The struggle to develop a 2,000-acre pristine university research forest into an ultra-exclusive golf enclave becomes a conflict involving Native Americans who believe the land is theirs, unscrupulous and corrupt people who envision huge profits, and people who live near it and want to protect it. The centerpiece of the story is the desperate search for a forgotten and missing piece of parchment signed at the end of the Civil War that may clarify the history and future of the forest.

Fundamentally, it's a story about how the world really works, how decisions get made and how people are influenced by politics, greed, lust and money to make those decisions.

The story is about an isolated conflict to preserve a tiny piece of nature, but represents conflicts worldwide between conservation and development that influence climate change and the future of the planet.

Gene Upchurch