Delilah

Chapter 10

After Samson was lead in chains from my home, I knew that I would not return to for former life. I had wealth now and no need to entertain men for my livelihood. But I also found it impossible to remain in my home. The ghost of Samson haunted every nook and cranny. During the days I was taunted with memories of his laughing visage and his protestations of love echoed through my mind. At night I was visited with nightmares of men with bloody orbs who sought to destroy me.

Unable to sleep, I fled to the temple for solace. In the quite there I could banish thoughts of Samson. One day as I sat, a priestess came and sat beside me.

"You spend so much time here, you might as well move in," she said.

Looking at her smiling face, I countered, "You would soon banish me. No one wants the infamous Delilah around."

"You are Delilah?" she asked. "The one who delivered Samson into the hands of our Lords?"

Glumly, I nodded. 

"Then why the long face? You are everyone's heroine."

"Everyone's tainted heroine."

"Here you are not tainted. You did for a living what we do for the  godess. Just as we use our bodies for Asherah, you used yours to defeat Asherah's greatest enemy. You would be welcome here."

And so I became a novice priestess in the temple of Asherah. For training, I was sent to the main temple in Gaza. Glad to be out of the place haunted by Samson, I threw myself into my new life. I relished the quite days and the religious training, forcing myself not to think about the physical assignations that would come later as a temple prostitute. Thus content, I banished Samson from my thoughts and heart until the day I was taken to the High Priest of Dagon.

Whispers buzzed around me. For the High Priest of Dagon to summon a novice priestess was unprecedented. The cold stare of the High Priestess of Asherah burrowed into my back as I followed the slave who came for me. I willed myself to walk with head held high and unfaltering step, even though I did not know what the mandate signified.

When I was ushered into the presence of the priest, I dropped my head and bowed formally from the waist to acknowledge his position. I stood, forcing my body into a relaxed pose, hoping I would not have to hold the illusion of ease for long.

"Ah, the infamous Delilah," the High Priest of Dagon greeted, his eyes seeming to devour me as I stood before him. His gaze leisurely caressed me, from my raven black ringlets to my voluptuous hips. "Beautiful," he murmured. "I can see why the Lords approached you to entrap Samson and have suggested I consider making you the new High Priestess of Asherah. Your beauty would captivate any man and draw worshippers to the temple. Your past, though, could prove a hindrance. Asherah is sometimes thought of as the virgin goddess, her promise of fertility as yet untested. Yours, on the other hand, has been tested – many times."

I tried not wince at the reference to my past. I resented the inference that it somehow tainted me. The only difference between what I did in the past and what I would be doing as a priestess was that my wages were mine to keep; I did not have to hand them over to the temple.

"The high priestess is with child and must be replaced. She can no longer fulfill the men's fantasies of bedding a virgin during the temple rituals. The appearance of innocence is now impossible. She also would prove a liability as my consort in the rituals reserved for the most devout. You might expect a fertility dance to be enhanced by a pregnant woman, but the form of a woman heavy with child would make the dance appear grotesque and remind men of the pleasures lost when their women are expecting."

He paused as though collecting his thoughts and then continued, "It is unusual for a novice to be considered as a candidate for High Priestess. I usually chose from the ranks of the experienced. Your selection would be as much a political decision as a religious one. Have you anything to say concerning your possible election?"