Ruth braided her hair beside him in bed. He playfully flipped her braid when she finished.

"You ever going to tell me who you think's behind this? Were they at the dance?" she asked as she settled down next to him.

He didn't want to cause her pain by telling her he thought it was her family but neither did he want to lie to her. Maybe he could give her the plain facts and let her draw her own conclusions from there. "When we found the chickens Christmas morning, I looked for tracks down around the hill where it wasn't as muddled. I didn't see any tracks but your relatives', the sleigh tracks, and the footprints we made going sledding."

Her eyes widened with surprise and she turned her body toward him so that she could see him more fully. "Why didn't you say anything before?"

"I still don't know who did it for sure. I want to be sure."

Her forehead was wrinkled and her lips pursed as she tried to make sense of it. "It must be Samuel. It has to be but why? I don't even know him."

"Are you sure about that? You sure that it's Samuel?"

"You're not thinking it's someone from my own family?" If she was surprised by the tracks, she was shocked by his query.

"Why couldn't it be?" he challenged.

"Because they're my family." Kid envied Ruth in that moment because she was so sure of their love for her. He wished he could say the same about his family's love for him. She continued, "They wouldn't do something like this. I know them."

"Do you? You'd be surprised what can be simmering below the surface or how things can change in an instant. People you think you've known your whole life…" A lump formed in his throat as he thought again about his family. He swallowed and reached out to touch her hesitantly, unsure if she would recoil with anger. He said softly. "I'm just worried about that conversation you had with your sister."

"It wasn't so bad. I really don't think she meant to hurt my feelings. I may not be her favorite person, but she wouldn't stoop to this. She wouldn't, especially since it's hurting Momma and Daddy too."

He kissed the tip of her nose. "No one could ever doubt your loyalty. I know that much. I guess the thing to do is watch Samuel like a hawk tomorrow at church and see if we can't get a conversation going with him."

"Little chance of that. Anna won't let us in 10 feet of him, but I ain't going to let her go nowhere with him by herself. We'll invite ourselves along if need be."

sss

The pews were half empty Sunday morning just as it had been at the Christmas Eve service. Samuel was one of those absent people, but his brother told Anna it was because of a cold and not because of Ruth.

"Ruth has asked to speak to the congregation," the pastor informed them at the end of his sermon.

"Might I say something first?" Fiona McKenzie said, standing up.

"Of course, Mrs. McKenzie," he agreed.

She didn't move from her spot but raised her voice so they could all hear her plainly. "My granddaughter has been interested in healing since she was a wee girl and went with me on visits often as most of you know. I've always prayed for healing, but I used to have more faith in my herbs and other methods than God. Ruth believes strongly in His promise to heal through prayer and faith and she helps others to believe it too; she has a rare gift that way. I've learned to seek the will and power of our God first then use the plants and knowledge he gave us second. There are more than Mrs. Norris who have received miraculous healing in these mountains by Ruth's assistance. I didn't want it widely known because I and her parents were afraid of exactly this that people wouldn't see the true source behind the healing. Listen to her. Let her help you understand." She sat back down.

Ruth shot her grandmother a grateful look and went up to the front. "The Bible clearly says that the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick. That the Lord will raise the person up. What I do ain't nothing new. It's believing what the Bible says is true. But maybe seeing is believing. You can judge for yourselves where the power comes from. Is there anybody who will come and be healed today?"

You could have heard a pin drop as people studied their neighbors in astonishment, wondering if anyone would dare go up.

An 11 year old girl stood up. She was gaunt with yellowish skin and looked as if a feather could have knocked her over. Her hair was also thin and limp, hinting she had been sick for awhile.

Her mother looked fretful and started to reach up to stop her daughter, but the girl's father took the woman by the elbow, signaling for her to wait and see what happened.

Ruth smiled warmly at the girl as she stopped in front of her. "'Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.'" She asked the girl, "Do you believe that God can heal you through our Lord Jesus Christ?"

She nodded and said in a soft voice, "Yes, ma'am."

She placed her hands gently on the girl. "Then feel His power in you and be healed."

There were gasps as the girl's skin began to visibly lose its yellow tint and take on a healthy, pink tint.

"Blessed be the name of the Lord," Ruth said enthusiastically.

The girl's smile was joyous as she returned to her parents.

Ruth said, "It ain't witchcraft. It ain't even any unique spiritual power and I'm certainly no great spiritual leader. I'm just an ordinary person with an extraordinary God who because He is the same yesterday, today, and forever can and does perform miracles even now. He's the one who healed Mrs. Norris. He's the one who healed Beth just now."

Others came to be healed and many offered apologies for their disbelief or lack of vocal support after the service.

"Maybe this'll be an end of it," Ruth told Kid on the way home.

"Maybe, but did you reach and convince the man or woman behind it? That's the real test."

"We'll see, I reckon."

sss

Kid woke up during the night, needing to visit the outhouse, and found Anna out by the ash tree, the half moon casting enough light on her long brunette hair and linen nightgown to see her plainly. She held a rope in her hands that was connected to the neck of a scarecrow, which was thrown over the lowest bough. The straw figure was a crude effigy of Ruth as it was wearing one of her dresses, the blue calico, and the features painted on resembled Ruth though it was plain to see it hadn't been done by an artist's hand.

Her eyes widened as she caught sight of Kid and she let the rope slip from her hands, the scarecrow falling to the ground with a soft thud.