The Fount of Dragon Fire

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

News traveled fast in a small town, and the hotter the news, the faster it spread. By the end of the first day, there wasn't a soul in Summitville capable of communicating that didn't know that Yarrow Norcross had been found dead in his mountain cottage. Immediately on the heels of the news, raging like a wildfire, came the news that that the only suspect was the one who had found him. The tourist, the outsider, who was now under investigation of the WPA.

Two days after he had been found, everyone knew that Camry was the only person of interest involved in his murder. They also knew that she had come here as part of the All Goods to join in with the demonstration against Geovation.

All at once, Camry suddenly had a whole slew of enemies that hated and suspected her only because of her association. It didn't matter that she wasn't an All Good herself. She had the connection and was therefore condemned by the Geovation workers and the citizens that supported them.

And, conversely, she also suddenly developed an entire group of allies that stood behind her solely because of that very same reason. The All Goods, banding together around her as though they were circling the wagons, decried everyone who spoke badly about her.

Though she certainly hadn't intended to be when she agreed to follow Silvia out here, Camry suddenly found herself being an unofficial official member of the All Goods. The people she had come here to stand with against Geovation leapt to her defense. Anyone who dared question whether or not she was the one who killed Yarrow within earshot of another All Good was immediately shut down. Almost to the point that it was intimidating.

Camry begged Silvia to make them stop. She didn't listen. She had gotten caught up in the fire of it and was happily, viciously, defending her unofficial-official wife.

When Camry turned on the news that morning, it was to find she was frowning at a picture of herself hung next to the news anchor's head. He was giving the official report from Higgens about her finding the body and how he had found Norcross. Though everyone already knew through the grapevine, the report was still being given out over the air like it was news.

Even as Camry watched, he connected her name to the All Goods. She ran her hands over her face, grumbling to herself. He moved near seamlessly from that into the anger between the All Goods and Geovation that was growing by the day.

Somehow, the murder of Yarrow Norcross was only making it worse.

Geovation workers decried the All Goods for defending a murderer. The All Goods responded by saying that there was no proof she had killed anyone. Then immediately accusing Geovation of trying to tarnish their name with lies and slander.

Besides the single weekend Camry had promised Silvia, she had intended this vacation to be a relaxing get away. Now she found herself sitting on the bed of her cottage and frowning at her own face on the news next to a video of a shouting match between the All Goods and the Geovation workers on the construction site.

Through this video was the first time she had ever seen the site. Admittedly, screaming people took up most of the screen, but she could see behind them to the machinery that was working on digging up the ground to place the energy line.

Silvia liked to rant about that line. It was cutting through an otherwise untouched stretch of federal land, buried far enough underground that it wouldn't interfere with the natural flora or fauna. It connected the city of Geat to the geothermal energy plants that Geovation owned on the other side. Its completion would make for cheaper energy and its upkeep would create jobs in this area.

However, before all that could take place, they were first destroying the parts of the land that the line was being buried under. The region wouldn't be affected by the line later once construction was complete, but it was a messy and damaging process that would take years, if not decades to recover from. At least, that was the line from Geovation.