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Back Angels of Vengeance Save as PDF
Chapters (68)
  1. Blurb
  2. CONTENTS
  3. Dedication
  4. CHARACTER LIST
  5. 1
  6. 2
  7. 3
  8. 4
  9. 5
  10. 6
  11. 7
  12. 8
  13. 9
  14. 10
  15. 11
  16. 12
  17. 13
  18. 14
  19. 15
  20. 16
  21. 17
  22. 18
  23. 19
  24. 20
  25. 21
  26. 22
  27. 23
  28. 24
  29. 25
  30. 26
  31. 27
  32. 28
  33. 29
  34. 30
  35. 31
  36. 32
  37. 33
  38. 34
  39. 35
  40. 36
  41. 37
  42. 38
  43. 39
  44. 40
  45. 41
  46. 42
  47. 43
  48. 44
  49. 45
  50. 46
  51. 47
  52. 48
  53. 49
  54. 50
  55. 51
  56. 52
  57. 53
  58. 54
  59. TWO MONTHS LATER
  60. ONE YEAR LATER
  61. TWO YEARS LATER
  62. FOUR YEARS LATER
  63. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
  64. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  65. Also by John Birmingham
  66. ALSO BY JOHN BIRMINGHAM
  67. Copyright
  68. Cover

‘I need to get to the Rhino as quickly as possible, too,’ she said. ‘He’s probably in danger. And you said you have had some trouble?’

‘Some, yes. I do not wish to be rude, Miss Julianne, but I would like to address these problems with dispatch. If you remain at your hotel I will send through details of your flights when they are booked.’

‘And the Rhino?’

‘He is working with one of the trawler companies up here. He may be out on the water, I do not know,’ said Shah. ‘But I shall have my men check for him, and when I send through your travel details I will also include some contacts for him. Places you might look when you get into town. I assume you’ll want to start straight away.’

‘I will,’ said Julianne. ‘I’ve had enough of this shit.’

15

DEARBORN HOUSE, SEATTLE, WASHINGTON

James Kipper was grumpy. Jed could see he was grumpy as soon as he and Marilyn were admitted to the President’s private quarters – simply because he was in the process of getting dressed. Just his dinner jacket and black bow tie, known by presidential decree as ‘the Asphyxiator’, to go. He’d have started complaining as soon as he pulled his pants on, and stepped it up while trying to get the cummerbund to sit properly around his nonexistent waist. The performance would soon be reaching a crescendo of mumbling and grumbling about ‘these stupid monkey clothes’ while Barb attempted to do up the Asphyxiator. The President of the United States was nothing if not consistent. As was his wife. She sported the same furiously furrowed brow that Culver recognised from any number of these occasions over the past couple of years.

‘He was trying to get away with wearing a clip-on. Can you imagine that, Jed?’

‘All too easily,’ he snorted. ‘I wouldn’t have been surprised if he’d tried turning up in a Hawaiian shirt or with a motorised bow tie that could spin like a propeller.’

‘Hey, I am the President, you know, fella,’ Kip protested. ‘And that sounds mighty like sedition talk to me. Don’t make me call the Secret Service.’

‘Just shut up and let me finish this,’ his wife scolded as she fussed some more with the Asphyxiator. ‘I can’t do this while you’re flapping your gums around.’

‘I love what you’ve done with your hair, Babs,’ said Marilyn. It was an artful attempt to push the conversation away from Kipper’s deep-seated aversion to dressing like a grown-up and onto a topic with which Jed’s wife was familiar. One in which she was frighteningly overqualified, in fact.

‘Oh, this?’ The First Lady blew a freshly cut fringe of hair back out of her eyes. ‘It was getting too long. I had to do something.’