Among the Gods (9 page)

Joshua waited nearly half an hour, pacing restlessly in the deserted road, but Hadad never returned. “I need to get back up the hill,” Joshua told the guard at last. “Tell Hadad I was just checking to see if everything is ready.” Even in the darkness, Joshua could read the excitement in the young soldier’s eyes.

“I assure you, my lord. We’re prepared for battle.”

But are you prepared to die?
Joshua wanted to ask. “Be careful,” he said instead. “And may God be with you.”

9

L
ONG AFTER
D
INAH AND
A
MARIAH
had fallen asleep, Miriam lay awake in the darkness, tossing restlessly, wondering if the long night would ever end. The low-ceilinged cave was cold and damp, and it reeked of rotting vegetation and wild animals. The chill seemed to penetrate her heart. Tomorrow the battle would take place, tomorrow Joshua would assassinate King Manasseh—and fear for Joshua’s safety lay in Miriam’s stomach like a bitter tonic, preventing sleep. When they had parted ways in Philistine territory, she had wondered if she would ever see him again.

A rustling sound near the cave entrance startled her, and Miriam rolled over, straining to see in the darkness. Someone was rousing the sleeping guard; the last watch of the night must have begun. She lay listening to the murmur of voices outside the cave, waiting for the second guard to take his turn sleeping, but when she looked again she saw three figures silhouetted in the doorway. Was one of them Joshua? Miriam tossed the covers aside to hurry outside, wrapping her robe around her shoulders. The two soldiers were talking to Hadad.

“What are you doing here?” she asked him. “Is something wrong?” It seemed odd that Hadad pulled her aside, away from the guards, before answering her question.

“I came to check on you and Dinah,” he said in a low voice. “I wanted to make sure you were both safe.” A peculiar fire burned in his dark eyes, and his gaze darted among the shadows, not meeting hers. He seemed different from the Hadad she knew. Was it simply readiness for the approaching battle? Had the knowledge that he soon might die altered him this way? A thick canopy of trees and brush shielded the sky from view, and Miriam shivered in the gloomy darkness.

“Hadad, why—”

“Go back to bed, Miriam.” His voice and hands were rough as he pushed her toward the cave. “Stay inside until this is over.”

She did as she was told but lay awake listening to the murmur of voices outside the cave. Then all was quiet. Miriam waited, watching the entrance, but neither of the guards returned to the cave. When exhaustion finally won the battle with worry, Miriam slept.

The cave was lit by the approaching dawn when she awoke. Dinah was still asleep beside her, but Prince Amariah was up and moving carefully around the cave, stooping to keep from hitting his head on the low ceiling. When she saw that he was laying out food from one of their provision bags, Miriam scrambled off her pallet to help him.

“Let me fix breakfast for you, Your Majesty.”

“This is for Dinah. She’ll feel better if she eats something as soon as she wakes up.”

“I know, my lord, but I can do it.” She tried to take the bread and the knife from his hands, but he stopped her.

“I need something to do, Miriam. Waiting like this …” He exhaled. “Waiting is always the hardest part. I’ll be so glad when this is over.”

She let him finish his task, but even in the dim light she noticed the strain etched on his face and the tremor in his hands as he sliced the bread and cheese. In a few hours he might be the king of Judah, living in a palace again with servants to tend to his every need. Now he sought comfort in playing the role of a dutiful husband, tending his ill wife. Miriam couldn’t imagine how it would feel to be part of a plot to kill her own brother.

Amariah glanced up, and when he saw Miriam watching him he seemed embarrassed. “It was so good of you to come with us, Miriam. I don’t know how I can thank you for taking such good care of Dinah. I’ve been so worried about her. If I’d had my way, neither you nor Dinah ever would have come.”

His words surprised her. She repeated them to herself and found they didn’t fit with what she had been told. “Wait a minute, Your Majesty. I thought it was
your
idea to bring Dinah.”

“No! Never! I begged them to let her stay in Egypt, where it was safe, but Hadad insisted—”

“
Hadad
insisted? But he told me this was
your
idea.”

“When did he tell you that?”

“Before we left Egypt. When he tried to talk me out of coming.”

Amariah stopped what he was doing and stared intently at her. “Tell me exactly what he said to you.”

The strength of his gaze flustered her. She struggled to remember Hadad’s words. “He said that Joshua was just using me. He warned me that the mission would be dangerous and said that I shouldn’t—”

Amariah shook his head as if to clear his thoughts. “Miriam, that doesn’t make any sense. Hadad was the one who insisted that Dinah come with us. If he was concerned for your safety, why wouldn’t he be even more concerned about hers?”

“But Hadad
is
concerned about her. He even came here early this morning to check on her.”

“
What?
Hadad was
here
?” Amariah gripped her shoulders so tightly she winced.

“Yes, he was here just a little while ago. He talked to the two guards and—”

All the blood drained from Amariah’s face as if someone had removed a stopper. “Stay here with Dinah.” He pushed Miriam aside and hurried from the cave.

Miriam stared at the entrance in a daze. The fear in Amariah’s eyes had frightened her, but she was unsure what it was she should fear. As she tried to untangle her thoughts, Dinah began to stir. Miriam quickly brought her the bread and cheese, grateful for the distraction of a familiar task. “Your husband thought you might like something to eat right away.”

“Where is he?”

“Outside talking with the guards.”

But Miriam heard no voices from outside the cave. Ever since they’d arrived, the guards had stayed close to the entrance, where they’d be hidden from view yet able to keep watch over the prince. Where had they gone? Hours seemed to pass before Amariah finally returned. When Miriam saw his bloodless face, she sprang to her feet. “What’s wrong?”

“They’ve disappeared,” he said breathlessly. “The two guards—I’ve looked everywhere for them. They’re gone. So are all the weapons.”

“But that makes no sense. Where would they go?”

He moved close to Miriam, peering intently into her face as if he didn’t want to miss a word she said. “Miriam, tell me exactly what Hadad said this morning.”

Miriam’s heart leaped, and she didn’t know why. Amariah was terribly afraid of something, and she seemed to hold the key to the mystery. She recalled the strange light in Hadad’s eye and shivered.

“I asked Hadad why he was here, and he took me aside to talk to me so the guards wouldn’t hear us. He looked different somehow—on edge. He said he came to make sure that Dinah and I were safe, then he told me to go back to bed. I heard him talking to the guards for a few more minutes, and when they were quiet again I fell asleep.”

Amariah paced a few steps toward the cave entrance, deep in thought. “Both guards were awake?” he asked after a moment.

“Yes.”

“They were supposed to sleep in shifts,” he murmured.

“Someone came into the cave and woke one of them. I think it must have been Hadad.”

Amariah closed his eyes and lowered his head, covering his mouth and chin with one hand. He stayed frozen that way for several long minutes, until Miriam thought she might scream from the tension. Finally he drew a deep breath and faced her again.

“Before we left Egypt … when Hadad tried to convince you not to come … Did he tell you why it was too dangerous?”

The urgency in Amariah’s voice told Miriam the importance of recalling every single word. Her heart galloped as she let her mind travel back to the ferry dock, remembering how Hadad had appeared out of nowhere, remembering how inexplicably frightened of him she had been.

“He told me that the battle might not end once Manasseh was dead. He said that Manasseh’s right-hand man—the one with the strange, crossed eyes—might try to make himself king.”

Amariah gripped her shoulders again. “He described Zerah?”

“Yes—that’s what he said the man’s name was. Hadad said Zerah gave him the creeps. That he was always hovering close to King Manasseh, always caressing him.”

Amariah swayed, and for a moment, Miriam thought she would have to catch him.

“O God, help us all,” he said. “It’s a trap.”

“What do you mean? What’s a trap?”

“We’re all walking into a trap!” Amariah’s wide eyes seemed to fill his pale face. His breathing sounded as labored as Joshua’s when he had one of his attacks. Dinah scrambled to her feet and took Amariah’s arm as if to steady him.

“How do you know?”

“I feared this all along,” he mumbled. “I tried to warn Joshua, but he was so intent on revenge that he was blind to all the warning signs, and now—”

“Amariah! How do you know?” Dinah shouted. She looked as ill as he did.

The prince forced out the words as if pronouncing a death sentence. “Because Zerah never leaves the palace. He’s rarely seen in public except at night, and even then he’s surrounded by bodyguards.”

“But couldn’t things have changed since you left?” Dinah asked.

“Maybe Hadad saw him at a convocation … or … or at a—”

“Hadad could never have gotten close enough to see Zerah’s eyes or to watch how he caresses my brother unless he was in the palace with them. And how else would Hadad know Zerah’s name? No, Dinah, they must have plotted this together. It’s a trap.”

Dinah shook him, as if to bring him to his senses, to make him admit it wasn’t true. “But why? Why would Hadad go to all this trouble? He could have killed you and Joshua himself if that’s what he’s after.”

“No, no, don’t you see? This is perfect justice to Hadad. We betrayed him, and now he wants to betray Joshua and me to Manasseh. It’s the ultimate revenge. Hadad will come back here to kill me himself, I’m certain of it. That’s why he got rid of the guards. And that’s why he insisted that you come, Dinah. So he wouldn’t have to return to Egypt for you.”

“And I’m in his way,” Miriam said. She fit all the puzzle pieces together—the strange way Hadad had acted, the odd look in his eyes, her inexplicable fear of him—and suddenly they all made sense. Hadad knew she would do anything to protect Joshua. He was afraid she would see through his lies. “Your Majesty, you’re right—it is a trap!”

“Manasseh is probably nowhere near that procession,” the prince said. “And he probably has hundreds of troops swarming all over the countryside, surrounding us. That’s why we saw so many men in the village yesterday. They’re Manasseh’s men.”

“What are we going to do?” Dinah asked.

“We need to warn Joshua!” Miriam said. “We need to tell him it’s a trap!”

As Amariah drew a deep breath, Miriam was amazed to see that he was no longer panicked. He seemed surprisingly calm as he took Dinah’s hands in his, speaking gently to her. “If you stay here, Hadad will very likely return for you. I’m certain he won’t harm you. I’ll understand if you want to go with him.”

Fear and confusion battled on Dinah’s face. “But I’m carrying your child.”

“I know,” he said quietly. “I promised you a royal son to replace the one Manasseh murdered. You don’t have to stay with me any longer now that you’re pregnant.”

Miriam felt desperate. This was taking much too long. “Your Majesty, you need to run! Hadad will kill you if you stay here, and I have to warn Joshua that he’s walking into a trap!”

Dinah looked as if she might faint. “None of this would have happened if it hadn’t been for me.”

Miriam suddenly saw the truth with perfect clarity, and it angered her. “You’re wrong, Dinah. This is Joshua’s fault, not yours. If he hadn’t interfered, if he hadn’t been so full of hatred and so intent on revenge, you would have married Hadad and none of this would have ever happened. Joshua manipulated everyone. Now he’s caught in the trap he created himself.”

“She’s right, Dinah,” Amariah said. “Let’s not make the same mistake twice. Never mind what Joshua wants. Decide for yourself what to do about Hadad. Do you want to go with him?”

Dinah didn’t reply. Miriam wondered how Amariah could wait so patiently when Hadad might return any minute to kill him. With no guards and only a bread knife for a weapon, the prince was defenseless against a vastly superior foe. Miriam felt a shiver of awe at his tremendous courage. Unlike Joshua’s daring, which sprang from the desire to avenge himself, Amariah’s courage was selfless.

As Dinah stood twisting her hands, Miriam wanted to shake her and scream at her to hurry. At last Dinah answered her husband. “Did Hadad pretend to be your friend just so he could turn you and Joshua over to Manasseh?” Amariah nodded grimly. “What about all the innocent men who volunteered for this mission? They trusted him as their commanding officer. Is he going to watch all of them die, too?”

“Yes. God help them,” Amariah murmured.

“I thought I loved Hadad,” Dinah said. “But I can’t love a man who is capable of such treachery. Please, let’s get out of here before he comes back.”

The prince seemed to sag with relief. “Miriam, gather all the provisions you can find,” he said. “I’ll try to figure out how to get us back to Jerimoth’s caravan in Nahshon. Manasseh probably has men everywhere, so we won’t be able to take the roads and—”

“I’m not going with you,” Miriam said. “I have to warn Joshua. Tell me which way to go. How can I find him?”

“Miriam, I can’t let you do that.”

“You let Dinah decide what she wanted to do. Give me the same right. It’s my life, Your Majesty.”

“Manasseh’s troops have Joshua completely surrounded by now. None of you will escape alive. I can’t let you forfeit your life for him.”

“You would have forfeited your life for Dinah.”

“That’s different. She’s—”

Dinah touched Amariah’s sleeve. “Let her go, Amariah,” she said.

“Yes, please!” Miriam begged. “We’re wasting time!”

At last he heaved a tired sigh. “If you go straight down the hill from the cave, you’ll come to the road. Turn right and follow it east toward the sun. When you reach the roadblock … No, wait, that’s no good. Hadad is in charge of the roadblock. He’ll never let you through.”

“Where’s Joshua?”

“On top of the ridge above the road. But there’s no way around the roadblock—that’s the whole point of it. The hill borders one side of the road, and there’s a cliff on the other side.”