You are on page 1of 19

Set the Stage for the King of Kings Weave the stories; mix the styles; make a rope,

tapestry, ribbon. Songs go in, disappear in the weave, come out into view in the outer strands and into the light which focuses to a tiny magnified pinpoint out to a carbon arc flood. In and out, harmonizing styles and tones, creating images and stories with the harmony becoming the leading element of further harmonies, styles, traditions, genre: Celtic knot, Persian rug, borders, barriers, gates, fascia, dental, Names, faces, events, places, mandala, focus of events, juncture of all events, the cusp. Mother and daughter look into the chest made of Lebanese cedar. The mother pulls out the large piece of material. She unfolds it and gives it a pop to take out the wrinkles. The sound it makes is like a large piece of glass shattering on a tile floor. The sound sustains as rolling cymbals and tinkling bells and fades to the rustle of leaves in the wind, air through a car window, the groaning and popping of an electric space heater. Even as the sound was gone its presence could still be felt in the silence. Wow! do if again, mom. You cant do it more than once each time you get it out. Now it is how it is. The quilt was huge and the only place in the house that was even close to big enough to spread it out was on Marjories queen size bed. It hung way over on every side of the bed with its loose ends of thread and string, ribbon and rope like tassels all strung out on the floor in every direction. Its very old Marjorie said. Its been passed from mothers to daughters, Tom and Manny looked at each other across the small collapsible table strewn with site maps. Their shadows cast on the side of the tent by the eerie glow of Toms trusty Coleman lantern loomed like giant specters. An half empty bottle of cognac sat on top of the maps as a paperweight. with upturned palms Tom shrugged in an attempt to look innocent. Its fair, Manny, fair. Now call it. Heads or tails. Tom

balanced a small bronze coin on the crook of Toms middle finger. His thumbed twitched like an itchy trigger finger. The winner of the flip had a date with destiny. Come on, Manny. Call it... or do I have to review the terms. The lucky grand prize winner will receive an all expense paid trip to exotic Ashkalon - ancient stomping grounds of Samson and Delilah... He wagged his eyebrows. ...where the lucky winner, after having driven half the morning through the desert will pick up our badly needed supplies. And thats not all folks. He, as an added bonus, will get to see human beings other than the handful we see all the time, day in day out... and he will get to drink coffee at our favorite cafe. Hold it. Hold it. I want to go; you want to go, but all this talk is just a diversion to cover up one basic flaw in the plan. Which is? Check you hand. Tom frowned his empty hand and picked up his snifter of cognac. So right. The other hand, Tom. Your little magic coin. Youve had that thing as long as Ive known you and now that I think about it, you never lose the toss. What kind of coin is that thing, anyhow? Manny, Im surprised. You of all people. This, my friend, is a prutah. This particular type of prutah was the very first bilingual Jewish coin. Probably minted about 100 BC. He tossed the coin to Manny who scrutinized it. Minted? This thing looks more like it was hammered out with a stone. I cant even tell which side is suppose to be heads or tails. Sure you can. The side with the anchor is heads. Dont you know anything about coins? Manny put the coin under closer scrutiny. The marks scarcely showed. If this is suppose to be an anchor, whats this on the other side. It looks like the steering wheel of an old ship. Its the star motif. Tom said. Oh... I get it. An eight pointed star on a Jewish coin. Man, Tom, I hope you didnt pay too much for this thing. Manny dug through the side pocket of his bag on the floor of the tent, pulled out a quarter and flipped it to Tom. But on the other hand, I have something for just

such an occasion as this. This coin can be found in the apron pocket of any waitress in the good old U. S. of A, Okay, Manny. Ill concede the choice of coin. They both took a sip of cognac. Then Tom tossed off the rest of his glass in one gulp. Aaah. He clinched the quarter in his fist. Seeming to suddenly forget about the coin toss, he laid the quarter on the maps. Man, you must have a thing for that pollen woman, Manny. Manny snorted. Pollen woman? I dont think Ive heard that term before. Perhaps youre referring to the polynologist. God, Tom, youre living in the dark ages. You should resurrected Petri and get some Egyptian overseers to keep the Palestinian diggers in line with their whips. The pollen woman. thats a good one. What can she possibly find here? There probably hasnt been a plant grow within a hundred miles of this place in thousands of years - and I know she didnt come cheap. We need her analysis. Manny replied. You know shell find something. And as far as the money goes - I dont think youve seen us running short on anything, have you? No, I guess not, but what if she wants to publish. Anything she finds will blow the lid off the whole thing. Trust me, Tom, I know her and Ive talked to her about it. You do have a thing for her! I knew it. You sly dog. Well? Manny said with a sheepish grin. She is cute, isnt she? Manny, Manny. Tom said shaking his head. How come I feel the seeds of doom have already been planted. But... we have a decision to make. He pushed the quarter toward Manny. Flip. Manny flipped the quarter. Ching. It arced above the table. Heads. Tom called. It landed tails up. I looks like youre elected, Manny. Manny suddenly felt a little guilty. Hey, why dont we just both go. Itd be a good time. The people here are competent. Tom put on his British aristocrat accent. No, Manny. someone must stay to oversee the Egyptians while they whip the Palestinian diggers. You could, however, take the pollen woman.

Mannys eyes lit up momentarily. Heaving a sigh he said, Nah. Its going to be hard enough trying to cram all the stuff into the Rover, anyhow. Now that I think about it I should have let you flip the prutah. They walked out into the cool desert night. Their high altitude over Negev provided an awesome view of the stars. God, just look at those stars. Tom said. Thats what you said last night. Well, you said it the night before last. And the night before. And before. They both laughed. Really, Tom, did you ever think it would be like this? Tom took a deep breath of cool dry desert and scanned the sky through the thick lenses of his wire rim glasses. He pushed his long loose curly hair back with spread out fingers and let his mind spin out on Mannys innocent question... college days... the infamous Gang of Four. Actually he and Manny were the only ones of the gang who became archaeologists. Theyd all wanted to. The only other surviving member, Big B Barnhart, sold heavy equipment to the oil industry. Over the years Tom and Manny had almost lost track of each other. Manny taught school in New York City and Tom stayed in the Mid east at one dig or another. Then Manny had called with the incredible offer. The Israeli Antiquities authority kind of owes my family a little favor. Manny had said. Tom thought back on that line and smiled. He didnt know any of the details of the little favor and didnt want to. But he knew that he and Manny held the reigns of an archaeological site that continued to blow his mind daily and since the death of Dode Moshe, they were the only ones that knew anything about the true nature of the site. Tom continued staring off into the stars but his mind was still lost in the storm of memories brought on by Mannys simple question. The appointment contained so many enigmatic elements. Virtually every other site in the area was under the control of Italians. Manny knew his business but carried few of the credentials normally associated with the

directorship of such a site. But then nobody else really knew it was such a site. To the rest of the archaeological world it was a backwater, low yield, little significance site which brought up another enigma: Manny deferred nearly every decision to Tom except managing the money which just kept pouring in. The magnitude of the mysterious nature of the site itself dwarfed all the political and financial strangeness. ode Moshe, the one eyed Israeli maverick archaeologist, discovered the site a few years earlier. He completed his initial investigation and filed a report with the Antiquities Authority claiming the site to be of only minor potential, but he did want to personally do further investigation. No one had been to the site since and Moshe died a year following the initial report. Within hours of their arrival at the site, Tom and Manny saw through Moshes deception. A split shaped like a slash of lightning divided the rock face near the top of the mountain. Close examination of the fissure revealed strata that suggested human habitation at an incredibly remote date in the past. Tom insisted that they tell nobody and that they leave immediately to get an imaging device before they contaminated the site themselves. he knew of an experimental imager at the American University laboratory that they could probably pull some strings to borrow. Manny then gave Tom his first glimpse at their funding by buying an upgraded model of the same device at a price sufficient to fund and entire project.. The imager paid off immediately. The super broad bandwidth and interpretive software opened a virtual window the past. Tom was able to reconstruct every step he and Manny had taken on their first site inspection and every step taken by Moshe on his brief visit. True to Moshes reputation for having an artifact sniffing sixth sense he had walked straight to the lightning bolt crack- the sight tube into the ancient past. The picture processed from the imager showed where Moshe had reached into the crack and removed something. The impression left by the removed artifact appeared on the computer screen as clearly s the artifact must have looked itself. The computer constructed an image of the artifact from the impression left in the soft substrate - a jewel in a pendent type mount. Well? Did you? Manny asked.

Did I? ....Oh... No, not in a million years. The next day Manny sat in their favorite cafe inhaling the aroma of mocha Java. Big B Barnhart had sent word that he would try to meet up at the cafe, but he still hadnt shown up. Manny didnt really care. Just sitting at the table with his coffee, listening to the music and feeling the bustle of living civilization around him suited him just fine. Not far away little girl playing in a narrow alley fell down and skinned her knee. The sound of her crying went in the open window of the small dwelling where Malek was being dressed for her outing. Maleks eyes shined like two black gems. She raised her rib cage and sucked in her belly to allow the bomb master to cinch the explosive belt a little tighter around her thin waist. You dont want to look too fat. he said pulling the belt a little tighter. Your delicate features would not look right with a great big belly, unless... He pushed the thought of pregnancy from his mind. you are such a beautiful girl. Your reward will be great. The Zionist dogs will cry ads you Malek, make it possible for us to reclaim our heritage and home land. You r faith and strength will be magnified a thousand times. He finished buckling the belt and Malek relaxed. The weight of the explosives pressed on her hips. She pulled the abaya over her shapely body and the pooshyya over her face hiding her youthful beauty forever. Aziz the bomb master stood back and looked her over head to toe. yes. No one will know you carry the sword of Allah. Manny checked his watch. If Big B didnt show up pretty soon Manny was going to have to get on with the rest of his business. He looked up at the door again just as Malek entered the cafe. She looked so familiar. The room became electrified, conversations abruptly stopped as everyone realized she didnt belong in the place- everyone but Manny. He rose from his seat in slow motion entranced by her eyes. Her eyes didnt waver from his as she walked right up to him and detonated the charge.

Chapter 2 It was sometime in late autumn. Marjory glanced around her bedroom. The room was so small it didnt take much more than a glance to survey the whole thing. The light bulb burned in the ceiling fan which no longer worked; the big brass wind up alarm clock ticked; the clothes hamper overflowed. It was an action packed room.. Her eye came to rest on the Lebanese cedar chest in the corner. Except for some of Toms things which had the mad scientist shops at the scrap yard look it was about the only thing in the house that wasnt plastic faux Thrift Shoppe.. The cedar chest was special. Although she didnt know how old it really was but she suspected carbon dating might be appropriate. The only mention she had ever heard of Lebanese cedar was in the story of King Solomon. Lebanon didnt conjure up the image of a cedar producer in this day and age. The inscriptions on the chest and the etching in the areas with the metal overlay had baffled Tom and his colleges who were all expert in ancient and modern language. She lifted the lid and looked inside. The only object in the chest was the quilt. Now was the time to get Milly ready to work on and receive the quilt. Milly was sprawled out with her head propped up on the arm of the couch engrossed in Rite of passage the new book she had received for her twelfth birthday. She was lost in a world of ancient carved stone idols and mysterious cryptic passage ways when her mother called from the bedroom. Milly, come into the bedroom with me. I want to show you the quilt. Aw, mom. Ive seen the quilt, and Barnabus Blakely is just about ready to discover the secret of the harmonic humming crystal skull. Well, find a point you can lay it down for awhile and come back here. We cant wait forever to get started. Yes we can. Milly thought. she would never say that to her mother but she wondered how someone with the scientific mind and training of her mother could say some of the things she did when she started talking about that quilt. Even the harmonic humming crystal skull seemed more plausible. Sure it was exotic but what could all that fabric

and thread and ribbon and rope really do besides lay there in the cedar chest. It would make a really cool bed spread. Okay, mom. she called back. Milly could have been a clone of her mother as much as they looked alike except Milly was twelve and wore her shiny brown hair in a pony tail in the front and the back which gave her the look of a friendly but shy forest creature. Milly was all knees and elbows as she lay there reading. Her mother was almost as thin. but at forty two her mother had a womanly figure that Milly assumed she would eventually grow to acquire. The most striking feature of both Milly and Marjory was the almost intimidating intelligence that looked out from behind their eyes. One look into the face of either one of them and it was obvious that the light was on and there was somebody home. Milly finished the chapter. Barnabus discovered the secret. She wanted to keep reading to see how he was going to put the secret to use but she knew her mother was waiting so she put Barnabus on hold and went to the bedroom. Marjory was just pulling the giant queen size bed away from the wall. It was the only surface which was even close to big enough in their cramped quarters to spread the quilt out and even then the quilt hung over every side of the bed all the way to the floor. It occurred to Milly that shed actually never seen her mother spread the quilt out. Shed seen it many times but it was always already spread out and Milly had just come in from school or from playing outside. The lid was up on the chest and she looked inside. There it was as usual all balled up in the bottom of the chest. It seemed so incongruous to Milly that her mother held the quilt in such reverence and kept it wadded up like a rag. Now, Milly. Milly recognized the tone of voice immediately and knew she was in for some dry intellectual discourse. She was surprised as Marjory continued. The first thing you need to know is how to spread the quilt out. You see there are two corners showing even though the rest looks like a wadded up mess. One of the corners is red. That one goes in your right hand so that it will be right side up when you spread it out. Its not difficult but you do want to get it right the first time. Now stand to the side a little bit so you can see what Im doing and so it wont flap you in the face. Marjory laid the crumpled

quilt on the bed and took it by the two corners, the red in the right hand. She spread her arms wide and shook the quilt a couple of times to take out the big wrinkles. Milly thought she heard something strange. Then Marjory lifted the two corner arms still spread eagle, jerked her arms down and gave the quilt a sharp pop to remove the rest of the wrinkles. The sound it mad was like a large sheet of glass shattering in a ceramic tile floor. The sound continued like rolling cymbals, shaking sheet metal, tinkling bells, and faded like rustling leaves in the wind, air through a cracked car window, and groaning and popping of an electric space heater. Even when the sound was gone its presence could still be felt in the silence. Softly the quilt parachuted on a cushion of air landing flatly on the queen size bed. Wow! Do it again, mom. The awe in Millys voice bowled over her twelve year old cool detached demeanor. It only does it once each time you get it out. Marjory answered. Now it is how it is. she added cryptically. Milly knew that line meant a lot more than it sounded. Loose ends of thread, string, ribbon and rope with tasseled ends trailed out on the floor. Its very old, you know. Its been passed from mothers to daughters, grand mothers to granddaughters and in some of the sad times from sister to sister. This is the beginning of my passing it on to you. But I dont just hand it to you and say Here, Milly, heres the quilt. There are things you need to know and it will take a little time. It doesnt look very old. No. Not in the sense that it looks worn out or anything. But yous see as you gain the understanding of the languages and symbols involved some of it looks very, very old. Milly looked at the various patterns on t the quilt. Most languages are symbolic both written and spoken. Only one language is the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Weve heard mention of it in the Bible. God said let there be light and there was light - no symbol involved, just pure truth. If we say let there be light we head for the light switch. We cause the light to come on. The symbols are effective but indirect. You say cat and although a cat might look up, a cat is not created. To further abstract the system of

symbols we have a written language that is formed from curves, lines, dots and spaces that roughly represent the sounds of the spoken language. We are pretty far removed from the language of pure truth, but some of the early work on the quilt was done by people whose languages were much closer to the language of pure truth and their graphic symbols are not as abstract as ours. They are much closer to true names. Milly thought about her name. Is that why you named me Milly rhymes with silly. she asked in mock earnestness. At least you didnt name me Cupid. Marjory had no defense. Milly knew all about Aunt Mildred. One most use caution when naming her child after a living relative. She cleared her throat. We continue, child of wit. Since their languages are so much different than ours they conceptualize things differently than we do. Some are very simple, direct and powerful. Some languages are more powerful than others, but all except one are symbols. Lao Tzu put it best. The Tao that can be written is not the eternal Tao. Its a symbol. Think about it for a minute. Ill be right back. Marjory went into the bathroom. Milly thought about what her mother had told her. I have to be a linguist to work on the quilt? She thought about some of the nice ribbons and yarn shed saved. She and her mother had talked about working on the quilt before but she had visualized cutting cloth with scissors and sewing with a needle and thread. She had never thought it was going to be like going to school. She thought about the awesome sound it had made as it straightened out and floated to the bed. She knew the quilt held a great significance to her mother but only now was she starting to realize that there really was something more to it than she had thought. A glimmer of light caught the corner of her eye as she looked over the incredible surface of the quilt. The patterns and colors seemed to be alive. Calling this thing a quilt is like calling Merlins cloak a shawl she thought. I wonder what its true name is? Ill bet its not named Milly. Once again the glint of light caught her eye. She scanned the area of the quilt it seemed to come from. The intricate weaves and patterns of tiny patches of luminous colors made it difficult to concentrate. Strands of multicolored yarn seemed to pull at her as they dipped out of view below

other strands which were equally seductive. Images formed and disappeared with every angle it was seen from. Strange half sounds seemed to come from far away as Milly leaned with her hands on the quilt to get a better look at the center. There it was again. The light came from a patch that looked a lot like water - very deep black water. It must be the light reflecting off of it, she thought, but the closer she looked the more she could tell that the light came from far below the surface of the water. Something deep within shown with its own light. She heard the ticking of the old brass alarm clock which her mother wound religiously each night. The gleam beneath the water was hypnotic. She shook her head the way people do when they find themselves drifting off on the interstate. Water? What am I thinking? This is a quilt - thread, cloth, ribbon and who knows what, but not water.. She had always been the practical one even accusing her mother of sounding like Darth Vader talking about the force when it came to matters concerning any weird stuff about the quilt and here she was seeing a pool of black water with an eerie beckoning light. She felt an uncanny stir in the air and looked up at the broken ceiling fan but of course it wasnt turning. She looked back down at the patch on the quilt which looked so much like shimmering black water with the glowing light which seemed to come from another world. She looked closer and closer. She felt herself slip and tumble and immediately every nerve in her body lit up with the chill of sudden immersion into cold water. She thrashed violently kicking both legs and flailing her arms to regain the surface but there didnt seem to be a surface, only the glow from below. Up and up she swam but there was no surface. She stopped her frantic ascent and tried to collect herself. Although she was holding her breath, she oddly didnt feel like she was running out of air. Milly tentatively let out a little air from her lungs. No bubbles. She let out the rest of her breath and it felt perfectly normal. She breathed in and out. She looked down at her shadowy body in the dim glow. Maybe she had turned into a fish. The thought was no stranger than finding herself in the weird water. Practical, even in the realm of the strange unknown, she knew the only reasonable thing to do was go for the light. The water had an odd buoyancy; she didnt sink; she didnt rise. She was suspended. If it hadnt been for the light shining from the depths of

the water she wouldnt have been able to tell up from down. There were no fish, no snails, no clumps of seaweed, no bubbles. Except for the light she was nowhere. As she got closer to the light it lost some of its other worldliness and began to look more natural. There was a slight intermittent flickering which was not noticeable from farther off. As she drew nearer the flicker looked like something passing in front of the light and the light looked more familiar. Finally she could see the source of the light. It was the light on the ceiling fan and the flicker was her own head leaning down to look into the water on the quilt. Milly realized she was looking up through the surface of the water into her mothers bedroom. Im in the quilt! she thought so loud it could be heard a block away. Her eyebrows arched almost to her hairline, the hairline of the hair which would have been standing on end had she not been under water. She swam frantically toward the surface but the closer she came the less effective were her strokes. Just like running in a dream where there is no traction her return strokes pulled her back just as far as she gained with her forward strokes. Seeing the futility of trying to swim any further she stopped and watched to see if she drifted in any direction at all. Nothing. Taking stock of her situation and looking up at herself looking down on the quilt she thought, Look at her up there. She doesnt even see me. At least shes awake. I was afraid I was in a coma or asleep, or mesmerized or something. Why cant she see me. And what am I if Im still out there, too. Loneliness enveloped her as she felt the huge emptiness of the dark water. Oh, mom! That looks just like water. Millie said as her mother came back into the room. A fleeting frown flashed across Marjorys face. Yes. There are aspects of the quilt that are quite beyond human understanding. Milly smiled and shook her head. You sound like youre talking about the force again. But thoughts of the awesome sound of the unfurling quilt and the faintness she had felt when she stared into the water dampened her conviction of being the worlds most logical girl. A feeling that something had changed gnawed at the corner of her mind. It was the water. The water seemed to be calling her.

Its our job to find our line so that we can do our part to continue our thread of the story. Even though I helped my mother, where we come in may not be close to where mother and I worked. Millie listened but her mothers words sounded far off. Are you all right? Marjory asked. I dont know. Millie answered. I feel weird. Marjory place her hand against Millies forehead. Maybe you need to lie down for a little while. You look pale. I think Im all right. But, mom, why do you use that old windup alarm clock? It works during a power outage. Why? Well... I think it hypnotized me. Why? What happened? I was just looking at the quilt and I kept hearing the clock tick. Then I saw a flash of light come off the quilt. I looked to see where it came from but I kept hearing that ticking. Finally I saw where the light came from. Let me show you. Milly came back around the bed to where she had stood earlier when she had seen the water. Once again she surveyed the area where she knew the water was. She realized as she leaned on the quilt and again heard the half sounds that it wasnt the clock that had put her into the dream like state. It was the patterns in the quilt. As she looked from area to area she felt like a bird flying over a beautiful alien landscape. Inter woven fibers sung in soundless harmony. Her mind lost focus on what she was looking for as the quiltscape features tugged at her awareness and began to reveal their symbolic properties. An understanding the meaning of the symbols was trying to take shape in her mind. She heard her name being called from far away. The last thing she saw was a tiny image of herself waving her arms in the water she was falling into. Milly... Milly! Worry made Marjorys voice shrill. She watched helplessly as Milly toppled face first into the quilt. Inside the water Milly had seen the glimmer of recognition in Millys face just before she hit the water. Suddenly she realized how small she was. Not only Millys face covered the surface but at the moment of

impact only the black pupil of her eye could be seen. The shock wave sent tiny Milly flying back into the depths of the water. After the tumult died down Milly tried to look around. All of her senses were completely disoriented by the topsy-turvy trip. She couldnt see anything at all. She thought that Millys face might still be covering the water blocking her view through her only portal into where she had come from. She could see little sparks and vague shaped which looked like what she normally saw with her eyes closed. The sparkling specks danced in her peripheral vision but disappeared the way faint stars do on a clear night when she tried to look straight at them. With great effort she suppressed a wave of panic knowing it would do no good to lose her head. Some sparkles started leaving short trails like shooting stars zipping out of view with each glance in their direction. They flashed like fireflies, glowing and winking on and off. They appeared from nowhere in every direction. Thousands and thousands, rising randomly, lighting then streaking by the edge of her eye. More and more zipped by growing in size and brightness. Either they were flying past her or she was moving into a swarm. Randomness coalesced into wide planar sheets of light, lines in helical traces and involute curves. A thousand suns filled her field of view until all was light. she blinded her eyes but it made no difference at all. She looked down at her body but all she could see was the brilliant light. Her entire being was light. Milly woke up in her own bed. A narrow shaft of sunlight came in through a gap in the dark curtains. Her mother sat next to her on the edge of the bed. So, youve finally decided to rejoin the land of the living. Marjory said leaning over to give Milly a peck on the forehead.. How do you feel? Milly sat up gazing around with a look of disbelief in her eyes. I dont know, but how did I get in here? It wasnt easy. You really gave me a scare. Are you sure you feel okay? I didnt say I felt okay. I said I didnt know. What time is it? How long have I been asleep?

You slept all night and most of today. Its already after four oclock. In the afternoon? No wonder Im so hungry. I think Ill feel fine if I eat something. Im starving. Millys call for food eased some of Marjorys worry. What shall it be, little queen, breakfast lunch or dinner? youre due for all three. Yeah. Ill take all three. Milly went in to shower while Marjory fixed them something to eat. She decided bacon and sharp cheddar sandwiches on toast would cover all the bases. She made enough salad and veggies for five of six people knowing the Milly would nibble the rest of the night until they were gone. Despite her cervine appearance, Milly seemed to have some rabbit in her, too. The fog cleared in Millys mind as the shower water woke her more fully. She remembered her bizarre trip into the water and the brilliant white light which restored her to her natural body. As strange as it all seemed she knew it had really happened. She didnt know how or why, but she knew it was real. Milly, its almost done. Marjory called. Are you about ready? Coming, mom. Marjory and Milly sat at the kitchen table. Normally Milly would have been talking almost non-stop between bites while they ate, but this night she didnt have any time between bites. She ate like a hungry wolf. Finally Milly slowed her pace a bit and Marjory ventured a question. What was all that stuff about being hypnotize by the clock, Milly? Milly had just taken a bite of her second sandwich and responded with some sounds that were as guttural as her long slender neck would make. Marjory took advantage of the hesitation and continued. Im still worried about you , Milly. Do you think you fainted because the clock hypnotized you? It seems a little far fetched. Milly swallowed. Oh, no. she said with complete assurance. I thought it had at first, but now I know what happened. Milly felt like

she was sitting on top of the worlds greatest secret. It was actually the quilt that did it. It wasnt what Marjory expected to hear. She mentally replayed the events of the previous night. Milly seemed like her normal self when they spread the quilt. Marjory left the room for a minute and when she returned Milly looked like a zombie. She mentioned the clock and something on the quilt and then she fainted. Right before she woke from the faint she voiced an Oooh which sounded like she had seen the face of God surrounded by the light of creation. The quilt made you faint? Yep. Milly said like it was the most natural thing in the world. I realized it wasnt the clock right before I took the plunge. I dont think hypnotized is the right word for it. What is the right word for it? Marjory was becoming more frustrated and confused as the explanation went on. I dont know what the right word is - yet = but Ill find out. It will be its real name, too. Marjory couldnt tell if Milly was making light of their discussion on real names and symbols or not. She sounded perfectly serious but she did have an inflated sense of sarcasm for someone her age. The discussion about real names a so brief and it didnt seem to have made a very great impression on Milly at the time. Marjory found herself at a loss for words. Youre going to find out its real name? Of course. You were right, mom. Im sorry I ever accused you of acting like Darth Vader. The sincerity in Millys voice was obvious. Marjory felt like she was not only on the wrong page but in an entirely different book. Milly on the other hand assumed Marjory knew all about the powers of the quilt. Marjory tried again. Okay, if hypnotize isnt the right word and we dont know what to call it, can you tell me what happened using other words? She knew that Milly was completely serious now. Ill try but you know it will be missing a lot.

Of course. said Marjory, feeling like she was encouraging abhorrent behavior. You know I was telling you about seeing the little glimmers of light right before I was going to show you the water on the quilt. Marjory dropped her fork clanging against the edge of her salad bowl. The blood left her face. Mom! Whats the matter. You look like youve just seen a ghost. Oh... nothing. Marjory stuttered. It just startled me when I dropped the fork. Thought dashed through her head. How could she possibly know about that. Ive never mentioned it. ?Admitting the possibility that she was over reacting she said, I dont think you told me about the water on the quilt. Oh, mom, you had to have seen it. It wont leave you alone until youre looking at it. I dont believe I have ever seen it. Tell me about it. I have to tell you about it. Its the whole point of what were talking about. It was becoming clear that Marjory had not over reacted. She felt the desire to take the information in slowly but he was having live news thrust upon her. The type of news you get by smoke pouring out your window or flood water sloshing in you front door. Sleeping legends awaken. Passing the crisis point without knowing it was being approached,. No, no, she thought This is the stuff of legends. They dont just barge into your house with no warning. No warning? Its been told for thousands of years. She who sees the water. Its the oldest thread. Not Milly. Shes still a child. No, Im jumping the gun. Yes, of course you do, Milly. Let me put some coffee on. Marjory knew she was stalling but she had to let it sink in. the telephone rang and Marjory picked it up. Hello?... just a second, Amy, shes right here. Milly, its Amy. Amy was Millys best and only real friend. Milly squawked like a parrot into the telephone. Aloe! Milly, hat up? I heard you were sick. Amy said. Sick? Oh, no. Moms always spreading vicious rumors about me. I just needed to sleep a couple of days.

You want to spend the night? Weve got some new movies. I dont know. I might still be listed as frail. Let me ask. Milly put her hand over the receiver. Mom, can I spend the night at Amys? Marjory barely let her get the question asked. Sure, if you feel okay. No sooner than Milly had hung up the phone Amy was knocking at the front door. Come on in. Milly yelled at the top of her voice. Milly! Marjory scolded. Amys grinning face appeared in the kitchen. Its okay, Mrs. Milly. I didnt see any shattered glass. You always take her side. Milly said. Can I help it if Mrs. Millys always right. Come on. Lets get your stuff together. You can eat again at my house. Were having spaghetti. Amy said glancing around at the scraps left from Milly and Marjorys meal. Milly looked at her mom with a questioning look. Go on you two. Ive got it under control. Marjory started cleaning up the kitchen as Amy and Milly disappeared on their mission to get Millys overnight gear together. Marjory felt a great need to sort out her thoughts and Amy just lived two doors down. If anything was wrong she would know right away. She put on some coffee so she could sit with a cup as soon as the kids were gone and figure out what she should do She heard the dishwasher gurgle as she wiped the counter top. The coffee maker gave its final drip and she poured a cup into her favorite egg shell thin china cup. Milly and Amy came back into the kitchen carrying a bag big enough to outfit an army for a week. What in the world are you guys hauling off for an overnight? Marjory asked. Oh, nothing. said Milly. You never know what you might need. Marjory rolled her eyes and shook her head. Make sure youre back in time to go to church in the morning. See ya, Mrs. Milly. Ill take good care of your daughter. Amy called as they headed out the door.

Marjory sat at the table with her coffee and began to make a mental review of all she knew about the coming of water on the quilt. Even the possibility of being part of it was beyond belief. Pieces of stories told by her mother and particularly her grand mother popped into her head as she remembered how they pointed and explained how different features and designs on the quilt portrayed the unfolding of events. She knew the answer couldnt be found sitting at the table. She refilled her cup and went to the bedroom. Marjory sat on top of the cedar chest idly rubbing its etchings with her fingers. Her leg ached. She wanted to just take off her brace, fall asleep and forget about everything, but the caffeine and worn out adrenaline were still making her mind race. She knew she had to get out the quilt again to try to read its arcane symbols, follow the lines, and see if everything truly converged on where they were now. She sipped her last cup of coffee and thought about the possibilities. Could she really be the mother of the one designated to culminate this ancient process. Did she have enough knowledge to pass on to help Milly. She felt small in the face of the long line of generations present on the quilt. She felt like the coach as the last seconds of the big game ticked away. She couldnt put Milly in unprepared and expect her to win the game. How could all of this happen so quickly. She looked at the clock. It did tick loudly. She was tired. With an audible sigh she got up, put her coffee cup to the side and lifted the lid to the cedar chest. The intoxicating smell filled her head. Remembering she had forgotten to pull the bed out from the wall she once again manhandled it out into the room and got the quilt ready to spread. She had rarely spread the quilt out two days in a row but she knew from the few times she had done it that the sound it made while unfurling the second time was far more subdued than when she did it last night. Not many things change enough in one day in contrast to the overall age of the quilt. She held the corners, shook the quilt and flapped it so it would spread. Boom! It sounded like it cracked the sound barrier. Marjory felt the force of the shock wave. The quilt seemed to be charged with electricity but she couldnt let go.

You might also like