In a time and place where his wrongness would lead to him being stoned or burned unto his death, Ezekiel found a way to fulfil all of his duties as given to be him by God, and yet still be true to himself.

This is the story of Ezekiel's Victory.

The family have fended off a delegation from the village where they are currently staying, but they have been told to leave in the morning. In the meantime, Constance is disguised as Ezekiel, her late brother. And Charity has asked for a favor from Samuel, her father ...

Chapter 12

"This is very much like carving a very soft type of wood," said Samuel.

Samuel held up a half-peeled potato in one hand and the small peeling-knife in the other. He frowned at the section still to be peeled and then resumed his task.

"I suppose it is," replied Isabelle from the other side of the table. She was busy peeling and slicing a pumpkin while Samuel worked his way through the small pile of potatoes. "What brought on your sudden desire to learn how to cook?"

"I am not given to sitting idle while others work around me. Usually at this time I would be out working in the fields. Yesterday I helped you wash clothes. Today I am helping you cook. It seems to me that there is no harm in me learning how to do such things. There may come a time when you are ill or infirm. If our daughters are not around then it will fall upon me to wash our clothes and cook our meals. I still hold onto the hope that they will change their minds and accept marriage with some young man of whatever village we end up in. If that happens, we will be on our own."

Isabelle shook her head. "Charity experienced Noah appearing to be a good man but then doing such an evil thing. It will be a long time, if ever, before she opens her heart to a new man in that way. She is determined to have children who call Ezekiel their father. The only way she can do that is through you. Charity is strong-willed. She will not accept anything less. For her it is either you or nothing. Constance is more likely to accept another man but do not hold your hopes too highly for that to happen. Symeon was a fair man but he did not treat her as well as this family does. Symeon's family betrayed her when they cast her out based on rumor and accusations and that hurt her very deeply. Now that Constance has discovered these new parts of herself, she believes this family is the only place where she will be accepted and protected — no matter what the circumstances. I have to agree with her on that point."

Samuel looked at her without responding. He put down the newly peeled potato and picked up the next.

Isabelle looked at the door to the back room of the house. Soft sounds could be heard from within the room.

"They said they wanted a short rest after the excitement of the day. It sounds to me as though they are not getting much rest."

Samuel shrugged and then carefully changed the subject.

"I have been thinking about the reverse as well. What if I were to become ill or infirm? I have begun teaching those two where and how to trap small animals like rabbits. They already know somewhat about the care of our animals. When we settle, I will teach them how and when to plough and sow and reap and all the other matters involved with farming. If, as you say, they will not leave us then there is less need for you to learn such things as well."

Isabelle nodded. "Steadfast, wife of Joseph, ploughed their fields when Joseph hurt his leg and none in the village questioned her. It is not a strange thing for a woman to learn how to do such things."

Samuel grinned. "But she did not wear trousers to do so and found the going quite difficult. I suspect that Charity and Constance will don trousers when ploughing now they have discovered the difference. That should raise a few eyebrows."

Isabelle's eyes widened. "Are you not concerned that we would be driven away by the other villagers when they do such a thing?"

Samuel shrugged. "There is a reason we are travelling to the south and west. I have heard there are some in that direction who are less …"

He paused as he searched for the right word.

"… ardent about their adherence to the rules we were taught by our elders. Of course, our elders mentioned them with scorn. The elders said that such people had abandoned all hope of being saved by God but it seems to me that God will save who He wills — good men and sinners alike. To hear the elders speak, such people were worse than pagans who do not know God at all. I now remember their words with different ears. They sound like people who have learned to question the elders and their teachings. I think perhaps such people would not reject us."

Samuel scratched his chin as he thought. "We will have to choose the place where we settle carefully. I intend to claim some land a little away from a village. As long as the girls do not go into the village wearing trousers, there should be no concerns. If any should see the girls working in the fields and complain, I shall ask them to recite for me the scripture where a woman is forbidden from wearing trousers."

Isabelle frowned. "I do not recall any scripture where it actually says a woman is forbidden from wearing trousers."

Samuel smiled and nodded. "Exactly!"

At that moment, their conversation was interrupted by squealing and shouts from within the back room.

A moment later, Samuel and Isabelle burst through the door and into the back room. Samuel was holding the scythe and Isabelle once again wielded the carving knife. Inside the room, they quickly saw that weapons were not needed.

Charity and Ezekiel sat on the sleeping platform and Hope sat on Charity's lap. The squeals and shouts had been for excitement rather than fear. They looked up as their parents entered the room and shouted with joy.

Charity's dress was unbound leaving her breasts fully exposed.

"Look! Look here! My milk has started!"

Charity squeezed her breast and a drop of clear fluid formed on her nipple.

Isabelle immediately rushed to her side, exclaiming in pleasure. Samuel stopped and stared in stunned amazement, before remembering to turn his back on her nakedness.

"Father, do not be shy!" called Charity. "Come and see. It is one of God's miracles when a woman produces milk for her baby."

The others added their call to Samuel for him to come and join them in their celebration. Samuel finally turned — his face red — and stumbled over to Charity. He knelt before her and watched in awe and wonder as Charity brought Hope to her breast and had her suckle.

There was only a little fluid in each breast and it was clear rather than white but Isabelle quickly reassured Charity that the milk would soon turn white and that the quantity of milk would quickly increase. Ezekiel removed his shirt and unbound his breasts so that Hope could finish feeding while Charity and Isabelle continued to exclaim their joy.

Samuel stood and moved over to sit on the sleeping platform a little apart from the others. He picked up a small glass bottle that he had set beside the mattress and rolled it in his hands as he sat. His brow furrowed in thought as he watched his family. Isabelle moved over to sit beside him.

"What is it, my husband?" asked Isabelle quietly. "What is that in your hands?"

"It is a glass bottle, such as is used by drunkards to keep gin or some such. I stood by the river and asked for a sign from God. Then I saw this bottle floating by. At first I thought perhaps it represented me, carried along in the swirling waters with no control over my destiny. But then I saw that it represented Charity. Like Charity, it was not suited to be in the water. It struggled to stay afloat in that torrent as it was swept along. I knew that sooner or later, a wave would top it and it would fill with water and sink. Or it would be swept against some rock and shatter. As I came to know that this was like my daughter, I saw that it would soon be swept around the curve and out of my sight while I stood idle on the river bank. In the same way I knew that if I did nothing, the river of life would carry Charity away from us and she would be lost. Lost to us and lost to God. So soon after losing our first born child, I could not stand to lose another."

"So you rescued the bottle from the water," said Isabelle.

"I did," replied Samuel.

"And what of Charity?" asked Isabelle. "Will you stand idle on the bank and watch her disappear around a bend in the river? If you do not respond to her soon, I fear she will leave us in despair and be lost."

Samuel did not respond for a moment. He sat and looked across the room to where Charity and Ezekiel were huddled over Hope.

"I am a simple farmer," said Samuel. "There are many things in this world that I do not understand. I did not know it was possible for a woman to bring milk to her breasts unless she bears a child."

"It can be done but it takes work," said Isabelle. "Charity has been working for this throughout the last week. I expected it to take longer but she has been very determined."

"Even I can tell when a mare is broody," said Samuel. "Charity is most definitely broody. She persists in her desire to lie with me that she may bear a child of her own."

"She does," replied Isabelle.

"But she refuses to bind herself to me as a wife," said Samuel.

"She wishes to remain the widow of Ezekiel, not become the second wife of Samuel," said Isabelle.

"She asks me to commit adultery," said Samuel.

Isabelle sighed, then looked Samuel directly in the eye. "Charity is my daughter. I bore her in my body and fed her with my milk. She is a part of me that I have put out into the world. When she speaks, a part of me is speaking. When she sees, a part of me is seeing. When she weeps, a part of me is weeping. Everything she does, she does as a part of me. Charity is a part of me and I am your wife. To lie with me is not adultery, it is your duty as a husband. She asks that you lie with that part of me which is Charity."

Samuel grunted. "If she is your daughter then she is also mine. Incest is also a sin."

"It is different for a man," said Isabelle. "She was your daughter, but you gave her away to Ezekiel. Now she is merely a woman, a woman whom you took in when she was widowed."

Samuel looked down at the bottle in his hands. "I knew what my decision would be when I saved this from the water. If I am to do this thing, I should do it tonight, before my resolve deserts me."

"Why wait for the night?" said Isabelle. "There is time before our evening meal."

"But it is the day. The sun still shines through the window. Day is the time for working in the fields. It would not feel proper to lie with a woman while the sun still shines."

"Hush, my husband. You have no fields to work. But you do have a woman to get with child and that is a worthy task. Just give me time to get her ready. A woman should not go to a man's bed for the first time without being washed and dressed in clean clothing."

Isabelle stood and hurried over to Charity and Ezekiel. A short whispered conversation resulted in squeals of happiness. Charity rushed over to Samuel and knelt at his feet. She wrapped her arms around his legs saying "thank you" repeatedly.