillness, a tiny voice answered and spoke to her reprehensible heart and tears of remorse flowed over and ran down her face.
You are forgiven; now be worthy of your son’s sacrifice.
*~*~*~*
Chapter 25
The metronomic click-clack of approaching boots terrified the two girls, while the echoing rhythm seemed to chime out a foreboding prophecy, counting down each remaining moment of their lives with the surgical beat until the short symphony abruptly stopped, signifying the humiliating curtain call and their unwanted death lay just ahead.
Elly stared across the room and into Eliana’s petrified brown eyes, looking for solace and the surety of a planned escape route, but all she found was defeat in her distressed expression. She silently begged Eliana to offer a means to elude the grave situation.
Immediately Eliana’s eyes became clear and focused, as if someone had offered her an army at her disposal. “If this is Jehovah’s will, then I accept His terms. Malhalem can abuse and mutilate my body, but the spirit of Jehovah’s child is forever protected from man’s cruelty and lives immortal with Him forever.”
Elly’s dumbfounded gaze settled on Eliana, her mouth hanging open listening to Eliana’s murmurs. It was alright for her to accept what was coming with bravery, but Elly had no assurance that Jehovah would recognize her as His eternal child.
She wondered what it would feel like to die, and hadn’t ever thought about this moment but now it was here, she wasn’t ready for it and panic set in.
Eliana refocused on Elly’s shocked mien, then uttered the words that Elly could draw strength from. “Just have faith, Elly, and trust Jehovah; it won’t matter if we die. He will be there on the other side to bring us home forever.”
The time to ponder had come and gone as the door to the harem swung open and the commander ordered them out and down the passageway.
Tiny gold bells tied together with chain encircled each girl’s ankle and tinkled with each nervous step as they apprehensively walked to their fate. The flowing white dresses followed the girls regally and caressed the balcony floor, sweeping the decorated surface with each elegant motion. Soft perfume danced around them, alluring and seductive in its scent, but totally defiant to the heart and will of each unwilling seductress.
The commander followed the girls from behind and guarded each step, making sure they would enter Malhalem’s bedroom before breaking away and then returning a few hours later to escort them to the executioner’s stage in front of the chanting crowd.
The part each Alama Masu lusted for.
An opulent double doorway loomed up across the passage, garlanded by two royal purple curtains and embroidered with the disgusting mark, divided in the middle and hiding the ornate palace brickwork with its generous gold edging.
Elly felt numb and emotionless,
like a machine, her body separated from her will. She glanced across the second floor balcony and glimpsed the sprawling palace gardens disappearing into the distance and pondered the freedom that lay beyond.
She refocused on the path and her heart pounded as she and Eliana walked past the dividing curtains; but something appeared even more strange and time seemed to stand still. It must have been her mind shutting down in the exceedingly traumatic circumstances.
Then abruptly and unexpectedly, angry voices jostled them from all sides until she lost her footing and soon there were more angry voices yelling in all directions.
It took Elly many moments for her mind to compute what had happened; it was still expecting the unpleasantness of Malhalem. But suddenly, the girls were dragged away from the palace at great speed, while an angry crowd of black hooded figures followed closely behind.
More commotion confused the night and abruptly everything went black. She could still feel the hand of her rescuer holding hers and then his desperate and breathlessly rasped order hanging in the darkness as voices she didn’t recognise drew up their plan.
“Get them to safety, Caleb, and I will distract the hooded ones from finding the hidden entrance and give you a chance to make your escape.”
Elly’s chest was burning, gulping air furiously into her heaving lungs from the manic escape. In the pitch darkness, she felt the strong hand release hers and then she guessed he had linked her hand to Eliana’s smaller, softer hand and then with an abruptness that disturbed the still air around her, her rescuer was gone.
Caleb didn’t have time to argue Finn’s order, trying to calm his breathless heaving instead and slow it to a pace where he could think again. He intended to do exactly what his leader told him to, recognising immediately the situation Hakham had spoken of and soon the angry Alama Masu had deserted the pursuit for the secret tunnel and were intent on a far greater prize.
Finn had a price on his head and was far more valuable as a catch to the Alama Masu then two disposable girls. He had alluded capture for too many years, embarrassing the hooded ones as he snatched many kafiri from under their noses and then vanished into thin air.
Malhalem was enraged each time, beheading his warriors for their incompetence, but now as more Alama Masu warriors joined the chase, Finn’s possibility of escape narrowed.
He would not evade their grasp this time.
Caleb stood silently, listening to the darkness; maybe Finn would lead them on a merry dance before doubling back and finding the safety of the tunnel. In any case, he had a job to do and he had to get the two girls back to the family but once the mission was complete, he could concentrate on a rescue for Finn if they hadn’t murdered him beforehand.
The darkness and the quiet in the tunnel was so intense when Caleb suddenly spoke, Elly and Eliana jumped in fear. He noticed the surprised flinch; the girls were terrified and he guessed it wasn’t just from the escape, leaving him to wonder what the Alama Masu had done to them.
“It’s okay, ladies, you’re safe,” Caleb’s soothing voice broke into the silence and he thought he heard muffled sobs. “My name is Caleb and I’m the second in command of the Raiders. You will need to hold onto my hand and stay close to me as we pick our way through the tunnels and back to the safety of the family.”
Eliana’s sigh was accentuated by the silence of the tunnel and the comfort of Caleb’s words, realising Jehovah had indeed answered their prayers.
Then in a complete reversal of her fear, she squealed with delight, jumping up and down on the spot. ”See, Elly, I told you Jehovah would come through and the Raiders would come for us!” Eliana’s exuberant excitement echoed up and down the tunnel walls.
Elly didn’t seem quite as enthusiastic and Eliana was puzzled at her silence.
Soon Elly clarified her concern and all became known. “I am apprehensive for the man who rescued me and what those people will do to him if he’s caught.”
The tunnel went silent as all three contemplated Elly’s words.
Then she spoke again with equal conviction, but in a whispered voice, “I also have a friend searching for me and if my hunch is right, he will be somewhere in the city too and he won’t know where I am. The longer he stays searching for me, the greater the threat he will be captured and I know he won’t give up until he finds me.”
The silence was difficult. Caleb had heard many heart wrenching stories of family and sweethearts separated by the actions of the barbaric Alama Masu in the past, but there was nothing he could do.
“Trust Jehovah, Elly, and see what he will do,” Eliana gushed, but the words seemed empty to the blonde girl pondering the fate of two of the bravest men she knew.
Caleb drew their attention back to the escape route and relayed vital survival information. “Okay, are we ready to move? Take hold of my hand and don’t let it go; it will get darker, smelly and scary as we get further in but remember, the tunnel will lead to the family and safety. Trust me and do whatever I tell you. Okay?”
The girls mumbled their consent and slowly they made a determined path further into the darkness.
*~*~*~*
Dramble perched precariously, sitting on a low stone wall, massaging his sore feet and wondered whether the annoying black bag disguise had been a poor choice. It seemed whenever he came near a group of black hooded men or boys, they took advantage of his masquerade as a girl and he had to make an abrupt escape. It insinuated that Alama Masu women were fair game for any Alama Masu man if they were alone and unprotected by a chaperone.
Dramble felt a perplexing sinking feeling, deep within the pit of his gut and for the first time, he was uncertain of his ability to find Elly.
A precipitous commotion approaching from his right disturbed him and in a fluid move he dropped over the wall, but when he landed, the black bag tangled around his neck and exposed his trousers. Remembering the attention from Alama Masu men, he quickly and coyly pulled down his hem, covering his jeans again.
Boy, it’s tough being a woman, Dramble complained bitterly to himself.
Then keeping well out of sight and using the stone wall for cover, he watched an exhausted blonde escapee hurdling obstructions and trying to outpace a group of pursuing black hooded men. Judging by the outfit and the absence of the ugly mark on his forehead, this fine looking fugitive was not of the hooded people.
Dramble was intrigued and didn’t feel quite so alone, knowing another human being didn’t fit into the weird and cloying society of the black hoods.
In an exhausted attempt to clear another obstacle and just in front of Dramble’s line of view, the man crashed to the ground.
Dramble drew himself up, but before he could offer assistance to the fallen figure, the black hoods were all over him, jabbering in a joyous commotion, but completely overlooking the unchaperoned and hiding form of a young hooded girl just metres away from their celebrations.
At a safe distance, Dramble followed the festive band and kept watch; maybe the blonde man’s unfortunate capture would lead him to other unmarked people and possibly, his beloved Elly.
This was the most positive lead he had had to date, but not so good for the incarcerated refugee.
*~*~*~*
Chapter 26
Heather had fallen asleep, laying her head against the rocky walls of the Lake of Purity while watching the lulling images of the torch flame reflecting across the water’s surface and mesmerising her into a peaceful calm.
Her tears had finally stopped for Finn, but Hakham’s endless baritone petitions to Jehovah reverberated through his chest and echoed into her ears, hypnotising her with tranquillity and the gentle, tingling power of the God of the altar.
Jehovah was singing His wounded daughter a love song, seemingly promising her Finn was in His sight, no matter what happened.
Movement and sounds from within the passageways signified the morning had come and family members were starting their daily routine. Heather awoke and struggled to sit u
pright, her neck stiff and sore from an extended time in one position. Gently she twisted her head from side to side to regain movement while her hands massaged her shoulder muscles.
“I fell asleep,” she offered, slightly embarrassed and covering her mouth to stifle a yawn.
“Did you feel Jehovah’s love and His promise, Heather?”
Heather suddenly smiled. “I thought that was just in my dream?”
“I asked him to reassure your heart with His love and guide you in the coming days.”
“He did and it was very special; thank you, Hakham. I feel very honoured to have been rescued from the Alama Masu and placed within a caring extended family.”
“Then you will trust Him with Finn?” Hakham’s words seemed to draw her back to reality and her face dropped with the reminder.
“I’ll try, Hakham.”
Heather embraced the elder and stood to leave, thankful for his gentle wisdom and his fatherly care, but lost in his words. Then without further disruption, she silently left the sanctuary, allowing the old man to continue his vigil in front of the altar.
*~*~*~*
The underground tunnel had wound its way around in the dark for what seemed like hours. Eliana’s bare feet were sore from stumbling over rocks and debris, and judging from the occasional anguished moan from Elly, she was trying to ignore the pain and keep up with Caleb’s pace, too.
The constant tinkling of the anklet’s were beginning to drive Elly mad and reaching the end of her patience, she called out for a respite. “Can we have a break for a few minutes please, Caleb? My feet are killing me and these bells are driving me nuts!” Elly finally burst.
The little group came to an abrupt halt, feeling around in the dark with their hands and making sure they wouldn’t sit in something nasty. Assured the space was clear, the girls dropped slowly to the ground, exhausted, but Elly’s anklets began to tinkle loudly.
“What are you doing, Elly?” Eliana queried.