SHELBY -- Police say a 32-year-old woman whose throat had been slashed by a man read from the Bible to her attacker for almost two hours Wednesday night.

The woman is recovering after undergoing surgery, and police are looking for the man who attacked her. It appears to have been a random attack, Shelby police say. The woman's 15-year-old son witnessed the attack.

It happened about 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, when the mother and her son returned to their home on Royster Avenue near downtown Shelby. Police say the 15-year-old went to the front of the house to bring in a trash can, and his mother was attacked from behind as she got out of her car.

According to police, the son heard the man talking to his mother. Moments later, he took out a knife and swung at the woman, cutting her on the side of her neck.

Investigators say the woman then began reading from the Bible to the man, who kept the knife pressed to the victim's neck.

The woman even invited the man to attend her church.

The standoff continued for about two hours before the man apologized to the woman and ran off.

The woman was able to call 911 about 10:30 p.m. Police said the attacker did not take any belongings from the woman or her son.

The mother underwent surgery at a Cleveland County hospital and is in stable condition.

A neighbor told NewsChannel 36, the Observer's news partner, that residents along the street are on high alert. Police described the attacker as a light-skinned male, possibly biracial. He was cleanshaven and in his late teens or early 20s.

Anyone with information in the case is asked to call Shelby Police, 704-484-6845.

NewsChannel 36 contributed