Joan

by Katherine J. Chen

In these uncertain times, there is nothing quite like the hanging or mutilation of a common criminal to make people feel safe again, to put them in a mood to spend money they don’t have and buy what they don’t need, of which the Duke will receive a small and very reasonable fraction in taxes.

Those who do nothing, who stand by and watch as chaos unravels, who feel that as long as they are alive and in good health, it does not matter what else is happening in front of them, why should they be innocent? They are guilty, too.

She does not wait for an answer to her prayers. God is always silent.