The Difficult Saint: A Catherine LeVendeur Mystery by Sharan Newman Read Free Book Online

before someone decides the Jews should be killed or at least baptized before the soldiers take the long journey to the Holy Land.”
    Eliazar closed his eyes. He had been in Paris when word had come that his mother and sisters and, he believed, his baby brother had been slaughtered by the fanatics on their way to Jerusalem in 1096. If the soldiers were to start purging the towns of Jews, he knew he would rather die with his people than receive such news again.
    “Solomon.” He swallowed to keep his voice from shaking. “Don’t go back out there. Stay in the community. Count Thibault and Bishop Henri won’t let anyone hurt us. Out among madmen, who knows what could happen?”
    “Uncle! You’re letting your fear create demons,” Solomon answered. “I can take care of myself. And I refuse to hide behind a bishop’s wall. In any case, most of the time no one knows what I am. It’s not as if I have some badge on my chest proclaiming, ‘Here comes a Jew.’”
    “That doesn’t comfort me,” Eliazar said.
    Solomon got up, and put his arms around his uncle. “I know what you fear most and I can promise you that I’ll never convert, not for anyone, not with a knife at my throat. I may not be a good Jew who knows the Talmud by heart, but I’m a determined one.”
    “I know that, Solomon,” Eliazar whispered. “May I be forgiven, but for you what I truly fear most is qiddush ha-Shem .”
    “Do you know, I’d never considered it.” Solomon sounded surprised. “I’d rather go down fighting than make a sacrifice of myself. But, if it came to that, wouldn’t you rather I died by my own hand in sanctification of the Holy Name, than submit to baptism?”
    “I hope so,” Eliazar answered. “But you’re all we have. I don’t know if I could be as pure in my faith as Abraham was to give Isaac.”
    Solomon gave him a firm pat on the back. “Then let’s assume the question will never arise. Now, where is my dinner?”
    Eliazar tried to put the worry from his mind, but it lay there all night and woke with him the following day. He was willing to be martyred for the faith, if necessary. But at times like these he would
rather hide with those he loved until the danger passed than court martyrdom. He hoped that the Lord would forgive him for it, but dying was the very last thing he wanted to do, and he wanted to put it off a good many more years.
     
    Agnes had returned to Paris along with the faithful Jehan, as well as the guards and waiting women sent from Blois. Now that she had her entourage, Agnes started preparing for the journey in ernest.
    Catherine and Edgar brought their family back, satisfied with their view of great events and settled back into normal life.
    A few days later, Walter of Grancy arrived at their door. Catherine greeted him with delight but also surprise.
    “What brings you to Paris?” she asked. “I thought you had gone back to Grancy until the mustering.”
    “Actually,” he told her, “I was wondering if your sister needed someone to watch out for her on the road to Trier.”
    “I don’t know,” Catherine answered. “We can ask. But why would you want to take such trouble?”
    “It will be months before the king is ready to set out,” Walter explained. “But I’m prepared now. I’ve donated most of my land to Saint Peter through the monks of Cluny. I’ve settled my debts. I suppose I could begin the journey on my own, but I’d rather be part of Louis’s army. However, I have nothing to do until then. So, if you need someone to accompany your sister to Germany, I’m happy to offer myself as escort. I spent some years in the service of the duke of Burgundy and the old emperor and I speak the language.”
    Hubert was pleased with the offer, since Walter was not only well born, but huge, strong and skilled at fighting. Unlike Jehan, no one had ever bested him in a tournament. Having him at one’s side was almost as good as traveling with a whole troop of retainers. But Hubert