Before Sunrise Read Online Free PDF

Reservation, a small stronghold of native people, reached almost to the city limits sign of Chenocetah. On the outskirts of the small mountain town that boasted more hotels per square inch than Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, three construction companies were racing to put up several hotel complexes. One of the conglomerates was erecting up a Las Vegas-type theme hotel complex. The other two were luxurious tourist resorts with wildlife trails included in the design. They had theadded attraction of being located with their backs to a mountain honeycombed with caves, a sure draw for spelunkers.
    Two members of the city council had protested violently at the ecological impact of the mammoth projects, but the other three and the mayor had voted them down. The water rates alone would fill the city coffers, not to mention the tourists they would draw into the already tourist-oriented area.
    Phoebe, like the two protesting councilmen, was thinking of the cost of enlarging the sewage system and water delivery system to accommodate the added demands of the huge hotels. They were going up close enough to the Chenocetah Cherokee Museum that they would probably impact the water pressure in the museum, already less than she liked with so many visitors. Another problem was going to be the headache of traffic snarls that would accompany the increased traffic near the small town’s city limits at one of the county’s worst intersections. One of the sheriff’s deputies who flirted with her regularly had mentioned that consequence. She didn’t flirt back. Phoebe had a grudge against anyone with a badge these days.
    â€œYou frown too much,” her colleague, Marie Locklear murmured dryly as she approached her. Marie was halfCherokee and a graduate of Duke University. She was the museum’s comptroller, and a precious asset.
    â€œI smile when I’m alone,” Phoebe confessed. “I wouldn’t want to upset the staff.”
    â€œMy cousin Drake Stewart’s coming by at lunch, again,” she said, naming the deputy sheriff who patrolled the area. “I asked him to bring us a couple of those spicy chicken salads from the new fast-food joint.” Marie added, “He’s sweet on you.”
    Phoebe winced. “I’m off men.”
    â€œDrake’s thirty and drop-dead gorgeous,” Marie reminded her. “He’s got just enough Cherokee blood to make him sexy,” she added. “If he wasn’t my first cousin, I’d marry him myself!”
    â€œHe’s also a deputy sheriff.”
    â€œThat’s right. I forgot. You’re down on lawmen.”
    Phoebe went into her office, with Marie right behind. “I’m down on men, period,” she replied.
    â€œWhy?”
    Phoebe ignored the question. Dragging up the past was just too painful.
    â€œCan we afford to fix that hole in the parking lot?” Phoebe asked. “We’re getting complaints.”
    â€œIf we forego fixing the roof, we can,” Marie said demurely.
    â€œNot another leak!” Phoebe groaned. “Where is it?”
    â€œIn the men’s bathroom,” Marie replied. “There’s a puddle in front of the sinks.”
    Phoebe sat down at her desk and put her head in her hands. “And it’s November already. We’ll have snow and sleet soon and the roof will just collapse under the weight. Why did I take this job? Why?”
    â€œBecause nobody else wanted it?”
    Phoebe actually chuckled. Marie was incorrigible. She grinned at the younger woman. “No, actually because nobody else wanted me,” she corrected.
    â€œI can’t believe that. You graduated in the top one percent of your class, and you did a great job with your master’s degree, which you completed in record time,” Marie recalled. “I read your curriculum vitae,” she added when Phoebe looked surprised.
    â€œCredentials aren’t everything,” Phoebe