Heat poured into my cheeks. "Not from me, sir," I said quickly.

"Not from her." Fagan took my hand. His palm was sweating, and he was trembling.

"Be still," the man said softly. He stretched out his hands in welcome. "Sit and I will tell you of the coming of the Lord."

He had lit no fire, and as he spoke night wrapped usin a protective blanket. We paid heed to nothing but the sound of his deep voice as he took us back to the creation of the world and the fall of man, the law brought by the prophet Moses, who talked with the Lord face-to-face, and then on through the prophets who called for repentance 257and were killed for their faith.

"And then, in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a far-off country, lived a priest of the Jews named Zechariah and his wife Elisabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking blameless in the commandments and ordinances of the Lord. And they had no child. . ."

I listened intently, drinking in his words. The angel Gabriel had appeared to the priest as he served beforethe Lord, telling him his wife would have a son named John. When he didn't believe the angel, he was struck mute until the child was born. God also sent the angel Gabriel to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin named Mary espoused to Joseph, a good and humble carpenter. Both were descended from the house of David, from which all knew the Anointed One of God would come forth."And the angel said unto her, `Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favor with God. And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus, God is salvation! He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David; and he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever; 258and of his kingdom there shall be no end.' "When Mary was great with child, a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed.

Joseph took Mary to Bethlehem. When her labor pangs began, there was no place for them to stay, so Joseph found shelter for them in a stable. Mary gave birth to Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of God, God the Son Almighty. She wrapped the babe in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger. The angel of the Lord appeared to the shepherds and told them of Jesus'

birth, and the heavenly host praised God.

"The angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and told him to take the young child and his mother and flee to Egypt, for King Herod wanted to kill the child. Determined to kill the Messiah, Herod sent forth men and slew all the children two years old andyounger who were in Bethlehem and in all the cities and towns.

"In time, Herod died, and an angel of the Lord appeared again to Joseph in a dream and told him to take the child and his mother and return to the land of Israel. So Joseph took Jesus and Mary to Galilee and lived in a city called Nazareth. There, God the Son grew and walked among men. God, the Creator of all the universe, led the life of 259a common carpenteruntil he was thirty years old.

"Then came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and calling people to repent, saying the kingdom of heaven was at hand."

Fagan and I sat transfixed, envisioning all as the man of God's voice rose.

"And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and John saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting upon him. And lo a voice from heaven, saying, `This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."'The man bowed his head and fell quiet so long, Fagan and I looked at one another. I t was Fagan who spoke. "What happened then, sir?"

"Then was Jesus led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil." He raised his head, and I knew he was looking at us. I could feel his intensity.

"The same devil who holds this valley prisoner and wants to keep it in darkness; the same devil who will come against you."

The hair on the back of my neck stood up. I 'd known all my life of the existence of evil. I wanted to forget it existed in the world. "The same devil dared test the Lord God, 260Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Satan is his name, and he is the great deceiver, full of pride, a murderer, and the father of lies. He tried to deceive Jesus, but the Lord prevailed against him. Only the Lord prevails.

"When Jesus returned from the wilderness, he dwelt in Capernaum by the Sea of Galilee and there began to choose his disciples among the simple, hardworking fishermen. Twelve men he called,common men all, with nothing to hold them together but the Lord.

"And God the Son, Jesus Christ, made the blind see, the deaf hear, the crippled walk, the dumb speak. He cast out demons and cleansed lepers. He stilled a storm and walked on water and brought the dead back to life.

"And then the powers of darkness gathered. Men plotted against him, and one of his own betrayed him.

He was taken while in prayer, tried in the middle of the night, spit upon, beaten, scourged, and mocked. "And then Jesus was crucified."

The darkness around us was so quiet, my ears rang.

"Crucified?" I whispered. "What does it mean, sir?"

He stretched his arms out wide. "They nailed his hands and feet to a cross and stood it up before the people where all could 261see his shame. And they left him there between two thieves to die a slow and agonizing death."

"But why?" Fagan said, his voice choked with emotion. "He dinna do anything wrong!""He was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief. He was pierced through for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities. The chastening that should fall upon us fell upon him, and by his scourging we are healed. We are all of us like sheep that have gone astray. Each of us has turned his own way, but the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall upon him. Jesus rendered himself the guilt offering for our sins. He poured out himself to death, numbering himself with the transgressors, bearing our sins so that we might be saved."

"Is that the way of it then?" Fagan said grievously.

"Must we suffer for the sins of others?" He put his head down and wept.

I had never seen him cry before and didn't know what to do. The sound of his brokenness made me ache for him.

"They took him down from the cross, and a rich man laid the Lord in a tomb hewn outofa rock. A great stone was rolled over the doorway, and Roman guards stood guard262round about so that the seal might not be broken and the body stolen away."

The man of God stood, his arms held up exultantly as dawn's first light edged over the mountains to the east.

"And an angel of the Lord came! And the Roman guards fell upon the ground in a faint. The angel rolled away the stone, and Jesus arose.He arose!Death could not hold him in the grave!" Fagan fell forward on his face.

The man of God paced, the excitement spilling from him as the words of the Lord spilled forth from his lips.

"Jesus appeared first to Mary of Magdala and then to his disciples and to hundreds afterward. He walked upon the earth for forty days and then ascended into heaven to take his place at the throne of God."

Goosebumps rose all over my body: My hair stood on end. Trembling, I found myself clambering forward to my knees, murmuring praises to the Lord and weeping.

"The Lord God, Jehovah Roi, reigns forevermore!"

My heart swelled within me until I thought it wouldburst. "He reigns." Morning light pushed back the darkness. "He reigns!" My mind did not fully graspitall, but my heart responded along with the Spirit dwelling within me.

263The man stood arms held high, head thrown back, his face alight, his eyes closed. Fagan drew back, sitting on his heels and gazed up at him, watchful, waiting, face pale and wet.

My trembling ceased and I sat back upon my heels, feeling content and peaceful. I never wanted to leave this place. The man of God lowered his arms to his sides and looked down at us. He smiled tenderly at Fagan. "Do you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God?"

"Y es, sir."

The man held out his hand to him. Clasping my hands together, I followed them to the river. I was filled with joy as I watched Fagan be baptized. There were two of us now - two who had heard the word of the Lord and believed. When Fagan came up out of the water, I knew he'd been washed clean of sins and he wouldn't have to worry anymore about bearing those of hisfather.

And then I saw his eyes as he came toward me. They burned with an inner light not so different from the man who walked beside him - and sudden fear pricked my soul.

Oh, what would happen to us now with Fagan looking the way he did? He looked near aglow, on fire inside.

Two of us had 264been buried and raised in Christ, two out of a hundred souls in our highland valley. What would Brogan Kai do when he found out what his son had done?

The three of us stood together. Fagan fairly trembled with some inner verve while I stood by looking at him and wondering how he could go home without everyone seeing the change in him. What had I done?

I 'd brought him down to the man of God thinking it would be our secret, something that would bind us together.

And so it would in ways I could not have guessed.

The prophet put a hand on each of us. "Go now.Rest. Speak to no one except the old woman of what's happened here and been said. I have more to tell you before you go out into the world but not much time left."

He took his hands from us.

Go out into the w orld... not much time left?"What do you mean?"

Fagan took my hand firmly and pulled me away.

"He's said we're to go."

"But, Fagan, wait! I want to know -" Fagan didn't give me time or breath to say more. He pulled me along the river to the brush and rocks, hurrying. "Come on!"

Letting go of me, he hopped from one to another, pausing once to look back and make 265sure I was following. "Hurry!"

"Y ou hadn't ought to have pulled me away like that.

What did he mean?"

"He'll tell us when he's ready. I 'm going on ahead now," he said when I reached the other side. "I 've got to get back before I 'm missed. Go on to Miz Elda's and do like he said. I 'll see ye tonight." He headed quickly up through the trees.Not much time left ...

I could not get those words out of my mind. Dread filled me, for in the pit of my stomach I knew exactly what the man meant.

266.

"I had a dream," Miz Elda said before I could tell her a word about what was said the night before. "A strange and terrible dream." I was out of breath from running and so had no time to tell her my news before she went on ahead with her own. "That man down there was speaking, and fire was coming from his mouth.

And he was setting everything ablaze, clear up to the mountain tops."

"And destroying everything?" I said, puffing, afraid of what I 'd done and what was coming.

"No, and there's the strangeness to it. The flame grew until everything was within it, like sunlight when it's so bright ye can't see what's in front of ye."

"I 'm terrible scared, Miz Elda."

"Y e look it.""I should not have taken Fagan."

"Why? What happened?"

I told her. The amazing part was I could remember everything the prophet had said, every detail, as though by his telling it the word of the Lord had been carved into my 267heart and head. The Cadi Forbes I 'd been two nights ago was changed. I wasn't the same. And neither was Fagan.

Nothing was going to be the same, and the fire Miz Elda had dreamed of was going to come down and burn us all.

"Try to rest now, chile. Y e're done in."

I didn't think I 'd be able to sleep, but as soon as I lay down upon the cot, I sank into a dreamless sleep so peaceful I might as well have been laid beside Granny.

I didn't know time passed until I awakened to Miz Elda shaking me.

"I 've fixed some porridge for ye, Cadi. Come eat."I t was late in the afternoon, the sun dipping. My heart thumped fast and hard as I realized how short time was. Fagan would come soon.

Not much time left ...

Miz Elda put a bowl in front of me as I sat at her table. Picking up a jar, she poured a thick stream of honey over the chopped ha zelnuts and raisins she'd sprinkled on top of the cooked oats, barley, and wheat. "I had me a visitor today." She plunked the jar of honey down right in front of me.

Heat poured into my cheeks and then drained away just as quickly, leaving me cold. "Bletsung Macleod."

268Miz Elda eased her aching bones into the chair across from me. "She says the sin eater's been waiting to hear from ye. He's holding ye to the promise ye made."

I blinked, biting my lip, and bowed my head, ashamed. "I forgot all about him."

"Well, ye'd best remember him. He's the one whosent ye down there in the first place. I f left to yerself, Cadi Forbes, ye'd still be holed up inside yerself, living alone with yer guilt and shame. The way that man is now, poor soul."

Remorse filled me, and sorrow, too, for what I had to tell him. "Did ye tell her I 'd come?"

"I told her ye've been going down into the valley and hearing the word of the Lord just like ye promised ye would. Y e've only one day left, and then ye'll be ready to carry the message to him."

"Is that what ye think the man meant when he said we had not much time left?" "Don't rightly know for sure what he meant, chile, but I reckon ye'll know by tomorrow." She gestured. "Go on and eat. Y e'll need your strength."

I didn't think I could, but after one bite, my mouth fair watered with appetite. I 'd never tasted anything so good. I tucked into the savory dish and scraped the bowl clean.

269"Where'd ye get the milk, Miz Elda?" I said, drinking down the mug full."Y our mama brought it by just past dawn."

"Mama?" I said, surprised. Why would she do such a thing?

"Y e should be drinking it, then, not me." Mama was sure to be angry that I was drinking milk meant for an ailing old woman.

"I 've never had a taste for it," she said and sat down again. "I 've summat I want ye to give the man when ye go down to him tonight." She put a piece of parchment on the table and rolled it carefully. Her hands trembling as they always did, she tied a string around the parchment and pushed it across the table to me.

"What is it?"

"Well, if it's any of yer business, it's the deed to this place."

"What're ye giving him that for? Where ye going to live?"

"Right here. I f that man wants a place to stay, I 've room aplenty in the barn. Way I figure it, I 'm not long for this world. He could stay here until I pass on, then takethis world. He could stay here until I pass on, then take it all. Maybe build a church." Her mouth curved in an odd smile as she looked away, thinking again, going back in time. "That'd make Laochailand Kai roll over in his grave."

270"Laochailand Kai?"

"Only God can undo what's been done," she said, not listening to me. "I f God'll have anything to do with those of us who let it happen."

"What happened, Miz Elda?" I reached across the table and put my hand on hers. "Miz Elda?"

She looked at me again and sighed. "Y e just give the man God sent the parchment there, and ye tell him this is everything I own and the inheritance I 'd have passed on to my children if they'd stayed to collect it."

I was purely frustrated and brimming with questions.

"Mama said ye sent your children over the mountain."

"Aye, I did. I told 'em to go and never look back."

"Did ye not love them?"

Her eyes grew fierce. "I t's cause I loved 'em I sent'em away, chile." Shaking her head, she turned her face away. Closing her eyes, she sat still for a moment.

No matter how still and silent she sat, I could see she was struggling inside herself. I was surprised when she spoke. "What happened to that boy who lives on Dead Man's Mountain could've happened to any one of my own three sons." She looked at me, and I saw tears gathering in her eyes. "They were 271friends, ye see, my sons and ... the one who became the sin eater."

"How was it done, Miz Elda? How was he chosen?"

"By lot, that's how. I t was Laochailand Kai's plea before he died." She gave a mirthless laugh. "So it is with hard men given to cruelty. The fear of God comes upon them at the end. They know they're going to come face-to-face with their Maker. Laochailand had sins aplenty upon his head. He said he needed a sin eater, and Brogan set about getting him one. Some of us argued against it, but Brogan said his father swore upon his deathbed that he wudna stay in the ground unless one came to take his sins away. The thought of Laochailand Kai walking our mountains 'til the end of time as a taint put the fear of perdition into us. No onedared gainsay Brogan after that threat. And so it was done as he demanded. Each man past thirteen placed his mark on a piece of bone, and the lots were put into a mazer. One was drawn and it was all settled. Except we never figured on it being who it was. We all thought it'd be one of Laochailand Kai's own.