The Heiress Nobody Saw Coming (Natalie and Marcus) novel Chapter 657

Zachary's tone was gentle but firm. Though he hadn't spent much time with Natalie, he trusted Marcus. And because of the help Natalie had given Sophia, he was also willing to trust her. In other words, Zachary believed in Natalie and Marcus as a couple.

The car sped along smoothly. They stopped every four hours to refuel, rest, and eat. When night fell, the GPS finally prompted them to exit the highway and led them into a small county town.

Once inside, the surroundings changed. It was nothing like the bustling city of Dithoria. The street lamps cast a dull yellow glow, barely lighting the roads and serving more as decoration than illumination.

Most of the shops along the streets had their lights turned off and doors shut tight. Even among the restaurants, only a few remained open.

"This place is called Everwyn County. From here, we still have a long drive through the mountains. After that, the roads only get worse," Natalie said, opening the map on her phone and showing it to Marcus.

"We'll stop near the edge of town to grab dinner and find a motel for the night. We'll continue the journey early tomorrow."

"Alright." Marcus nodded. "Nat, aren't you tired after sitting in the car for so long? We should've just taken a helicopter."

Natalie chuckled. "We can't use a helicopter here. If we would, do you think I'd have arranged for us to drive?"

"Poor Mr. Holden," she teased, reaching over to pinch his cheek. "I bet you've never been to a place like this before."

Marcus nodded honestly. "I really haven't."

"There are lots of poor counties like this in the country. The routes are bad, resources are scarce, and they can't attract business or investment. Most of the locals leave for work elsewhere," Natalie explained.

"The ones with talent or strong academic skills try to squeeze into the big cities. Once they make it there, they fight to keep their place. Those left behind are usually the older folk or people with no way out."

Leaning back in her seat, she continued, "You think this place is poor, don't you? Then, you'd be wrong. There are places far worse than this—dozens, maybe hundreds of times worse.

"In some of those places, there aren't even roads leading out. Just one mountain after another. Girls born there aren't treated as human beings. They're never seen as having any hope or worth from the moment they're born.

"Their value lies in either being exchanged through arranged marriages to benefit their brothers or sold off elsewhere for money and food.

"That's where we're going—Coalmarsh," Natalie said, pulling up the map and pointing it out. "I funded a school there and hired qualified teachers to educate the children.

"I also found people to teach the villagers how to identify herbs in the mountain and harvest them. Then, we arranged regular pickups. Money doesn't matter much there. What they lack is all kinds of supplies.

"Because of the terrain, I also brought people in to teach them how to grow suitable crops."

"Nat, that must've been hard," Marcus said, heart aching a bit. The more remote a place was, the harder it was to change the locals' way of thinking.

"It really was difficult in the beginning," Natalie admitted, leaning back again. "The people there are rough but united. We tried all kinds of approaches. In the end, we had to use force to suppress them.

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