The Bronze Bow

One August morning, Daniel receives a message from Simon that his grandmother is dying. After waiting half a day, he shows the message to Rosh and heads home. The door of the house is bolted, and no one responds to his knock. Two women hurry to him, scolding him that his grandmother and sister have been locked in there for 10 days. No one knows if they are alive or dead. Though the women tossed bread through the window, they didn’t break in because they believe Leah to be possessed. Climbing to a high window, Daniel asks Leah to let him in. Daniel longs to escape the horrors of the house. When he breaks down the door, Leah darts into the shadows and coils into a ball. To Daniel’s relief, his grandmother turns her head and whispers her last words: “Daniel—you’ve come” (114).

Daniel calls for a doctor and tries to coax his grandmother into sipping some broth. All the while, Leah doesn’t move other than to slightly turn her head and watch him from behind her tangled hair. Daniel wonders if the devils have taken possession of her altogether after she was shut in the dark.