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ran back to the house. Ezra was still staring after her when she stole a glance over her shoulder.
    That night the joy was still in her heart, and she had baked his favorite dessert—minced apple pie. Not one thought of Daniel had raced through her mind. Her love…her heart…now belonged to Ezra alone.
    And so the joy had remained the rest of the spring and on into summer as her body swelled. Katie had been born that October, but not before fear had also arrived to haunt the edges of Emma’s mind. She turned to worrying that with the coming of the cold winter the joy of her love for Ezra would be driven away by the chill and the ice. What if it could leave as easily as it had come in the spring?
    Again it was Katie who had driven the darkness away. At Katie’s first cry, the flush of love enveloped Emma. Surely this joy could go on, and on, and on—and it had. So long as Katie was near, so was joy. At age one, it was Katie kicking her feet on the blanket beside the woodstove that distracted Ezra even from his beloved Budget . At age three, it was Katie who welcomed Ezra in from the fields. Her shrieks of delight sending a smile across his face when he appeared in the kitchen doorway.
    Katie became the center of their home. Was this why there had never been other children? Emma had wanted more, but a person could not make Da Hah ’s will happen just by desiring something. She’d desired more of this happiness but wanted nothing to threaten what they had. Had she, perhaps, brought trouble into their lives? Had Da Hah ’s displeasure grown strong against her because of her selfishness?
    In the midst of their happiness, Ezra had been taken. So suddenly. So completely. And she’d been left alone with Katie. And the years had rolled on. Silent years. Empty…yet with Katie still providing a measure of joy in the house.
    But now Katie was changing. Was becoming what she, Emma, had been all those years ago. It was now Katie who was reaching high where no common woman ought to reach. Emma’s sins had come full circle. Katie, the one who had brought such blessings, was now bringing back the pain of the past. All while her mamm hadn’t been paying attention, expecting life to go on like always.
    And now this business with Jesse Mast. Apparently with Katie in sympathy to his plight. How like Katie to see only joy everywhere. But joy wasn’t guaranteed. It came only for a moment and was soon snatched away. Dreams couldn’t keep joy alive. Ezra had proven that. And now she would have to teach this to Katie—must make her understand. Katie must not disturb the life they now lived lest something even worse come upon them both.
    Emma stood and paced the floor. Everything was quiet upstairs. Katie must be sleeping . Perhaps tomorrow they could speak more of this matter. Katie would have to accept things the way they were, that’s all there was to it. Emma stood by the living room window and looked out at the falling darkness. Off in the distance a dim lantern light flickered in a window and then went out as she watched. Katie must never be allowed to experience the sorrow and pain I’ve lived with for so long. Never .

Chapter Six
    The following morning, Jesse Mast awoke before the alarm went off. His body was still weary after the night’s sleep, but he pulled himself out of bed and pushed aside the dark curtains. He studied the dawn-streaked sky, wondering why he was so tired. When Millie was alive, he’d gone to bed much later than he had last night, and yet he’d awakened refreshed and ready to face the day. Now that she was gone, it seemed the cancer had taken so much more than just Millie. It had also taken his strength, his hope, and even his desire to get out of bed in the morning.
    Yet the farm needed care. Crops didn’t stop growing just because a man’s frau died. The cows still gave their milk. Everything went on as before. Except a man’s heart—his heart—now had a hole in it that grew larger each day. Am