They had arranged with a neighbor’s boy, Mosey Scull, who lived further along the creek below the farm house, to do the feeding in their absence; it was winter, there was no need to hurry home.
When they got home they found Mosey in the act of watering two very dejected and dirty looking horses with saddles on their backs.
“Where did they come from?” shouted the big freight-wagon load in unison.
“I found them tied to the fence up at the orchard. By the way they act I’d think they hadn’t been watered or fed for several days,” replied the boy.
“You dummy!” said old Harshbarger, in Dutch. “Somebody’s in that cave, and got lost, and can’t get out.”
He jumped from the heavy wagon and ran to a corner of the corncrib, where he kept a stock of torches. Then he hurried up the steep hill towards the entrance to the “dry” cave. The big man was panting when he reached[reached] the opening, where he paused a moment to kindle a torch with his flints. Then he lowered himself into the aperture, shouting at the top of his voice, “Hello! Hello! Hello!”
It was not until he had gotten into the first chamber that the captives in the inner room could hear him. Sargeant had been sitting with his back propped against the cavern wall, while Caroline, very pale and white-lipped, was lying across his knees, gazing up into the darkness, imagining that she could see his face.
When they heard the cheery shouts of their deliverer they did not instantly attempt to scramble to their feet. Instead the young lover bent over; his lips touched Caroline’s, who instinctively had raised her face to meet his. As his lips touched hers, he whispered:
“I love you, darling, with all my heart. We will be married when we get out of here.”
Caroline had time to say: “You are my only love,” before their lips came together.