By: Ranjan Sarkhell
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Table of Contents
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Quote
“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”
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Introduction
The work had begun.
Mily and her team were in the field every day. They marked boundaries. They measured trees. They collected soil samples. They recorded data. The fence was coming. The forest would have a chance.
But Kaelen Underwood was watching.
And he was not going to let them succeed.
“Kaelen Underwood was watching. And he was not going to let them succeed.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
This is the story of the first battle. Of the first blow. Of the first time Mily stood her ground against a man who had never been challenged. Of the first time Kaelen saw her — really saw her — and realized she was not like the others.
She was not afraid.
And that terrified him.
“She was not afraid. And that terrified him.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
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Key Points
Mily and her team begin fieldwork on the LTEE project. The boundary lane is marked.
Kaelen arrives at the survey site. He slaps Kihengu. He threatens Mily.
“Kaelen arrives at the survey site. He slaps Kihengu. He threatens Mily.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
Mily confronts him. She does not back down. She surprises him.
Kaelen begins his campaign against the project. He threatens. He intimidates. He refuses to yield.
Mily meets with higher authorities. She reports Kaelen. Nothing is done. The system is corrupt.
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The Work
The first week was about boundaries.
Mily walked the edge of Thornwood every day. Kihengu walked with her. He carried the markers. She carried the notebook. They moved through the dying jungle like ghosts.
The trees were colossal. The canopy was thin. Patches of grey sky showed through where leaves should have been.
The ground was dry and cracked. There was no undergrowth. There were no birds. There was no sound.
Mily measured. She noted. She sketched. She placed markers. She took soil samples. She recorded GPS coordinates. She worked with a focus that bordered on obsession.
Kihengu watched her. He saw the way she narrowed her eyes when she was thinking. He saw the way she bit her lip when she was concentrating.
He saw the way she forgot to eat, forgot to drink, forgot everything except the work in front of her.
“You should rest,” he said, after three hours.
“I should finish.”
“You should rest.”
“You should rest. You should rest.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
She looked at him. She saw the concern in his eyes. She saw the kindness. She saw the patience.
“I will rest,” she said. “When the work is done.”
Kihengu shook his head. But he did not argue. He had learned that Mily Anderson was not a woman who could be told what to do.
She was a woman who had to learn things for herself.
He hoped she would learn the lesson of rest before the jungle taught her the lesson of exhaustion.
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The Slap
They were walking back to camp at dusk.
The sky was pink and orange. The air was cooling. The birds were calling. The jungle was settling into the night.
Then they heard the engine.
A car. Expensive. Black. Loud. It was moving fast along the dirt track that bordered Thornwood. It was moving toward them.
Kihengu stopped. His face changed. His eyes widened. His body tensed.
“What is it?” Mily asked.
“Nothing,” he said. But his voice was tight. His hands were shaking.
The car pulled up beside them. The engine cut. The door opened.
Kaelen Underwood stepped out.
He was tall. Broad-shouldered. His hair was the color of dust. His eyes were the color of moss. He carried a gun. He wore hunting gear.
“He was tall. Broad-shouldered. His hair was the color of dust. His eyes were the color of moss.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
He did not look at Mily. He looked at Kihengu. His eyes were cold. His jaw was tight.
“Kihengu,” he said. His voice was low. Dangerous.
“Kaelen,” Kihengu said. His voice was barely a whisper.
“You are working for the Americans?”
“Yes.”
“You are helping her fence the jungle?”
“Yes.”
Kaelen took a step forward. Kihengu took a step back.
“You know what this means,” Kaelen said.
“I am just doing my job.”
“Your job?” Kaelen laughed. It was not a pleasant sound. “Your job is to protect the jungle. Not to fence it. Not to lock it up. Not to drive the animals away.”
“The animals are eating the jungle,” Kihengu said. “They are killing it.”
“The animals are the jungle. Without them, it is just trees. You know this. You have lived here your whole life. You know.”
“I know the jungle is dying. I know we have to do something.”
“We do not have to do anything. We have to leave it alone. Let it be wild. Let it be free.”
Kihengu was silent.
Kaelen turned to Mily. His eyes met hers. They were hard. Cold. Angry. But beneath the anger, she saw something else. Something she could not name.
“You,” he said. “You are the one who wants to fence the wild.”
“I am the one who wants to save it,” she said.
“Save it? You want to control it. You want to manage it. You want to make it what you think it should be. That is not saving. That is owning.”
“I am not trying to own it.”
“You are trying to change it. That is the same thing.”
“You are trying to change it. That is the same thing.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
She opened her mouth to respond. She wanted to argue. She wanted to explain. She wanted to make him understand.
But he did not let her.
He turned to Kihengu. He raised his hand. And he slapped him.
The sound was loud. Sharp. It echoed through the trees.
Kihengu stumbled. He fell to the ground. He held his face. Tears filled his eyes.
Mily did not think. She did not breathe. She did not hesitate.
She rushed forward. She stood between Kaelen and Kihengu. She looked up at him. Her eyes were green fire. Her face was pale with rage.
“Her eyes were green fire. Her face was pale with rage.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
“How dare you,” she said. “How dare you strike an on-duty official. How dare you obstruct government work. How dare you.”
Kaelen stared at her. He was surprised. She could see it. He had not expected this. He had expected the soft-spoken woman from the storm. The polite young lady. The scientist who would flinch and retreat.
Instead, he saw a woman who was not afraid. A woman who was prepared to fight. A woman who was prepared to take any challenge to achieve her goal.
He did not know what to do with her. He did not know what to say.
So he said nothing. He simply turned. He walked back to his car. He got in. He drove away.
Mily stood there. Her heart was pounding. Her hands were shaking. She had never done anything like that. She had never confronted a man like him. She had never felt so angry. So afraid. So alive.
She turned to Kihengu. She helped him to his feet.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
He nodded. But his eyes were wide. His face was pale.
“You should not have done that,” he said. “He will come back. He will hurt you. He will hurt all of us.”
“Let him try,” she said.
“Let him try.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
Kihengu did not smile. He did not look hopeful. He looked at her like she was a woman who did not understand what she was facing.
She did not understand. Not yet.
But she would.
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The Confrontation
The next day, Kaelen returned.
Mily was surveying the boundary lane. She was alone. Kihengu had gone to the village for supplies. The others were at the camp.
She heard the engine. She looked up. The black car. The same one. It pulled up beside her. The door opened. Kaelen stepped out.
He walked toward her. His eyes were dark. His jaw was tight. He was angry. She could see it.
“You,” he said.
“Me,” she said.
“You think you can come here. You think you can tell me what to do. You think you can fence my jungle.”
“It is not your jungle.”
“It is mine. It has always been mine. My father protected it. His father before him. We have been here for generations. We know this place. We love this place. You are just a foreigner. A tourist. You do not belong here.”
“You are just a foreigner. A tourist. You do not belong here.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
“I am here to save it.”
“You are here to control it. You are here to change it. You are here to make it something it is not.”
“I am here to give it a chance. The herbivores are killing it. You know this. You have seen it. The trees cannot grow. The forest cannot recover. Without intervention, it will die.”
“It will not die. It will adapt. It will change. It will survive. It has survived for centuries. It has survived worse than a few elephants.”
“It is not just a few elephants. It is a population surge. It is global warming. It is two threats at once.”
“I do not care about your science. I do not care about your data. I care about this place. I care about the wild. And I will not let you destroy it.”
“I am not trying to destroy it. I am trying to save it.”
“You are trying to own it. That is the same thing.”
They stared at each other. The air between them was electric. He was angry. She was angry. Both of them were breathing hard.
Then something shifted.
He looked at her. Really looked at her. For the first time, he saw her. Not the American. Not the scientist. Not the threat. But the woman. The woman with the green fire in her eyes. The woman who did not back down. The woman who was beautiful and fierce and stubborn and wrong.
“He saw her. Not the American. Not the scientist. Not the threat. But the woman.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
He did not know what to do with this feeling. He did not know what to do with her.
She looked at him. She saw the anger. She saw the grief. She saw the loneliness. She saw the man beneath the mask. The man who had lost his mother. The man who had become a poacher. The man who had forgotten how to feel.
She did not know what to do with this feeling. She did not know what to do with him.
Neither of them spoke. Neither of them moved.
Then Kaelen stepped back. His eyes were still hard. His jaw was still tight. But something had changed. Something had shifted.
“I will stop you,” he said. “I do not know how. But I will stop you.”
“I will stop you. I do not know how. But I will stop you.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
He turned. He walked back to his car. He drove away.
Mily stood there. Her heart was pounding. Her hands were shaking. She did not know why.
She should have been afraid. She should have been angry. She should have been focused on the work.
But she was thinking about his eyes. The moss green. The grief. The loneliness.
She was thinking about the way he had looked at her. The way he had really looked at her.
She was thinking about the man beneath the mask.
She did not want to think about him. But she could not stop.
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The Complaint
Mily went to the authorities.
She had no choice. Kaelen had assaulted Kihengu. He had threatened her. He was obstructing government work. He was a danger. He had to be stopped.
She met with the local commissioner. A man named Mr. Okafor. He was fat. He was tired. He was corrupt.
She told him everything. The slap. The threats. The harassment. She told him about Kaelen’s illegal activities. Poaching. The cartel. The fear he inspired in everyone.
Mr. Okafor listened. He nodded. He made notes. He asked questions. He promised to act.
But Mily saw the truth in his eyes. He was not going to act. He was afraid. He was bought. He was part of the system that allowed Kaelen to operate.
“He was not going to act. He was afraid. He was bought. He was part of the system.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
She left his office feeling sick. She had known the system was corrupt. But knowing and seeing were not the same.
She went to the forest warden. A man named Mr. Ndlovu. He was thin. He was nervous. He was afraid.
She told him everything. He listened. He nodded. He made notes. He promised to act.
But she saw the truth in his eyes. He was not going to act. He was afraid. He was bought. He was part of the system.
She went to the police. She went to the district officer. She went to everyone she could think of.
They all listened. They all nodded. They all promised. They all did nothing.
She was alone. She was fighting a system that was designed to protect men like Kaelen. She was fighting a battle she could not win.
But she did not stop.
She could not stop.
The forest was dying. The animals were dying. The people were dying. She could not save them all. But she could try. She could fight. She could refuse to give up.
“She could not save them all. But she could try. She could fight. She could refuse to give up.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
She wrote letters. She made phone calls. She documented everything. She built a case. She prepared for war.
She did not know it yet, but the war was coming.
And Kaelen Underwood was not the only enemy she would face.
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The Warning
That night, Mily received a warning.
She was walking back to her tent. The camp was quiet. The fire was low. The stars were bright. The air was cool.
Then she saw it.
A piece of paper. Nailed to the post of her tent. She pulled it free. She unfolded it. She read it.
The words were written in dark ink. The handwriting was rough. The message was clear.
“Leave Thornwood. Leave the project. Leave Africa. Or you will regret it.”
“Leave Thornwood. Leave the project. Leave Africa. Or you will regret it.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
Mily stared at the words. Her heart was pounding. Her hands were shaking.
She looked around. The camp was empty. The jungle was dark. The night was silent.
She was alone.
But she was not afraid.
She folded the paper. She put it in her pocket. She walked into her tent.
She sat on her cot. She opened her notebook. She wrote:
Day 20. Received a warning. Leave Thornwood. Leave the project. Leave Africa. Or regret it.
She stared at the words. She underlined the words. Or regret it.
Then she wrote:
I will not leave. I will not run. I will not be afraid.
“I will not leave. I will not run. I will not be afraid.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
She closed the notebook. She lay back on her cot. She stared at the canvas ceiling.
Outside, the jungle breathed. Outside, the wild waited.
And somewhere in the dark, Kaelen Underwood was watching.
He did not know it yet, but he had just made a mistake.
He had threatened a woman who did not know how to back down.
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What Comes Next
The first battle has been fought.
Mily has confronted Kaelen. She has stood her ground. She has refused to back down. She has made an enemy of a dangerous man.
But she has also made a strange impression. Kaelen has seen something in her. Something that surprised him. Something that intrigued him. Something he cannot forget.
The project is moving forward. The fencing has begun. The herbivores will be relocated. The forest will have a chance.
But Kaelen is not done. He will not yield. He will not give up. He will fight. He will threaten. He will destroy.
Mily knows this. She knows the battle is coming. She knows the war is not over.
But she does not know what Kaelen will do next.
“She does not know what Kaelen will do next.”
Global Warming of the Heart — Part 5: Field Work and First Conflict
She does not know about the villagers. She does not know about the lies. She does not know about the fire.
She does not know that the worst is yet to come.
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What will Kaelen do next? How far will he go to stop the project? And what will happen when Mily faces the full force of his power?
The answers lie in Part 6.
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Read Part 6 — Kaelen’s Counter-Move
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Global Warming of the Heart — A 17-Part Romance Serial
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17
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Start from the beginning: Read Part 1 — The Seed
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Global warming may make the heart feel the heat. But love—true, wild, untamable love—can make the heart feel the warmth.
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FAQs
What are the five main causes of global warming, and which one is silently killing the Thornwood in Global Warming of the Heart?
The five main causes of global warming are burning fossil fuels, deforestation, industrial emissions, agricultural practices, and waste decomposition. In Global Warming of the Heart, the silent killer is the heat itself — the slow rise in temperature that dries the rivers, shifts the rains, and turns a living forest into a dying one. The Thornwood is being squeezed from above by global warming and from below by herbivores. It is not one cause. It is all of them. And by the time anyone notices, it is already too late.
How is global warming affecting us, and why does the Global South suffer the most while developed nations look away?
Global warming is affecting us through extreme heat, unpredictable rains, rising seas, dying forests, and disappearing wildlife. But it does not affect everyone equally. The Global South — Africa, South Asia, Latin America — suffers the most. These nations have done the least to cause the crisis. They have the least resources to fight it. They have the most to lose. Meanwhile, developed nations hold conferences, make speeches, and write checks. They do not change their ways. The result: the Global South pays the price for a crisis it did not create.
What would you do if a powerful man threatened you, slapped your colleague, and warned you to leave — would you stay or would you run?
Most people would run. Most people would pack their bags. Most people would choose safety over principle. But Dr. Mily Anderson did not run. She stood between Kaelen Underwood and Kihengu. She looked up at a man who had never been challenged. She said: “How dare you.” And when he threatened her, she said four words: “Let him try.”
She stayed. She fought. She refused to back down. Not because she was fearless. But because she was more angry than afraid. The forest was dying. The animals were dying. The people were dying. She could not save them all. But she could try. She could fight. She could refuse to give up.
That is the question at the heart of Part 5. What would you do? Would you run? Or would you stand?
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