Bride's Flight from Virginia City, Montana (32 page)

Lynndae laughed into his shirt. “I would have got the boys to throw you out on your ear.”

Zeph carefully lifted the new Stetson and kissed the top of her head. “So there you have it. The journey was hard and not without its moments of great darkness, but in the end it was a miracle. With the kind of ending to the story I’m holding in my arms right now, I’d do it again. And again. There is no doubt of that in my mind, and there shouldn’t be any in yours.”

“There isn’t.”

“Then we are in agreement.”

All the land was sheeted in copper and gold now, and Zeph tilted her face back into the sunlight.

“Look at you,” he whispered, “my lovely palomino, ready to throw back her head and toss her golden mane and fly across God’s earth like a shooting star. I love you.”

Lynndae was about to respond with the same three words when she felt him slip something cool and round and thin on her finger. She pulled back in surprise and sat upright in her saddle, looking at her left hand. A ring and its jewels sparkled in the setting sun.

“Z!” she exclaimed.

“The sapphire is for your eyes, of course, those eternal windows to your soul. But the amethyst is there for the same reason. I was able to procure two of a deeper shade of violet, the shade that comes over your eyes in certain moods and changes in the weather. Did you know the British crown jewels have amethyst? I had them put these four stones in a circle around the diamond. You understand that the diamond is you, all of you, in one perfect gem? It catches the light, makes rainbows, shines like the moon and stars and all the heavens. That about says it all, don’t you think?”

Lynndae didn’t want to cry, but the tears came anyway. “Oh, Z, what girl was ever given such a beautiful ring in such a beautiful place by such a beautiful man?”

“I just wanted to make it official. And I was waiting for the right moment.” Zeph put his hand under her chin again and gently lifted her face toward his. “Lynndae Sharlayne Raber, will you make me the happiest man on earth? Will you be my bride?”

Lynndae cried out and threw her arms around his neck. She kissed him so hard and so long he didn’t know if she would ever let him go. When she finally did, he caught his breath and asked, “Is that what you call a yes in Amish?”

She laughed a silver laugh and took him in her arms again. Just as she did so a shooting star streaked across the Montana night. A good shiver went up her spine.

“Don’t ever leave me,” she whispered.

He kissed her forehead so lightly she thought it was moonlight.

“Don’t worry,” he said, “in this story we ride as one from here on in.”

Author, Baptist pastor, and historian, Murray Pura began writing at an early age. He has since published numerous works of both fiction and nonfiction. Murray lives in Canada where he enjoys the frontier landscape and its people. To learn more about Murray, visit his website at
www.murraypura.com
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Discussion Questions

1. Charlotte Spence is a woman on her own who has to run a large ranch. Can you identify with her situation in any way? Are there things you have had to do on your own, without help from a boyfriend or spouse, that have called on inner resources of faith and strength you might not have been sure you had?
   

2. There are many men in Charlotte’s life, including a pastor brother of Zephaniah Parker’s. What traits or aspects of Zephaniah’s personality do you think draw Charlotte to him rather than to the other men around her? Would you feel the same degree of attraction or not to those traits?
   

3. Charlotte has many secrets, and she does not confide in Zephaniah regarding many of them. Why do you think she chooses not to do so? Do you think keeping her secrets from Zephaniah was a good decision? Is it right to keep secrets from those you love?
   

4. Charlotte has no children of her own, yet she treats the two orphaned children like gold. Can you explain why she might have such strong affection for the boy and girl and why she is willing to risk her life to save them? Do you know people like Charlotte?
   

5. What is it about Charlotte’s personality do you think Zephaniah likes the most? Do you understand why he reacts so strongly when he finds out she has been keeping secrets from him? Do you feel he is overreacting? How would you feel if someone close to you did the same thing to you?
   

6. Zephaniah is reluctant to carry a firearm because of his negative experiences during the Civil War. Do you empathize with him, or do you feel he is being unrealistic about what is required for self-defense or the defense of others? Why does he finally feel he must use a gun? What is your stance on self-defense and the use of guns and where God stands in it all?
   

7. How close do you think Charlotte is to the Amish and their faith? Out West in Montana, it seemed like she had severed her ties with them forever. Back in Pennsylvania, do you think her feelings about cutting herself off from all things Amish undergo a drastic change? Have you ever undergone such a thawing of hard feelings towards others over a period of time?
   

8. How important is the Bible Zephaniah carries with him and Charlotte? How often do they consult it? Does their Christian faith make a great deal of difference to what they decide to do on a day-to-day basis or not? Do you try to use the Bible in the same way, or do you find it difficult to have quiet time with the scriptures every day?
   

9. What circumstances do you feel combined to make Charlotte’s brother into a hard-hearted killer? Why did he finally repent of his life of crime and violence? Do you think his repentance was sincere? Have you known people like him—perhaps not murderers—who drastically changed their ways because of returning to God, whether on their deathbed or not?
   

10. Why are the Amish able to embrace Charlotte’s brother in death when they could not embrace him while he was alive? Do you think they should have shunned the Raber family to begin with? Could they have done more to reach out to Charlotte’s brother during his lifetime? What are your own opinions about church discipline directed towards individuals and families?
    

11. Charlotte (Lynndae Raber) and Zephaniah face a hard decision over whether to stay in Pennsylvania and adopt an Amish lifestyle or return to Montana. If you were in their shoes, what might you have done? Stayed or returned? How have you handled decisions to move or stay put when the choice to go or stay was in your own hands and prayers?
    

12. How do you think Charlotte (Lynndae) and Zephaniah will make out as a married couple? They both have strong personalities, and Charlotte has been used to making her own decisions and running things her way—how will she adjust to making those decisions alongside a husband, and how will Zephaniah adjust to her strong will? How easy is it going to be to combine their ranches? If you were their pastor and counseling them before their wedding, what four things might you emphasize when it came to offering advice on how to work things through together?