Road to Nowhere Read Online Free Page B

said. “It had already passed, and you know I don’t like voting against everyone else.”
    Dr. Colony was only getting angrier. “Then why are you on the board? If that road comes through Mountain View, it’ll destroy the place.”
    “There’s no cause for alarm. It was just one vote, to apply to get the funds, and there’s not much chance of that happening.”
    Randy was hunched up over his desk, the way he usually was when a constituent had come to his office to express his or her views, because it seemed to lessen the impact of the blows. Not real blows, it hadn’t come to that—yet, of course.
    He’d always leaned back when he was selling insurance, but this old wooden chair was none too stable. Once he’d been elected to the board and started getting to hear so many people’s opinions, he’d worked out that having his elbows up on the desk made him feel more steady.
    “That road better not happen.”
    “I really don’t think it will, Everett.” It would not be good for Everett to have a heart attack or a stroke right at this minute since he was the main doctor here in town and it was a long way to the hospital in Asheville. “Every county in the state’s going to be grabbing at that money, and we were late off the starting line anyway.”
    “That’s not what it says in here.” Everett was waving the newspaper around, wild enough that Randy had to keep his eye on it and be ready to duck. “It talks about this ‘secret midnight vote in an empty courthouse for an unpopular road that could disrupt the entire county.’ ”
    “I read that myself, Everett. And you’d have to ask Luke Goddard what he’s talking about in that article, because I don’t think that’s the meeting I was in.”
    “Will they widen Hemlock Street? That would take half my front yard.”
    “I really don’t know.”
    Everett slammed the paper on the desk. “Everybody knows that road will never happen, and we’re counting on it not happening.”
    “Now, it has been on the plans, you know, and people knew that.” Randy braced his elbows a little harder against the desk and his head against his hands.
    Everett about exploded. “Don’t you tell me about some fifty-year-old plan! If you can’t stop it, there must be somebody else who will. And there are plenty of other people to buy insurance from, too.”
    “I know that, Everett, and I’m very appreciative of your patronage and support all these years. Let’s just not worry about it yet. And if it does happen, well, at least the trucks from the furniture factory could use it and not come through Mountain View.”
    The desk shook from Everett’s fist. Randy had got his elbows off it just in time, or he’d have lost a couple teeth, and that would have been just as bad, because Richard Colony, the dentist, was Everett’s brother and they lived just across Hemlock Street from each other.
    “Hey, Corny, we got some cream cheese?” For all they spent on food, there was nothing to eat. Wade closed the refrigerator and tried the pantry. Sometimes Lauren had granola bars. “What’s for supper tonight, anyway?” No dice with the granola. Back to plan A, the bagel. He tried the refrigerator again. “How about some jelly?” He closed the refrigerator again.
    Cornelia was standing in the doorway, watching him. “Yes, lasagna, strawberry. Are you still here?” She had on a nice thick ski sweater and blue jeans.
    “Yeah, and I’m late. I got a family from Greensboro at the office in twenty minutes.”
    “Why don’t you just sell them our house.”
    “No, they want something small, for a summer place.” Wait a minute. Sell them what? He looked at her closer. “Hey, I told Charlie I was done here. If that road happens, this house’ll be worth thirty thousand more, and we can sell it and get something nice back in Raleigh.” Maybe forty thousand more. High ceilings, stone fireplace, nice ski lodge feel. Put in that road and year-round people would start looking at