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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’m not going to patronise you by telling you it’s the right thing to do, Jed. By many folks’ way of figuring these things, it’s not. But I believe it is, not for the sake of those women and children, but for us. We have fallen, Jed. We have fallen far and hard, and we are hurting. It would be tempting – even more than tempting, it would be a terrible pleasure – to try to soften that hurt by laying it off on someone else. Particularly someone as deserving as a man who was trying to kill us not so long ago. But that way lies desolation, my friend. The madness of revenge-seeking is seductive, but it’s still madness. We can only think of ourselves as better than them if we really are better than them.

‘I’m not a child. I know a lot of those women hate us with a passion. Even before we took their men from them, they hated us. Or at least the idea of us. What they’d been raised to think of us, and, if truth be known, what they’re raising their children to think of us in the very camps where we hold them captive at the moment. But we can change that. Because we are better than their low opinion of us.’

Kipper’s words gave the impression of him becoming more intense as he spoke, but in fact he seemed to relax and grow almost abstracted. It was as if he was examining an engineering challenge, and because it interested him, rather than because some vital outcome rested upon his solving it.

‘Revenge is the pleasure of a small and feeble mind – I read that somewhere back in college. It rang true then, and even more now. Nothing good ever comes of it. How many of the true believers, the real holy warriors, who came here and died, did so to revenge themselves on an America that doesn’t even exist anymore? Where are they now? Are they an example worth following, do you think? No, let’s take these people in, the ones we have some hope of saving. And let’s have our revenge on them by turning them into something they once hated. Into us. Because we are better than them.’

Jed Culver found himself in an unusual position. He was lost for words.

4

FORMER URUGUAYAN–ARGENTINIAN BORDER REGION, SOUTH AMERICAN FEDERATION