16

Mahlah’s knees almost buckled as she rushed toward her sister. In all the chaos of the night, she hadn’t sent word to Noah about the pit nor the plague. She didn’t want to pull their shepherdess from the fields after the accusations that her family relied too heavily on their kin. And with the plague, well, Noah would have barged right into Nemuel’s tent and chastised their wayward neighbor, fever or no fever. That possibility could come to fruition even now if Noah lingered.

She grasped Noah’s hand and pulled her outside and toward their empty tent. The rest of their family did not need to hear the sordid details from the pit.

Huffing, Noah followed.

“I cannot believe you left the camp without me. Without a word.” Noah’s harsh tone held a hint of hurt. “I knew I should have questioned Jeremiah’s absence.” She paced back and forth, her arms berating the air. “Why does one need a donkey after dark?”

Leaning forward, Mahlah grabbed hold of her sister and kissed her cheek.

“Oh, Noah. I needed you here. If I did not return, someone would have to care for Tirzah and Milcah.” She inched backward. “How much do you know?”

“Everything.” Noah’s deep brown eyes bore into Mahlah. “Our elder was furious. He demanded to know if his sons worshiped Baal. He said you named them as witnesses to your journey and the lawlessness at the pagan orgy.” Noah rubbed her forehead. “I should have known to question Jeremiah when he returned with Eli. That man has never spent one night with his father’s livestock in all our years together.”

“Where is Eli now?” Abishua had a quick temper.

“Taking care of our sheep.”

“What?” Flashes of the reprimands on the trail caused her stomach to cramp. She readied a rebuke. “I don’t want—”

“Abishua insisted.” Noah poured a drink from the lone water jar alongside their tent. “I knew you’d be upset, but he wanted me to come and help you tend to our kin. This is fitting for Eli. Jeremiah was so distraught by what he saw in the pit that only I could understand his motions and relay his words to his father.”

Mahlah, too, wished to banish Balaam’s face and his followers from her memory. “Until tonight, I never realized how frustrating it is to speak with Jeremiah.”

“It’s not too difficult.” Noah grinned. She sipped some water and offered a drink to Mahlah. “I’m accustomed to it.”

Mahlah sighed. “I’m sorry you had to find out about this night from Abishua. I wish this day had never come to pass.” She swallowed the last of her drink. “Perhaps we should get back and oversee our sisters.”

“Not right away. At least not for you.” Noah clutched Mahlah’s robe. “You need to rest. That is what I am going to tell Nemuel and the young ones while you leave camp and seek out Reuben.”

“Reuben is back from battle?” Mahlah’s heart sparked anew.

“Yes, victorious and unclean. He stopped me on my way into camp.”

“He sought you out?” Her glee plummeted to her bruised toes.

“Don’t look at me like that.” Noah’s expression became stern, not sisterly. “He had a message for you. Not me. Who better to bring a word to camp than someone who traipses in and out all the time?” Noah scanned the neighboring tents. “He can’t return for five more days until he is clean from bloodshed.”

Had Reuben thought about her while he was away at war? Mahlah walled off her heart lest it shatter again. Reuben might seek another girl for his wife. “What did he want to tell me that couldn’t wait?”

A few women hurried by to collect manna.

Noah feigned a giggle. Leaning in close, she sobered. “Moses is going to count the families of Israel. War and the plague have diminished some of the clans. God wants Moses to number the fighting men.”

Number the men? Mahlah’s hopes diminished. She tossed her cup by the water jar and let it lay on the ramskin lip of the tent. “Our father left no sons to be counted.” Did Reuben mean to forewarn her? Cool her temper so she wouldn’t speak out and grumble? Like her father. “I don’t care for his message.”

“You most of all should care.” Palms held high, Noah formed a barrier in front of her. “Our soldiers have taken cities and land. Land, Mahlah!”

“But I am not a son or a soldier. Neither are you.” And she had seen firsthand Nemuel’s disregard for the women in their clan. He had rejoiced over Jonah’s healing, not his daughter’s.

A storm wind released from Noah’s mouth. “Go to Reuben and ask him yourself about Moses’ decree. The fighting men of Manasseh are stationed near our livestock.” Noah tipped her head in the direction of her field.

A throb boomed between Mahlah’s temples. Conversing with Reuben rekindled feelings she had pressed down for years. But Reuben had always been kind to her. Was he being kind now? Was there more to his message that she did not understand? Reuben, don’t cast me a fool.

“Won’t the men be wearing loincloths?” She bit her lip at the thought of finding Reuben in a mass of scantily-clad men.

Noah clapped a hand on Mahlah’s shoulder. “I have faith in you, sister. Your wisdom and bravery saved Hoglah and our relatives. If you are worried,”—Noah winked—“take one of father’s cloaks and a blindfold.”

She would need more than a blindfold to suppress her feelings. When Reuben was present, the air and her body warmed like a brick oven.