Thomasina by Paul Gallico

Author:Paul Gallico
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

I BAST-RA, Cat Goddess of Bubastis, now called Talitha, remember the day of the coming of The Man With The Red Beard.

I saw him first as in a vision, striding through a dream of prophecy with flaming hair, for I the Lady of Sept, have first, second and third sight.

And I cried out aloud in the night of the doom-dream – “Death! Death! Death and doom await the slayers of cats! He is Duamutef, son of Horus, brother of Anubis, the Jackal of Death. Red is the beard of his chin, the hair of his head and the glare of his eyes; red is the blood that drips from his hands; red is the doom that envelops his Ka for he has transgressed and I, Sekmeht Bast-Ra, shall set the seal upon that doom. For it is writ in the Book of the Dead that whosoever causes the death of one of us shall not go unpunished.”

He came, fearful and mighty as Sopdu and even I, Bast-Ra, was filled with fear and cried out so that I awoke.

I was at my fireside then in the cottage temple and the glow of the dying fire was as red as blood. In the next room I heard the sweet singing of Lori and the thumping of the loom as she finished her weaving. Even so, she ceased her singing and called to me – “Talitha! Poor puss! Have ye had a bad dream then? Och, but you have nought to fear –” and she came and lifted me up, cradled and stroked me.

Yet I knew that a doom had commenced – perhaps Lori herself had threaded it upon her loom – and must go on to its appointed end. The day when I would encounter the Man With The Red Beard was not far off, and in spite of myself and the sweet love of my priestess, I trembled and could not take comfort. It is not easy to be a Goddess and know too much.

It all began next day hard by the Coven Tree.

Other times, other customs. Had you heard of the Coven or Coglan Tree? As Wullie who explained it to me said – “Och, any Scot, or even Scottish cat would know that. Ye cannot be a true Scot, Talitha.” The Coven Tree is the great oak or beech that stood in front of the manor house, or in the castle courtyard, where it spread its branches, offering shade from the sun or shelter from the rain. It is peaceful beneath its canopy.

Now, Wullie explained further, it is not that the Scot is unfriendly; far from it. When he kens you he is the most hospitable man on earth. But first – and danger taught him this – before he welcomes you within he must know who you are and what your business. And thus, it was under the Coven Tree on a bench that the laird interviewed the stranger, the traveller and the seeker to have a word with them as to their purpose and their antecedents before admitting them into the house.

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