FOUR BROTHERS EXPECTED FOUR QUIET BRIDES — THEN ONE SISTER ARRIVED WITH A BLOODY SECRET

FOUR BROTHERS EXPECTED FOUR QUIET BRIDES — THEN ONE SISTER ARRIVED WITH A BLOODY SECRET ❄️

The train whistle vanished into the Montana night.

Ethan Walker stared at the four women standing beside the frozen platform.

He had expected four brides.

He had not expected four sisters who looked as though they had survived a war.

His brothers stood behind him.

Caleb.

Jonah.

Samuel.

Four men who had spent years building a ranch in the Bitterroot Mountains.

Four men who had written letters to a marriage agency in Chicago because winter loneliness had become harder to endure than hard labor.

Ethan unfolded the agency papers.

“Which one of you is Rebecca?”

A tall brunette stepped forward.

“I am.”

“And the others?”

“My sisters.”

Caleb frowned.

“The agency said nothing about sisters.”

Rebecca gave him a tired smile.

“The agency left out quite a lot.”

Jonah glanced at their battered luggage.

“How much?”

Rebecca looked toward the mountains.

“Enough to make us desperate.”

Nobody laughed.

Samuel finally pointed toward the wagon.

“Get in. Storm's coming.”

They climbed aboard.

The ride to the Walker ranch took nearly three hours.

Snow hammered the wagon.

The youngest sister, Lily, shivered beneath an old blanket.

Samuel silently removed his coat and placed it around her shoulders.

She looked surprised.

“Thank you.”

He nodded.

“Don't mention it.”

Rebecca noticed.

For the first time that evening, she wondered if Montana might not be as frightening as she had imagined.

Then they reached the ranch.

Her hope disappeared.

The cabin was small.

One bedroom.

A kitchen with cracked walls.

A roof patched with tin.

Caleb opened the door.

“This is home.”

Rebecca stared.

“For four men?”