Page 575 of Conveniently Wed
Disappointed, he shook his head. “No.” He glanced over her shoulder. “Are the boys awake?”
“They should wake up from their naps soon.” She looked back at the three babies, one on a pallet on the floor, and the other two sharing the cradle.
“Good. I want to spend time with my sons after I clean up and get something to eat.
He had Mrs. Oleson heat water, hoping a hot bath would help him sleep. He was so tired he could hardly stay on his feet, but his mind wouldn’t let go of the fact that he had to find Lorinda...and soon.
After the bath, he ate the rest of the venison stew from yesterday. He forced each bite down. How could he sit here eating, knowing Lorinda probably didn’t have anything left of the food she’d taken with her? He wondered if Marvin had even shared the food with her. Pain lanced through his heart, and he couldn’t keep tears from forming in his eyes. He wiped both eyes to remove the blur.
Rusty came in from the bunkhouse and sat beside him at the table. “What are we going to do, Boss?”
“Maybe Marvin took her back to the land she and Mike owned. There’s a soddy there where they had stored food.” Hope took root in Franklin’s heart.
Rusty frowned. “Nah, we already looked there. It’s as empty as it was after we moved her provisions down here to the ranch.”
The flicker of hope died. Franklin hadn’t believed he could feel any worse than before, but he did. He was close to wanting to give up, but he couldn’t. He needed Lorinda more than the babies did.
“I don’t know of any place we haven’t searched, even the outlying ranches.” Rusty straddled one of the kitchen chairs and laid his arms along the back. “It’s not looking good, is it?”
His ranch hand stated the obvious, but Franklin wouldn’t accept giving up. “I’ll try to come up with other places for us to search. Of course, Marvin’s mind was so devious and twisted, who could figure out what he was thinking?”
Rusty went back to the bunkhouse.
Franklin got up slowly from the kitchen chair. His discouragement made him move like an old man. Maybe time with the boys would help him feel better.
He asked Mrs. Oleson to help him with the boys. They went into the bedroom and each picked up one of them. They took the babies into the parlor.
He clutched Michael close. He wondered if the babies could sense all the tension. After a few minutes, he started to play with his son. At one point, he wanted to throw him up in the air, because the boy liked it so much. That would get him laughing.Lorinda wouldn’t like it.
No, she wouldn’t. Instead, he sat down and crossed one leg over the other. He settled Michael on his boot and played Ride a Little Horsey with him.
Soon he and Mrs. Oleson exchanged babies. Miriam’s baby settled into Franklin’s arms. He loved holding the younger infant. He’d like to have more babies … with Lorinda.
Molly Malone came to get the babies. She took the baby from Franklin’s arms. “It’s time to feed these two.”
Mrs. Oleson followed her out of the room.
When they were gone, Franklin went to bed. He lay on one side, but couldn’t get comfortable. So he turned on the other side. Same thing. He forced his eyes closed and tried to clear his mind of all thoughts, but Lorinda kept intruding. Why, oh why had he made all the missteps with their relationship? Now hemight never be able to make things right. He gripped his hands into fists, wanting to lash out and hit something...hard.
After tossing and turning for a couple of hours, Franklin got up and put on his warmer clothes. He went out and paced across the drive between the house and the barn, praying. His heart and mind cried out to God, begging for his wife’s safety. He stared up at the heavens and looked at the myriad stars created by God’s hand. God knew where Lorinda was. He wished the Lord would write it in the stars, like a banner.Lorinda is here.Maybe form the stars into an arrow, pointing to the very place.Yeah, like that’s going to happen.
Lord, I love you, and I trust you, but this is hard. Show me what to do.
As he swung around to pace the other direction, a flicker of light caught his attention. What was that? It was too close to the peak of the mountain southwest from the ranch for there to be a house, but still the light remained. He stared at it. Could it be a fire? It didn’t flicker as a fire would. The longer he stared at it, the more the light expanded, then it stopped growing.
While he was a boy, he and Marvin had explored every mountain, canyon, and forest that connected with the ranch. But that light was above the timberline. Franklin followed the sawtooth ridge of peaks around the valley. Could that be where the cave they found was located? He tried to remember every detail of how they found the large cavern. It had been so long ago, he’d completely forgotten about the adventure.
He closed his eyes and let them get used to the total darkness. When he opened them, the bright light was still there, like a star fallen from heaven.Lord, is this a message from you?
Indescribable peace enveloped him, and he no longer felt the bitter cold.
He hurried into the house and awakened Mrs. Oleson.
“What do you need, Franklin?” Sleepiness clung to her. “How can I help you?”
“I know where Lorinda is.” He had to be positive about this thought. Hope was back.
“Where?”
