LISA’S WAY
Book 1 of the “Lisa Herbert” Series
by
Robert Collins
Cover by
M. Mrakota Orsman
Ebook Edition
Copyright © 2008, 2011 by Robert Collins
Ebook Edition, License Notes
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
First published by eTreasures Publishing, July 2008.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
ABOUT THE “LISA HERBERT” SERIES
CHAPTER 1
“There you are. Got your nose in another book.” Lisa Herbert wished she could ignore her sister and make her go away, but ignoring had stopped working a while back. Short answers and quips seemed more effective, therefore Lisa replied with a simple “Yeah, so?”
“Why are you in here?”
“I’m reading.”
“Why?”
“Why read?” Lisa looked up and smiled. “Leslie, if you don’t know why we read, there isn’t any hope for you.”
Leslie smiled stiffly. “Keep that up, and I won’t be helping you meet any boys.”
“I don’t need your help.”
“Oh, yeah, like boys are just lining up to meet you.”
Lisa let out an exasperated sigh. “I don’t think life has to be about meeting boys and getting married. I want something better than that!”
“Like what? Teaching? Tending this little library?”
“Leslie, did you come here to annoy me, or did you have something you needed to tell me?”
“I came here to tell you that Dan has promised me a fun afternoon.”
“Oh, I’m sure.”
“Cathie and Zack are going with us. I could go find Pete, and you could join us. Forget about this old stuff. Have some fun.”
“I’ll think about it,” Lisa lied.
“Great.” Leslie turned, and jogged out of the library.
Lisa forgot about Leslie’s offer almost as fast as it had taken Leslie to leave the library. Something she said, however, stuck with her: Lisa’s own statement of wanting something better. She put away the book she struggled with, and searched for another that she’d noticed days ago. It struck her then as an odd title for a book. Now, that title sparked her curiosity.
“There.” Portals to Job Security: New (and Old) Career Opportunities. She removed the book from its place, returned to the desk, sat down, and began to read. She soon became absorbed with the slender volume. She discovered that the book contained ideas for jobs in an “inter-planetary economy tied through the H-portal.” Many of the ideas required travel between worlds. Others seemed temporary but related to each other. Lisa paused to consider the ideas presented. It took time for her to realize that the author suggested that a person wouldn’t spend a lifetime at one job, but could have several jobs throughout their life. The book didn’t suggest that certain jobs were restricted to men or women. Lisa knew she would need some time to ponder what she read.
Leslie returned before Lisa had even one moment to think. “You ready?”
“For what?”
“Dan’s going to show us the ruins.”
“Ruins?”
“Centropolis.”
“Leslie! If Father finds out…”
“You won’t say anything. You’re coming with us.”
“The Hell I will!” Lisa stood up. She walked with firm strides to where her sister stood, just inside the doorway. “You want to risk your life to spend some time with Dan, fine. I don’t care if you’re going out there to fool around with him, but don’t try to drag me along.”
“You have something better to do?”
Lisa smiled. “What do you care? You’re popular, and I’m the red-haired freak. You don’t need me.”
“What are you up to?”
“Go on, go on.” She grinned wickedly. “I thought you didn’t like to keep Dan waiting.”
“At least he’s waiting for me.” Leslie stuck out her tongue. She turned, then turned back to Lisa. “If you say one word to Father, your hair won’t be the only part of you that’s red.” She turned again and left the library.
Lisa returned to the book. She reread the passages about jobs. She wanted to be certain that the text made sense, that its claims sounded true. Satisfied that book’s opportunities were indeed absent of limits to women, she began to consider the implications of that insight.
I suppose that fits with what I know about the Savage Rain, she thought. After all, if there wasn’t a society to be knocked down, the gangs ranging through the portals wouldn’t have knocked it down in the first place. I guess I never really thought about it that way. Since that’s true, there had to be something better before the Rain. So, I guess that also means that things could get better again.
But, how? Maybe I ought to find out what it was like before the Rain. Maybe that will point me in the right direction.
Lisa went back to the shelves. She tried to remember the title of another book, one that she had wanted to read for some time. She remembered the book was kept on the higher shelves, something being said about it being too fragile for too many people to look at. It took long, slow minutes of searching, but she found the precious volume: The Mountain View Scrapbook.
She discovered that it wasn’t a conventional book. There were pieces of paper cut out from some other place and stuck onto over-sized pages, like the scrapbook name implied. Some of the pieces had a title, Fairfield Daily Gazette. Unlike other books, this one told the story of Mountain View.
Each cut-out contained a separate story about something that happened in the village. She read about the founding of the town, the first birth, the first death, harvests, elections, and more. There were a few short notices on visits from a family not living in Fairfield. Two of them struck Lisa: the first one said a visit was approaching; the second, that the visit had been cancelled because the family couldn’t get travel passes to go through one world.
Now, that’s odd, she thought. They couldn’t get from their world to Fairfield because some world in-between wouldn’t let them pass through? Why would anyone do that? If it happened during the Rain, I could see that. But...Wait. How did the Rain start? Yeah. A gang fled from one world to another, and once they got there, they couldn’t leave. The first world attacked the second, because of simple hatred.
If people on one world didn’t like people on the next, they wouldn’t let outsiders cross between them out of fear of being attacked. That being the case, it was only a matter of time before the Savage Rain happened.
Lisa glanced at the Scrapbook, and she flipped through some more pages. The more short pieces she read, the more she became convinced that her speculation was true. A third of the way through the book were the first reports of the Savage Rain, then it stopped. The rest of the pages were blank. Lisa picked up that book, along with the one on jobs, and put both back in their places on the shelves.
Well, now I know. There was a time when life was better, when there could be more to a woman’s
life than getting married and having babies. Wishing for those times to return won’t help me. If things were good once, why can’t they be again? What could anyone do? What could I do to help make it happen?
I think now’s the time I should ask Father for that notebook he’s been promising me. I need to write some of this down. I’ll need to focus on the possibilities.
She walked out of the library, and as she turned towards her home, she saw Pete riding into the village on a lathered horse. She dashed to him. “What are you doing here? Where’s...?”
“They got ’em pinned in the ruins!” he huffed.
“Who does? What’s going on?”
Pete slipped off his mount. “Wild men, in the ruins. They attacked us, got us hemmed in so the rest couldn’t get away. Zack and Dan covered me, so I could get back to get help.”
“Are they all right?”
“When I left them, they were pinned down. Don’t know how long they can hold, or if they can get away.”
Lisa paused for a moment, thinking. It’ll take time for Father to gather the men and ride out. Leslie and the others might not have that much time. I may not be able to save them, but I could stall until Father arrives!
“Pete, catch your breath, then find my father. Tell him what you told me. Do you know where they are?”
He nodded. “They’re in a big white building, the one with ’hotel’ on the front.”
“Okay.” She turned towards the village stable.
“Where are you going?”
“To buy them some time.”
CHAPTER 2
Lisa wondered more than once life why the founders of her town named it Mountain View. As she urged her horse up the modest slope leading away from the town, she was very glad it wasn’t accurately named.
As she rode up the hill she told herself, Only a few more miles. Hold out ’til then. Please, just hold on!
Her horse picked up some speed after making it out of the little valley. There was no way for her to know how many opponents she’d face when she got to the ruins. She recalled everything she’d heard about the wild people roaming the ruins. Recent accounts suggested there were more than a handful of scavengers left in ragged clothes, usually in hiding. The stories also suggested that the scavengers were men.
“Most likely outcasts from other villages,” her father had once said when the issue came up, “punished from some crime or another.” That suggested to her that the men attacking Leslie and her friends probably weren’t well-armed. Although, if they did have crossbows or knives, they could rob a trader on the road.
Doesn’t mean they won’t be trouble. But as long as they aren’t organized, I’ve got a chance.
At long last the city of ruins came into her view. She’d seen it a few times before, but from the newer road between Lucas and Mountain View. She’d never been closer than a couple of miles away. Now, here she was, riding right into Centropolis.
Of course, the old city hadn’t changed since she saw it last. No one had tried to reclaim it, and with only a handful of scavengers left, none of the buildings had been further damaged. It was still an odd assortment of red, gray, white, and brown structures clustered together. A patchwork of now-demolished homes surrounded the taller central buildings. Nothing was more than three stories tall, a story taller than Mountain View’s community building.
Lisa halted her horse. She looked over the city, trying to find the building that Pete had mentioned. There appeared to be three possible structures. Fortunately, they all looked pretty close to each other.
Okay, assume that one of those is where they are holed up. How do I come up from behind and help them?
She observed that two of the buildings were on her right and one was on her left. She edged her horse left, hoping to see a sign. She couldn’t see anything clearly, so she had the horse move right. The effort proved futile.
She listened for a second. Far in the distance, almost too faint to hear, was the sound of rocks hitting something solid. The sound seemed to be coming from the right, but she couldn’t be certain. She decided it would be best to head in that direction.
She urged the horse forward, this time at a much slower pace. She paid close attention to the air, listening for more helpful sounds. She watched the road ahead of her. It wasn’t too long before she saw what she thought was a motion. She turned the horse off the road, and guided it into the maze of dilapidated structures.
The sounds grew louder as she came closer to the center of the city. Within moments she could hear yells and screams, mainly male voices. She dismounted, and jogged through the debris. She held her crossbow tight to keep it from clattering and giving her approach away.
Almost within sight of the commotion, Lisa found an intact baseball bat lying in the street. She was unnerved when she saw the bones of a hand clutching one end. The hand was, at least, connected to a full skeleton. Not wanting to pass opportunity by, and wanting to get over any nervousness she felt, she picked up the bat.
Finally she was close to the scene. She came in from behind and to the left. She snuck into a brown building diagonal from what she guessed was the hotel. She wound her way through a short tangle of rooms to get a clear view of the struggle.
She saw a group of six men dressed in rags. One struggled to load a single crossbow, while others threw rocks across the street. Opposite them was the old hotel building, with much of its ground floor exposed to the elements. A few pieces of furniture with bolts stuck into them were clearly visible. Somewhat less clear were the vague outlines of her sister and her friends behind the furniture.
The man with the bow aimed and fired. Another man dashed away from the group, passing in front of Lisa. He didn’t see her; he was too busy watching the hotel.
He’s separated, Lisa thought quickly. If I can get him in close, I can even the odds a bit.
She put down her crossbow and the bat. She picked up a piece of debris. She edged sideways towards the entrance. She stuck her head out; the man was still there,waiting.
Okay, I can’t rush him. I’ll have to lure him in. How?
Use your feminine wiles. She glanced down at her chest, and almost snickered. Some wiles. Oh, well, average beats flat.
God, the things I do for my sister.
Lisa took a step back, pulled off her blouse, and stepped forward. She tossed the piece of debris at the waiting scavenger. When he turned, she winked and ran into the building. She grabbed the bat, turned a corner, and waited.
A moment later the man, panting heavily, followed her in. He busied himself, fumbling with the crotch of his tattered pants and smiling broadly. He didn’t see Lisa’s bat until it collided with his face.
Lisa hit him twice more to make certain he would stay down. She jerked her blouse back on, not bothering to tuck it into her dress. She grabbed her crossbow and ran for the entrance. She came out of the building just in time to see the man’s allies running towards her.
Lisa suddenly noticed how close the men were to each other. She dropped the bat and pulled up the crossbow. She aimed at the leg of the man in the lead. She fired, dropped the bow, and snatched up the bat.
The bolt hit its mark. The man fell to the ground, screaming. He fell inelegantly, turning himself into an obstacle. His friends weren’t dexterous enough to avoid the sudden challenge, and went tumbling.
Lisa moved in with her bat. She swung at the one man still on his feet, knocking him back. She hit the others in turn, staying out of their reach. An instant later, Dan and Zack were helping her subdue the attackers. As the battle reached its climax, a group of men on horseback, led by Lisa’s father, arrived on the scene.
Bat still in her hand, Lisa looked up at her father. “The plan was just to buy them some time,” she said. She smiled. “I guess I got carried away.”
“I guess you did,” he replied. “Where’s Leslie?”
Leslie ran up. “Here I am.”
“Are you all right?”
“Yes, Father.”
<
br /> “You know you aren’t supposed to come here, don’t you?”
Leslie averted her eyes. “Yes, sir.”
“We’ll talk about this later.” The man turned to one of the other riders. “Jim, get those thugs tied up. We’ll take them back to the village.” The other man nodded and called to three other men. They dismounted, and set to their task.
As her father was about to speak to Dan, Lisa said, “Father, there’s another in that building.” She jerked a thumb backward. “Should I bring him out?”
“All right, Lisa, but be careful.”
Lisa nodded respectfully. She jogged back into the building. The attacked man she’d lured away still lay sprawled on the floor. He moaned in pain. Lisa was about to prod him with the bat when a thought bolted into her mind.
He’s been living here awhile; he might know where the portal is!
She poked him. “I’m going to ask you a question. Tell me the truth, and I’ll see they go easy on you. Lie and whatever nasty thing happens to your friends will happen to you.”
She didn’t actually know that anything was going to happen. She knew that her father was not happy with Leslie and her friends. However, they weren’t entirely at fault; they had been attacked. If these outlaws had been surviving by robbing, and they had robbed someone in Mountain View, her father would be under pressure to punish the thieves, and punish them harshly.
“Yeah, okay.” Clearly the same thing had occurred to him. “What you wanna know?”
“Where’s the portal?”
“What?”
“The portal. The hyperspace portal. Where is it?”
“Uh, I think it’s that blocky building that way.” He jerked his head behind him.
“You think? You better be sure.”
“Look, I don’t know. We never got into that building. No door!”
Well, she thought, that fits with what I know. I’ll have to come back to make certain.
“Fine. Get up.”
The man crawled to his feet. Lisa got behind him, and forced him outside. Once he was with the others, they tied him tied up. He and his comrades were lined up behind one of the riders. Having no extra horses, they would have to walk. They were led away as Lisa approached her father.
“Father, go easy on that last one.”