The Jerusalem Inception by Avraham Azrieli Read Free Book Online Page A

together.” She held her breath, hoping he would ask about the child she had raised alone.
    “How can I leave my people? Without me there will be religious riots, violence—”
    “Elie can find another mole.”
    For a moment, Abraham’s eyes brightened up, the sadness chased away by the prospect of handing over this mission to someone else, of starting over as a free man, reunited with the only woman he had ever loved. Tanya saw it in his face, and hope flooded her.
    But the moment passed, and his sadness returned. “Maybe, one day. But not now. I can’t.”
    “Why?”
    “Because my mission needs me here.”
    “I need you.” Her voice choked. “I’ve needed you for so long.”
    “I wish we could.”
    “Better to live a lie?” Her hopes dashed, Tanya was filled with rage. “To deceive your people?” She pointed at the narrow cot. “To deceive your wife? And your son?”
    “He doesn’t know any different. One day he’ll assume the leadership—”
    “And that makes it kosher?”
    “Please, keep it down.”
    “How can you raise him to lead a bunch of misguided, religious fanatics?” Tanya hit the line of books with an open hand. “You teach him to obey a God whom you don’t believe exists—”
    “Shhhh!”
    Tanya stormed out of the study. In the foyer she saw his teenage son, who quickly opened the door for her.
    “Wait!” Abraham chased after her. “Be reasonable! It’s a matter of life and death!”
    “It’s a sham!” She slapped his black coat.
    “You don’t understand!”
    She tugged at his beard. “A fraud!”
    “ Tanya! ”
    “The hell with you, Abraham Gerster! I wish you had really died—at least it would have been an honorable death!”
    He grabbed her arm. “This is bigger than you and me! Just listen—”
    “Listen to a dead man?” Tanya jerked her arm free and hurried down the stairs.
    L emmy stepped back, flat against the wall. The fear in his father’s face was inconceivable. No one had ever intimidated Rabbi Gerster, certainly not a woman.
    He prodded Lemmy out the door. “Go, accompany her!”
    Lemmy hesitated.
    “Go on, son!”
    Glancing back into the apartment, Lemmy noticed his mother watching from the kitchen door. Temimah Gerster’s face was inscrutable, her mouth slightly open. Her hand held the doorpost, the knuckles bleached.
    He caught up with Tanya, and they left Meah Shearim through the gate on Shivtay Israel Street. She turned north, walking fast, saying nothing. On the right, high rolls of rusted barbed wire marked the strip of no-man’s land along the border with Jordan. They passed by Mandelbaum Gate—the only crossing between the two parts of Jerusalem. In addition to Israeli and Jordanian posts, it was guarded by the UN Truce Supervision Force, composed of Norwegian and Indian soldiers in blue caps. Tanya stayed close to the buildings, whose walls were pockmarked with shrapnel and bullet holes, left untended since 1948. Lemmy wondered if she knew about the Jordanian sniper’s attempt on his father’s life the day before.
    He stole a quick glance at Tanya, who seemed oblivious to his presence. It was hard to guess her age. Thirty? Forty?
    They reached a scarred, one-story house made of uncut stone. The east section was reduced to rubble, and two formerly internal doorways were sealed with bare bricks. Rusty metal shutters covered all the windows, shedding off dry flakes of turquoise paint. A wall of sandbags shielded the front door. The border was a stone-throw away, and he wondered why Tanya lived in such a perilous location.
    She unlocked the door. “What’s your name?”
    “Lemmy,” he said. “It’s short for Jerusalem.”
    “How inspiring.” Her sudden smile revealed a perfect set of white teeth. “Do you have any siblings?”
    “None.”
    She went inside, leaving the door open, and reappeared with a book. “Here. A reward for your gallantry.”
    He looked at the cover. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. “Thanks, but I don’t read