Free Ruby (Orlan Orphans Book 2) by Kirsten Osbourne Page B

couldn't seem to keep a wife?
    "I didn't see her today at all."  Penny barely looked up from her sewing.  "She probably went out to talk to Edna Petunia or something."
    "Maybe.  Listen, would you watch the store while I run over and see if she left me a note or something?"
    "Of course!"
    "Watch the boys as well."  Lewis all but ran from the store, determined to find where his wife had gone.  She wasn't the type to just run off, but he knew he'd made her angry that afternoon.  Surely she wouldn't have used that as an excuse to leave him.
    He went into their bedroom, searching for any clues as to her whereabouts.  All of her clothes were still there.  He opened the small box she kept on the dresser that held her prized possessions and picked up a piece of paper on the top.  He read over it quickly, his eyes closing.  So that's where she'd gone.  She was going to New York to be with David. 
    But why had she left her clothes behind?  And her money was sitting right there in the bottom of the box.  She would have taken that, he knew.  So where was she?  Maybe she was letting Edna Petunia know she was headed back to New York.  After living with the woman for a year, she owed her at least that.
    He went back down to the store.  "I'm going out to your house to see if I can find her.  I'll close early.  Do you want a ride home?"
    "Can you give me five minutes?" she asked.
    "Just meet me out front.  I need to hitch up the buggy."  He wasn't wasting any time.  He needed to convince Ruby not to go.
    He hurried off, the boys following him to the stable.  By the time he stopped in front of the store, Penny was waiting out front for him.  He jumped down to help her up, before running back to the store to lock up.
    On the drive, he decided to quiz Penny in a low voice.  "Tell me about David."
    Penny frowned as she looked at him.  "David?  Ruby's beau in New York?"
    "Yeah, unless there's another David I need to know about."
    She shrugged.  "I always thought he was really boring, but he was handsome.  The only thing that made him interesting at all was that Ruby loved him so much, or at least, she thought she did.  He was really easy for her to boss around.  She'd tell him to do something, and he'd do it.  I know Ruby doesn't seem bossy, but all of us listen to her."
    "So you didn't think much of David?"  He was surprised.  He'd gotten the impression that everyone was waiting for them to marry.
    "I'm glad she married you," Penny said simply.  "David would have been a mistake for her."
    "Does she feel that way?" he asked.
    "She married you, didn't she?"
    When they pulled up in front of her house, Penny jumped down without help.  Lewis followed her to the door.  "Edna Petunia's probably in the kitchen.  Do you want me to get her?"
    Lewis shook his head.  "I'll go talk to her there."
    When he stepped into the kitchen, he couldn't help but smile.  Three girls were helping with the supper preparations while Edna Petunia directed each of them.  Only one girl was off in the corner, throwing some things into a pot.  He assumed she was Sarah Jane, the one Ruby talked about cooking.
    It only took him a few questions to realize Ruby hadn't been there that day at all.  "Was she upset at all when she left?" Edna Petunia asked.
    "Maybe a little," he said, thinking about their argument.  He hoped she wouldn't ask why, because he didn't want to explain about their fight to her.
    "Then she probably went to see Cassie Hayes.  Cassie raised her, and Ruby thinks of her as a mother figure.  Not me."  Edna seemed a little sad when she said that.
    "I'll go there and check on her then.  Thank you."
    "You're welcome.  If she's not home, she probably didn't cook. You should all join us for supper when you find her."
    Lewis couldn't help but smile.  "We'll do that."

Chapter Nine
     
     
    By the time Lewis found the cabin where the Hayes lived, he was almost in a panic.  Had something happened to her?  Had she taken