Previous Challenge Entry (Level 3 - Advanced)
Topic: TASTE (07/01/21)
-
TITLE: A Just Dessert | Previous Challenge Entry
By Jennifer Champion
07/05/21 -
LEAVE COMMENT ON ARTICLE
SEND A PRIVATE COMMENT
ADD TO MY FAVORITES
One such luxury was that of a servant named Jaseria. Jaseria was a young girl of only ten years old. Her own mother had sold her into slavery at age four. It was Hapla who insisted her father buy the child for her. At first, all Jaseria could do were small errands for Hapla such as fetching her robe or brushing her hair. Over the years though, Jaseria became accomplished in the many things Hapla taught her, things that no other slave were taught.
Hapla did this because Phillipo would give her no children. He accepted his place of honor as judge over the land but when he found out that he would not inherit any of the governor’s fortune upon his death, he took no interest in having a child with Hapla. Instead, he fathered many children by other women throughout Boram-Kadish and even some in other lands like Tadak and Mira. His wealth was vast because of his underhandedness in his position; he used it for gain to feed his desires for food, women, clothing, and alcohol.
Phillipo’s behavior was not a secret to Hapla. She knew he had fathered many children to other women while refusing to give her one from his seed, so she took on the role of surrogate mother to Jaseria and trained her in the ways of becoming a one-day woman of luxury herself. She did this because it was written in the law that if a governess such as Hapla had no children of her own and wanted to free a slave child and adopt it, she could do so at her will and then the child would have rights to inherit the kingdom one day. Hapla’s relationship with Jaseria angered Phillipo because he knew one day, the child would inherit all that he felt should be his fortune. He sought out to kill Jaseria. Hapla found out from a local person that Phillipo had told him during a drunken rage that he was going to the kill the child.
One day, Phillipo came in from his judging duties at the city gate and brought with him a pie. It was a beautiful pie made with the finest berries the land had to offer. Jaseria came into the room where the pie sat and smiled. Phillipo told her he had bought the pie just for her to celebrate her upcoming eleventh birthday. Joyfully, she ran upstairs and told Hapla about the pie.
Hapla whispered in her ear a message and the child nodded. Later that night, after dinner, Hapla’s father, the Governor, called Jaseria to fetch dessert for them all. Jaseria ran into the kitchen and came back with bowls for the Governor, Hapla, and Phillipo. She carefully sat them down in front of each of them. Each bowl was fresh from the oven and the top was covered in a warm, golden crust. Phillipo suggested Jaseria get a piece of the pie he brought so she could join them. Hapla nodded so Jaseria went to the kitchen and came back with a giant slice of berry pie. Even if a servant were asked to join in a festivity, they were to never take the first bite. Bites were taken in order of importance, so the Governor took a bite of his dessert first, then Phillipo, Hapla and finally Jaseria.
Phillipo took a bite of his warm dessert. It was very bitter to his tongue. A few seconds later his vision became blurry, and he died. Since his bowl of dessert looked the same as the Governor’s and Hapla’s and they did not die, no one thought anything about it. Everyone assumed Phillipo died of natural causes. Jaseria never took a bite of her pie but threw it away. No one knew that just hours before, Hapla had made the special dessert for her husband, using the toxic pie filling he was going to poison the child with himself.
Hapla told Jaseria later that nothing ever tasted so good as justice properly served.
The opinions expressed by authors may not necessarily reflect the opinion of FaithWriters.com.
Accept Jesus as Your Lord and Savior Right Now - CLICK HERE
JOIN US at FaithWriters for Free. Grow as a Writer and Spread the Gospel.
