A Bride for Andrew by Cat Cahill

Author:Cat Cahill [Cahill, Cat]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Cat Cahill
Published: 2020-10-06T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

“Aunt Ivy!” Oliver flung himself through the kitchen door.

Ivy glanced up from the stew she stirred on the stove while Sarah arranged her doll on one of the chairs at the table. “Did you wash up? And have you seen Uncle Andrew?” It was midday—the time his stomach usually led him back to the house.

“Not yet, but I have a problem.” He frowned, looking every inch the serious young man.

Ivy set the wooden spoon down and went to him. “What is it?”

“It’s Henry,” Oliver said, referring to one of the mules.

“Is he sick?”

“No . . . He’s here.” Oliver gestured behind him out the door.

Ivy raised her eyebrows. Andrew hadn’t taken the mules out into the fields with him that morning, which meant they should be in the corral. She took a step toward the door to see out, and sure enough, there stood Henry, taking his own lunch on the blades of grass behind the house. She moved out onto the back steps, Oliver behind her.

“Oliver. How did Henry get out of the corral?” Ivy asked while keeping an eye on the mule.

“It was an accident. I was checking their water trough, like Uncle Andrew told me, and he got out. And now I can’t get him back in.” The boy looked up at her anxiously. “He’s going to be so angry with me.”

Ivy nodded. “And rightly so. Henry could have run away. It costs a lot of money to buy a mule.”

“Please, can you help me get him back into the corral?” Oliver looked at her with desperation in his eyes.

Ivy’s heart melted for her nephew. He wanted so badly to be helpful, and he took everything so very seriously. “Of course I will.”

She approached the mule, talking to him softly. Ivy hadn’t spent much time with the mules, but she figured it couldn’t be too hard to get Henry’s attention and lead him back to the corral.

“Hello, sweet boy,” she said, stroking his nose. Henry looked at her with his soulful brown eyes. “Come along. Let’s get you back to where you belong.”

His long, velvety ears twitched, but he didn’t move when she stepped back and called to him.

“Henry, follow me!” she called again.

The mule simply continued to stare at her and chew grass while Oliver and Sarah watched from the little back porch. Perhaps if she guided him, he’d understand what she wanted him to do.

He wore nothing Ivy could use to lead him, and she certainly couldn’t throw herself onto his back and ride him to the corral without a saddle. Perhaps that was what she needed—a saddle and a bridle. There was only one problem with that solution, and it was that she’d have to leave Henry here. What if he ran off and the children couldn’t catch him?

“Maybe he’s hungry?” Oliver suggested.

“That’s a good idea,” Ivy replied. “Why don’t you and Sarah fetch some of those carrots from the root cellar?”

The children scampered off, and Ivy tried calling to Henry again.

“What is Henry doing back here?”

The sound of Andrew’s voice made Ivy jump.

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