Bella followed the path up and around the outside of the tower. She couldn’t see Zion, but she felt better about being in this strange place. After experiencing the Bible verses, she was overwhelmed with the feeling that she was here for a reason.
The light on the path started to fade. Still, with no sign of Zion, Bella decided to keep heading up the tower. She was starting to understand how her faith in God was really supposed to work.
Two things were becoming crystal clear. First, she didn’t need another person to make her feel worthy. She was enough because God was with her.
It doesn’t matter if no one subscribes to my channel. I am someone because God loves me.
The second thing Bella was understanding about how real faith worked was that God does care and He leads His children. Even if the situation seems crazy odd, God is still there.
More waves of people swept past in both directions. Most of the men who headed up the path carried the stones or buckets of tar. The women Bella saw carried everything from big clay jars and armfuls of fruit to babies wrapped in cream-colored linens. Children of all shapes and sizes zigzagged through the grown-ups as they ran about doing who knew what.
As Bella tried taking in all the sights, another one of the wild dogs appeared. It came up from behind her and stayed on her right side. It didn’t turn on her like the others had. The dog just trotted up the path next to Bella.
She noticed that the animal’s paws were really big. And its head and jaws seemed bigger than other dogs its size that she’d seen. Maybe she was just imagining it, but when the dog turned to look back at Bella, its eyes were yellow.
A pair of hands grabbed Bella by the shoulders.
She craned her head back and saw Evangeline’s beautiful smile.
“You scared me,” Bella said.
“Sorry, but I saw that wolf getting close to you.”
“Wolf?”
“Yes, that guy and all his furry buddies are wolves, not dogs. They all belong to Gol and his people. Don’t mess with them and you’ll be okay.”
“Who’s Gol?”
Evangeline let go of Bella’s shoulders. “He’s the man in charge of building this thing.” She spread her arms out to indicate the tower.
Bella watched the wolf get lost in the crowd.
“Why does he need wolves to build a tower?”
“That,” said Evangeline, “is the mystery. Gol is a man who leads these people to do this thing that they would not do on their own. Everyone looks up to him like he’s their savior.”
“That’s kinda weird.”
“Yes, it is weird.”
The two walked up the tower path in silence for quite some time. When they reached a level that had a barricade, Evangeline grabbed Bella’s shoulders again.
“I’m not allowed to go any farther. Be strong, child.”
“Why can’t you come with me?”
“Don’t worry about that now. Just go, and be brave.” Like the wolf only moments before, Evangeline walked away and disappeared into the mass of people heading back down the tower path.
Bella took a deep breath and exhaled.
God, thank You for leading me.
She looked out over the edge to the city far below. The higher she climbed, the more magical this ancient world became. Did these people actually think they could build the tower to reach heaven? How would that work? It wasn’t like there was a sign with the word HEAVEN on it floating in the clouds.
Hoping to find Zion, and having no idea where he could be, Bella ducked into a passageway that took her back inside the tower. Flicks of shadow rushed past her eyes, like tiny blackbirds zooming by in search of a hidden perch. There was nothing near her that would create those darting shadows. It was odd, but it certainly wasn’t the first odd thing to happen since she had arrived in Shinar.
Bella stepped into a small room that was connected to the main hall. Inside, she found it empty except for a pile of stones that had been left in the middle of the floor. More black spots filled her vision. Her brain was tired from all the input, but she had to push on and get to the top of the tower. She noticed a small doorway on the opposite side of the room. Bella went through it and found herself in another room, also with a pile of stones in the center of the floor. There were no more doors or passageways, so Bella turned to leave. That’s when she saw a piece of paper sticking out from the stone pile. She pulled it out and found that it was a scroll with writing on it. It also had a sketch of the tower with the city complex at its base.
Together we will reach heaven.
Together we will become famous.
Together we will not be scattered.
“That doesn’t belong to you.”
Bella dropped the scroll. When she looked to see who was there, she saw a wolf. She said a prayer and bent down to retrieve the scroll. When she stood, Bella saw a man standing behind the wolf. He was tall and wore a robe that showed off his muscles. Mean-looking. Intimidating.
Don’t be afraid.
“Who does own it?”
“Gol.”
Bella held on to the scroll. She stood tall and looked the man in the eyes. “Do you know who I am?”
“I don’t care who you are. You don’t belong here, and you need to leave.”
“I need to see Gol,” Bella said. “I need to tell him something.”
The man squinted at her, like a clerk checking to see if a customer’s bill is counterfeit. “Who are you?”
“My name is Bella Rhodes.”
I am a child of God and you can’t do anything to me.
After an awkward silence, a young person slipped in the room behind the tall man.
“Abimah! That’s my friend. She’s nice.”
Bella couldn’t believe it.
“Zion!”