A Daughter's Quest Read Online Free Page A

him again. Jackson was trying not to laugh.
    “Are you crazy or something?” Hans surged to his feet and moved around the room. “It’s not funny. You’re my pastor as well as my friend. I need to know what to do about these… feelings. I’ve always been able to control my emotions. Actually, no other woman has caused so much havoc in them. I know what lust is, and I don’t believe that’s what I feel, but I wonder if it’s more than I should be feeling. I really want to get to know her, but I’m not sure she’s honest.”
    A sober expression replaced the smile on Jackson’s face. “I didn’t mean to make light of what’s happening to you. It’s not a sin to want to get to know a woman. She may be passing through town, or she may be looking for a home here.” He stopped for a moment as if mulling over something. “Just what about her makes you think she’s not honest?”
    Hans rubbed a hand across the back of his neck. “Nothing specific. I’ve seen her at the store a couple of times, and she didn’t buy anything. She seemed to be listening in on conversations.”
    “Are you sure?”
    Hans pictured the times, running through every move she made. “No, I’m not. But is it wrong to feel drawn to her since I don’t know anything about her?”

three
    Bright spring sunshine gave Sunday a heavenly glow, increasing the intensity of the color of new leaves on the trees and of multicolored buds peeking between greenery on the ground. Constance felt confident that she would look as good as anyone else at the church service because she was wearing another of the dresses she had purchased before she left Fort Smith. Her straw bonnet was decorated with silk flowers that complemented the light green ribbon matching her gown. She had never worn a pair of white cotton gloves before, but the woman at the store assured her that most women wore them to church. Of course, Constance wondered how they kept them clean. Maybe she would remove them and put them in her reticule when she was in the building.
    She loved all the beauty of the day, but something about this prairie land made her feel unsettled. The mountains back home seemed to hold the sky high above her. Here there was so much blue spread from horizon to horizon that it almost pressed down against her. She wished for a few peaks to lift it up.
    As she approached the building with its steeple topped by a small cross that stretched toward the heavens, she was glad to see so many other people streaming toward it. Many walked in family groups, but others rode horses or wagons. A few had fancy buggies such as she had never seen before.
    Although Constance wouldn’t be in Iowa long, she might like to meet a few other Christians. Back home, the circuit-riding preacher didn’t get to their settlement more than once a month. On the other Sundays, her family and their neighbors had an all day singing and dinner on the grounds. It was the highlight of the week, a time when everyone rested from the hard labor of their days and enjoyed Christian fellowship. Constance missed a lot of those gatherings while her father was sick, and she left home soon after he was buried. She shed her tears of grief during the long hours of the night, because her days were busy.
    She had traveled first to Fort Smith, where she had spent a couple of weeks obtaining her wardrobe and learning about travel by stagecoach and about the state of Iowa. After that, she had headed to Browning City. During that time, Constance had felt very alone, afraid of the people around her. Not one of them had reached out to her. Hopefully, today would be different. She knew she could trust people who loved God.
    When she entered the building, light from outside came through the frosted windowpanes that lined the sides of the room. A single, stained-glass window above the hand-carved pulpit drew her attention. The Good Shepherd held a tiny sheep in His arms against His snowy robe. As a child, she had heard the