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wrinkles in their wake.
He wasn't following her thoughts, but Charlie, who along with Risa had made his
way to the front of the crowd, nodded at her.
"Ethan,"
he said, a smile on his face at the memory.
"Exactly,"
Annie said.
"Would
someone mind explaining to me what you're talking about?" Noah said
tightly. If there was something that could help him find Hannah, he wanted to
know now.
"When
Ethan was a young boy," Annie explained, "about Hannah's age, he got
it into his head that he wanted to be a cowboy."
At
the surprise on Noah's face, she shrugged. "Don't ask me. It's a stage
little boys go through. Charlie did too. Anyway, he wanted to be a cowboy and
nothing we said would change his mind. Then one day Charlie and Bart were
arguing about whether the sun rose in the east or set in it, and Pa settled the
argument by announcin' that the sun set in the west and would be doin' it in an
hour or two, and they'd best be finishin' their chores before dark. Well, just
before dark we noticed Ethan was missing. We looked everywhere: the barn, the
pasture, everywhere."
"Then
Annie put two and two together," Charlie said. "As usual. Ethan
wanted to go west, and now he knew which way that was. We followed the sun and
found him about a mile from the house, sittin' by the side of the road eating
one of Annie's cookies from a sack he'd taken with him."
"The
point is," Annie said, "Hannah must have been going somewheres. All
you gotta do is figure out where she wanted to go."
Noah
looked impressed, but to Annie it was a simple matter of experience. If
seventeen years of watching little ones didn't make you some kind of expert,
she didn't know what would.
Noah,
his breathing a little more regular, his shoulders slightly more relaxed,
looked at the little girl in his arms. "Julie honey, did Hannah say where
she was going? Did she say what she wanted?"
Julia's
deep blue eyes got big and round and her chubby finger came out of her mouth
and pointed at Annie. Well, that wasn't much help. Here Annie was and there was
no sign of Hannah. And she hadn't been down by the oak grove, either.
"Della,"
Annie said, turning to her sister, whose attention was focused on her own
children. "What was she doing before you noticed she was gone?"
Della
answered without looking up, busy with the twins. Apparently, Samuel had just
put something in James's mouth and Della demanded that he spit it out. When an
earthworm landed in her palm, she swayed slightly. With a sigh, she said,
"I really didn't notice. She was going on and on about cookies, but the
boys were—Samuel!" Her hand was below her son's chin. "Spit yours
out. Now!"
"Well,"
Charlie surmised. "Sounds like Hannah's got a crush on our Annie."
"Or
her cookies," someone in the crowd said, laughing. "I know I'd walk
clear to Columbus for one of her pies!"
"You
don't think she'd try to walk all the way to the Morrows' farm, do you?"
someone else asked.
Charlie
was scanning the horizon looking due south toward his sister's home. "I wouldn't
think she'd even know the way."
Risa,
one finger in the air as if she was pointing at an idea, said something about
being right back. While Annie tried to soothe a very frightened Julia and keep
Noah calm at the same time, she watched her sister-in-law make a beeline for
Annie's wagon.
"No,"
she said, shaking her head. "How would she know which one was mine?"
But
Risa was already there, pulling back a blanket that was tucked under the seat.
Soon it was clear she was talking to someone, but the words were lost in the
distance. A small head emerged over the wooden slats of the buck-board and
there was a flash of pink in the sunshine.
"Hannah!"
Noah yelled, as much in relief as anger. "Well, I'll be damned!"
Without asking, he deposited Julia in Annie's arms and in just a few strides he
was at her wagon and lifting Hannah over the side. Annie rushed after him,
along with most of the crowd that was left.
Noah
was clutching his daughter to him, his features
He wasn't following her thoughts, but Charlie, who along with Risa had made his
way to the front of the crowd, nodded at her.
"Ethan,"
he said, a smile on his face at the memory.
"Exactly,"
Annie said.
"Would
someone mind explaining to me what you're talking about?" Noah said
tightly. If there was something that could help him find Hannah, he wanted to
know now.
"When
Ethan was a young boy," Annie explained, "about Hannah's age, he got
it into his head that he wanted to be a cowboy."
At
the surprise on Noah's face, she shrugged. "Don't ask me. It's a stage
little boys go through. Charlie did too. Anyway, he wanted to be a cowboy and
nothing we said would change his mind. Then one day Charlie and Bart were
arguing about whether the sun rose in the east or set in it, and Pa settled the
argument by announcin' that the sun set in the west and would be doin' it in an
hour or two, and they'd best be finishin' their chores before dark. Well, just
before dark we noticed Ethan was missing. We looked everywhere: the barn, the
pasture, everywhere."
"Then
Annie put two and two together," Charlie said. "As usual. Ethan
wanted to go west, and now he knew which way that was. We followed the sun and
found him about a mile from the house, sittin' by the side of the road eating
one of Annie's cookies from a sack he'd taken with him."
"The
point is," Annie said, "Hannah must have been going somewheres. All
you gotta do is figure out where she wanted to go."
Noah
looked impressed, but to Annie it was a simple matter of experience. If
seventeen years of watching little ones didn't make you some kind of expert,
she didn't know what would.
Noah,
his breathing a little more regular, his shoulders slightly more relaxed,
looked at the little girl in his arms. "Julie honey, did Hannah say where
she was going? Did she say what she wanted?"
Julia's
deep blue eyes got big and round and her chubby finger came out of her mouth
and pointed at Annie. Well, that wasn't much help. Here Annie was and there was
no sign of Hannah. And she hadn't been down by the oak grove, either.
"Della,"
Annie said, turning to her sister, whose attention was focused on her own
children. "What was she doing before you noticed she was gone?"
Della
answered without looking up, busy with the twins. Apparently, Samuel had just
put something in James's mouth and Della demanded that he spit it out. When an
earthworm landed in her palm, she swayed slightly. With a sigh, she said,
"I really didn't notice. She was going on and on about cookies, but the
boys were—Samuel!" Her hand was below her son's chin. "Spit yours
out. Now!"
"Well,"
Charlie surmised. "Sounds like Hannah's got a crush on our Annie."
"Or
her cookies," someone in the crowd said, laughing. "I know I'd walk
clear to Columbus for one of her pies!"
"You
don't think she'd try to walk all the way to the Morrows' farm, do you?"
someone else asked.
Charlie
was scanning the horizon looking due south toward his sister's home. "I wouldn't
think she'd even know the way."
Risa,
one finger in the air as if she was pointing at an idea, said something about
being right back. While Annie tried to soothe a very frightened Julia and keep
Noah calm at the same time, she watched her sister-in-law make a beeline for
Annie's wagon.
"No,"
she said, shaking her head. "How would she know which one was mine?"
But
Risa was already there, pulling back a blanket that was tucked under the seat.
Soon it was clear she was talking to someone, but the words were lost in the
distance. A small head emerged over the wooden slats of the buck-board and
there was a flash of pink in the sunshine.
"Hannah!"
Noah yelled, as much in relief as anger. "Well, I'll be damned!"
Without asking, he deposited Julia in Annie's arms and in just a few strides he
was at her wagon and lifting Hannah over the side. Annie rushed after him,
along with most of the crowd that was left.
Noah
was clutching his daughter to him, his features
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