Epilogue

EPILOGUE

T he two of them were married a few days later, and after church the next week, they decided it was time. Even though Abraham hadn't been up in the hay loft in the past few days, they'd kept the crate with Penny the bunny in it next to their marriage bed in the house. And Penny had recently begun escaping from the box, letting them know it was time to release her back into the wild.

He took his wife by the hand and led her out to back pasture, in a place that wasn't too close to the horses and there was a thicket nearby and pond. The area seemed like a good place. Then the two of them knelt down with the crate.

Sadie reached out and pet the bunny between the ears. "Maybe she'll find her mother again out here."

"Likely. I don't think that rabbits tend to stray too far from their territory."

"It will be fun to see a rabbit and wonder if it's this little girl. They all look so much a like it will be hard to tell."

"I hope that we'll be able to tell anyway."

"I hope so too."

Abraham picked up the bunny from the box with both hands, since she'd gotten so big in the month they'd raised her, and he set her on the ground. For a long moment, the rabbit just sat there between his feet.

"She's not leaving."

He nudged her with the toe of his boot, and immediately, the rabbit leapt forward and darted away without looking back. "She's free. Just as she should be."

"At least at this size, hopefully she won't be hunted by skunks."

"Life's hard, though. So there are wolves and other dangers out there."

She smacked him on the shoulder playfully. "Thanks a lot. You didn't have to remind me of those things."

He shrugged. "I can't help but be this way though."

"I know. My husband is both honorable and honest."

He nodded and pulled her into his embrace, and kissed her on the top of her forehead. "Your husband also adores you."

Leaning back, she smiled up at him. "And loves me too."

He smiled wider. "He does."

And then he leaned in and kissed her, brushing his lips against hers playfully before deepening it and pulling her body tighter against his. Everything in his body hummed with the love that he had for her. His vision of a wife and a life with horses had become a reality, and God willing, the family he desired would soon follow. All because he answered the call to become a mail-order husband.