Maummi intoned in a loud voice, “no cracks.”
Emma placed a hand on each of her grandmother’s upper arms and squeezed comfortingly. An odd pair they must have looked, she with her back to the river and Maummi’s gaze fixed over her shoulder on the hutch.
“What we need to do is roll the wagon backward a little. Not too much, because there’s some pretty deep sand this side of that ledge, and if the wheel gets moored in that, she’ll tip for sure.”
Maummi moaned and clutched Emma’s arms. Her fingers dug into the soft flesh, as if by holding more tightly to her granddaughter, she could keep the wagon upright.
“Once that axle is clear, we’re going to have to pull it out at a sharp angle. It will take a mighty strong and steady hand leading those oxen.”
From the corner of her eye, she saw Papa’s shoulders straighten. “Amish hands are strong.”
“Judging by your handshake, I’d have to agree.” Emma heard the smile in Luke’s voice and fought a powerful temptation to turn so she could see his expression. Keep your eyes cast down…
The older cowboy stepped up beside Emma and removed his hat. Though he looked to be around the same age as Maummi, deep lines crisscrossed the leathery skin of his face, which was shaved clean like an Amish youth. “Ladies, you might want to stand back a piece, out of the way.”
Emma realized they were standing directly in the path the wagon would travel when it came out of the water. “Oh, of course. Maummi, we’ll watch from over here.”
She guided her reluctant grandmother to their hired cart, where the boy was busy unloading their purchases and piling them on the ground. Rebecca made a pretense of picking up a light crate, but she moved so slowly to place it near the others that it would have gotten there faster if it had grown legs and walked by itself. Emma could hardly blame her, and not because of the sight of men’s chests. The fate of their wagon and belongings were at risk.
The boy placed the last sack on the ground and leaped back up onto the bench.
Emma went to stand beside the cart and looked up at him. “You’ll wait a moment, please? To see everything’s fit for our wagon to travel?”
He cast an anxious glance toward the darkening sky to the northwest but then gave her a reluctant nod.
“Danki.” She went to stand beside Maummi and Rebecca to watch Luke’s plan unfold.
Luke helped Jonas and Griff hitch the new oxen to the stranded wagon.
“I hope this works.” Jesse’s tone announced his skepticism for all to hear.
A worry that he might be right niggled deep in Luke’s mind as he double-checked the knots. The oxen’s yoke wasn’t usable because of the angle of the wagon on the bank, so they were forced to use rope. That back wheel was sunk pretty low, and when the wagon backed up, it was going to take brute strength in the water to keep it level enough to tip it up over the ledge so it could be pulled forward. There was no telling how heavy that hutch was, but no way could one man lift it on his own. He hoped he, Jesse, Willie, and Charlie could handle it between the four of them.
Even Jonas’s confidence seemed uncertain. He left Griff holding the oxen steady long enough to follow Luke to the river’s edge. “If the wagon turns over, mind you are not beneath it.”
Luke grinned. “You worried about me, Jonas?”
His expression remained solemn. “Possessions are not worth a man’s life.” A pause, and then he smiled. “Not even an Englisch man’s.”
Luke laughed and slapped him on the shoulder. “Rest easy. I don’t plan to be under that wagon when it breaks loose.”
Jonas returned to the oxen’s heads, while Jesse, Charlie, and Willie splashed into the water to take their places around the rear of the rig. Over by the cart, the women stood side by side, the hems of their black skirts sweeping the grass. Luke gave a single wave intended to relay his confidence—a conviction he didn’t feel. This thing could be in here forever.
Rebecca lifted an arm above her head and returned the gesture with enthusiasm, while Mrs. Switzer raised both hands in front of her mouth in a posture of prayer. Emma’s only response was to loop an arm through her grandmother’s elbow. Not even a smile for luck.
He plunged in and waded through the rising