Finding the Way by Cindy Burkart Maynard

Author:Cindy Burkart Maynard [Author]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Historical Fiction, Camino de Santiago, Spain, Woman's Journey
Publisher: Historium Press
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

10

I

f the streets of the town had been narrow and winding, the streets of the Jewish quarter were downright serpentine, curving and recurving, crossing each other at peculiar angles. The buildings molded themselves into strange shapes to occupy every sliver of space. Samuel negotiated the labyrinth expertly. Amika and Mateo marched briskly behind, so as not to lose sight of him. He pulled his horse to a stop in front of a building whose blank façade divulged no hint of what it concealed. He pulled a thick cord, and muted bells echoed inside the walls. The door swung open, and a servant ushered them inside.

A shallow, rectangular pond shimmered in the center of a square courtyard. Unripe citrons dripped from branches competing for sunlight with sour green apples and persimmons. An elaborate colonnade of horseshoe-shaped Moorish arches shaded the walkway around the patio. The unfamiliar smells, the exotic architecture, the sunlight glinting off the placid blue pool absorbed Amika’s senses. She felt as if she had been transported to another world, a foreign world unlike anything she had ever seen.

Two figures emerged from the shadowed arcade that ringed the courtyard. The man’s robes billowed, while the woman’s delicate silk mantle danced behind her as weightless as butterfly wings.

“Cousin!” Samuel spread his arms to embrace his kinsman. “Aleikhem Shalom. Thank you for welcoming us.”

“Barukh ha-ba. Blessings on you,” their host replied. “We received word you were traveling to Burgos and would be staying with us. We are honored by your visit.”

“And who are these fellow travelers?” the lady asked, eyeing the bedraggled strangers.

“Let me introduce my traveling companions.” Samuel extended his arm toward Mateo and Amika, who stood behind him, trying as best they could to appear respectable. “This is Mateo, and this young lady is Amika. They did me a great service today. Without their honesty my mission to Burgos would have been in vain.”

As discreetly as she could, Amika brushed her knuckles against Mateo’s, seeking the reassurance of his steady hand. A flash of warmth flickered between them. Though their eyes remained focused on their exotic hosts, an invisible energy leapt between them, binding them like barnacles to a barge.

“They have graciously offered to entertain us this evening,” Samuel winked impishly at his cousin. “Aaron and Johanna, please forgive my presumptuousness in bringing these vagabonds into your home.”

The breeze held its breath for a moment as Aaron and Johanna absorbed the sight of two unwashed peons in their sumptuous courtyard. In the next moment, their icy stares melted like frost on a sunny day. Johanna swept past Samuel. She laid one arm around Amika’s shoulder in a silken embrace. “Well then, you are welcome in our house. I will wager you would love to see our hot baths. There is one for the men and a special one for us women. Let me show you the way.” She smiled wryly over her shoulder at Samuel as she ushered Amika away.

“And you, Mateo.” Aaron looked squarely at the swarthy man. “You could also use a good washing.

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