A few months had passed since the healing of the leper. Gisse often wondered what happened to him. She also wondered if Yahweh answered her prayer, she didn't see Oded walking with the other lepers anymore. He had done horrible things but deep down she hoped he was healed.
Gisse sat in the kitchen peeling potatoes. Her mother, busy at the stove, remarked, "Don't you get lonely sometimes?
Gisse replied. "No mother. I help you in the house. Sometimes I go to father and help him in the fields. The scriptures keep me busy. When I have read the few books we have, I go to the synogogue and the priest lets me read there. He also explains the words to me."
"Nevertheless" Her mother continued, "I wish I could give you a baby brother or sister. You would be so good with them. But we barely have food for ourselves. Father says it would be unkind to bring children into this world if we can't look after them and feed them properly."
Gisse said nothing. She knew her mother was actually just thinking aloud and didn't expect an answer. After supper, she went to bed early. She lay thinking on her bed. She wished there was some way that her mother could have a baby without the family being overburdened.
Gisse awoke to loud noises coming from the street. Horses charging up and down. People screaming and crying. Her father had already risen and gone to work. Her mother was busy trying to get the fire in the stove to light.
Suddenly the door burst open. A soldier stormed into the house. Her mother screamed and dropped the lamp she was using to light the fire. The soldier in a gruff voice demanded, "Who lives here?" Gisse's mother so hysterical couldn't answer. The soldier stepped forward, and gripping her with one hand, slapped her across the face. Gisse's mother immediately stopped screaming but continued to cry, more from pain than shock. The soldier lifted his hand to strike again. "No no, please stop," Her mother sobbed, and wiping her tears and nose with her sleeve, continued "my husband has gone to work, and my daughter is in her room. There are only the three of us who live here."
The soldier looked at the closed door, then back at her mother. Drawing his sword he moved slowly to the door, "There better not be any surprises" He said. He turned the handle cautiously, then flung the door open and raising his sword at the same time.
Gisse, still in her night clothes, sat on the bed with her knees tucked under her chin, big eyes staring at the intruder.
The soldier looked quickly around the room, satisfied no one else was there, he turned his gaze back to the little girl on the bed. "Put on your tunic and your sandals." He commanded and left the room. Standing at the door, he waited.
Shortly Gisse came out, dressed. She also had the good sense to bring her coat along and, unseen to the soldier, some spare clothes tucked under her tunic. The soldier put out his hand and said, "Come on, we haven't got all day."
Gisse started moving towards the door, then suddenly dived into her mother's arms. They kissed and hugged each other. She quickly whispered in her mother's ear. "If they take me away, there'll be one less mouth to feed. Please have another baby."
Gisse was wrenched away from her crying mother and loaded onto a cart, drawn by two Arabian horses. Syrian soldiers frequently raided Israelite villages for children to be sold as slaves, especially near and around the town of Dan. The proximity of the Jordan river and the Aramean border, made quick retreats both possible and successful. The raiding parties had returned deep into Aram before the Israelites could even think of retaliating. The bottom line was slave trading was big business.
Gisse was standing in a cart full of crying, whimpering children when she heard someone call her. She moved to the side of the cart and peered over the railings. There was Oded! looking nervously around. She hardly recognised him, he looked so different. "Shalom" she greeted, "What are you doing here?"
"I have to speak quickly before the soldiers notice me. I want to say I'm sorry. I was shocked when I saw them loading you into the cart."
Gisse inquired,"Are you still informing them where the children are?"
"No, no!" Oded answered. "That's the problem. While I worked for them I made them promise never to raid this village. But since Yahweh forgave me, I've changed and I stopped working as an informer.
They were angry and to punish me they have now raided our village."
Oded didn't notice that two soldiers had come up behind him. The one hit him on the head with the hilt of his sword. Oded staggered backwards, trying to stay on his feet, but lost his balance and fell backwards, hitting his head against the compacted road. Gisse gasped, both at his unfortunate mishap but also at the scene that was playing itself out in front of her. She saw people running, but not away from Oded, they were running to him, trying to catch him, holding him up, brushing off his clothes. This was not normal behaviour towards a leper. She looked closely at his skin....it appeared quite normal.
Suddenly it dawned on her. The walk, the clothes, the skin and the close proximity of other people. Oded wasn't a leper anymore. He was healed. Her prayer had been heard. Yaweh had forgiven his sins.
Gisse's thoughts were rudely interrupted when the cart lurched forward. All the children were scrambling for something to hold onto. She instinctively looked towards their house. Her mother was standing in the doorway waving, but not seeing, as if she was in a trance. The cart was moving faster now. The horses knew they were going home....the children knew they were leaving theirs forever.
