Midnight Rescue (Christy of Cutter Gap)

“Hey, boy-” she began, and then her heart turned cold as stone. Prince was gone! Even in the twilight gloom, she could tell that he was nowhere in the pasture.Young Ruby Mae Morrison and the mission's black stallion vanish in a furious storm and Christy is determined to find them. As Christy desperately searches for Ruby Mae in the cold, blinding rain, she runs headlong into three angry moonshiners bent on revenge against anyone who might try to stop their illegal activities.Can Christy survive this most terrifying test of her faith and courage?Based on Catherine Marshall's novel Christy-a New York Times bestseller-the Christy® of Cutter Gap series contains expanded adventures filled with romance, intrigue, and excitement.About the AuthorCatherine Marshall, New York Times best-selling author of thirty books, is best known for her novel Christy. Based on the life of her mother, a teacher of mountain children in poverty-stricken Tennessee, Christy captured the hearts of millions and became apopular CBS television series. As her mother reminisced around the kitchen table at Evergreen Farm, Catherine probed for details and insights into the rugged lives of these Appalachian highlanders.A beloved inspirational writer and speaker, Catherine's enduring career spanned four decades and six continents, and reached over 30 million readers.Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.Midnight RescueThe Christy of Cutter Gap seriesBy Catherine Marshall Gilead PublishingCopyright © 1995 Marshall-LeSourd, LLCAll rights reserved.ISBN: 978-1-68370-173-6CHAPTER 1"May I have this dance, Miss Huddleston?"Christy Huddleston grinned. "I have to warn you, David. I'm not a very good dancer.""Then we'll make the perfect couple."Christy joined David Grantland on the wide lawn in front of the mission house where she lived. David, the young mission minister, looked especially charming today. He was wearing his best suit, and his dark hair was slicked back neatly. Christy wore her favorite dress, made of bright yellow linen with crisp white lace down the bodice. In her braided, sun-streaked hair she wore a matching yellow bow.Today, Saturday, April 6, 1912, everyone in Cutter Gap was wearing their Sunday-best clothes, which for most people here in this community were not much more than rags. Christy's dress was by far the nicest. It was Miss Alice Henderson's birthday, and Christy and David had arranged a party in her honor.Miss Alice had been a pillar in the community ever since she helped establish the mission school where Christy taught. She cared for the sick and ministered to the needy. And Miss Alice had often been a wise voice in times of trouble. Everyone from this mountain cove knew and respected her. People had even come from as far away as El Pano and Cataleechie, over rugged mountain trails, to attend her birthday party.It was turning out to be quite a celebration too. On this early April afternoon, the air was warm and sweetly scented. The Great Smoky Mountains in this remote corner of Tennessee had finally begun to cast off the winter gloom. Children danced and twirled to the music of dulcimer and fiddle. The mountain women wore sprigs of flowers in their hair. Even Cutter Gap's gruff Dr. Neil MacNeill wore a daffodil in his lapel.It was all so different from the fancy afternoon teas Christy used to attend back home in Asheville, North Carolina. She'd left her well-to-do family to come teach in Cutter Gap just four months ago. When she'd first arrived, these mountain people had seemed backward, poor, and uneducated. Sometimes Christy had even found them frightening. But many things had changed - herself included - in those few short months. And now, when she looked around the lawn, she saw past the shabby clothes and the bare feet. Instead, among the crowd she saw some of her students and her friends. And the memories of Asheville seemed a little dull by comparison.David had just