Samara furiously rushed about the kitchen, pounding cooked millet into a paste, whipping yogurt and spices into it, chopping parsley, cracking eggshells and throwing the eggs with scallions into a sizzling pan. The shadows were lengthening; she had arrived home late. The men were still away on their business rounds and would expect her to have dinner prepared soon.
Thoughts careened through her mind like wild birds battering the bars of a cage. She couldn’t stop thinking of Africa. Nor could she get Valerius’ face out of her mind. In two days she would be meeting him at the riverbank, and what would happen then?
He said he has no one to talk to. Has he no family, no friends? What does he want from me: advice and counsel? Does he want me to be his rabbi? What sort of man is he? Can he get me to Africa? Why can’t he stop the conspiracy to destroy the Old Quarter? Is he going to arrest me after all? What if he finds out that I’m behind dozens of inflammatory incidents that have plagued the Romans?
There was a pounding at the street-gate. When Samara opened it, her heart warmed to see Leah, breathless.
“Samara! Did you hear about Deborah getting her kidnapped baby back?”
“Yes. I was there at the tribunal.”
“Then you know it was a Roman centurion that made it happen. They’re calling him the second Solomon!”
Samara laughed. “He’s not a bad man, but he’s no Solomon.”
Leah looked at her strangely. “Samara, you speak as if you know the man.”
Samara, looking down, tried to sound casual. “I observed him closely, that’s all. Did you know about the tribunal? Why didn’t you attend?”
“I had to stay home and clean my parents’ house, end to end, top to bottom. Our cousins and their children are coming, and the house is going to be full of people, all demanding to be served, and all looking down on me because my husband left me. I wish I could get out of there!”
“Myself as well! I must get out of my own father’s house, Leah. I have to escape the marriage he’s arranged for me, and even more important, I must do something to improve life here for our people.”
“You keep saying things like that. You must mean it. Yet what on earth could you do?”
I’d love to tell Leah about my financing the rebels, but that would be unwise. At least for now. Maybe soon I’ll tell her about my plans to make our Hebrew people wealthy with my African trading schemes.
“I’m not really sure what I can do, Leah. I’m praying about it. Every day that I see my relatives sleeping on my floor because the Romans tore their house down every time I see another homeless child in the streets, I feel that time is running out for Judea.”
“Samara, I haven’t eaten all day. What are you cooking? It smells delicious.”
“I made this food for the men. But I don’t care. Let’s eat.”
After the two women had their fill, Gershon walked into the kitchen and saw them sitting at the table, empty dishes piled in front of them.
“There’s plenty of food left, Gershon,” said Samara. “Serve yourself.”
He scowled and walked out. Leah laughed in amazement. “You didn’t even make a move to serve him!”
“He’s not a child, Leah, and I’m tired of being a servant to the men of this household. Now, let me tell you about a man I met today, a man I believe you should meet. His name is Leander, and he’s single.”
Leah hesitated. “Are you trying to play matchmaker for me?”
“Maybe. What of it?”
“Is he from here?”
“No. From Greece. A Christian.”
“Really? A Hebrew Christian?”
“Not Hebrew. Greek.”
She looked at Samara, incredulous. “You’re actually trying to connect me with a Greek who’s not even a Hebrew? To be with such a man, I’d have to leave my whole family – and my whole life, and my whole world!”
“Maybe our world here is not good enough for us, Leah. Have you considered that?”
“Samara, you’re impossible. Let’s just talk about the matchmaking going on in your life. What about this Hod ben Omri that intends to marry you?”
“My father is bringing him here any day to start this undesirable process.”
“Samara – no.”
“Oh, yes, of course. Now I’m lost like you, Leah.”
“Samara, what are you going to do?”
“Maybe I’ll marry him and challenge him to a camel-selling contest,” she declared. “Whoever sells the most camels gets to run the business. The loser stays home and cooks and cleans for the rest of their life.”
They laughed long and hard until Samara’s laughter turned into tears. She wiped them away and gazed at Leah through smarting eyes. She snuffled and wiped her nose.
“Leah, I have a plan. I’ll marry Hod, build up his business and hide money for myself. After a year or two, when it becomes clear to him that I’m not going to bear children, he won’t want me around anymore, and I’ll just escape to Alexandria in Egypt and set up my business. I can hire a flock of bandits to take me there and protect me. Do you want to come along?”
Leah gazed silently at Samara for a long moment, then said, “And how much of this – plan – do you really think you can carry out?”
“Up to the part where I hire the bandits, I suppose.” She laughed again, rubbing her eyes. “In Alexandria, there’s a Hebrew community, yet they might reject me. I would reject me myself, if I were a lady bandit who ran out on my husband.” She thought, And my Alexandria plan would mean giving up on Africa. “Oh, I know my dream of hiring bandits and going there is too wild. I could just marry Hod, steal a pile of money from him, be pronounced barren like you, forget about Alexandria and go home to my father’s house. I could just accept being bored for the rest of my life, cooking and cleaning, buying sweets with my ill-gotten gains, and getting fat.”
Leah laughed throughout Samara’s discourse, then turned somber. “You make jokes,” she said, “yet I can feel you hurting.” She took Samara’s hand and asked intently, “What about your heart? You know you must protect yourself from a bad marriage. You have to be available for the right man! It’s obvious that you’re seriously thinking about escaping Jerusalem.”
Samara was motionless, staring silently at Leah. Leah’s fervor surprised her. She really knew Samara’s heart.
Could she tell Leah about Valerius, that he was not a mere centurion but the Legate of Judea? She thought about telling Leah that she was meeting him in two days, that she would ask him to take her to Africa even though he was the enemy of the Hebrews, and that she might even have feelings for him.
It was too much. She could barely accept her dangerous relationship with Valerius, let alone share it with her friend.
Leah was almost family. However much of a true friend Leah may be, Samara couldn’t confide in her completely yet. Of course, she’d have to tell her all soon – if Valerius agreed to the African expedition. Then she’d be inviting Leah to join her in rebelling against their clans and leaving their homeland.
Samara wondered if Leah would be able to accept such a drastic course of action. How sure of it was Samara herself? She imagined how her dear father and her aunts and cousins and her one-time fiancé Caleb would respond to the truth about her now – that she was contemplating a dangerous journey that would take her far away from all of them. And with a Roman!
Leah broke the silence by asking, “Samara, you already have a fair amount of money put aside; is that right?”
She nodded.
“Then get your cloak. We’re going on a buying trip.”
In the street, Leah said, “I’m taking you to the horse and livestock markets. I know them well enough; my family is in that trade. I don’t think you’ll be hiring bandits. Yet you’d have to escape from Hod, and I have a feeling you ought to be ready to leave Jerusalem soon. How many animals do you think you’d need for an escape expedition?”
“Leah! I couldn’t buy a caravan’s worth of animals.”
“Don’t you have enough money?”
“Probably. But that’s not the point.”
“I’m absolutely sure you can buy at least four horses, maybe six and ten camels. It doesn’t have to be hard for you to escape Jerusalem. Listen: my clan owns some stables in the desert where you could board your animals. Then you could be on your way whenever the time is right.”
Samara looked at Leah with astonishment. Where had this boldness come from? She was even a little afraid of what Leah might do next.