Later, David helps Ishtar light a series of candles in his cave to cast extra light on his worktable. Ishtar arranges his tools carefully on the table then spreads out a bolt of white cloth that has the texture and suppleness of doeskin. Ishtar holds out his hand. “Give me your pouch of crystals, David.” David does.
Ishtar spreads the stones out on top of the fabric and examines each one of them with a gem cutter"s eye glass.
“Do you really think this will work?” David asks.
“It will, if the gridwork pattern is properly constructed.”
“If you recall,” David says, his tone ironic, “it was a gridwork pattern that got me into this predicament.”
“But this time,” the older man replies with a wise twinkle, “you will be wearing it.” As they converse, Ishtar cuts a section of the cloth into a
