The Gate of Heaven (37 page)

“Yes, he has. But only on rare occasions. He also spoke to my grandfather Abraham and to my father, Isaac. He is a great and mighty God.”

“Tell me about Him. What sort of a God is He?”

Jacob studied the young man and found honesty and openness in his clear blue eyes. He, therefore, felt free to speak frankly about the God he worshiped. His voice grew warm, and his eyes danced, and he began to saw the air with his hands, for every time he spoke of his God, he grew excited.

Demetrius listened and watched, and he thought,
This old man may be deluded, but he certainly does love his God! I've never seen anything like this before
.

Finally Jacob flushed and said, “Well, I didn't mean to say all that.”

“I hope you're right. It would be much simpler if there were only one God.”

“Perhaps we may talk of this more, Demetrius.”

“Yes, master. I'll be glad to hear it.”

Judah was speaking enthusiastically about Demetrius at the evening meal. The bondwomen were serving the family, and Judah said excitedly, “Demetrius knows how to make bronze.”

“What is bronze?” Rachel asked.

“It's a very fine metal. Nobody knows how to make it around here. If you have a sword made out of bronze, anyone with swords like ours will be lost. The bronze will cut right through them.”

“How did he know how to do that?” Reuben asked.

“He learned it in his homeland in Minoa. The traders that come from there have a lot of things made out of bronze, but they're very expensive.”

Judah turned to Jacob. “Father, I think we should use Demetrius to make tools and weapons.”

“He belongs to me!” Dinah cried out. “You can't use him as though he were yours.”

“He's too valuable to be a maidservant,” Levi spoke up. “Judah is right. We need good tools and good weapons. If this man can do it, then I say use him.”

Dinah put up an argument, then rose and looked at her father. “A fine thing! You give me a gift and then take it away.” She whirled and ran out into the darkness.

There was silence for a moment, and then Issachar said, “My sister has a hot temper.”

“You need to have a firm hand with her, Father,” Judah said.

Simeon spoke up. “A woman can't own a slave, can she? I mean he's actually yours, Father.”

Jacob held up his hand. “I will take care of it.”

Everyone seated around that meal knew how Jacob “took care” of things with his daughter, but no one argued.

Dinah did not sleep well that night. She was furious with her father, for he had called her aside and told her that Demetrius needed to exercise his skills as a metal worker. She had argued, but even she had known it made sense.

She rose early, then went to look for Demetrius and found him playing a game with Joseph. They were tossing a ball around, and when Joseph saw her, he threw her the ball. “You can play too, sister,” he said.

Dinah caught the ball and threw it to Demetrius. He caught it, threw it to Joseph, and soon the ball was being passed around. Shortly, however, Joseph's mother called him and he left.

Dinah hesitated, then walked over to Demetrius and said, “I need some more water from the spring.”

“Yes, mistress, I will fetch it.”

“I'll just go with you.”

“Are you afraid I'll poison it?” Demetrius said slyly.

“Don't be foolish!”

Demetrius picked up the jar and headed for the spring. He walked slowly, and Dinah kept up with him. When they reached the spring and he was letting the jar fill, she said abruptly, “You're going to be doing some work for my brothers and my father.”

“Yes, they want me to help them learn how to make tools. I think it would be good, mistress. They need it.”

“Yes, it would be good.” Dinah did not mention the argument she had put up. “Joseph told me a little of what you said about your homeland. Tell me about it too.”

“Well, it's hard to explain to anyone who's never been to sea. When you approach the island I live on, you see three peaks sticking up in the air, so you can't miss them. All around, the sea is green or blue, depending on the color of the sky that day. Sometimes the water is gray. And if you've never smelled the sea, I can't describe to you what it smells like.”

“Well, what about your home? Is it mostly farms?”

Dinah listened with awe as Demetrius spoke of the beauty of his homeland. When he paused, she asked, “Do you have a family there?”

“Yes, I have a father and mother and one sister. I had two brothers, but they died.”

“I'm sorry.”

“Are you really?” He raised an eyebrow at her.

Dinah stared at him. “Well, of course I am.”

“Well, thank you, then.”

“Tell me more about what it's like in Minoa. Are there deserts there?”

“No, just lots of rocks. We have to farm between them. We have many vineyards and olive trees and olive presses. We make some of the finest olive oil and wine you've ever tasted.”

Their conversation was interrupted when Judah came up and called out, “Demetrius, come on! You need to show me how to make that furnace you were talking about.”

Dinah was irritated. She got up and left without another word. Judah came over, but he had seen her face. “Don't mind Dinah. She's really nice. Just a little spoiled.”

“Yes, she is a
little
spoiled,” Demetrius said, smiling.

“Well, she's the only girl, so I guess it's natural. You've probably also noticed our father's favoritism for Joseph. Rachel is the Beloved Wife. Father loves her best.”

“She's a beautiful woman, and a kind one.”

“Yes, she is. You can see her beauty in her son. Well, come along. We want to know all about this furnace you keep talking about.”

Judah, Reuben, and Zebulun formed a semicircle around Demetrius. The smoke from the furnace that they had worked together to build stung their eyes, but they paid little heed to that. Zebulun edged closer as Demetrius carefully poured the molten contents of a thick, heavy pan into another container resting on a roughly made wooden table.

“How do you know how much tin to add, Demetrius?” Judah asked.

Demetrius did not take his eyes from the bubbling molten metal as it fell in a thin stream. “It's largely a matter of experience. You get it wrong a few times and that teaches you.”

Demetrius tilted the vessel he was holding toward him and studied the metal that was bubbling over the fire. “That ought to be about right,” he said with satisfaction.

“What do you do now?”

“We mix it up, and then we pour it into the mold we've made. Do you want to try it, Judah?”

“Yes!” Judah stepped forward at once and grasped the heavy tongs Demetrius had made. He gripped the jaws firmly over the vessel containing the mixture, lifted it, and turned to the table, where a mixture of heavy clay had been formed in the shape of a sword. Carefully he lifted and tilted the container, and the molten metal of a rich golden color poured out.

“That's good, Judah. Now each of you fellows try your hand at these other molds.”

Demetrius supervised as the other two sons of Jacob tried their hand at the task. Reuben filled a form that made an axhead, and Zebulun created a series of daggers all in the same mold.

“How long do we have to wait before they're ready to use?” Judah wondered.

“They'll have to cool properly,” Demetrius explained.

“Let me see that sword you made again, Demetrius,” Judah said eagerly.

Demetrius nodded. “It's over there,” he said, indicating a shelf to the right of the furnace. A crude shelter for the furnace had been built, consisting of only a roof held up by stakes, but there were several shelves to hold the tools and finished products.

Judah went and picked up the sword, which was perfectly formed but as yet had nothing to protect the hand from the raw metal handle. Nevertheless, Judah picked it up and began slashing it around in the air. “It's perfectly balanced!” he exclaimed. He ran his hand along the length of the blade, and his eyes sparkled with pleasure. “It's so much better than the old swords we had! We've got to make a lot of them.”

“You'll have to buy more tin first,” Demetrius said. He began to clean the vessels, adding, “The closest place I know of to get it is from the Hittites up in the north, but they don't like to sell to strangers.”

“We can do it, though,” Zebulun said, excitedly waiting his turn to hold the sword. “I'd like to make a trip up there and buy some. Maybe we could take a ship.”

“You're always wanting to go on ships,” Judah said, shaking his head. “I wouldn't want to get out of sight of land.”

Zebulun argued, “Well, I would. I'd like to sail all the way across to where you came from, Demetrius.”

“So would I.” Demetrius grinned dryly.

His words made the three somewhat uncomfortable. Demetrius was a slave, but he had never had the attitude of one. During his stay with the Hebrews, he had proven himself to be an invaluable worker, especially in the matter of metal working. The three brothers who had gathered to help Demetrius were most interested in doing the metal work. The others had their eyes, as always, on the flocks and herds.

“Well, it's been a long day,” Demetrius said. “Let's clean up here. We've got a little tin left. Maybe enough to make a couple more swords tomorrow.”

“Yes. We need to make all we can,” Zebulun said, “and I'll ask Father about buying some tin. Copper is easy to find, but tin isn't.”

“What are you going to do the rest of the day, Demetrius?” Judah asked as they finished the cleanup.

“I'm going somewhere and hide so I won't have to do anything else.”

“That's a good idea,” Judah said, laughing. “You've put in a hard day. You do it, and we won't tell anyone.”

Demetrius sat with his back against a scraggly tree and closed his eyes. He held a wineskin in his lap and from time to time had taken a sip from it. The sun was lowering in the sky now, but there was still an hour or more of daylight left. The lowing of the cattle around him and the voice of the shepherd, who was softly singing a love song, lulled Demetrius into a light sleep. This was broken when he heard a voice calling his name.

“Demetrius, come here.”

Opening his eyes, Demetrius saw Dinah approaching. She was wearing a light-blue colored robe and there was determination in her face—as there usually was! Getting to his feet, Demetrius waited under the sparse shade of the tree until she had come to stand before him. “What are you doing here?” she demanded.

“Nothing.”

“Nothing!” Dinah's eyes opened wide, and her mouth grew firm. “Well, if you don't have anything to do, I've got some work for you.”

“I put in a pretty hard day with your brothers working with our metals.”

“That's none of my business!” Dinah snapped. She tilted her head back and, as always, resented having to look up at him. “I want you to go into the village.”