Chapter 2

Legacy

Elias sighed heavily. “Someone cared enough to bury his body so the jackals could not feed.”

“That’s one way of looking at it.”

The words were muttered, terse. Glancing up, Elias saw that Isaac’s face was dark with anger.

“Yes. It is. It is the benign way. What is your interpretation, Isaac?”

“That they hid the evidence of a murder in cold blood.”

“That is certainly another way,” Elias agreed.

Isaac paced, his heavily bearded face flushed with fury. “Enoch was harmless! One of us. A Legacy member. And he was slaughtered. What did he do to earn that, Elias? He went to study some writing on a rock wall.”

Elias watched the tense, jerky movements as Isaac paced across the room and back. In this life, this world, he mused, there are two kinds of men. The optimist and his counterpart. One sees only the good and is often disappointed. The other expects only the bad and is often justified. Yet, sometimes, the pessimist is disappointed too.

“Enoch went into the demon’s hunting ground. Don’t you think it might have been the demon who killed him?”

Isaac turned with a scornful twist to his mouth, an effect half lost in the depths of his beard. “The demon then had a fit of remorse and dug a grave for his victim ..? I don’t think so.”

“Yes, I admit that is unlikely,” Elias nodded. “Then .. someone else was there.”

“Yes. Enoch’s murderer.”

“Was there any sign of the beast?”

Isaac shook his head. “I looked but saw nothing. I could not do a prolonged examination. The shepherd was with me. Finding the grave unnerved him. And there was no writing on the gully wall either. We were right about that. While the beast existed on this plane, the writing existed too. When the beast left, the writing vanished.”

“That was unfortunate. If they were a banishing spell, we might have used it on others. Now it is lost.”

Isaac sat down, his anger temporarily overwhelmed. “Who will tell Rebecca?”

“I will. Enoch was a member of my house. It is my duty as Precept.” Elias sat back and shook his head. “We all know the risk when we join. The Legacy isn’t a polite society dedicated to scrolls and books, Isaac. It is a secret society, its members pledged to a cause to protect the innocent from the creatures in the shadows. When things go well, we celebrate. When things turn for the worse, we mourn.”

“And we find those responsible and punish them,” Isaac said.

“You’d go back into the desert and wait? Possibly suffer the same fate as Enoch?”

“I’d go prepared. Armed. I would fight for my life.”

“How do you know he didn’t? If it was the demon, there is nothing we can do. If it was thieves .. who is to say you won’t be overwhelmed by sheer numbers? I have lost Enoch, a great scholar skilled in languages. I will not lose you as well.”

Isaac twitched slightly. “I wasn’t alone out there.”

“You said. The shepherd – ”

“There were others. A small group. I saw them, on the cliff. They were watching me.”

“Is that all they did?”

“Yes.”

“Then what crime has been committed? You cannot damn people for watching strangers, Isaac.”

“The boy, in town, he as much warned me not to go there,” Isaac continued, his anger rising again. “He implied a threat.”

“Isaac, Isaac, where are your senses? Must you always suspect the worst in people? The boy was telling you truly – the desert is a harsh place. He told you to take a guide. If he had wanted you to be ambushed by robbers, would he have done that?”

“I have a feeling he would have taken me himself. Probably to lead me into a trap.”

“Then why didn’t he?”

“I don’t know.”

Elias watched him. Isaac was twenty eight and had been a member of the Legacy for almost a year. He had studied in Babylon and was well versed in the knowledge of many arcane practices. Elias had heard that Isaac had the sight but he had never asked and Isaac had not mentioned it. In many ways, Isaac was the perfect man for the Legacy. In others, Elias sometimes despaired. Isaac was darkly suspicious although he could mask it. He was a pessimist and Elias found that particularly wearing. Yet Isaac was physically strong and hardy. The word scholar sat ill on his broad shoulders.

“I want you to consider something perhaps a little strange,” Elias began and Isaac looked up. “The boy meant you no harm. Enoch was killed by the demon. And there are nomads in the desert who found his remains and buried them so the jackals could not feed. Will you do that? Will you try?”

Isaac nodded rather reluctantly. “I’ll try, Elias .. but I make no promises.”

*****

That is the problem, Isaac reflected as he left the Legacy house. Elias is too much the scholar. His nose is always in a scroll. He’s so accustomed to focusing his eyes downward that, when he does look up, he sees the world thru a mist. It’s vague. Soft. If he’d only had to live as I have – on the streets – he’d be a bit more wary.

But I cannot deny that Elias is clever. I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone so brilliant, not even Enoch. I may resent the yoke of forbearance but I do not balk at his leadership. It was Enoch who insisted on going to the desert, and alone. I believe Elias would have wanted him to have a companion but Enoch had already left. Now he has paid for that rashness with his life.

What we have to do …

Isaac caught himself with a quick smile.

What Elias should do is combine the two activities. Learning and field trips. Studying the mysteries, observing them, is all very well but, when it comes to .. going out there and using what we’ve learned .. we are sadly lacking. And no one should ever go alone unless there is no other choice.

He felt quietly excited at being a member of this new sect. The road from Babylon to Beersheba had been incredibly long and arduous and he’d arrived little more than a beggar. Elias had recognized some .. quality in him, some potential. Isaac had listened in astonishment when the invitation had been extended and he had accepted it quickly. At that time, Elias had been a member of the Beersheba house but he was recruiting members for his own house south of that city. Isaac would go with him.

Elias had come from Egypt where he’d observed some of the secret rites used in the temples. He wasn’t Egyptian but he’d lived there for some years before being recruited. He’d retained the accent. Elias was one of the first members of the Legacy.

Isaac felt in his bones that this sect had a profound future. It would grow, expand, spread over the surface of the world. Out beyond the Great Sea to lands as yet undiscovered. It would last thru history, thousands of years. And he was a part of it, right at the start. It was tremendously exciting, very awe-inspiring, and just a little scary.

Isaac wasn’t scared of the danger he knew was out there. He was cautious but not scared. If he died because of this work, it was a valid consequence. No reason to stop working. What scared him was the thought of making a mistake which was so huge that, in a thousand or two thousand years’ time, people would still remember his name.

What we do now, in these first years, will be the template for all the years to come. If we want the Legacy to be the success it is in our dreams, we cannot get it wrong at the start.

And, while Isaac was excited and awed, he was also coldly angry that Enoch had died unnecessarily and that Elias would not even consider the fact that it might not have been the demon.

He was walking along an alley between two buildings when he staggered, his head filled with a blinding pain which brought him to his knees, his hands clawed fists as they dug into the sand. The pictures crashed into his mind. The town. The well. The carpenter’s workshop. The boy. The desert. Enoch. A girl .. and the boy again.

The pictures faded, color came back, but the pain stayed. Isaac pushed himself upright, glad that the alley was empty and no one had seen the attack. His head was thumping, leaving a searing ache across both eyes and the bridge of his nose, and his neck felt stiff. His mouth was dry and he could really have used an hour in a darkened room but he turned and retraced his steps to the Legacy house.

“Back so soon?” Elias greeted as Isaac came in. His voice was mild but then it always was. Then he really looked at the younger man. “Isaac, what is it? Are you hurt?”

“I’m in pain but I’ve had this before, Elias.”

“Sit down, Isaac, before you fall.”

Isaac sank gratefully onto a padded bench, closed his eyes tightly and pinched at the bridge of his nose.

“I .. see things,” he said, his eyes still shut. “I have a .. a moment’s warning, if you can call it that. It feels like someone has split my skull with a red hot ax. And then the pictures come to me.”

He spoke wearily, softly, and, when he opened his throbbing eyes, Elias was squatting before him. Isaac waited to be condemned and thrown back into the street. Only madmen had visions.

“And is this what happened to you just now?” Elias inquired.

“Yes.”

“Why did you return here?” Elias frowned. “You look .. drained.”

“I could sleep, that’s true, and very easily. When the pictures fade, the pain stays with me. Often, the only way is to sleep until it goes. But .. it was important that I speak with you about what I have seen.” Isaac drew in a deep breath. “And then you can revoke my membership.”

“Oh, Isaac, why would I do that?” Elias quietly exclaimed. “Do you know how special you are, how rare? You may see the pain as a curse but this sight is a gift. Is it the past or the future you see?”

Isaac swallowed. “You won’t throw me out of the Legacy? Or even think I am a madman?”

“I had heard you had this gift. I hoped it could be used somehow in our work. But until you spoke of it, I would not pry.”

The younger man laughed shortly. “I did not speak of it because I believed it was an affliction. A sign of some illness.”

Elias squeezed his hand. “No, it is no illness. And you are not mad.” He rose to sit beside him on the bench. “Tell me, what do you see?”

Isaac paused for a moment. “Never colors. Always in .. black, white, shades of gray. And never in a logical sequence. It is almost random but not. It is not what I would call a true vision, Elias. Not at all like a waking dream. It is a series of images. Literally, pictures. Out of order. Sometimes the past, sometimes the future, but always important. I have learned that .. whatever I see, I must act on it, either to prevent some catastrophe from happening or, as in this case, to look more closely at a past event because there is something to be learned from it.”

“Do you remember the pictures or do they fade after time has elapsed?”

“They are branded into my memory,” Isaac replied tiredly.

“Then, in that case, you will sleep now.”

“But – ”

“Isaac, I know you. You will tell me what you saw and you will be fired with zeal to take instant action and you will be probably not be at your best. Sleep now, let the pain loosen its grip on you, then we will talk and decide what to do.”

Isaac sighed and nodded his acceptance.

“I must go and talk with Rebecca,” Elias said heavily. “I will be an hour, maybe more. Go and take your rest.”

“Yes, Precept,” Isaac agreed, as meek as any lamb.

*****

“It is the children I feel for the most,” Elias remarked several hours later. “Mites who have lost a father when they would benefit from his presence as they grow.” He shook his head. “The Legacy is a fine and noble thing, Isaac, but it is unfair to families. They cannot all be members and so they must be excluded. And this cause demands our total dedication. It must take priority over any life outside, and any domestic contentment. It is this which gives me the most concern for the future. How can a man choose between a cause and a family? How will the Legacy survive?” He sighed again.

“And Rebecca?” Isaac inquired.

“Stoic, but then she always has been. She will not be forgotten, not be left to become destitute. The Legacy will look after her and the children.”

“I’m glad.”

“Now, how are you?” Elias asked.

“Rested and pain free.”

“Good. Hungry? The evening is almost upon us.”

Ten minutes later, as the sun boiled into the west and oil lamps began to be lit and the ferocious, wearing heat started to cool, Elias and Isaac sat down to eat and Isaac told of his vision.

“I saw the town I visited yesterday. The well. The carpenter’s workshop. And then I saw the boy. The boy I told you about. And, then, I saw the desert. I saw Enoch. And a girl .. and the boy again.”

“Where were they?”
“In the desert,” Isaac replied. “Thinking back, when I spoke to him, the boy said he hadn’t been in town on the day Enoch passed thru so he never saw him .. in town.”

“He didn’t lie but did he tell the truth ..?” Elias frowned. “Perhaps the question you asked was not quite precise enough.” He glanced up. “It is not meant as a slight, only as a general comment. Perhaps, where this boy is concerned, we have to be .. exact or he will wriggle around it. You believe you saw this because the boy is somehow connected to Enoch’s death?”

“Yes, Precept, I do.”

“Do you believe he is the murderer?” Elias went on. “Because Enoch was murdered, of that there can be no doubt. It is the question of who did it which is as yet unanswered.”

Isaac hesitated. “I don’t know. Possibly, he is. But I did not see Enoch being attacked by the boy.”

“Could the girl have done it?”

Isaac looked shocked. “A girl ..?”

“I have not seen her, Isaac. You did, and you said the things you see are always important. She has a part to play in this. Was she the boy’s wife?”

“I didn’t sense that. They looked similar. Brother and sister ..?”

“Intriguing.” Elias chewed on his supper of lamb couscous for a moment. “What do you think we should do?”

Isaac paused. “I think we should go back there, Elias. You and me. Enoch’s death has not been explained, not to my liking and not in a way I am even close to accepting, but it has taught us a valuable lesson – no one goes alone.”

“And when we get there?”

“We use what we have learned. We observe what happens and we study the mysteries. This boy and, we assume, his sister are connected to Enoch’s death. I am not sure yet if they lured him into a trap and others killed him. Maybe they were his guides into the desert and they abandoned him when robbers showed up. Or they are completely innocent and fled when the demon appeared .. although I doubt that very much. The boy was very calm when I spoke with him. If he had seen a demon, it would have showed in his eyes, if not his face. Whatever, they knew Enoch and they were in the desert at the same time.”

Elias frowned. “Maybe they are the ones who buried him, Isaac.”

“Maybe they are .. but, if so, why didn’t the boy say?”

“I am not making excuses for him, you understand, but perhaps he remained silent to avoid being seen in a suspicious light. To avoid the questions you would have asked. Why did he not help Enoch? Who did kill him, or what? What was he doing in the desert? It is a harsh, hostile place, and he is not a shepherd.”

Isaac was silent.

“It is a mystery,” Elias declared, “and the Legacy both studies mysteries and discovers why its members die. We shall go. We will leave early, before sunrise; it will be easier to travel. We must be there before sunset and the start of Shabbat.”

“I agree,” Isaac nodded.

“Tell me. The girl. Was she pretty?”

Isaac looked up, startled. “Yes. Slender, yet .. strangely muscular. Dark eyes, solemn eyes. Almost as if .. she’d seen too much. And … ”

“And?” Elias queried into the sudden silence. “Isaac?”

“Her hair.” He shook himself. “A streak of white, just so. The boy had it too, slightly broader.”

“You think this is important?”

“Probably not,” Isaac replied. “It is most likely something which runs in the blood.”

*****

After Isaac had retired, Elias went to his own room and opened a small box made of cedar wood. As a Legacy member, Elias had not been privy to all the information. Now he was a Precept, he was. In this locked box, he kept all the secret knowledge shared between the houses. There was one particular scroll he wanted to re-read because something Isaac had said had nudged a memory.

“Where is it ..? One day, I will organize these into some semblance of order … No. No. Ah! Here it is!”

He opened it and focused. He recognized the firm hand of his former Precept. Terse, laconic, the words stated facts, not opinions. It described an incident in Beersheba which had happened five months before. Elias scanned the lines and then nodded.

“A white streak thru the hair.”

He paused for a long moment then rolled up the scroll and replaced it in the box, locked it, then hid the box again.

Perhaps Isaac’s arrow of accusation was not so wide of the mark after all. The Legacy had not existed for very long , it was true, but it was determined to fight the evil in the shadows and the night. Evil was everywhere, temping the virtuous. The Legacy had a good mission. There again, there were those in the world not tempted by evil because they already served it. And, if the Legacy had been born to fight evil and those who served it, it was always possible that another sect had been formed to fight the Legacy …

Elias went to his bed but didn’t sleep for hours …

*****

“When we arrive, we shall arrange our accommodation and spend tomorrow .. just being quiet,” Elias said.

Isaac looked quickly at him. Elias had dark smudges beneath his eyes and he sat rather listlessly on his donkey, his spine bent. A poor night of rest, Isaac thought. Yet .. it is more than lack of sleep. His voice is different today. He is unsure of something. Well .. that can’t be all bad. Healthy suspicion will keep a man alive longer than unhealthy and immediate trust.

“To go around, strangers in their community, being obvious and asking questions, will make people silent and that is what we do not want,” Elias continued.

“Especially on the Shabbat,” Isaac agreed. “The Lord decreed a day of rest so .. we will rest.”

“Exactly. Rest but not be idle. We can use our eyes and ears. Half the Legacy’s strength is being sure of its facts. The other half is acting upon them. Tomorrow, we exercise our first strength.”

“There is an inn almost opposite the carpenter’s workshop. It would be ideal.”

“Yes. It would. Is it much farther?”

“Several hours. Elias .. what is wrong? Yesterday, you seemed more .. alive.”

Elias hesitated. “We may be entering terrible danger, Isaac. If you should have another vision, and especially if it shows you the boy or his sister, you must tell me at once.”

“Of course. I give you my word.”

“Thank you. Now, let us travel in silence. I have much to consider before we get to our .. final destination.”

Isaac inclined his head. He had much to consider as well and profound thought worked best in relative silence. The donkeys’ hooves thudded regularly on the packed sand as they trudged their way south and west. Occasionally, a breath of hot air made palm fronds clack together or a bird would fly over, calling to its mate. Nature could never be totally silent. The world lived and therefore it had a voice. But the human voice could be silenced so the inner voice could be heard.

Elias was already listening to his. Isaac waited for his inner voice to begin.

It is no shame to admit you think you were wrong. Yesterday was yesterday and your blood was hot. Now, it is today and you’ve had time to think, time to sleep on it. And you’ve put distance between you and the desert. Enoch’s death is still a hard blow but you are already recovering. It is not cruel to feel this way. He is with the Lord now, and in a good place. If you had been attacked, if your life had been the one threatened, you would feel differently. And it must not be forgotten that life here is harsh. The sun brings light and heat, yes, but it is merciless and cares nothing for the people who toil beneath it. Therefore, mourn Enoch but celebrate the fact that you have survived to live another day. Celebrate the fact that the Lord has given you a mind able to think and ponder, and the choice to decide your own actions. And, now that it is today, you think you misjudged the boy.

Ah .. but did I? Isaac sighed silently. Did I misjudge him or am I swayed by a pair of solemn dark eyes? Do I think him innocent because he was with his sister? The eyes of the hawk are just as dark and the hawk can kill without mercy. Is it just my prejudice which suggests that a girl is not capable of murder? I cannot know until I meet her, face to face.

Then do not prejudge, his thoughts told him. Mercy is a fine quality. So is patience. And so is the benefit of the doubt. Once, you were sure and you were ready to condemn. Now, you have doubt. Let it stay your hand when it wants to point the finger of accusation.

Isaac accepted that and let his thoughts drift on to more recent events.

What did Elias mean ..? We may be entering terrible danger … I have said as much and Enoch’s death is proof .. but Elias was always so sure. Now he preaches caution. What does he know ..? Is it something I have done or said?

Isaac’s mind raced back over his words but he could find nothing to cause a flicker of misgiving enough to rouse Elias to such wariness.

Ah well, Elias is a Legacy Precept. You are not, you are only a member. Legacy Precepts are chosen with care, not only for their leadership and breadth of knowledge but also for their ability to keep hidden various deep secrets.

Yes, but .. the Legacy itself is a deep secret. Its members are carefully chosen, examined without being aware of the examination and only if they pass this most stringent of tests are they invited to join. We know to guard our words. What other secrets could there be?

The obvious answer has to be dangerous secrets. Knowledge of such threat that, if it were known, the membership could rupture and bleed away, leaving the Legacy an empty shell unable to defend the innocent.

But we know of the evil in the world. We have pledged our lives to fight it. What knowledge could be more threatening than that?

I don’t know. But Elias knows more than you know, and it isn’t because he is older than you. He knows because he is a Precept and other Precepts have told him. If he wants you and the others in the house to know, he will tell you. If he decides you should remain ignorant, he’ll keep quiet. Perhaps it is a rule among Precepts. When you are a Precept, you will know. Besides, he has given you a warning to be extra vigilant. Maybe that is all he can do because, while knowing more than you, he does not know everything. He gropes his way to the answers just as you are doing.

How then can I help him? If I am not aware of –

But you are aware. There may be a terrible danger. Be alert, be observant, and be there. There is not much else you can do .. until the situation develops further. And it will, depend on it. You do not have the visions for no reason, Isaac. They are always important.

*****

It was the middle of the afternoon when Elias and Isaac entered the small town. Isaac had made the journey a lot more quickly because he had left earlier and hurried his donkey. People were bustling, hurrying to finish chores before the start of the Shabbat day of rest. The inn opposite the carpenter’s workshop was full so they had to look elsewhere and they managed to find a room at the inn several streets away. It was unfortunate in one way, yet fortunate in another. It would be harder to keep an idle watch on the workshop yet they would not be so obviously watching, nor could they be watched in turn.

Several people glanced at Isaac, frowning, wondering why he seemed familiar, but Isaac didn’t respond more than with a polite nod of his head.

Elias, instead of relaxing at the end of the long journey, only seemed to become more tense. Isaac was immediately aware of it and, as they climbed the stairs to their room, he leaned closer.

“What is it, Elias? Can you not tell me now?”

Elias shook his head quickly and Isaac interpreted that not as an outright refusal but as a ‘not here’.

Once inside their room, Elias closed the door and leaned upon it for a moment then went to the shuttered opening in the exterior wall, loosed the shutters and peered out into an alley. Isaac watched this with a curiously uplifted heart. It made a pleasant change to see Elias so beset by suspicion of others. Finally, satisfied, Elias closed the shutters again and plunged the room into dim light.

“We must be careful, Isaac,” he said in no more than a murmur. “Very careful.”

“I know I counseled caution but I know my reasons. What are yours?”

“I cannot say, not yet. I must be sure before I speak. All I ask is that you stay close to me, and keep yourself ready at all times.”

“Of course, Elias. I would do that anyway. You are my Pr .. friend.”

“The streets are busy. We will not be overly noticed if we go for a walk but we will be seen and remarked upon.” Elias paused then shrugged. “It cannot be helped. The Legacy must face the danger, no matter where or in what form. That is the pledge we made.”

“Elias, one moment.” Isaac held out a hand to stay the other’s progress. “I have been deep in thought myself this day and it is possible that I misjudged the boy. Until we know exactly what happened to Enoch, can we not give him the benefit of the doubt?”

Elias nodded swiftly. “Or until his actions condemn him.”

Isaac followed him back down the stairs and he frowned as he walked. The vision connected the boy with Enoch but it seemed that Elias had made other connections, ones which caused his heart to fear.

*****

They walked the streets, observing the faces of the people they passed, nodding a greeting if they were greeted, being polite and courteous but not intrusive. Elias was dismayed. He had expected a few, yes, because Isaac’s vision had forewarned him. He had never expected this many. They weren’t in the majority, far from it, but he counted at least sixteen people with the white streak in their hair. At least sixteen potential assassins and in this one town. He and Isaac were only two. He could feel fear nibbling at his mind and he doubted very much if either of them would live to see home again.

Will they obey the rules of the Shabbat, he wondered feverishly. If they break the Lord’s commandment about not killing, will they observe any of the others? The evil in heart and soul do not care what will befall them. The Shabbat may be our savior or it may mark our end. Nothing is ever assured.

The younger ones he’d noticed had a white streak of about a half inch up to an inch broad. The older ones had streaks on either side of their head, working their way back to meet. The old .. well, Elias wasn’t sure. They could be genuine gray beards, their white hair purely a sign of advanced years. What horrified him the most was that he saw children with the same brand.

Whatever this sect is, they train them from a horribly young age, he thought. Can they really hate the Legacy so much? Can we have done so much in so short a time that we have earned this retaliation? Of course .. it doesn’t matter what they want or don’t want, they will obey the orders of those in the shadows, those we are sworn to defeat. Therefore, they are our enemies. Isaac must escape even if I fall. He must get this news to our brethren in Beersheba. From there, the word can spread.

Dear Lord, protect me …

“Elias .. do you know we are being followed?” Isaac murmured.

Elias sucked in a strangled breath. “Where?”

“About twenty five, thirty feet behind us. An old man.”

“What should we do?”

Isaac blinked. “It is not Shabbat yet. I say we confront him. At least find out why he is doing what he does.”

Elias moistened his lips and nodded briskly. “So be it.”

They slowed, pausing to admire the view. Isaac thought about turning swiftly and marching upon the old man to demand his answers, then he dismissed the idea. He was still suspicious but making an outright display when they were strangers and the old man a resident would not help them in their search for the truth. It would only make the town’s citizens hostile to answering any more questions. But .. maybe .. he could make a big display of being a stranger in town …

He turned and was surprised to find the old man a lot nearer. He hadn’t hidden the fact he was shadowing them and now he wasn’t following them at all – he was approaching them. Isaac nudged Elias quickly on the arm.

“Excuse me,” Isaac began as Elias turned. The old man halted, his dark eyes bright and shrewd. “We are strangers, new to your town, and we are lost. I believe you are resident here.”

“I am,” the old man answered.

“Then perhaps you can tell me why you’ve been following us. We are not thieves. We are respectable men here on personal business.”

The man looked them up and down. Elias took the chance to do the same to the old man. He saw a surprisingly agile body, the spine straight and not at all bent with the passage of years. He was bearded but the bristles were more gray than black. He wore a thin hood over his head so Elias could not ascertain if there was any danger.

“What personal business?”

Isaac straightened slightly. “A dear friend of ours died recently. His widow has asked us to inquire of the details.”

The old man’s eyes narrowed suddenly but then he smiled. “You do not play an honest game.”

“It is no game,” Isaac remarked, flushing. “A man is dead, old one.”

“Hmm. You are scholars, yes?”

Isaac glanced at Elias. “Yes, that’s correct,” Elias replied.

“Wise men, or so you believe. Will you take some advice from an old man?”

“Advice should never be turned down,” Elias replied, caught up in a growing battle of wills.

“Though it may not always be acted upon,” Isaac added, just to make sure the old man knew they weren’t fools who’d swallow anything.

“If you truly are wise men, you will act upon this,” the old man warned. “Once the Shabbat is over, you leave this town and go back from whence you came. You will be safe here during this sunset to sunset tomorrow but I cannot say what will happen if you stay beyond that.”

“You threaten us ..?” Elias whispered.

“I make a promise. We don’t want you here. Leave .. as soon as you can.”

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