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Hadassah Bethany House, a Division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004 HadassaONE N IGHT W ITH THE K ING H TOMMY TENNEY WITH M ARK A NDREW O LSEN 5 Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen, Hadassah Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004. Used by permission. (Unpublished manuscript—copyright protected Baker Publishing Group) Tenney_Hadassah_LH_djm.indd 3 8/29/13 7:43 AM © 2004 by Tommy Tenney Published by Bethany House Publishers 11400 Hampshire Avenue South Bloomington, Minnesota 55438 www.bethanyhouse.com Bethany House Publishers is a division of Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan Printed in the United States of America All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews. ISBN 978–0–7642–2943–5 (Trade Paper) The Library of Congress has cataloged the original editions as follows: Tenney, Tommy Hadassah: one night with the King / by Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen. p. cm. ISBN 0–7642–2737–8 (alk. paper) ISBN 0–7642–2892–7 (large-print pbk.) 1. Esther, Queen of Persia—Fiction. 2. Xerxes I, King of Persia, 519–465 or 4 B.C.—Fiction. 3. Bible. O.T.—History of Biblical events—Fiction. 4. Iran— History—To 640—Fiction. 5. Women in the Bible—Fiction. 6. Queens— Iran—Fiction. I. Olsen, Mark II. Title. PS3620.E56H33 2004 813 .54—dc22 2003021804 Cover design by Jennifer Parker Cover photography by Kevin White Photography, Minneapolis, Minnesota Maps created by Meridian Mapping, Minneapolis, Minnesota Author is represented by Winters, King, & Associates, Inc. 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen, Hadassah Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004. Used by permission. (Unpublished manuscript—copyright protected Baker Publishing Group) Tenney_Hadassah_LH_djm.indd 4 8/29/13 7:43 AM To every little girl who would be queen . But especially to the Queen of my life. And to our three girls, every one a princess. Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen, Hadassah Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004. Used by permission. (Unpublished manuscript—copyright protected Baker Publishing Group) Tenney_Hadassah_LH_djm.indd 5 8/29/13 7:43 AM Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen, Hadassah Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004. Used by permission. (Unpublished manuscript—copyright protected Baker Publishing Group) Tenney_Hadassah_LH_djm.indd 6 8/29/13 7:43 AM Co nt ent s Acknowledgments 9 Cast of Characters 11 Hadassah Kesselman 13 THE J ERUSALEM S TAR SOCIETY PAGE “ . the Kesselman/ben Yuda wedding promises to be the social event of the summer . .” Haman, son of Hammedatha 27 KETHUVIM E STHER 3:10 “ . the king removed his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman, son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the foe of the Jews.” Hadassah, daughter of Abihail 57 KETHUVIM E STHER 2:7 “ . had neither father nor mother. The maiden was shapely and beautiful . .” 7 Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen, Hadassah Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004. Used by permission. (Unpublished manuscript—copyright protected Baker Publishing Group) Tenney_Hadassah_LH_djm.indd 7 8/29/13 7:43 AM Hadassah Xerxes, son of Darius 103 KETHUVIM E STHER 1:1 “ . who reigned over a hundred and twenty- seven provinces from India to Nubia.” Esther, Queen of Persia 227 KETHUVIM E STHER 2:17 “The King loved Esther more . so he set a royal diadem on her head and made her queen. .” Mordecai, son of Jair 315 KETHUVIM E STHER 3:2, 4 “ . but Mordecai would not kneel or bow low. They spoke to him day after day, and he would not listen. .” Hadassah ben Yuda 355 THE J ERUSALEM S TAR FRONT PAGE “ . Prime Minister to meet with Minister of Defense regarding current conflict . .” 8 Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen, Hadassah Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004. Used by permission. (Unpublished manuscript—copyright protected Baker Publishing Group) Tenney_Hadassah_LH_djm.indd 8 8/29/13 7:43 AM Ack nowledgme nt s Mark Andrew Olsen is a talented and creative writer, and he provided a wealth of experience for our collaboration on Ha- dassah. Being a novice fiction writer, I questioned my ability to write e"ective dialogue. Mark helped educate me on this and other pieces that contribute to writing a novel. Downloading my research on Esther, he took my “architect’s drawing” for the plot and themes and began to build the story on the foundation I had laid. Many hours of phone conversations and multiple drafts passed back and forth between us until my original vision for the story of Esther was completed. Thank you, Mark, for your significant contribution to this e"ort. Larry Walker has assisted me editorially on many writing projects. Rarely can the phrase “my friend” be added to the phrase “my editor.” Larry can wear both badges equally well. His research assistance on this project was invaluable. Much thanks also to Carol Johnson, an incredible editor with a fine eye, a soft voice and a red pen. 9 Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen, Hadassah Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004. Used by permission. (Unpublished manuscript—copyright protected Baker Publishing Group) Tenney_Hadassah_LH_djm.indd 9 8/29/13 7:43 AM Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen, Hadassah Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004. Used by permission. (Unpublished manuscript—copyright protected Baker Publishing Group) Tenney_Hadassah_LH_djm.indd 10 8/29/13 7:43 AM Cas t of Charac ters Hadassah Kesselman: A modern-day Jewish bride-to-be. Hadassah (Star, Esther): A beautiful young Jewish girl raised by her cousin, Mordecai. Mordecai: A Jewish man who works as a palace scribe at the King’s Gate in the Persian capital of Susa. “Mordecai” is a derivative of the Persian name “Marduch.” Rachel: Mordecai’s Jewish housekeeper and Hadassah’s con- fidant. Jesse (Hathach): Rachel’s grandson and Hadassah’s friend. Xerxes: King of Persia from 486 to 465 BC, also known as Ahasuerus. Memucan: King Xerxes’ chief advisor, the Master of the Audi- ences. Hegai: Royal eunuch in charge of preparing the Queen candi- dates for their night with the King. Haman: An Amalekite warrior, also known as the Agagite, who fiercely despises all persons of Jewish descent. 11 Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen, Hadassah Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004. Used by permission. (Unpublished manuscript—copyright protected Baker Publishing Group) Tenney_Hadassah_LH_djm.indd 11 8/29/13 7:43 AM Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen, Hadassah Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004. Used by permission. (Unpublished manuscript—copyright protected Baker Publishing Group) Tenney_Hadassah_LH_djm.indd 12 8/29/13 7:43 AM HadassaH KesselmaN T H E J ERUSALEM S TA R SOCIETY PAG E “ . the Kesselman/ben Yuda wedding promises to be the social event of the summer . .” Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen, Hadassah Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004. Used by permission. (Unpublished manuscript—copyright protected Baker Publishing Group) Tenney_Hadassah_LH_djm.indd 13 8/29/13 7:43 AM Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen, Hadassah Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004. Used by permission. (Unpublished manuscript—copyright protected Baker Publishing Group) Tenney_Hadassah_LH_djm.indd 14 8/29/13 7:43 AM 1 ISRAEL M USEUM —J ERUSALEM —PRESENT DAY Father, where are you taking me?” The old man turned shakily upon his cane, paused at the top step and looked toward his daughter while still panting to catch his breath. Despite the wrinkles that had lately etched their way across his face, she could still recognize the sly smile that always signaled his toying with her. “Why, Hadassah, this is the Shrine of the Book. You’ve been here a dozen times.” “Of course, Poppa. I know that.” As if to punctuate her statement, she glanced about the monument. Her gaze rose into the cobalt blue Judean sky where the Shrine’s celebrated dome thrust its odd, milky white swirl. She noted again its fluid shape, meant to evoke the ancient jar lids that once sealed the beloved scrolls now housed inside. Just beyond, her gaze settled briefly on a jutting slab of ink black basalt—the famous architectural apposition of Dark- ness against Light. “Ideological structure,” her ninth grade teacher had called it years ago, just before using the term in a test question. 15 Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen, Hadassah Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2004. Used by permission. (Unpublished manuscript—copyright protected Baker Publishing Group) Tenney_Hadassah_LH_djm.indd 15 8/29/13 7:43 AM Hadassah Kesselman Ideological structure: designing a building for a symbolic as well as a functional purpose. “But why today?” Hadassah continued the conversation in the modern Hebrew with which she had grown up, though she also spoke fluent English. “With the wedding just a few days away? This is no time for sightseeing, Poppa.” He smiled again, indulgently this time, and waved her on up. “My child, have you ever known me to waste your time?” It was an odd question to pose so flippantly, but she pondered it nevertheless while she scrambled up the steps after him. In fact, he had always been a quiet, mild-mannered father, and she had to admit after consideration that he had never been one to yank her about on useless errands. She reached him, and he laid his arm upon her shoulders. “Just follow me,” he said with a smile that grew wider and more inscrutable by the second.
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