Alice was vaguely aware of being picked up. But she was too frightened to resist. When she heard the other man speak, she briefly considered calling out for help. She knew that if father took her home now, she was going to marry Tobias. But she remembered what he had said before she had run away. If she didn't work along, she'd become a burden to her siblings. How could she even begin to fight against that? And so she stayed still in her father's arms as if she was unconscious. It made little difference.

"Thank you, but we're fine, really," she heard her father say, and she felt herself being carried away.