“You’re not taking my wife anywhere!” Phaltiel bellowed. He struggled to break free from the soldiers who restrained him.
“Then we will take your widow.” The soldier tossed an unconcerned glance in Phaltiel’s direction. “It makes no difference to me.” He turned to the woman standing nearby. “You will come with us.”
“I shall make preparations for a journey of how many days?” Michal struggled to keep her voice calm. The daughter of the king must not show fear.
“We cannot waste time with preparations.” Captain Osh sat straight and tall on his horse. “We will leave as soon as—”
“There must be some mistake,” Phaltiel’s chief steward interrupted. “King Saul himself gave his daughter to my lord Phaltiel.”
“King Saul no longer reigns.” Osh glared at the steward. “He is as dead as you and I will be if we fail to deliver the woman Michal soon.”
Michal addressed her handmaid. “Come, Tirzah, we will gather a few things quickly.” She felt the stares of soldiers all the way across the courtyard and braced herself for the thrust of a spear in her back.
“We have endured two days of hard riding, Phaltiel.” The authoritative ring of the Captain’s voice filled the courtyard. “Feed my men and see to our animals.”
Michal breathed deeply to maintain her composure. Was it true her father, King Saul, was dead? Was it possible her dear brother, Jonathan, was now king of Israel? Was there a rebellion? A foreign invasion? Were soldiers, like those in the courtyard, even now rounding up her sister, Merab, and her family? She knew an insurgent ruler could never risk her or her sister’s royal blood flowing into the veins of a legitimate heir.
Michal forced down her fear as she walked toward the women’s living area. She prayed for courage as she concentrated on keeping her steps steady on the tamped earth of the courtyard.
The clapping of the chief steward’s hands broke the tension. Servants grabbed water jars to fill the stone drinking trough for the military animals. Others stoked the kitchen fire and made preparations for the soldiers’ meal. Lord Phaltiel’s senior wife, Bida, stood watching the activity. Such excitement rarely intruded upon the mundane life of Gallim.
Michal quickened her steps to push through the crowd of Phaltiel’s wives, children, and servants streaming into the courtyard. Once indoors, she fought to focus on which of her few possessions she should take.
“Tirzah, fetch the coat. I’ll carry it under my cloak. Look through my old robes in Bida’s chest, and choose one which clearly identifies me as the king’s married daughter. I’ll take one additional change of clothing and my sewing box.” She looked around her. “There’s nothing else in this house I ever want to see again. You can keep everything else.”
