Jeff Carlson - Plague War

“How are you?” he asked.

“We’re okay. We’re all tired.” Ruth glanced at Estey and Goodrich, including the Rangers with herself. We.

Not long ago she’d spoken about him the same way, but he had to be careful. Allison and the other mayors would be a major force in establishing the townships they intended to build on the plains east of the Rockies, far away from the foothills, where the summers were probably too hot for the bugs.

Allison could be the key to keeping Cam and Ruth hidden. They knew they would always be regarded as criminals by some. They hoped to keep their heads down until the situation improved, and meanwhile there were hundreds of other problems. Except for a few wild crops, there was little to feed anyone beneath the barrier. Farming would be a long-term challenge given the insect swarms, widespread erosion, and the utter loss of some plant species. The nearest cities had already been heavily scavenged during the plague year. Entire neighborhoods had been destroyed by ‚re, †oods, bugs, and ‚ghting. They couldn’t rely on the old world to sustain them for long.

Perhaps most importantly, there was also the next-generation nanotech that Ruth had said must be designed as fast as possible. The war was over, but there were still large Russian and Chinese populations throughout the West. They would play for every advantage as they gained and developed their own nanotech, dragging their feet to leave U.S. soil, haggling and bargaining, looting, even digging in for a new ‚ght.

“Tomorrow we’ll make it to Highway 34 and Deer Ridge,” Cam said. “It’ll get easier.”

“Mm.” Ruth was noncommittal.

She’d stopped looking at him, and Cam felt a deep pang of his own longing and disappointment. They’d won. They’d lost each other. He couldn’t even make an effort to correct that loss. He knew her too well to believe that she would ever disappear into the ruins with him, just the two of them together. Ruth needed people because she needed electricity and food and protection. She needed equipment if they could ‚nd it, and Allison’s network might prove more useful in acquiring the basics of a nanotech lab than any raids led by Estey and Goodrich.

The sun touched the ragged line of peaks above them, casting shadows across the slope like massive teeth. They were still in the light, but Cam could see the border approaching rapidly as the shadows grew. The wind tugged at his jacket. The cold increased.

“I’ll see you in camp,” Cam said, watching Ruth’s face, and for an instant she smiled at him again. Then he turned and caught up with Allison.

They walked into the darkness to ‚nd their way safe.

More than anyone else, I want to thank my wife and sons for their remarkable patience and support.

Sweetheart, I really do love you more than my computer.

* * * *

I’d also like to express my gratitude to the experts who shared their education with me. Any mistakes are mine. Fortunately, no one really knows what would happen to the environment or to the geopolitical world if you removed all warm-blooded life below ten thousand feet. My thanks go to Mike May, Professor of Entomology at Rutgers University; Harry Greene, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Cornell University; Major Brian Woolworth, U.S. Army Special Forces; Lt. Colonel J. Brian “Bear” Lihani, USAF (ret.); and to my father, Gus Carlson, Ph.D., engineer, and former division head at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. All of these people were instrumental in shaping Plague War .

* * * *

A huge thanks also to the Ultimate Grandparents Club: Patti, Ute, Char, Bill, Byron, and my father, Gus, again. The extra days and hours you provided, whether babysitting, grocery shopping, or taking us away for a weekend of fun and rest, were crucial to ‚nishing this book on time.

* * * *

There are other people deserving of mention — our friends Adad Warda and Charlie and Violeta Escobar, for their help and support; Judith Murello and Eric Williams, who have done a sensational job with the covers for the series so far; Meghan Mahler, for her maps; and John Robert Marlow and Janet Lewis, for maintaining my web site at www.jverse.com. Come see what they’ve done. The site offers free ‚ction, interviews, tour dates, and advance information on upcoming books.

* * * *

As always, I want to acknowledge my agent, Donald Maass, and Cameron McClure and Stephen Barbara in the of‚ce.

* * * *

Thank you to everyone at Penguin USA. My editor, Anne Sowards, went the extra mile, and my publicist, Valerie Cortes, has been outstanding. I also appreciate the help of Ginjer Buchanan, Cam “The Other Cam” Dufty, and the rest of the good people behind this novel. They say a writer works alone, but the truth is that a small army put their smarts and energy into producing Plague War . I hope you enjoyed it.