From The Ashes: America Reborn Read Online Free Page B
Author: William W. Johnstone
Matt locate Jerre and burst in to rescue her from Hartline’s house. The mercenary himself narrowly escapes.
President Raines is relieved to hear that Jerre is safely home with Matt and the twins. His tranquility is disrupted by a report from his surgeon general, Dr. Harrison Lane, that the giant rats are infested with fleas carrying the black plague. Those not inoculated will die within three days of exposure. Rosita Murphy, an undercover member of Gray’s Scouts, reveals to Ben a plot to overthrow him by members of the old regime. All this seems surprisingly irrelevant in the face of the impending threat of the plague.
Widespread panic engulfs the public at large. The Joint Chiefs meet and dissolve the government. The few survivors of the plague gather together in small bands and seek comfort, surviving any way they can. Primitive cult leaders, like Emil Hite in Arkansas, rise up to capitalize on the situation.
Raines is returning west with his Rebels. Dawn and Ben have split amicably, and Rosita Murphy has become Ben’s latest lover and traveling companion. (North out of Richmond, Virginia, to Indiana Highway 35 to Marion, Illinois.) They ride together home to Tri-States. (Through Missouri and west on Highway 196. Go south at Bethany to enter Kansas between Saint Joseph and Kansas City into Colorado, across Wyoming until Highway 30, into Idaho . . . and home) Weather patterns have been gradually changing since the nuclear holocaust, and it is decided ultimately to settle in an area where people can be sure to plant double crops in order to ensure survival.
Finally, Ben and the Rebels settle in to start their new Tri-States society in the area of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. Jerre and Matt get married, and Rosita announces that she’s pregnant with Ben’s child. The Rebels enjoy their time of peace. Ben knows in his heart that he will have to face Hartline again one day, but the mercenary will have to be the one to make the first move. . . .
THREE
General Raines turned out to be a surprisingly good cook. Before my arrival that morning, he had prepared a stew from garden fresh vegetables he’d purchased from a roadside stand and fresh beef raised not far from Base Camp One.
WWJ: The SUSA is self-sufficient, isn’t it?
Ben Raines: We can grow or manufacture just about everything we need. We control every major port on the Gulf and the Atlantic, and while our navy is relatively small, they man very fast and extremely well armed patrol boats.
WWJ: Built here in the SUSA?
Ben Raines: About half of them. The rest we stole from U.S. Navy bases shortly after the war and refitted to our own specifications.
WWJ: You’re planning on having your own fleet of ships and your own merchant marine, aren’t you?
Ben Raines: Absolutely. And we’re well on the way to achieving that. This nation will not allow a pack of cowardly give-everything-away and kiss-the-ass-of-every-two-bit-nation-in-the-world politicians to destroy our merchant marine fleet.
WWJ: You’re referring to what happened in the United States of America before the war?
Ben Raines: Damn right I am. That was disgraceful. One of the most disgraceful moves the United States of America ever allowed to happen.
WWJ: From what I have been able to research, the government claims we couldn’t compete with the foreign shippers.
Ben Raines: We gave away the seas. We could have thrown embargoes against foreign shippers and forced them to meet our terms. But no, no way. The good ol’ U S of A just couldn’t do anything like that. Our politicians would rather give the whole fucking country away than hurt somebody’s feelings. Well, let me tell you something about the SUSA. We look out for number one, and that’s us. And we will always look out for number one. And if that means spilling one drop or ten thousand barrels of somebody else’s blood to maintain that position, we’re ready. No foreign power will ever dictate
President Raines is relieved to hear that Jerre is safely home with Matt and the twins. His tranquility is disrupted by a report from his surgeon general, Dr. Harrison Lane, that the giant rats are infested with fleas carrying the black plague. Those not inoculated will die within three days of exposure. Rosita Murphy, an undercover member of Gray’s Scouts, reveals to Ben a plot to overthrow him by members of the old regime. All this seems surprisingly irrelevant in the face of the impending threat of the plague.
Widespread panic engulfs the public at large. The Joint Chiefs meet and dissolve the government. The few survivors of the plague gather together in small bands and seek comfort, surviving any way they can. Primitive cult leaders, like Emil Hite in Arkansas, rise up to capitalize on the situation.
Raines is returning west with his Rebels. Dawn and Ben have split amicably, and Rosita Murphy has become Ben’s latest lover and traveling companion. (North out of Richmond, Virginia, to Indiana Highway 35 to Marion, Illinois.) They ride together home to Tri-States. (Through Missouri and west on Highway 196. Go south at Bethany to enter Kansas between Saint Joseph and Kansas City into Colorado, across Wyoming until Highway 30, into Idaho . . . and home) Weather patterns have been gradually changing since the nuclear holocaust, and it is decided ultimately to settle in an area where people can be sure to plant double crops in order to ensure survival.
Finally, Ben and the Rebels settle in to start their new Tri-States society in the area of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. Jerre and Matt get married, and Rosita announces that she’s pregnant with Ben’s child. The Rebels enjoy their time of peace. Ben knows in his heart that he will have to face Hartline again one day, but the mercenary will have to be the one to make the first move. . . .
THREE
General Raines turned out to be a surprisingly good cook. Before my arrival that morning, he had prepared a stew from garden fresh vegetables he’d purchased from a roadside stand and fresh beef raised not far from Base Camp One.
WWJ: The SUSA is self-sufficient, isn’t it?
Ben Raines: We can grow or manufacture just about everything we need. We control every major port on the Gulf and the Atlantic, and while our navy is relatively small, they man very fast and extremely well armed patrol boats.
WWJ: Built here in the SUSA?
Ben Raines: About half of them. The rest we stole from U.S. Navy bases shortly after the war and refitted to our own specifications.
WWJ: You’re planning on having your own fleet of ships and your own merchant marine, aren’t you?
Ben Raines: Absolutely. And we’re well on the way to achieving that. This nation will not allow a pack of cowardly give-everything-away and kiss-the-ass-of-every-two-bit-nation-in-the-world politicians to destroy our merchant marine fleet.
WWJ: You’re referring to what happened in the United States of America before the war?
Ben Raines: Damn right I am. That was disgraceful. One of the most disgraceful moves the United States of America ever allowed to happen.
WWJ: From what I have been able to research, the government claims we couldn’t compete with the foreign shippers.
Ben Raines: We gave away the seas. We could have thrown embargoes against foreign shippers and forced them to meet our terms. But no, no way. The good ol’ U S of A just couldn’t do anything like that. Our politicians would rather give the whole fucking country away than hurt somebody’s feelings. Well, let me tell you something about the SUSA. We look out for number one, and that’s us. And we will always look out for number one. And if that means spilling one drop or ten thousand barrels of somebody else’s blood to maintain that position, we’re ready. No foreign power will ever dictate
Readers choose
L. E. Modesitt Jr.
Astrid Jane Ray
Marquita Valentine
Cardeno C.
Ruth Clampett
Avis Exley
Stephanie Lam
Karen Rose
Charles Atkins