The old man studied his son’s face for several seconds. “Never mind that for now, my boy. You need rest.”
The diviner must have noticed Daniel’s haggard appearance. What he attributed to fatigue, Daniel attributed to an increasingly guilty conscience.
“You should spend some time with your wives and children.” Abraham stopped short. “That reminds me. There is another matter we need to discuss.”
Daniel was only half paying attention, so his father’s next words caught him completely off guard.
“I’ve reassigned Hannah.”
“What?” Daniel wasn’t sure he’d heard his father correctly.
The diviner turned his eyes to the far wall. In a casual tone, he said, “She began to have delusions about the state of your marriage.”
“Delusions?” the scion repeated uncomprehendingly.
“Yes, delusions.” Abraham’s tone remained casual. “Absurd lies that your union had not been consummated.” He didn’t bother to ask Daniel to confirm or deny the statement. “I knew it for what it was. The work of the devil. An attempt to demoralize the people by raising doubts about the scion.”
Daniel found himself on the horns of a dilemma. If he leaped to Hannah’s defense, he risked exposing his own problematic behavior. Instead, he asked, “You didn’t punish her, did you? After all, she’s only a child.”
Abraham nodded in agreement. “That is why I reassigned her to a man who can keep her vagaries firmly under control. One who can bring her around to a proper way of thinking.”
Daniel hadn’t even formed the question before his father answered. “I am the only man strong enough to grapple with the demons who are attempting to possess Hannah’s soul.”
“You!” Daniel echoed, trying to keep the shock out of his voice. Although he had been raised with the practice of older men taking younger wives, a sixty-year age difference was obscene. The thought of his father coupling with Hannah made his flesh crawl. “And is Hannah happy with this new arrangement?” he asked tentatively.
Abraham seemed surprised by the question. “Why shouldn’t she be? As the wife of the diviner, she will have many advantages.”
“But did you ask her what she thought about the reassignment?”
The old man’s puzzled expression remained. “There was no need. She hasn’t complained.”
Daniel gave a weak smile. “Then I’m sure everything is alright,” he lied.
His father took his words as a sign of consent. “I am glad, my son, that you see the wisdom of my decision. I confess I should have been distressed if you were going to make some difficulty about the situation.”
“No Father, not at all.” While Daniel was glad to be relieved of the burden of a superfluous wife, he felt nothing but sadness for Hannah’s fate. He needed to let her know that somehow. “May I speak to her?” he asked. “I’d like to say goodbye.”
Oblivious to the thoughts running through his son’s mind, Abraham smiled magnanimously. “Of course, my boy, of course. I believe she has been scheduled to work in the bakery this week if you wish to seek her out. I’m sure she will be pleased to see you.”
Daniel believed Hannah’s reaction to seeing him would be anything but pleasure. If he hadn’t abandoned her on their wedding night, she might never have mentioned the incident to anyone. She might have remained safely beneath the notice of the diviner. The girl couldn’t possibly be happy to be married to a man old enough to be her great-grandfather. This was Daniel’s fault. All his fault. He had already charged himself with the deaths of three people in obtaining his father’s artifacts and now this. He didn’t know how much more guilt his soul could bear. He stood up abruptly. “Do I have your permission to leave now, Father?”
Abraham had refocused his attention on the golden bee. He spoke absently. “Not right now, my son. I’d still like to have a full report of your journey. After that, I think we should spend some time in prayer and thanksgiving. Surely you can postpone your other duties until this afternoon.”
The scion lowered himself back into his seat. It seemed his ordeal was to continue. Several more hours of uninterrupted attention from his father. Considering all the misery he had inadvertently caused, it hardly seemed penance enough.
Chapter 42 – Marital Affairs
Hannah paused to rub a smudge of flour off her nose. She’d been kneading bread dough for what seemed like hours. Her fingers were beginning to cramp up. She stood at a long butcher block table flanked by a dozen other women engaged in the same occupation. Providing enough daily bread for two hundred people was a time-consuming chore. She happened to glance toward the door of the bakery and dropped the lump of dough she was holding. Daniel was standing there. He hadn’t seen her yet. He was scanning the faces of the women to her right, obviously looking for someone. Looking for her it seemed because when he saw her, he gave a little start. Their eyes met. He offered a tremulous smile and motioned for her to join him at the door.
She hurriedly wiped her hands on her apron and scurried over to where he stood.
“H…hello,” he began. “How are you?”
She blushed and looked at the floor. “I’m alright, I suppose.”
“Will you please come for a walk with me?” he asked.
Could it be possible? Had something changed? Had he persuaded his father to give her back to him? She hadn’t felt anything like hope for a long time. She nodded.
They walked down the corridor in silence, their footfalls echoing over the stone floor.
“Let’s go in here where we can speak privately.” Daniel motioned toward the chapel. It was deserted at this time of day.
Hannah realized it would be unseemly for her to invite him to her quarters now that she was married to another man.
They walked down the central aisle together. The irony was not lost on her. The
