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Abner extended his arm in David’s direction.
    “The harpist.”
    “Yes, my lord,” David said. Abner rose to stand at Saul’s side, and David took his place, kneeling before the king.
    “What is this I hear about you? They say you want to know what the king will do for the man who will slay the giant. Do you know such a man, my son?”
    David swallowed, forcing down his rising anger at their lack of faith. He met the king’s steady gaze. Peace settled over him, and the same sense of expectancy he’d felt the morning of his anointing filled him from head to toe. God would defend His honor. No uncircumcised barbarian was going to defame the Name and live!
    Resolve tightened his gut and clenched the muscles in his arms. He took a steadying breath. “Let no man’s heart fail because of this Philistine, my lord. Your servant will fight with him.”
    Saul’s cold, gray eyes narrowed, contempt flickering in their depths. “You are not able to fight this Philistine. You are only a boy. He’s been a warrior from his youth.”
    David rose slightly, his elbow resting on one knee. Passion burned in his soul. “My king, your servant used to keep his father’s sheep, and when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, I went out after it and struck it and delivered the lamb from its mouth. When it rose against me, I caught it by its beard and struck and killed it. Your servant has killed both lion and bear, and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God. The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.”
    A telltale twitch began above Saul’s left eye. He directed a skeptical glance at Abner and Jonathan, who both tipped their heads forward in reluctant nods.
    Saul cleared his throat and gripped the edges of the pillows at his side. “He’s but a boy.”
    “The Lord is with David, Father.” Jonathan’s low voice rang in the ensuing silence.
    Saul nodded in mute ascent, his gaze troubled.
    “No one else has come forward, my lord,” Abner interjected, eyeing David.
    Saul stared at his counselors one at a time, then studied David again. At last he heaved a deep sigh and leaned back against the cushions, resignation lining his grizzled face. “Go, and the Lord be with you.”

    Michal’s jeweled sandals struck the smooth round stones of the family court, taking one slow step after another. No sense hurrying. There was nothing to do with the men away at war unless she wanted to sit and listen to Merab complain about the food, the servants’ attitudes, or the lack of male attention. Maybe if Father’s strategy worked, Merab would soon marry, leaving Michal free run of the palace without a haughty sibling guardian to interfere with her plans. And if Merab married the giant slayer, she would no longer be Michal’s rival for David’s attention. That is, if someone in Israel actually had that much courage.
    “Why the sullen look today, Michal? You look like you’ve swallowed sour grapes.” Ahinoam’s arched nose tilted, and her eyes squinted as Michal met her in the large palace kitchens.
    “There’s nothing to do, Mother.” How long did it take to win a war anyway?
    Ahinoam turned toward one of the open windows, her gaze pensive. “There are still a household of servants to feed and manage, Michal. You will never be queen, but you must still know how to manage a home. Your husband will need you to be a disciplined, industrious woman.”
    Who says I will never be queen? The thought slipped unbidden to her mind. It was something she had long pondered, but of course, the whole thing was impossible. If Jonathan succeeded Father, his wife, Sarah, would be queen. But what if he didn’t? If the rumors were true . . . But her mother would not understand the direction of her traitorous thoughts.
    “So what should I do?”
    The braying of a donkey and the creaking of an