The Princess Club / Family Secrets / Mountain Madness Read Online Free PDF

parts.”
    â€œI’m headed in that general direction,” Mr. Halliday said. “But I don’t mind a detour or two. I enjoy stopping here and there to say hello. People around these parts strike me as the salt of the earth. Decent, kind. If a little shy.”
    â€œThey are fine people,” Miss Alice agreed, “despite their hard lives.”
    Mr. Halliday nodded sympathetically. There was a kindness about him that had made Christy instantly like him. Everyone seemed to like him, in fact—except, perhaps, Ruby Mae and her friends, who hardly said a word during supper. And now they seemed to have vanished from the house.
    â€œI’ve encountered such poverty
in these hills,” Mr. Halliday said. “You have your work cut out for you.”
    â€œPoverty, but dignity, too,” Christy said. “When I first came here, the hunger and ignorance and pain really frightened me. But then I started to see the goodness in these people.”
    â€œI’m sure life here can be very trying,” Mr. Halliday said. “Living without hope is a hard thing indeed.”
    â€œOf course, hope can turn up in unlikely places,” Christy said. “For example, the bottom of a creek.”
    â€œA creek, you say?”
    â€œIt seems Ruby Mae and the other girls you met came upon some gold nuggets the other day.”
    Mr. Halliday went very still. He cast a sharp glance at Christy. “Some . . . gold?” he repeated softly.
    â€œWe’d hoped to keep it quiet, but of course the whole Cove’s abuzz with the news,” Christy said.
    â€œThe prospect of that kind of wealth,” Miss Alice added, “in a place like Cutter Gap—well, you can imagine the excitement it’s kindled.”
    â€œIndeed,” Mr. Halliday said.
    David grinned. “Ruby Mae told me she hopes to buy a companion for our horse Prince.”
    â€œA friend for Prince?” Mr. Halliday echoed.
    â€œShe’s quite the horse buff, you see.”
    â€œAnd Clara’s even talking about going to medical school,” Christy said. “Of course, their parents will have their own plans for the money.”
    Mr. Halliday set down his teacup. The china rattled slightly. “Yes,” he said, “I imagine they would.”
    â€œNaturally, we’re all curious as to where the gold came from,” Miss Alice said. “After all, Tennessee isn’t exactly known for its gold mining. And the nuggets had to come from somewhere.”
    Mr. Halliday nodded slowly. “Well,” he said, “you know what the Bible says—‘With God all things are possible.’” His voice trailed off.
    â€œIt’s quite possible someone will still show up to claim the gold,” David said. Then he shook his head. “But I’d certainly hate to be the one to deliver that news to Ruby Mae and her friends.”
    Mr. Halliday stared out the window, stroking his beard. For the first time since his arrival, he’d fallen silent.
    â€œMr. Halliday?” Christy asked.
    â€œHmm?”
    â€œAre you feeling all right?”
    Mr. Halliday waved his hand. “Of course. Just a little tired, after all my wandering.”
    For a moment, Christy wondered if she should have mentioned anything to Mr. Halliday about the gold. Something about the sharp way he’d looked at her made her uneasy . . . especially since the nuggets were hidden right here in the mission house.
    On the other hand, he was bound to hear about them, anyway. If he was going to be staying here at the mission, Ruby Mae would tell him soon enough.
    One thing was certain. Christy was going to feel much better when the gold was safely locked in that bank safe in El Pano.
    She was a teacher, after all, not a banker.
    From her perch on the stairs, Ruby Mae listened to the grownups talking in the parlor. Bessie and Clara sat on the stair below her. They’d been eavesdropping for what seemed