A Free Online Science Fiction Novel- “Liberty”- Chapter 24

*Note- A short prologue is on chapter one. Each chapter has a link to the next to make reading it easier.

This is chapter twenty-four of an online novel, Liberty, A Daughter Universe Novel.

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“Is that Liberty Valley?” Sarah ask ed, pointing down the forested slope.

Lucas walked over and took her by the hand. “No,” Lucas replied. “This is one of the smaller valleys that lead toward it.” He pointed toward the mountain ridges south of where they stood. “There’s quite some way to go to reach Liberty Valley. But it looks like this stretch will be a nice ride,” Lucas said and nodded toward the road that descended into a deeply shaded valley. “The air will be cooler most of the way. The map shows that the road runs part of the way along a river before it rises again to cross another, lower ridge.”

Sarah sighed, took a deep breath of the mountain air, and then looked back along the valley to the other end. “This is just--so wonderful, Lucas! I hope we can come back up here again.”

“It is wonderful up here,” he said. “And I don’t see why we can’t come back in the fall. That’s the time of the year when most tourists make the trek out this far. It will be crowded, as far as whatever ‘crowded’ means up here, but it will still be a relief from the city.”

“Well, I’m taking that as a promise”, Sarah said with a tinkling laugh. “So, put it on your calendar.”

“Yes ma’am,” Lucas said with a mock salute and a big grin. “I think October is the prettiest month. I’ll have Rosie schedule it with House.”

Sarah looked at Lucas. “If October is the busy season, maybe you should make the hotel reservations this weekend.” She took his hand in her own. “I’m serious, Lucas. I want you to bring me here again if you will. I’ll schedule time off from work as soon as you give me the dates.”

Lucas could barely contain his excitement. Most of the women he’d dated before were more interested in his money than in him, so he’d never been especially concerned for their feelings. Because of that history, Lucas did not believe someone as honest as Sarah would care for him. But the fact that she was willing to commit to something three months in advance went a long way in convincing Lucas that her feelings were real.

“Then plan on the third week of October,” Lucas said. “The whole week if you can take that much time off. And don’t worry about hotel reservations, that won’t be a problem.”

Sarah rolled her eyes. “I know-- you know a guy who knows a guy...”

Lucas grinned. “Something like that.”

Sarah laughed then the smile faded from her face.

“What’s that?” Sarah asked and pointed back toward the direction they’d come but to the end of the valley on the other side of the ridge. “It looks like some trees were cut down and rocks have tumbled into the forest.”

Lucas turned to where Sarah indicated. It did look like there was a gap in the trees, maybe a rockslide into the woods. Except, it was near the bottom of the mountainside, not on a steep slope, and no rockslide would extend that far into the forest.

“Let me get my lens,” Lucas said and went back to the car. “Maybe we can zoom in closer and see out what it is.”

Lucas walked back to stand beside Sarah, raised the telescopic lens in front of his eyes and let it autofocus on the anomaly. Rock did show there but it was close to flat, as if something had plowed it smooth, in preparation to laying a road. Then he panned along the direction of the stone area and noticed a distinct break in the trees just ahead of it, a split in the otherwise solid green canopy.

“That is strange,” he said. “The stone isn’t tumbled rocks it looks like it’s been “flattened”, somehow. And a strip of trees has been cut through the forest.” He handed her the lens. “See what you think. Look at where the rocks start and then follow that line into the woods.”

She raised the lens. “I see what you mean, “she said and lowered the lens. “It looks like- a scar through the forest.” Sarah said slowly s she handed the lens back to Lucas. “Whatever it is, it ruins the view.”

Lucas had to agree; it did look like a jagged-edged gash in the multi-hued greens of the tree canopy. “It cuts between those ridges and goes in the direction of the main valley,” he said. “We might get a better view of it farther down the road.”

“Maybe they’re clearing to build a new road through that valley.” Sarah shrugged and handed the lens back to Lucas. “I don’t know what else it could be.”

Lucas looked again. “Yes… It does look like someone’s clearing a path for a new road,” he said. “But there’s a problem with that. It can’t be a road.”

Sarah looked up at him, her eyes questioning. “Why would a new road be a problem? Maybe they need it to get to that end of the valley.”

“It would be a problem,” Lucas replied, “because there aren’t supposed to be any new roads built in the Preserve. The one we’re on is old. It was originally built as a ‘scenic byway’, back in the twentieth century, and it’s the only road that goes all the way through the mountain range. There’re still some small, narrow roads into the valleys- people who already lived up here weren’t forced to move- but new roads aren’t allowed.”

“Well, maybe they need to build more roads for new houses.”

Lucas said then shook his head. “I don’t think so. By charter, existing homes can be replaced, but no more homes can be added in these mountains than were here when the Preserve was founded. And I haven’t heard about any changes that would open the Preserve to more development.” Lucas paused and looked at the ‘rockslide’ in the valley and that gash in the forest canopy. “The whole reason for the Preserve was to protect what was left of the mountain wilderness and rebuilt the main town to give people a place to get away from the crowded city. And I doubt anyone up here would want to change that.”

Lucas gestured around them at the green, mountainous landscape. “Everyone out here is close to town, Liberty, and can get whatever they need there, or have anything shipped there to pick up. Why would people give up a place where it’s safe to walk without fear of assault, or staying inside on code red air days…? No, I’m sure the residents in the mountains and in Liberty wouldn’t want to lose all of this to overcrowding.”

“So, someone might be building a road against the rules?”

“That's possible," Lucas replied. "It's also possible, though extremely unlikely, that they have decided to change the charter and the rules laid out when the Preserve was created,” Lucas paused for a few moments. “It doesn’t seem likely, though. Just look around us Sarah. This is like a paradise compared to the city. If it were me, I’d never give it up.” Lucas wondered why, if the charter had been changed, he had not been notified. He owned his grandfather’s original stake in Liberty, and a change that drastic would require a majority vote of all the owners and Lucas’ vote carried the weight of his grandfather’s authority; he would certainly have voted against that kind of change.

“Neither would I,” Sarah said. “I don’t want to sound selfish, but a place like this is something I wouldn’t want to tell a lot of people about.”

“Well- you didn’t know much about it, right?”

“Not really. I’ve heard it so I knew it was somewhere in the wilderness, the southern mountains but there was no tube excursion like there is to the northern valley. That’s a tourist destination.”

“This road is a tourist attraction in the fall when the leaves change, and Liberty gets quite a few visitors. Enough to keep the Grand Hotel in business, plus a few small shops that cater to locals and out-of-towners, but travel is restricted in the valley. Unless you know someone in Liberty or out in the valleys, you can’t drive around just to ‘sightsee’.”

“You make it sound like a prison,” Sarah said with a chuckle.

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Next

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This was originally posted on Simily.co

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