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girlhood bed; she hadn’t seen much of Luke the past week and felt distant from him. She sighed aloud and forced herself to focus on her prayers.
    “ Ach , Lord, help me. Help my relationship with Luke to be true. Search my heart, Derr Herr , and find those shadows, those secrets that I would hide even from myself, and bring them to light. Forgive me for spending time chasing after Luke as the man in the woods, and help him just the same. Free him from this stealing. Free me from wanting something like the wind, and not the steadiness of the moment. Thank You for Luke. Thank You, Derr Herr , for my life and my ability to make choices. Give me wisdom, Lord . . . please . . . give me wisdom.”
    Utterly drained, she pulled the covers up to her chin and dreamed fitfully. Tangled blue threads, the color of the wedding dress she was sewing on a bit each day, seemed to stretch from her mind to wrap around her arms and wrists. The thread was thin but confining, and she struggled against the bonds. Then a dark-hooded stranger stood before her and raised a pair of silver shears high. She felt her breath catch in her throat at the slash of silver against the white of her skin, but then the threads were gone and she was free. She called to him because he was running from her, and he turned. The hood fell away, and Luke stood before her. Then he caught her up in a swinging embrace and she laughed, free and clear . . .
    Rose jerked awake and sat straight up in bed. Her heart was pounding and she stared out the window, glad to see the first streaks of the morning sun falling across the hardwood floor of her room. She decided that a walk in the woods before breakfast would clear her tangled thoughts, and she hurried to dress. She wanted to slip away before anyone would notice she was gone. She needed some time to herself to consider her dream.
    But when she crept downstairs, it was to find everyone wide-awake and already halfway through breakfast at the kitchen table. “ Mamm ,” she cried in dismay. “Why didn’t you call me to help with the meal?”
    Ben laughed. “We all called you, but you slept like the dead! Don’t you remember that today’s the first day of the fair?”
    Rose bit her lip as she accepted a bowl of steaming oatmeal from her mother and sat down at the table. “I guess I forgot,” she mumbled.
    The first fall fair in the area was something her family always attended together, but after her poor night’s sleep, the outing held little appeal. She kept seeing the moment in her dream when the stranger’s hood fell backward to reveal Luke’s face.
    “As is right,” her father remarked, scraping the last of his plate. “Probably dreaming of your wedding coming, like any girl would.”
    Rose concentrated on the wet lumps of her oatmeal and didn’t lift her head. She had no desire to talk about dreaming—wedding or otherwise.
    “Are you feeling well, Rosie?” Aenti Tabby asked softly.
    A sudden inspiration struck Rose. “Well, actually . . . if you all wouldn’t mind—I wonder if I might stay home today to do some sewing on my wedding dress. I’ve barely pieced the pattern yet, and I feel like time is running away from me.”
    She saw her mother glance down the table to her father’s warm eyes.
    “ Ya , Rose.” Mamm smiled. “Just for today. Some time alone may be gut for you.”
    Rose nodded. “Danki.”
    James held his plate out for more sausage. “ Ya , Rose, but just don’t go entertaining any Rob in the Hood while we’re gone. Luke Lantz might take offense.”
    She frowned as both of her brothers laughed, and told herself that she’d had enough of fairy tales for a while.

    O NCE SHE’D HELPED CLEAN UP BREAKFAST, THEN WAVED the family off, she decided that a walk in the brisk sunshine would do her good before beginning hours of sewing. Of their own accord, her feet seemed to lead to the forest behind her home. She spent a peaceful half hour praying as she walked, collecting the reddest