Hadassah sat near Marcus on their preferred bench in the peristyle. Hadassah made over the baby that she cradled in her arms, as Marcus read aloud from a text.
She pretended not to notice how he discretely glanced up at her over his reading to see if she was looking at him.
"Julia had agreed to free Hadassah so long as she would marry me. I had hoped the chance for freedom would make her see the truth. I was willing to do anything to join her heart with mine."
When Marcus paused, she looked at him curiously.
"What is this?"
"Our story which I have been writing for the children. One day, Hadassah, they will read the truth," he explained solemnly.
Hadassah sat silent for a moment, taking in his somber expression, unsure how to respond. So, she replied simply "Yes Marcus" and cast a gentle glance in his direction.
Hadassah drew their sleeping baby closer. Slowly, a smile spread across her face as she raised her eyes to meet her husband's gaze again and sighed contentedly.
"Oh Marcus, have you ever seen anything so beautiful?"
Marcus leaned in softly kissing her cheek.
"Aside from you, no I have not."
Hadassah giggled as red crept into her cheeks. After all this time, he still had the power to take her breath. Looking up, Hadassah noticed a servant waiting for Marcus to acknowledge his presence. Marcus nodded indicating permission to speak.
"There is an Antigonus here to see you, my lord," he announced respectfully.
Marcus wasted no time giving a response to the messenger. Drawing Hadassah closer, he said, "Tell him I am not available until further notice."
Hadassah placed a gentle hand on Marcus's arm, "Think how far he has traveled, my lord. You should see him."
Marcus drew in a weary breath, loath to end their time of peace. "Very well, I will see him in the bibleotheca."
Hadassah made her way through the passage. Now that the baby was settled, she would wait for Marcus to finish his visit. Then, unexpectedly, she spotted Antigonous. He was making his way through the atrium to exit their villa. Suddenly, he saw her as well, and changed direction to meet up with her. Pausing briefly, Antigonous then walked closer, shortening the distance between them. Giving her a small smile, he said "Marcus is quite taken with you."
Hearing the tone of malice in his voice, Hadassah began to tremble on the inside.
"Our love has been blessed," she replied, not wanting to ignore him altogether, but unsure where his intentions were headed.
Antigonous seemed to be taking her in for a moment, and she wondered what he might have been thinking. Stepping closer still, Antigonous put his hands on her shoulders. Pulling away at the unwanted touch caused her to lose her balance without the aid of her walking stick. Antigonous quickly grabbed both of her wrists and held her there. A whimper was the only sound that came from her mouth.
"I won't hurt you," he said unconvincingly. Now restrained by her wrists unable to fight, Antigonous held her like a cat dangling his prey before him. He leaned closer; his breath laden with wine. Hadassah fought with everything she had to hold the contents of her stomach. She didn't know if his lips were going to touch hers or if he meant to say something. From out of the silence, she heard the saving voice of Marcus.
"Take your hands from my wife this instant!"
When Antigonous let go at the sound of her husband's command, she let herself fall into Marcus's waiting arms.
Unable to see for the tears running down her face, Hadassah did not catch Antigonous expression. He sounded confused in his response to Marcus. "I thought," he stammered. "You and I always saved the best girls for one another."
"That person is dead," Marcus shot back, a rage upon his face that Hadassah had not seen in a long time.
Without glancing at Antigonous, Marcus began tending to Hadassah's tears.
"Leave. Now!" he roared. "Before I do something I will regret."
Hadassah clung to Marcus, her head against his chest. Wrapping her in a comforting embrace he asked, "Are you hurt?"
"No, she whispered. "Only frightened."
Hadassah lay with Marcus that night. His mood had been pensive all evening after Antigonous's departure. She hoped he would confide in her if something had been troubling him. Now though, he only held her protectively. She wanted nothing more than to be swallowed up by his love, but she could not shake the feeling which hung over her, a feeling that all was not well. Breaking the silence, she asked quietly, "You have been tight lipped about your meeting with Antigonous."
Marcus let out a small grunt burying his face in her dark hair.
"We will not speak of it," he said flatly. "Right now, all I want is to make love to my wife."
Hadassah withdrew slightly. "You must tell me," she pressed gently.
Marcus let out a sigh. "We did not speak of anything I will mention. After the events of this afternoon, it is even clearer to me now that Antigonous has no hope of changing. He is lost."
Hadassah put a gentle hand on Marcus's shoulder. "You will see him again," she whispered. "The Lord has not forgotten Antigonous. You may be the only one to reach him."
Marcus laughed softly but did not respond to her gentle encouragement.
"Tell me," Hadassah tried again.
Marcus did not say anything.
"Please," she continued, "You know it is the truth I speak."
"I wasn't going to say anything about it," Marcus began. "You remember the gambling that has gone on near the emporium?"
Hadassah nodded, not daring to speak, lest it break the moment and Marcus would not provide more details.
"Antigonous has been one of the players. His purpose in calling today was to prove a point. So, we played Tesserae."
Hadassah gasped in disbelief at her husband's behavior. "You know what the Lord says about gambling. I didn't think you still had that board."
"In truth, I had forgotten all about the game board until today. I did it to further my point." Marcus explained.
"How is encouraging him in a game of dice making a point?" Hadassah asked, still baffled by his peculiar revelation.
"Perhaps it isn't the right kind of point you would make. Antigonous has always had a big head. One of these days I knew it would catch up to him. At last, it has. He thought he could use the very methods which I devised and taught him against me. I have always been and still am undefeated." Marcus said with a faint smile.
"Does that make you feel better?" Hadassah asked, still confused.
"No, but as I previously stated, I wanted to make a point to Antigonous that he has finally fallen from his great heights. We saw that this afternoon." Marcus stated firmly.
"No matter what he has done, he is still one of God's children and deserves to hear the good news. You must seek him out and make this right, my lord." Hadassah said calmly, inching closer to Marcus.
Hearing the name Hadassah sometimes used from long ago made Marcus bring her back in to his arms.
"Tomorrow," he promised, "I will seek him out and speak to him again."
Hearing these reassuring words from her husband brought a peaceful smile to her lips. Kissing Marcus once more, she let herself be drawn into his embrace.
It was early, and the market was already bustling with people. Hadassah walked along the rows of stalls examining different types of flowers. She stopped briefly to examine a particularly lovely bundle, then walked on past them. One of the vendors called out to her, "Good morning, lady Valerian. Are you here to purchase flowers for your little friend?"
Hadassah smiled warmly. "Have you anything that is fragrant?"
The vendor picked up a bunch handing it to her.
Antigonous stood just feet away, watching Hadassah making her purchase. As she turned to go, he took his opportunity. Making his way through the crowd, he rushed at her.
He shouted to be heard over the vendors and bargainers making their deals.
Speaking quickly, he said, "Come with me now. Your child has been hurt."
Hadassah slowly glanced from her flowers to Antigonous. "I do not believe Marcus would find it appropriate that I hold conversation with you."
"Marcus is understandably angry, you are the mother of his children, and he would want you to know one of them is in danger."
"My children are safe at the villa."
"No," Antigonous argued, convincingly.
"Come. Your daughter Leah wandered away from her nurse this morning and has been in an accident."
"Leah," Hadassah's face went white with fear.
"If you come now, you may be able to help her." Antigonous insisted.
In an opposite corner of the market, Rachid stood unobserved. Hadassah spoke to a man he had seen calling to the Valerian home several times. She now appeared to be upset. She began walking with the man urgently. Concerned, Rachid followed at a distance.
Hadassah followed Antigonous quickly, ignoring the pain in her leg.
"Where are we going?" Hadassah asked, shouting to be heard above the crowd.
"It will make more sense when we arrive." he replied enigmatically.
"What happened?" She demanded, trying to discover how serious the situation was.
"Right now, we need to get there as soon as possible."
"Is she hurt badly?" She tried again, her face still pale.
"You will be the best judge of that. You are her mother."
Antigonous stopped suddenly. "It will be best if you go before me so as not to frighten the child."
Hadassah cautiously stepped around him. When they came to a corner, Hadassah paused. Antigonous motioned her forward into the alley. She walked quickly, nervously realizing that Antigonous was no longer behind her. Stopping short, Hadassah thought to turn around.
"My daughter, she is not here,' she said softly, understanding washing over her.
Before she knew what was happening, two men rushed her from either side. Her walking stick was wrenched from her hand. Hadassah fought to stay on her feet. Then, the heel of one of the men's sandal connected with her leg causing her to crumple to the ground. She found immediately that she could not move. Even breathing was difficult. A hand from one of the foul-smelling bodies clamped over her mouth.
"Tell anyone you saw us, and you will pay with your children."
Unable to hold back the bile rising in her stomach, she was sick on her pallas. from somewhere behind her scuffled closer, then the voice of Antigonous made her sick again.
"Take her. Now."
Before it all went dark, Hadassah found herself put over the shoulder of one of the men like a sack of grain.
Rachid sped up now, pushing his way through people shopping and standing about. Until now, he had been careful not to be seen. Against his better judgement, he had let Hadassah go with this stranger. He could just see her rounding the corner. He needed to get there quickly. He pushed his way past a group of children, making his way so he could continue following her. Reaching the alley, Rachid stared blankly. His mouth fell open. Only moments ago, Hadassah had rounded this very corner. She was nowhere in sight.
Marcus sat in the tablinum. His last client for the morning had just departed. Now, he had time to work on his own special project.
Through the open door leading to the peristyle, he could now hear the distant laughter of his children. By this point in the morning, he found the sounds relaxing. The vases filled with fresh flowers from the garden were placed strategically about the study. They brought spring to him in their own way.
Taking the scroll from its place on the shelf, he unrolled it holding it open with a weight. Picking up the quill, Marcus dipped the pen in ink, drawing in a shaky breath. As his mind took him back, it was all he could do to steady his hand.
"I excused myself to fetch some wine for our group, for I had long grown tired of Primus's jokes. Julia raised her hand in protest at my leaving. The crowd roared as the pack of lions was steered into the arena. They stood along the outer walls ready to devour the first thing in sight. A chill ran through me as I felt for their first victim. Any one of them could have been her. I didn't have to wait long. Hadassah led the group of Christians into the arena. She walked through the gates with her arms spread wide, a look of joy on her face. I didn't have to hear, but I knew she was singing. One of the lions made straight for her plunging its teeth in to her throat knocking her to the ground. The lion grabbed her arm dragging her across the sand which was quickly stained by Hadassah's blood. As her limp form moved across the arena, a second lion leapt forward, sinking its teeth in to her leg. I could hardly hear over the thunderous crowd as the lions began to fight over her body. That was the moment I felt the life drain from my own body. I publicly denounced my sister and ran from the arena without looking back."
All at once, Marcus heard an unfamiliar voice. His heart still pounding from the recollection of his memory, he twisted the pen in trembling fingers. Looking up, he found one of Hadassah's new servants stood in the passage. A young girl with a dark complexion, obviously Egyptian stood before him. She had thick black hair that matched her dark complexion. Marcus avoided the dark eyes that stared up at him.
"My lord, you have a visitor."
Marcus feeling, slightly annoyed, put down his quill.
"I am not taking any more callers today."
The girl stood unmoving for a moment.
"What are you waiting for?" Marcus asked. "Go and tell whoever it is their business can wait until tomorrow."
The girl turned slowly and proceeded to walk from the room. Marcus glanced down at the mosaic floor, then up at the wedding portrait of Hadassah. Suddenly, his mother Phoebe stood in front of him. Her shawl was carelessly thrown over one arm, and her hair had come lose from some of the pins holding it in place.
"She's never done anything like this before."
Marcus looked up confused. "I'm afraid I don't understand. Tell me what has happened."
"We haven't time. It's almost mid-day meal."
Marcus noticed the sounds of the children playing in the garden had ceased.
"Hadassah did not return with you? I thought you were visiting the widows this morning?"
Phoebe's hand came down hard on the writing table jarring the quills and ink.
"Hadassah never came," Phoebe said, now on the verge of tears.
Phoebe stepped forward, leaning over the table near her son.
"She never met me, but her cart was there with all of the supplies. Marcus, she is gone, our Hadassah is gone."