Ohio promises freedom. Kentucky threatens bondage. Only one thing would entice a slave to take the risk.In 1838, escaping slaves know Ripley, Ohio is a good place to cross into freedom. But slave catchers know it as well. Micah Spencer spends a frozen night silently waiting for runaways, unaware that the next escaping slave will change his life.Runaway slave Opal knows she's risking her life and that of her infant by leaving Kentucky and making a desperate journey north. If she is to make it, she'll have to trust the people she fears. Constance Drake admires the heroic abolitionists of Ripley but wonders if she has the courage of her convictions. When she's asked to cross into enemy territory, she'll have to rely on her faith and every ounce of bravery she has.