Part 22 (1/2)

Once the convoy left the area tightly controlled by the Rebels, the highways were in bad shape and the convoy was slowed down considerably.

Ben ordered the convoy over just west of Meridian, Mississippi with about three hours of light left, at a small deserted town. Scouts had checked out the town and found certain 250.

areas of it functioning-in a manner of speaking. The town had been one of the outposts, but those there had not been able to effectively combat the roaming gangs of thugs and could not bring themselves to adopt the harsh law of the Rebels. So they had left-no one knew where-and the town, at least parts of it, had turned into a squatter's camp.

”They're heavily armed,” Ben was told. ”And not at all friendly.”

”Before you tell me,” Ben said, ”I can guess. They have hordes of half-naked kids running around, most of them with runny noses and rashes, and dirty diapers, or no diapers at all. They have no schools, no proper sanitation facilities, no doctors. The men all consider themselves to be 'rough, tough, rugged individualists,' who hunt and fish while their wives work the gardens, keep house, and bear children.

All of whom are illiterate.”

The Scout laughed. ”It never changes, does it, General?”

”Unfortunately, no. It does not. d.a.m.nit!” Ben kicked at a rock and succeeded only in scuffing the toe of his boot. ”We had this place all set up and fully functioning. We spent a lot of time and effort in this place. Why in the h.e.l.l did the good people turn tail and run?”

No one answered him because they knew he didn't expect any reply.

”Maybe,” Ben said softly, ”it was because they were good people. Maybe we've been the bad guys all these years.”

”Sure we are, to an extent,” a company commander said. ”You said yourself that a nice guy could never be President of the United States, or Prime Minister of England, 251.

or the leader of any large country. It takes someone who is part son of a b.i.t.c.h.”

Ben smiled. ”Did I say that? Yeah. I guess I did, at that. Well, I was right. What does Meridian up the road look like, as if I didn't know.”

”Burned out, looted, picked over five thousand times,” the Scout replied. ”Some pretty sorry outlaw-looking types in there, General.”

”Any sorrier than the ones now occupying what used to be our outpost?””No, sir. Just about the same.”

”Company coming,” Corrie said. ”Be here in about five minutes. Fifty or so men, all heavily armed. And all in need of a bath. Badly in need, according to the patrol.”

”That figures,” Ben said. ”The easiest thing in the world to make is soap. But will these b.a.s.t.a.r.ds do it? No. Come on. Let's get this over with.”

The men, all bearded and blue-jeaned and booted, carried a wide variety of weapons, but carried them like men who understood guns. And Ben had no doubt but what they did.

Ben halted them about twenty-five feet from where he stood in the room.

”That's far enough, boys! I can smell you from here.”

”I always knowed we'd meet up someday, Mr. Big Shot General Raines.

Yeah, I knows who you is. I seen your pitcher. You just as ugly as your pitcher made you out to be. I reckon you come here to tell what to do, right?”

”Judging from your appearance and body odor, I doubt that even your mother could tell you what to do ... or if she tried you didn't listen.”

252.

The man flushed under the grime on his face and c.o.c.ked his head to one side. He narrowed his eyes. ”You got a rale smart mouth on you, Raines.”

”Why thank you. I take that as a compliment.”

”I din mean it thataways.”

”I'm sure. What do you men want?”

”To tell you to git, that's what. W'un's run this area around here.”

”Oh, my!” Ben feigned great consternation. ”He's ordering us to leave.

Should we pack up, people?”

”He's just scaring me to death, General,” the usually quiet Beth said, but she hated this type of men they were facing. If Beth could have her way, she'd line them all up and shoot them on the spot.

”Yeah, me, too,” Jersey said, then quite unladylike spat on the broken asphalt. ”Just about that much.”

Corrie was leaning against the fender of a six-by, her CAR-15 pointed straight at the knot of men. There was a strange smile on her lips.

”You c.u.n.ts got rale smart mouths, ain't you?” the spokesman said.

”If you don't back off and apologize for that remark,” Ben told the man.

”You're going to be in serious trouble.”

”Oh, yeah? How's that?”

”Because I might be forced to turn these ladies loose. And believe me, boys, you don't want that.””s.h.i.+t!” one of the men said.

A slim but very shapely oriental Rebel stepped forward. Kim filled out her BDU's very nicely. She was one of the highly motivated and trained-to-the-edge Scouts, and she was lethal. At her side, in a pouch, she carried throwing stars, and was extremely accurate with 253.

them. She could also kill with her bare hands, and did, often, working behind enemy lines.

”What's that G.o.dd.a.m.n gook want?” the spokesman asked.

A whole gaggle of women and malnourished kids had appeared behind the knot of rednecks. The women were not much better to look upon than their men. Ben felt sorry for the kids, for he knew they did not have a chance in life. They would, in all probability, grow up to be just like their parents. Worthless. There would be the exception among them, of course.

The occasional kid who would defy their parents' self-imposed ignorance and cruelty and learn to enjoy reading and expanding his or her mind, who would break away and better themselves. But those break-aways would be rare.

”Get your kids out of here,” Ben told the group of men. ”I don't want them to see this.”

”You don't tell me to do nothin' wif my younguns, Raines,” the man responded.

”Back off, Kim,” Ben told the young woman, quickly sizing up the situation. ”These kids have had a tough enough time of it without seeing more violence.”

”I knowed all the time that you was yeller, Raines!” the man said with a grin. His teeth were rotted and blackened.

Ben's eyes turned cold. ”You ignorant son of a b.i.t.c.h!” Ben lashed out at the man. ”I see it daily but I still have a hard time believing just how G.o.dd.a.m.n stupid some people can be. Look at us, you fool. You're looking at over a thousand troops. The finest weapons known to exist in the world today. One of those main battle tanks parked over there could wipe out your whole little gathering of stupidity. Look at these troops around me. Look 254.

at their weapons. In five seconds you could all be lying on the road, dead or dying. And you dare to get all up in my face with threats? Turn around and return to your stinking hovels. Go on, continue your lives of ignorance and bigotry. Raise a new generation of fools. We'll just come back here at a later date and wipe them out, just like we should do with you, right this minute!” Ben pointed a finger at the man. ”Don't open your mouth again to me. Don't say another word. Because if you do, I will kill you on the spot!”

The man raised a hand to his face. The hand trembled slightly.