something terribly wrong by the bewildered expression on his face.
“What’s wrong with you? Are you okay?” she queried.
“I don’t know. I’m having a hard time determining if something really happened or if it was a dream, a bad dream,” he stated.
“ Well, tell me about it.”
“I was so tired that I nodded off. I remember that my boss ordered me and some other guards to arrest this man. He was a teacher from up North. His teachings were popular with the crowds but causing a lot of problems with the leadership. They decided he should be removed quietly and quickly. It was decided it would be best to arrest him at night in an out of the way place.
We got a break when a snitch told us that the teacher would be spending the night on a hillside just outside the city.
Well, our information was accurate. We approached him and had him identified. We began to contain him when his little crowd of students got rambunctious. One of them even pulled out a sword and attacked me. I couldn’t believe it! I was just quick enough to sidestep him, but he was still able to lop off my ear.”
Malchus reaches up to touch his ear as if to make sure it was still there and then continues,” Then it gets stranger. The teacher picks up my ear and reattaches it.
I don’t know which is harder to believe. How could he have done that? Why would he have done that? It’s physically impossible to replace my ear and why would he show me such kindness. That’s why I think it’s a wild dream. But it seemed so real, so real.”
“You are right Malchus, it had to be a dream. It would be impossible to replace your ear once it came off and no one in that position would show you such kindness.
“Thank you my dear for listening to me and you make perfect sense. I’ll be able to go back to sleep now.”
Malchus reclines and as his eyelids lower he sees a bloodstain on his cloak directly below his left ear.