THE PREACHERS DAUGHTER

nch and saw Eliana standing by the southern wall. "Weather report is clear for tomorrow," he called out. "One more day till sunshine!" "Basel! You're

d I trust?" "Um hmm. An Aleppo delicacy." Eliana leaned over and cracked the basket open and sniffed. "Lobster for lunch!" "You got it." As Eliana helped set up the table, she asked. "There can't be too much of this in storage." "You'd be surprised. I pulled some strings. Or rather, Varda did." "Really? Great! Still, what's the occasion?" "Well, this is Day 9, the 5% mark of the survival test. Within the next eighteen hours, we're going to have to send the final go / no-go to mission operations. There's no turning back after this." Eliana nodded as she bit into a piping-hot piece of lobster wrapped in a light buttery pastry. "Oh, this is fabulous! You're a much better cook than I am Basel!" After a few more bites she asked, "Who's Varda?" "A really nice CL3. We were going to do our isolation testing here together, starting last September." "Oh... May I ask? What happened?" Basel sighed. "She's engaged to join another marriage, becoming wife number four. At the last moment, her husband-to-be complained and she switched partners. She's now doing her testing with another woman CL3. They should be more than halfway through now, the largest island of ancient Japan." "Oh hell Basel. I don't mean to pry, but that must have hurt." "Oh, Varda and I are good friends, and I've met her other wives. They're really nice people. I didn't want to upset... well... Anyway! This is my day to ask about you!" "Okay! Let me start by telling you about my family." Basel listened with interest as Eliana talked about her family tree. The descriptions lasted till the end of lunch. "Wow," he said at last. "I knew Abdul Hadi never sired any children. His wives were too old by the time he was cured of his eternal virginity, and he didn't want to procreate during his infliction. But his legal descendent through Kefira, yes... Didn't he also have an adopted son through Michal?" "Yes. His wives traced the child from the medical records at Dalma. He was killed at Jericho in the Judgment of 8244. He was eight-years old, culled at the first childhood gate." "Hell..." "I know..." Eliana shrugged and then tried to smile. "I think most