THE KILLER ANGEL : Book Three "Journey" (THE KILLER ANGEL TRILOGY 3)
Read THE KILLER ANGEL : Book Three "Journey" (THE KILLER ANGEL TRILOGY 3) Online
Authors: Myles Stafford
THE
KILLER ANGEL
Book Three
“Journey”
by Myles Stafford
THE
KILLER ANGEL
Book Three
“Journey”
by Myles Stafford
© 2015, Myles P. Stafford. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
Also available in
THE
KILLER ANGEL
trilogy:
THE KILLER ANGEL:
Book One - “Hard Player”
THE KILLER ANGEL:
Book Two - “Legend”
by
Myles Stafford
Special Thanks to
...
Actress
Mandy Musgrave
for graciously providing her beautiful image for the book covers,
and to
...
Up and coming architect,
Jamie Musgrave
, for the many hours she invested in creating the spectacular cover art for the trilogy.
~
The original twins
~
And Finally
...
Grateful applause to
Mario Jovani Alfonso
for the sublime back cover artwork, a third of which was used on each book.
~ Table of Contents ~
Journey:
“I did not choose this life!”
Runners:
“Source: Letters From Nicki Redstone”
Chapter Seven:
“Signs of Nicki”
Chapter Eight:
“Nicki’s Revenge”
Chapter Twelve:
“I Will Find You”
Chapter Thirteen:
“Excerpt from ‘Flynn’s Story’”
Chapter Fourteen:
“Marshall Arrives”
Battle not with monsters, lest ye become a monster; and if you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes also into you
.
~ Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche ~
German philosopher
1844–1900
PREFACE
I enjoyed the privilege of interviewing both Nicki Redstone (with Ben III, ever at her side) and Brick Charbonneau near the end of the Second Recovery Period, a full
thirty
years after the Great Epidemic. Relenting to the strident urging of all who loved them, they agreed to provide their stories, which I have assembled and recounted in these volumes.
In these humble works, I have done my best to faithfully provide an accurate history of their remarkable lives – through their words – during the post-apocalypse years. Some of this story has been documented in other publications, pieces of which I have included here.
Nicki Redstone, at the time of our meeting, was almost sixty years old, although she still appeared to be a very young woman, literally no older than twenty-five, while Brick Charbonneau seemed barely a decade her senior. Admittedly, like a wide-eyed schoolboy, I noted the infamous scar across Nicki’s cheek, still faintly visible after so many years.
As you would imagine, these two modest paladins were as impressive in person as one might expect from the thrilling legends with which we are all familiar. Beautiful and fit, they exuded an aura of extreme
confidence that only comes from successfully overcoming the most intense trials of fire and fear.
I hope that you, the reader, can appreciate that my words here do only small justice to the brilliance of Nicki and Brick, and to the glowing effect they had on others. Truly, a princess and prince for our new age.
This is their story...
Sincerely
,
Myles Stafford
INTRODUCTION
The end of the First Recovery Period is generally accepted among scholars to have occurred with the epic loss of Captain John (Jack) Carter and the remaining soldiers of the 101
st
Airborne Division in the defense of Camp Puller and the many families who had taken refuge there.
Following radio transmissions of extreme distress at Camp Puller, the Hedley Council dispatched Kip Kellogg and his ranger section to aid if possible. That journey, widely acknowledged as one of the most remarkable athletic achievements in modern history, nevertheless proved futile.
For some, the tragic fall of Camp Puller and the much loved Captain Carter, forever ended all hope for the future of civilized reconstruction. Only Hedley, in Oregon, and the nascent developments of Scottie Redstone and Flynn Petron in Florida offered any real possibility that recovery would continue – and perhaps even succeed.
The commencement of the Second Recovery Period is universally accepted as the day that Kip Kellogg passed through the gates of Hedley with his grim report that confirmed and detailed the nearly complete loss of Camp Puller. Ultimately, it was that
sad report - and the lessons learned from it - that inspired a generation of survivors to plan, to prepare, to build better, and to succeed.
After the fire cools, why does one lonely tree stand green when its forest is charred to ash?
And in the aftermath of a terrible wind, why does one single house interrupt a landscape of complete destruction, itself undisturbed?
So it has been with Nicki Redstone
.
I choose to stand close to her, in the center of fire; in the eye of terrible storms; and pray to the great spirit that I do not perish for my boldness
.
My prayer has been answered favorably... so far
.
Brick Charbonneau, Lakota Sioux
(Second Recovery Period)