Desired by Ginger Garrett

Author:Ginger Garrett [Garrett, Ginger]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, General Fiction, History, Delilah, more to come from marketing, honey, lion, Samson, Temple, Philistines
ISBN: 9781434768001
Publisher: David C. Cook
Published: 2011-10-01T00:00:00+00:00

“Is this Delilah then?”

A man sat upon a high-backed chair at the top of marble stairs with crouching lions resting on each stair tread, daring the unwise to approach. He was bald, with a stern face and broad shoulders. His legs were bare, easy to see under his robe as he sat. They were covered with coarse black hair. It made me uneasy.

Tanis nodded. We were dirty from the day’s walk, and my feet hurt terribly. I braced my knees to stand straight and proud.

“Go and sleep, Tanis. I will watch over her.”

Tanis nodded and bowed, exiting through doors that were rimmed in black and white stripes, with bold blue mosaic centers. Inside each center was a golden lion. The walls all around these doors were covered in the same blue tiles and rimmed at ceiling and floor with the same black and white pattern.

As the doors opened and then closed behind her, I peeked into the room. There were golden couches with lifeless forms of women draped across them. Beautiful fabrics covered the women, linens dyed for hours until they made your eyes dance. None of the women stirred. Tanis lay down on a couch, pulling a blue linen over her feet, and closed her eyes.

“So, Delilah. Welcome to Ashdod, and to the court of Dagon.”

“Thank you.”

“I am Hannibal.”

He stood, and I took a step back, holding in my breath. The room was shifting under my feet.

“You will make a wonderful sacrifice. I am sure Dagon will think you are tasty and ripe to eat. We’ll only have to roast you a short while since you are so young.”

“Yes.”

My knees were trembling. I pressed them together to make them stop, watching him as I did.

He cocked his head, grinning. “I’m making humor, Delilah. Tanis saved you for a reason. She has a good eye. She’s brought me most of my girls, did you know that? Any girl Tanis picks for me has served Dagon well.”

“I will be a good servant too. Should I start now?” I exhaled, hard, to clear my head, looked for a door I could run through and pretend to fetch mending or cleaning rags. Any door would be a good one. I had to get away.

“You are with child. I will not put you to work yet. Let me bring you some wine. And bread. Food is always good, yes? Food and wine, first thing in the morning, makes the whole day more pleasant.”

I did not know if this was a trap. Or a test. I did not know this man.

“No, thank you.”

He stopped and turned to look at me, as if I had admitted some great crime.

“Not eat? Not drink? Nothing?”

“I’m not hungry. Or thirsty. But thank you.”

“If I did not know your story, I would never guess you were lying. You are very good at lying.”

He clapped his hands, and a servant appeared. He whispered something to the servant, who looked at me and grinned before disappearing again. A moment later, the servant returned with two others, each bearing a tray stacked over his head with foods and wines.

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