As Sure as the Dawn (72 page)

It wasn’t a crazy quilt, but squares made of a hundred different scraps of cloth, each with a different scene framed with an edging of brown and all stitched together with vibrant scarlet thread. Each picture block was surrounded by a different stitch: blanket, herringbone, Pekinese, fern, feather, open cretan, fly, zigzag chain, wheatear and sheaf-filling stitches, Portuguese border, and star eyelets.

“It’s beautiful,” Sierra said. She looked at the squares one by one. Along the top row was a homestead with a man, a woman, and three children—two boys and a girl—standing in an open space between the cabin and barn. The second square was bright with consuming flames. The third showed a baby in a manger, a young girl watching over him while darkness surrounded them both.

The telephone rang downstairs. A second later, the portable phone rang nearby. Sierra’s mother handed her the other end of the quilt and picked up the phone from the top of a box.

“Yes, she’s here, Alex.”

Sierra’s heart lurched. Hands trembling again, she folded the quilt while listening to her mother’s side of the conversation.

“Yes, she told me. Yes, but that’s to be expected, Alex.” Her mother’s tone held no condemnation or disappointment. She was silent for a long moment, listening again. “I know that, Alex,” she said very gently, her voice husky with emotion, “and I’ve always been thankful. You don’t have to explain.” Her mother cupped her hand over the receiver. “Alex wants to talk to you.”

Sierra wanted to say she didn’t want to talk to him but knew that would put her mother between them. She put the folded quilt back into the trunk and reached to take the portable phone from her mother’s hand.

“I’ll make us some coffee,” her mother said with a gentle smile.

Sierra watched her go, feeling a tangle of emotions: relief and despair. Her mother hadn’t said one word to discourage Alex from his decision. Why not?

“Yes?” she said into the receiver, her voice coming out thin and choked. She wanted to scream at him and could barely draw breath past the pain in her chest. Her throat was tight and dry.

“I was worried about you.”

“Were you?” Resentment filled her, and hot tears welled in her eyes.

“You’re not saying much.”

“What do you want me to say? That I’m
happy?”

He sighed. “I suppose that would be expecting too much, especially considering this is the biggest opportunity of my career.”

She heard the tinge of disappointment and anger in his voice. What right had he to be angry with her after making a life-changing decision without her?

“I’m sure the children will be thrilled to hear they’re being up-rooted and torn away from their friends and family.”

“We’re
their family.”

“What about Mom? What about your parents?”

“We’re not moving to New York, Sierra.”

“I guess you’re saving that for next year’s big surprise.”

Silence followed. Her heart picked up speed. She could feel his anger. “You might have hinted what was going on, Alex,” she said, clutching the phone.

“I’ve done more than hint. I told you about this company weeks ago. I’ve been telling you for the last four years what I want to do. The problem is you don’t listen.”

“I listen.”

“And never
hear.”

“I do too hear!”

“Then hear
this.
You’ve had it your way for ten years. Maybe, just for a change, you could cut
me
a little slack.”

Click.

“Alex?” Dead silence filled her ear. Sierra blinked, shocked. She stared at the phone in her hand as though it had turned to a deadly snake. Alex had never hung up on her before.

More distressed than when she had arrived, Sierra went downstairs. The tantalizing aroma of freshly ground decaf carmel au lait filled the kitchen. Her favorite. So, too, were the Toll House cookies her mother had put on a dessert plate in the sunny alcove overlooking the back garden. Her mother clearly wanted to cheer her up. Fat chance.

She plunked the portable phone down on the pretty flower-embroidered cloth that covered the small table and sank down onto the chair. “He hung up on me.” Her mother poured coffee for her.

“He’s never hung up on me before,” Sierra said, her voice breaking as she looked up at her mother. “He said I don’t listen.”

Her mother set the carafe on a sunflower trivet and took the seat facing her. “Sometimes we only hear what we want to hear.” She picked up her coffee cup and sipped, distracted.

“You look tired, Mom.”

“I didn’t sleep very well last night. I kept thinking about your father.” Her mouth curved faintly, her expression softening. “Sometimes I imagine him sitting in his chair watching the news on television. The house creaks and I awaken, thinking he’s coming along to bed.” She smiled sadly and looked down into her coffee as she set the cup back in its porcelain saucer. “I miss him.”

“I miss him, too, Mom. He might have been able to talk Alex out of going to Los Angeles.”

Her mother lifted her head and looked across at her with gentle humor. “Your father wasn’t an easy man either, Sierra, but he was worth it.”

“If Alex insists, I’ll go, but I don’t have to smile and pretend to be happy about it.”

“Maybe not, but it’d be better if you came to terms with his decision. Resentment and anger eat away at love as quickly as rust is corroding that metal lawn chair out there in the backyard. One of life’s great tragedies is watching a relationship unravel over something that could’ve been resolved in one intelligent, adult conversation.”

Her mother’s words hurt. “One conversation isn’t going to change Alex’s mind.”

“Then it depends on what you really want.”

Sierra raised tear-filled eyes to her mother’s clear hazel ones. “What do you mean?”

Marianna reached out and took her daughter’s hand. “It’s simple, Sierra. Do you want your own way, or do you want Alex?”

amorata (pl. amoratae):
a male or female devotee, or fan, of a gladiator

alimenta: a portion of money set aside to aid the poor

Aphrodite:
Greek goddess of love and beauty. Identified with the Roman goddess Venus.

Apollo:
Greek and Roman god of sunlight, prophecy, music, and poetry. The most handsome of the gods.

atrium:
the central courtyard of a Roman dwelling. Most Roman houses consisted of a series of rooms surrounding an inner courtyard.

augury:
the practice of divination; using a sign or an omen to determine meaning or actions

aureus (pl. aurei):
a Roman gold coin equivalent to twenty-five denarii and weighing between five and eleven grams

baritus:
a fierce war cry used by German warriors. It was made by holding their shields in front of their faces and yelling into them while banging on them with their weapons.

Batavi:
a tribe from Gaul that fought with the Chatti and Bructeri against Rome

bibliotheca: library room of a Roman dwelling

brassard:
a piece of armor that covers the upper arm

Bructeri: a Germanic tribe that fought with the Chatti against the Romans. The Bructeri apparently warred with the Chatti before being united with them against Rome.

calidarium: the room in the baths that was nearest to the boilers and thus was the hottest. Probably similar to a Jacuzzi or steam room of today.

cassis:
a metal helmet worn over the galea that often had runes engraved on it

centurion:
an officer commanding a century (a subdivision of the Roman legion)

Chatti:
one of the Germanic tribes

cingulum:
elaborate leather belts made for members of the Roman army and served as badges of office. The apron of decorated leather strips protected the soldier’s groin in battle

civitas (pl. civitates):
a small city or village

consul:
a chief magistrate in the Roman republic. There were two positions, which were elected annually.

corbita:
a slow-sailing merchant vessel

cubicula:
underground chamber; nucleus of a family crypt

denarius (pl. denarii):
a Roman unit of money equivalent to one day’s pay for a common laborer. (See also
aureus, sesterce, quadrans.
)

El Elyon:
God Most High

Eros:
Greek god of physical (i.e., erotic) love. Equated with the Roman god Cupid.

fanum (pl. fana):
a temple that was larger than a shrine but smaller than the regular temples

framea:
a spear with a long, sharp head; this was a weapon used by the Germanic tribes. It could be thrown like a javelin, or its shaft could be wielded in a manner similar to a quarterstaff.

frigidarium:
the room in the baths where the water was cold

galea:
a German leather cap

gladiators:
gladiators were male prisoners who were forcibly trained to compete in the Roman gladiatorial games. Their prison/school was called a
ludus,
their trainer, a
lanista.
There were several types of gladiators, each of which was identified by the weapons he was given to use and the prescribed role he was expected to play in the games. Except in unusual situations, gladiators fought until one of them died.

grubenhaus
: a German longhouse, usually containing living quarters for humans and livestock

Hades:
Greek god of the underworld; also, his kingdom

hemiolia:
pirate ship having sails and oars; also known as a one-and-a-halfer

hypocrite:
an actor

hypogeum:
a family burial vault

lanista:
a trainer for gladiators. Being the head
lanista
at a
ludus
was an occupation that was both disgraceful and famous. However, owning and hiring out gladiators was a regular and legitimate trade.

lararium:
part of a Roman dwelling. The
lararium
was a special room reserved for domestic gods.

Liebchen:
German for sweetheart or darling

loculi:
individual burial cells in a crypt

Ludi (pl.):
refers to the Roman games:
“Ludi Megalenses”

ludus (pl. ludi):
school/prison where gladiators were trained

mandragora:
mandrake. A Mediterranean herb of the nightshade family used to promote conception, as a cathartic, or as a narcotic and soporific.

mensor (pl. mensores):
a shipyard worker who weighed cargo, then recorded the weight in a ledger

palus:
a cloaklike garment worn by Roman women over a
stola

peculium:
an allotment of money given to slaves by their owner. Slaves could treat a
peculium
as their own personal property, but under certain circumstances their owner could take it back.

peristyle:
a section of a Roman dwelling (often a secondary section) that enclosed a courtyard and was surrounded by columns on the inside. Often located in the
peristyle
were the bedrooms of the family, the domestic shrine (
lararium
), the hearth and kitchen, the dining room (
triclinium
), and the library (
bibliotheca
). In wealthier homes, the courtyard in the
peristyle
became a garden.

pollice verso:
at the Roman games this was the signal of approval to kill. It was usually a “thumbs-down” sign.

praetor:
a Roman magistrate that ranked below consul and whose role was chiefly judicial in nature

Praetorian Guards:
Roman imperial bodyguards

proconsul: a governor or military commander of a Roman province; answered to the Senate

quadrans (pl. quadrantes):
a bronze Roman coin. It took four of them to equal a copper coin, sixteen to equal a sesterce, and sixty-four to equal a denarius.

rundling:
homesteads grouped in a ring, surrounding a center space

sacrarii:
shipyard workers who carried cargo from wagons and dropped it onto a scale

scimitar:
a saber (sword) made of a curved blade with the cutting edge on the convex side.

sesterce:
a Roman coin, worth one-fourth of a denarius

spatha:
a long, broad sword

statio (pl. stationes):
a stopping place along roads where horses could be changed for hire and where garrisons of soldiers who patrolled the roads were stationed. Generally there were
stationes
every ten miles along the roads.

stola:
a long, skirtlike garment worn by Roman women

stuppator:
a shipyard worker who balanced on scaffolding to caulk ships when they docked

tepidarium:
the room in the baths where the water was warm and soothing

Tiwaz:
the war god of the Germanic tribes (Chatti, Bructeri, Batavi). Tiwaz was symbolized by the head of a goat

toga:
the characteristic outer garment worn by Romans (although its use was slowly abandoned). It was a loose, oval-shaped piece of cloth worn draped about the shoulders and arms. The color and pattern of a toga were rigidly prescribed—politicians, persons in mourning, men, and boys each had a different toga that was to be worn. Boys wore a purple-rimmed toga, but when they came of age, they were allowed to wear the
toga virilis,
or man’s toga, which was plain.

triclinium:
the dining room of a Roman dwelling. The
triclinium
was often very ornate, having many columns and a collection of statues.

Way, the:
a term used in the Bible (the book of Acts) to refer to Christianity. Christians probably would have called themselves “followers of the Way.”

Dear reader,

We hope you enjoyed this story and its many characters by Francine Rivers. It is the author’s desire to whet your appetite for God’s Word and His ways—to apply His principles to your life. The following character study is designed for just that! There are four sections of discussion questions for each of the four main characters:

• Character Review—gets the discussion going
  
• Digging Deeper—gets into the character
  
• Personal Insights/Challenges—gets you thinking
  
• Searching the Scriptures—gets you into God’s Word
  

When writing this story, Francine had a key Bible verse in mind: “Dear brothers and sisters, be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. Your anger can never make things right in God’s sight” (James 1:19-20). Notice the order: First, listen—and be quick about it. Speech is to come slowly, after listening; that is, after getting all the facts. Anger is—or should be—an afterthought. How often do we reverse the order? With this in mind, let me encourage you to get together with some friends and discuss your favorite scenes, characters, and personal insights from this novel. May your insights never end.

P
EGGY
L
YNCH