forward. The Gideonite leader assigned four men to escort the wagon. Several of the soldiers guarding the gates whispered to each other as the group of men crossed under the archway.
Once they had passed the posts, the doors were again secured behind them, and the four escorts led the way into the city. They passed tents in the entry court and then followed a well-worn cobbled passage flanked by stone and brick buildings, many of them outfitted with canvas awnings hanging over the two-lane street. The shops and businesses they passed were unattended, many showing evidence of looting. Several of the doors were torn from their hinges, and a few of the buildings were being used as makeshift barracks by armed Gideonite men. The sounds of the horses’ hooves echoing between the buildings grabbed their attention, but Pekah did not acknowledge the onlookers. Eli was as silent as a rock.
The short street emptied into a small round courtyard, punctuated by a beautifully carved stone fountain that depicted an overflowing flower basket, with four spouts arcing into a pool of clear water. A spillway from the pool filled a shallow, covered aqueduct, which ran down the side of the fountain to become part of the road before disappearing somewhere behind the walls of a neighboring building. The escorting soldiers allowed a few moments for Pekah and Eli to drink, and then hurried them on again, out of the court and into the confines of another narrow street.
This street was much like the first except for the fact that the buildings here were all two-story. It also emptied into another round courtyard, graced by yet another fountain. Not as elaborate as the last, the sight of the fountain did not hold Pekah’s attention. Worried about what he might say to the emperor, his beating heart thumped in his chest, distracting him from appreciating the picturesque balconies, exquisite iron railings, and vibrant flower pots above him. He trudged onward.
When they broke free of the road and entered into the central plaza of Ain, Pekah could see the sharp edges of the eastern mountains in the distance, slicing Aqua and Azure as they drooped ever lower. Soon the colors of dusk would burn lines across the sky. Pekah was bothered by the lateness of the day. He hoped they would still be able to deliver their message and avoid staying the night in Ain.
Noticing that shadows from the buildings obscured some details of the stone walls surrounding the immense court, he traced their edges to the well-lit center of the city plaza. There sat another wide and impressive sculptured fountain. The awesome sight of it nearly took his breath away.
A huge granite bowl rested more than two stories high upon three separate pedestal columns, whose footings dipped into a perfectly round, raised pool. Flanking all sides of the splashing pool were statues of lions. They stared outward as if guarding the precious water, and their polished manes glistened in the mist produced by the fountain’s clear curtains. Underground aqueducts on opposing sides of the lower pool took the spring water to various parts of the city, and the stone cobbles above them betrayed their presence with a gentle rise. Near the northern edge of the plaza, next to the spot where one of the aqueducts disappeared behind a brick and mortar wall, Pekah could see remnants of the original landscape. There was still a five-foot rock outcropping that the builders of the city had chosen to pave and build around, rather than remove.
Near the rock stood a most peculiar wooden structure surrounded by several canvas tents. About nine feet tall, fifty feet long, and forty feet wide, the building was made of stained wood panels fastened together by slotted beams. These beams were stained green, connected at the top to cross-members that in turn were fitted with other wood panels, forming a pitched roof. The structure was locked together at various joints by polished brass pegs, and their accent against the richly stained panels attested not only to the fact that this structure was portable, but that it belonged to someone of wealth.
As they continued to walk, Pekah spied a flag fluttering in the late evening breeze near one end of the building, and he gulped. It was the banner of Manasseh. Sewn onto the flapping cloth was a more detailed version of Aqua and Azure, an image pressed into all Gideonite solars. With the intended goal of their mission now imminent, he suddenly had the urge to flee. He looked at Eli, whose jaw was set, his eyes wary.
Pekah wanted to express his anxiety to Eli, even if he had to whisper, but the escorting soldiers stopped and held them back with an upturned hand. One of them walked toward the tents.
While they waited, Pekah observed the other soldiers who milled about the plaza, and saw some of them leaving in groups toward the west side of the city. Because of the constant activity on that road, he suspected prisoners were being held in that area.
The soldier returned from the tent almost as quickly as he had left, and said, “I have spoken to the general, but he forbids you to see the emperor today. He has arranged for a tent to be prepared. The emperor will see you in the morning, in his stateroom.”
Orders were given, and the other Gideonite escorts left with the wagon and horses.
“Follow me,” the soldier then commanded in a tone that conveyed his impatience.
They marched briskly toward the group of tents, passed several, and arrived at a small one next to a wall. The tent was in the process of being vacated by two unhappy captains, gathering their things in haste. Once the captains finished and left, the Gideonite guide curtly dismissed Pekah and Eli for the evening.
“A meal will arrive shortly. A watch will be posted. Do not leave your quarters.”
Pekah pushed through the entrance folds, and Eli ducked to enter. Once inside, they saw their assigned barracks had been supplied with canvas folding cots, both with bedrolls and pillows, and a glow-stone lantern sitting on a tiny portable table.
Even though they would not be able to deliver their message until morning, Pekah felt an immense burden lifted from him just to be away from the other soldiers. Greatly relieved they had not been imprisoned, he breathed easier. Eager to sit down, both men unbuckled the swords about their waists.
“We weren’t deprived of our weapons-do you have any idea why?” Eli asked.
“I believe it’s because I was in uniform,” Pekah said. “It would be improper for them to remove my weapons without some order to do so.”
Eli shrugged and scratched his scruffy red beard, shaking some of the travel dust of the day from it.
Pekah grinned, then teased, “Apparently, they let you keep yours because you didn’t scare them, either.”
Eli chuckled. Both men removed quivers, bows, boot knives, swords, and daggers, placing all the weapons at the ends of their separate beds. Eli laid his staff next to his cot. Both men shook the pillows and situated their bedding. About this time, the same Gideonite soldier entered the tent with a tray containing two bowls of hot stew and some bread crusts. He set it down on the table and took a wineskin from his shoulder. Without a word, he exited the tent and pulled the flaps closed. Pekah could see by the dim shadows cast on the tent wall that two guards were posted near the entrance.
“A very social fellow,” Eli observed in a mocking tone.
Using the cots for benches, they sat down to the first hot meal they’d had in many days. Eli offered a simple prayer of thanks, after which they picked up the bowls. They had been given no eating utensils, so they used the crusts of bread to sop up the gravy juices, and then tilted the bowls to eat the meat and vegetables left behind. Once they finished, they took turns drinking from the skin, after wiping the crumbs from their faces with their sleeves. Eli belched loudly and apologized, but Pekah didn’t mind.
“I wonder if Jonathan will get any sleep tonight. Cots are certainly better than rocks,” Eli said, pointing down at his bed.
“As long as a Gideonite patrol doesn’t find him, he’ll be fine, I’m sure.”
“Well, I don’t plan on being bothered by your Gideonite friends tonight. I have no intention of leaving the tent.”
“Nor I. My bones are weary. Sleep is all I want right now.”
“I agree!”
They pushed their cots back to the walls of the tent and moved the table near the door. Eli wasted no time in making himself comfortable for the night. Although the energy of the glow-stone lantern was already fading, Pekah tossed a cloth he found on the tent floor over the top of it, then climbed into his bed.
Exhausted from worry and a long day of walking, he fell asleep almost immediately.
Chapter 13
