Free His Brother's Bride by Denise Hunter

weariness, she smiled at the word. “Here, Sweetie.” She handed him the canteen and waited while he drank. The coolness of the cave felt good against her warm flesh.
    They continued until they came to a fork. She turned right. When they came to the next fork, she turned left.
    â€œWhat’s for supper? I’m starved.”
    She thought about the contents of their pantry. “How about beans and ham?”
    As they wound through the cavern, they talked about all Adam’s favorite meals. Emily was laughing at his description of zucchini when her gaze fell on the wall up ahead. Her heart stopped. She held the lantern up as the wall came into the fringe of light. A dead end.
    Her heart jumped back to life even as her mouth dried up.
    Adam bumped into her then wrapped an arm around her leg. “Why we stopping?”
    Why was there a wall here? There was supposed to be another fork that would take them to the cave’s entrance. She turned around and looked back where they’d come from. She must’ve taken a wrong turn.
    â€œLet’s go back this way.”
    When they reached the last fork, she turned left, hoping it would set them back on track. But at the end of that corridor, there were three tunnels branching off in the darkness.
    I think we’re lost, Lord.
    â€œWhich way, Ma?”
    Which way? Which way? What if she couldn’t find the way? What if they wandered around this cavern until their lamp flickered out for good?
    Oh, help me, dear God.

Nine
    â€œEmily?” Cade wandered into the kitchen and dried his hands on a towel hanging from a hook. “Adam?” He glanced out the window toward the garden where bright green plants sprung up from the soil. Except for the leaves quivering in the wind, there was no movement there.
    Where could they be? Normally, Adam barreled over to him before he got his horse put up for the night. Today, he was nowhere to be seen. Cade opened the oven door. Cold, gray ashes lay in a heap. She didn’t even have a fire on for supper. He closed the oven door and walked to the foot of the stairs, scratching his stubbly chin.
    â€œEmily? Adam?” His words echoed off the walls, then silence.
    Hmm. Where could they be? He paced across the room, hunger clawing at his stomach. She always had supper on when he got home—usually had it on the table. Except the one time when he’d found her in the attic.
    His stomach did a hard flop at the thought, and he told himself it was hunger. Maybe she’s in the attic again. He trotted up the stairs and to the attic door, but it was closed. When he opened it, the pitch-black emptiness greeted him.
    Where could they be? Had they run into town for something? He tried to remember if the wagon had been in its place when he’d put away Sutter. His mind had been elsewhere, and he couldn’t be sure.
    He went out to look. When he opened the barn door, the wagon sat off to his left in its usual spot. Sutter stirred in the hay, and Cade went to rub his nose. “Now where’d they take off to, boy, huh?”
    Sutter nudged his nose up in the air and neighed.
    That’s when Cade noticed. Bitsy’s stall was empty. “Now, how’d I miss that?” He walked over to the empty stall as if it would give him some clue where Emily went. “Huh.”
    He heaved a sigh and went back into the house. After waiting awhile, he gave in to his hunger and slathered a piece of bread with marmalade. Had she gone to the mercantile for something? Or over to Mara’s?
    He chawed on the bread, his mind beginning to wander off to places he didn’t want it to go. What if they’d fallen from Bitsy, and Emily or Adam was injured? What if Emily were hurt, and they were too far from home for Adam to get help? What if Adam were trying to find his way and had gotten lost?
    Stop it, Manning. They’d probably just lost track of time, that’s all. Like she had that day in the attic. He