[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-detail-116629-en":3,"doc-seo-116629-105":29,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":90},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",{"doc_id":7,"user_id":8,"nickname":9,"user_avatar":10,"doc_module":4,"category_id":11,"category_name":12,"doc_title":13,"doc_description":14,"doc_content":15,"file_id":16,"file_url":17,"file_type":18,"file_size":19,"view_count":4,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":11,"is_downloadable":11,"audit_status":11,"page_count":20,"language":21,"language_code":22,"site_id":23,"html_lang":22,"table_of_contents":24,"faqs":25,"seo_title":26,"seo_description":14,"update_tm":27,"read_time":28},116629,687197207057,"Sage","https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_29158cc5080c5b710cf443261637dec0",1,"Story & Novel","This Means War - Chapter One","Chapter One introduces Molly, a tour guide, as she attempts to lead guests into an iconic ghost town saloon. A modern fence prevents her from reaching the entrance, and her attempt to get answers leads to an unsettling encounter with a man hired to estimate the situation. Molly’s frustration grows as she realizes someone may be undermining the town, pushing her concerns into the wider mystery surrounding Theia. The chapter then shifts to the crowded bar at The Oasis, where Molly and her close circle discuss the purchase of the saloon and Stan’s property.","[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \nTo Jim and Stephanie, who both helped me explore many spooky ghost  \ntowns.  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \nChapter One  \nMolly wove her fingers through the cold metal of the ugly gate standing between the old road and the legendary saloon. Twenty yards beyond the fence, the slatted, swinging doors winked at her. Their hinges, long since rusted, left them permanently stuck in mid-motion, frozen in time, like the saloon itself. That iconic entrance beckoned her to bring her people inside for her greatest story. But she could not reach it.  \nInstead of telling the best joke on her tour, one that usually resulted in extra tips, all that came out of Molly’s mouth was,“What the hell?”  \nMary, the matriarch of the large family that were her guests this afternoon, tapped her shoulder.“Is something wrong, Molly?”  \nUnable to wrap her head around what was happening, Molly turned to Mary with a classic tour guide smile plastered on her face.“Would you mind taking everyone across the street?” She pointed to the other side of the rutted dirt path that was barely wide enough for any modern vehicle.“There’s a great view of the mountains over there, and it’s the perfect place to take group photos. I’ll join you in just a minute.”  \nMary’s concerned gaze lingered over the fence for a moment before she turned to round up the tour group with a forceful voice. “All right, everyone, follow me.”  \nMolly moved away from the group, following the fence around toward the side of the property. But there was no break, no opening, no sign reading,“just kidding, come on in!”  \nJust as the weight of despair was dropping down on her with force, her eye caught movement. She pressed herself against the cold metal and zeroed in on it. A few seconds later, it happened again. She could swear she  \nsaw an elbow. Yes, it was definitely an elbow peeking out from the back of the building. Molly shouted toward it.“Hey! Hey!”  \nA man’s head, covered with a blue ball cap, appeared beside the splintered wood siding of the building.“Hello?”  \n“Hey! Yeah, hey!” Molly waved her arms wildly. He was no more than twenty feet away, but her eagerness to be addressed overrode any commonsense.  \nThe man loped toward her slowly.“Hi. What’s up?”  \n“What’s with the fence?”  \nHe shrugged.“I didn’t put it up.”  \n“It literally wasn’t here yesterday.”  \nHe shrugged again. “It was here when I got on site a couple of hours ago.”  \n“Well, what’s going on? Why are you here? Why is this fence here?”The questions popped out of her, each one spoken in a slightly higher tone than the one before. Then she turned, her voice deeper, harder.“You know this is a protected site, right? You can’t just put up a modern fence in the middle of a ghost town. You know that, right?”  \nThat Theia was in the early application stages of potentially becoming a protected historic site was not relevant at that moment. Molly was willing to bend the truth and use scare tactics if it got her answers.  \nBut the man seemed immune to her threats. He held up his hands and took a step back.“Look, lady, I don’t call the shots here. I was hired to make an estimate, and that’s all.”  \nMolly grasped onto that tiny bit of information.“An estimate for what?”The guy turned his head to the side, briefly flashing his gaze back to the spot he’d abandoned when she called out to him. “I don’t think it’s my  \nplace to talk about this with you. You should talk to the new owner.”“New owner?”  \n“Yeah.” He moved away faster now.“I gotta go.”  \n“Wait! Who’s the new owner?”  \nHe didn’t answer. Instead, he slipped around the side of the building, safe behind the stupid fence.  \nMolly’s head dropped back, and she released a loud sigh. This day had turned to shit fast, but this wasn’t just about today. It was about Theia. This place was special, and someone was clearly trying to destroy it.  \nThe Oasis was crowded, indicating that the tourist season had truly arrived wit","cbCaijCIEZiFLHbZ","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaijCIEZiFLHbZ","pdf",3596097,182,"English","en",105,"# Chapter One\n## The Fence and the Missing Entrance\n## A Strange Encounter Outside the Building\n## Back at The Oasis: News of the Purchase","[{\"question\":\"Why can’t Molly bring her guests into the saloon?\",\"answer\":\"A modern fence blocks the entrance to the saloon, leaving Molly unable to reach the iconic doors for her tour.\"},{\"question\":\"Who is the man Molly confronts near the building?\",\"answer\":\"He appears to be hired to make an estimate, but he refuses to explain details and directs Molly toward the new owner.\"},{\"question\":\"What news does Molly share with her friends at The Oasis?\",\"answer\":\"Someone has bought the saloon, and it turns out they purchased all of Stan’s property, sparking concern in the group.\"}]","This Means War - Chapter One | PDF",1785661187,280,{"code":4,"msg":30,"data":31},"ok",{"site_id":23,"language":22,"slug":32,"title":13,"keywords":33,"description":14,"schema_data":34,"social_meta":85,"head_meta":87,"extra_data":89,"updated_unix":27},"this-means-war-chapter-one","",{"@graph":35,"@context":84},[36,53,67],{"@type":37,"itemListElement":38},"BreadcrumbList",[39,43,47,50],{"item":40,"name":41,"@type":42,"position":11},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":44,"name":45,"@type":42,"position":46},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":48,"name":12,"@type":42,"position":49},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/story-novel/",3,{"item":51,"name":13,"@type":42,"position":52},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/this-means-war-chapter-one/116629/",4,{"url":51,"name":13,"@type":54,"author":55,"headline":13,"publisher":57,"fileFormat":60,"inLanguage":22,"description":14,"dateModified":61,"datePublished":61,"encodingFormat":60,"isAccessibleForFree":62,"interactionStatistic":63},"DigitalDocument",{"name":9,"@type":56},"Person",{"url":40,"name":58,"@type":59},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-08-02",true,{"@type":64,"interactionType":65,"userInteractionCount":4},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":66},"ViewAction",{"@type":68,"mainEntity":69},"FAQPage",[70,76,80],{"name":71,"@type":72,"acceptedAnswer":73},"Why can’t Molly bring her guests into the saloon?","Question",{"text":74,"@type":75},"A modern fence blocks the entrance to the saloon, leaving Molly unable to reach the iconic doors for her tour.","Answer",{"name":77,"@type":72,"acceptedAnswer":78},"Who is the man Molly confronts near the building?",{"text":79,"@type":75},"He appears to be hired to make an estimate, but he refuses to explain details and directs Molly toward the new owner.",{"name":81,"@type":72,"acceptedAnswer":82},"What news does Molly share with her friends at The Oasis?",{"text":83,"@type":75},"Someone has bought the saloon, and it turns out they purchased all of Stan’s property, sparking concern in the group.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":51,"og:type":86,"og:title":13,"og:site_name":58,"og:description":14},"article",{"robots":88,"canonical":51},"index,follow",{"doc_id":7,"site_id":23},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":91},[92,95,99,103,108,113,118,123,128,131,135],{"id":11,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":12,"show_sort_weight":93,"slug":94},90,"story-novel",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":96,"show_sort_weight":97,"slug":98},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":100,"show_sort_weight":101,"slug":102},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":104,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":105,"show_sort_weight":106,"slug":107},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":109,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":110,"show_sort_weight":111,"slug":112},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":114,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":115,"show_sort_weight":116,"slug":117},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":119,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":120,"show_sort_weight":121,"slug":122},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":124,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":125,"show_sort_weight":126,"slug":127},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":126,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":129,"show_sort_weight":126,"slug":130},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":132,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":133,"show_sort_weight":132,"slug":134},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":136,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":137,"show_sort_weight":104,"slug":138},19,"General","general"]