Read Online Devil's Island by John Hagee - Free Book Online

Abraham told Rivka, striving to match Tobias’s feigned optimism. It was a charade both men adopted for her sake; they couldn’t bear to tell her the truth about the increasingly desperate conditions in the city.
    â€œAbraham’s a born trader. You should see him drive a bargain.” Tobias smiled and clapped Abraham on the shoulder as they told Rivka good-bye. “Stay inside,” he warned his wife unnecessarily. “We’ll be back as soon as we can.”
    The instant the two men stepped outside, the smiles faded. Tobias placed the palm of his hand against the closed door. “Keep them safe, Lord,” he said softly.
    â€œAnd grant us the favor of Your provision,” Abraham added.
    They left the spacious homes of the wealthy in the Upper City and made their way through the labyrinth of cobblestone streets and crowded houses of the Lower City. Several days earlier the Roman troops had breached the outer walls of Jerusalem and occupied the northern suburbs, shutting off access to most of the commercial area. Shops in the older part of the city had closed as well, their supplies confiscated by the revolutionary forces brutalizing the city from within.
    Acquiring a few morsels of food had become a dangerous enterprise. Recently, when their pantry had been completely exhausted, Tobias and Abraham had purchased grain from their neighbors, paying exorbitant prices for a loaf of bread or a measure of grain. After a few days it had become impossible to find anyone with food to sell.
    â€œShould we head for the old aqueduct?” Abraham asked. “It could be very risky, trying to sneak outside the city.”
    â€œYes, but I think it’s time to try it. We’re not going to find anything here,” Tobias said, studying the surroundings carefully as they walked. “And it’s every bit as dangerous inside the walls.”
    â€œThe stench is worse today too.” Abraham wrinkled his nose and frowned. The smell of death permeated the air even more than usual. “I would gladly risk danger for a few deep breaths of fresh air outside these walls—”
    Abraham tripped and stumbled, and Tobias reached out a hand to steady him. When he looked down at the street to see what had impeded his progress, Abraham nearly retched at the sight. He had lost his footing on the body of an old man. Strands of gray hair flowed over the bloated face, streaked with blood and crusted with flies. Far worse than the frightened stare of his lifeless eyes, however, were the tangled remains of the lower half of his body: the man had been disemboweled. Abraham had not believed the rumors that the revolutionaries committed such atrocities on those they suspected of swallowing gold or jewels to preserve their riches from theft as they tried to flee the city. But now he knew it was true. The cutthroat armies of the Jewish revolution robbed, killed, or tortured their own people for food or valuables and left the bodies in the streets as a warning.
    Shaken by the discovery, the two men walked silently toward the edge of the city. Abraham tried to pay close attention to their route so he could find his way home in the event they got separated. Tobias had spent a lifetime navigating the twisting streets and alleys, but Abraham found the layout confusing.
    On one of their recent outings, Abraham and Tobias had come across a portion of an ancient aqueduct no longer in use. They had carefully explored it, discovering that it led under the city wall a short distance at the city’s eastern edge, opening to a spot just south of where the Tenth Legion was camped on the Mount of Olives. An overgrowth of brush disguised the opening, and if they were careful, they could slip in and out without notice. They had discussed using it as a tunnel to get outside the city walls, where they could gather herbs or grasses on the hillside.
    Today, they decided, it was time to implement their plan. “Perhaps we