And why is Joseph talking to her like a beau?
She maneuvered herself out her room and to the stairs with more than a little difficulty. Her stomach lurched as she looked down the steep staircase. Her sweaty grip tightened on the banister. “Well, here goes.”
Placing her good foot down first, she leaned on the banister and hopped down the first step.
Whew, that wasn’t so bad. Only twelve more to go.
Trying to be as quiet as possible, Rebekah leaned on the bannister and hopped down the rest of the wooden stairs. A thin film of sweat covered her face like a veil as she neared the floor.
Almost there.
As she hopped off the last step, her hands fluttered to her head to straighten her covering. Instead, her fingers brushed her singed mane. “My covering!”
A brief moment of panic brought on with the prospect of ascending and descending the stairs again was interrupted by the thundering of feet. Thomas skipped past, his heart and eyes set on the partially opened front door. Rebekah saw Joseph’s back come in and out of view as the door swayed in the breeze.
“Thomas.” She swiped at the beads of perspiration that dotted her forehead. “Help!”
Her youngest brother stopped just before he reached the front door. Ever slow, he turned to face her. A hunk of bread, swiped from the kitchen no doubt, protruded from his mouth.
“Hi, th-ithy,” he mumbled through the crumbs.
“Thomas, come here please.”
He shrugged his tiny shoulders and forced down the bite of stolen bread as he ambled over.
“Hi, sissy,” he said more clearly. “Please don’t tell ’bout the bread. I was hungry.”
She ruffled his hair.
“Can you run upstairs for your favorite sister and bring down my covering? It’s in my room.”
He wrinkled his nose.
“Please?”
Thomas looked first at her, then at the door before he allowed his big blue eyes to settle back on Rebekah. “You’re my favorite sister because you’re my only sister.”
“Thanks a lot.”
Thomas sighed. “I guess we do need to cover up that hair. I’ll be right back.” He started up the stairs, slow as molasses in January. After a minute, he’d ascended three steps.
“Thomas?” Rebekah’s voice was gentle.
“Yeah, sissy?”
“Could you please go quickly? For me?”
A gap-toothed grin filled his freckled face. He scratched his nose. “Sure can.”
Thomas disappeared up the stairs as the front door creaked a tell-tale warning.
Someone’s coming in.
“Oh no.”
Rebekah glanced about for a suitable hiding place big enough for a twenty-year-old girl. In her haste, she hadn’t even bothered to dress and still wore her nightgown.
Her thoughts came in quick spurts.
Maybe whoever it is won’t see me if I don’t move.
She sat down on the bottom step and hugged her knees to her chest.
Joseph held open the door and Katie sashayed in. The pair sat down on the seat made for three with their backs to her.
Thank goodness the seat between them is open.
A hot knot formed in her throat.
“So sad about their barn. I heard that you went in and saved their new calf.” Katie’s sing-song voice trilled in the still air. Rebekah closed her eyes.
“Well, you’re half right.” Joseph stood and folded his arms. That was a sure sign that he was either completely comfortable or completely nervous.
“It is unfortunate about the barn, but it wasn’t me who went in for all the animals.” He turned to face Katie and in doing so, faced Rebekah, too. “It was Rebekah.”
“Here you go, sissy!” Thomas’s voice was a screech as he flew down the stairs. In his haste, he tripped.
Rebekah reached out and made an expert save before Thomas crashed to the ground. She patted her littlest brother and sat him down.
