"That's the First Cav pa.s.sing through," he told Pendergast, standing next to him. "I think it is anyway. None of the tracks are flying Cav guidons. You suppose they are ashamed?"

"Dunno, sir. Might be."

Overhead another of the seemingly endless flights of Army helicopters pa.s.sed by, bringing in another load of PGSS.

Williams looked upward. "How many is that now?" he asked.

Pendergast answered, "How many troops? About seven thousand would be my guess. I didn't know Rottenmuncher had that many in her private army."

"There's a lotta things about her people didn't know when she was running, Sergeant Major. Maybe more things she kept secret after she won."

Pendergast shrugged. Well, too late to do anything about that now.

A single shot rang out. To Pendergast it sounded like a .50 caliber. To a Guardsman standing just to Pendergast's left it didn't sound like anything at all...for it killed him instantaneously.

"Down! G.o.ddammit, down!"

And so it begins again, Pendergast thought, as a steady spattering of rifle fire began to pelt the facility. Pendergast thought, as a steady spattering of rifle fire began to pelt the facility.

Houston, Texas "Just come on, girl, forget the old man," Minh demanded of Elpi, he and a henchmen dragging her by each arm. The girl twisted and struggled to turn around and go back to stand beside Charlesworth in his hour of need, the hour which was possibly his final one. She struggled, but fruitlessly; for all his age and tiny stature the former Vietcong was still much stronger.

Even as they hustled Elpi through some merchant's doors, Minh looked behind him with a certain amount of satisfaction. Like some mindless colony of killer ants the EPP were wading into the crowd, beating, breaking, arresting in some cases. Photographers stationed by Minh in the overlooking windows would be catching all that, catching on film and tape the actions of the federals against a helpless, unresisting crowd. These images would appear everywhere soon; on television in unoccupied Texas and across the world, on the Internet in the still fully federated states; within the environs of Houston there would soon be no wall without its poster of bleeding women.

Minh gave Elpi a final push then turned around full and, with folded arms, watched the blue-clad horde chew its way closer to Charlesworth. So it was not all just an act, you blue-eyed devil; all those heroes you played. So it was not all just an act, you blue-eyed devil; all those heroes you played.

Charlesworth, himself, kept to his microphone, speaking even until the club descended to shut his eyes and his mouth forever.

Bunker Hill, Texas Once past Houston, proper, the point of the Marine's 2nd Division had split off southwest, towards Corpus Christi. The Army's 3 Division had split off southwest, towards Corpus Christi. The Army's 3rd Infantry Division continued almost due west towards San Antonio. Infantry Division continued almost due west towards San Antonio.

I don't know how long I can keep my eyes shut to what's happening, thought the grizzled, old sergeant major of the division. The boss didn't see, he was too far to the front, what was left of poor Charlesworth. But I saw...and this is not what I signed up to do.

The sergeant major was not alone. Almost two-thirds of the division had pa.s.sed through or near the Galleria area on their way eastward. Many were too far away to tell much of anything. Still, a substantial number had seen the bodies, heard the screams.

The Army's Third Infantry was one very unhappy division.

El Paso, Texas Smoke drifted on the breeze. Some of it was from the gasoline stations burnt and destroyed by the Guard on its retreat. As much came from wood cooking fires across the border in Juarez, Mexico. The Marines couldn't do much about Juarez. They were trying manfully to reduce the flames in and around El Paso.

But none of the locals will lift so much as a finger to help us, thought Fulton, unhappily. You would think that at least some of them would want to save what could be saved.

Fulton looked up as his G-4, his quartermaster, approached.

"Forget saving any of the diesel and gasoline, boss," announced the "Four," dejectedly. "It's all going up in smoke. I might be able to save some of the packaged POL"-Petroleum, Oil and Lubricants-"but we can't burn that in our engines."

"How far did you say we could go on what we have?" queried Fulton, though he knew the answer.

"Just like I told you, General-twenty miles past El Paso. By which point we are bone dry."

"Fine. s.h.i.t. Okay then, call a halt. Any word on clearing out our supply route back into and through New Mexico?"

The G-4 sighed deeply. "We've started getting what we don't need; ammunition, mainly. The fuel? Well, they cleared out the demonstrators at Las Cruces. So naturally, the State of New Mexico has declared all the roads closed and seized any trucks they can get their hands on of ours. But... General, sir? There's this driver, nice kid, a reservist who was at Las Cruces. Sir...you need to talk to this kid."

Fulton had a very strong feeling-nay, a certainty-that he was not going to like what the reservist had to tell him. Even so, never a coward-certainly not a moral coward-he agreed. "Send the kid to see me this evening, after chow."

Colorado River, Columbus, Texas

The sign by the highway said, "This far and no farther."

"You suppose that's directed to us?" Sergeant Soult asked his driver through the vehicle intercom.

Before the driver could answer, the Interstate 10 bridge spanning the river went up in a flurry of smoke and debris.

"Stop the LAV," Soult commanded. "Stop it now."

It was well he did so. Less than a minute after the bridge went down there came the sound of m.u.f.fled freight trains. Soult instinctively ducked, pulling the hatch halfway closed above him. The driver merely hunched down a bit.

Ahead of them erupted a maelstrom of fire and flying shards as several dozen large-caliber artillery rounds went off more or less simultaneously at the near end of the bridge.

"Yeah, bubba," said Soult. "I think they mean it."

Northeast of El Campo, Texas

They did did mean it. mean it.

AMTRACs and infantry-the bulk of 2nd Marine Division-moved slower than LAVs. And, though the Marine Corps had LAVs aplently, they were to a large extent constrained by the speed of their slowest movers; in this case LPCs, or Leather Personnel Carriers. Marine Division-moved slower than LAVs. And, though the Marine Corps had LAVs aplently, they were to a large extent constrained by the speed of their slowest movers; in this case LPCs, or Leather Personnel Carriers.

Thus there was plenty of warning that the Guard was serious and that no more warning shots would be fired.

During the night, small parties of Marines went forward to recon the west bank of the river from the east bank. One and all they came back with the report, "Too hard." That is to say, they all came back with the report except for one patrol that was caught trying to cross the river. This patrol did not come back at all. In its way, this confirmed what the others had said.

Chapter Fifteen.

From the transcript at trial: Commonwealth of Virginia v. Alvin Scheer DIRECT EXAMINATION, CONTINUEDBY MR. STENNINGS:.

Q. Did you think Texas was about to lose, Alvin?

A. Well, I'd like to think I had a little more faith than that. Thing was, though, I just couldn't see how we could win.

Q. And you kept close track of it on the news?

A. I tried, what there was of news. Things got really quiet once Houston went under. All you ever saw on the TV was more and more troops building up around that area of Texas the feds hadn't taken over yet.

They used to show us a lot of what had gone on, though. I swear, if I never again see some news type standin' by a wrecked bridge and lecturing about "criminal waste" or "lawless behavior" again...well, if I never do it will still be too soon.

There was one funny thing about them bridge shots. See, I knew the areas of a lot of them so it wasn't too hard to place where they were taken. And even when I couldn't place 'em, there was something always the same. Lots of trucks piled up on the north sides or the east sides of the rivers, waiting for a ferry to bring 'em across.

Now, I never did any time in the army, so I didn't know what those traffic jams were doing, not in any detail. But I figured, if they really needed all them trucks...and most of the trucks were stuck on the wrong side of some blown-up bridges, then they had to be short whatever it was them trucks was supposed to be carrying.

Wasn't just at the bridges, neither. Seems New Mexico decided...I didn't know why at the time...to throw in with Texas. Not that we got any details, naturally. But I did notice two things. One was that the "on location" newscasts suddenly switched from Las Cruces, New Mexico to Arizona and Colorado. The other? Well, when they started mentioning the governor of that state, Mr. Garrison, the same way they talked about Mrs. Seguin? I put two and two together and came up with...well, two. Two states, that is.

And I knew Texas wasn't alone anymore.

Austin, Texas "New Mexico did it, Juani. We're not alone anymore," exulted Schmidt.

"Did what, Jack?"

"Adopted the full program. Nullified the income tax withholding within the state. Started rounding up federal agents and bureaucrats. Voted an expansion of their State Defense Force and National Guard. They've also ordered all highways and railways blocked. Though, you know, Juani, they don't really have have a National Guard. They sent us d.a.m.ned near everything they had from air defense to medics." a National Guard. They sent us d.a.m.ned near everything they had from air defense to medics."

Juani's face took on a worried expression. "I am not sure this is a good thing or a bad, Jack. What happened?"

"The feds opened fire on the people who were blocking the highway by Las Cruces. Killed a bunch of state police; some other people, too. Garrison called an emergency session of the legislature and they voted, almost unanimously, to join us."

An image of a disarmed and already occupied New Mexico flashed through her mind, followed by one of civilians and police shot down on the highway. Juani bit her lower lip and began to rock gently back and forth. My fault, my fault, all my fault. My fault, my fault, all my fault.

Not one to hide an unpleasantness, even from an obviously stressed governor, Jack added, "But it isn't going all that well. We had some time to prepare. New Mexico really didn't. Didn't have the money either. And, like I said, what they had of National Guard they had already sent to us."

Jack concluded, "Garrison, the legislature, and about fifty cops are under siege in the State House. Their phone lines are cut but they obviously have some cell phones. And there's a local news team on site too. But there's not much food to speak of and the water has been cut too. Juani, they need our help."

My fault, too, if we don't help them. "What can we do? Give me some options." "What can we do? Give me some options."

"Out west I've got three battalions, one tank and two mechanized infantry, facing off against the 1st Marines and 3 Marines and 3rd Armored Cav. It's a risk...I'm told that the supply status for the Marines and Cav is very low but I don't Armored Cav. It's a risk...I'm told that the supply status for the Marines and Cav is very low but I don't know know it is. One of those battalions of ours was the one slated to go around 3 it is. One of those battalions of ours was the one slated to go around 3rd Corps to extract our folks in Fort Worth. If you are willing to let them go under I can strip off that battalion and send it on an end run to Santa Fe. I Corps to extract our folks in Fort Worth. If you are willing to let them go under I can strip off that battalion and send it on an end run to Santa Fe. I think think the other two would be enough to make the Marines and Cav dance around and burn up whatever fuel they might have left. I the other two would be enough to make the Marines and Cav dance around and burn up whatever fuel they might have left. I think." think."

"You'll have to break your promise to those boys in the WCF for me to do that."

Juani's rocking grew more p.r.o.nounced before she settled back in her chair. "Don't ask me to go back on my word, Jack...please. I promised those boys we'd at least try to get them out."

Jack, here, was pitiless. "Maybe that was a promise you shouldn't have made, Governor."

Juani felt a wave of nausea wash over her. Dammit, she was a good politician...and a good politician keeps her word.

"Tell me what you think I should do," she forced out, painfully.

Relenting now, Jack reached a hand over and gave her shoulder a rea.s.suring and comforting squeeze. "I'll tell the boys in Fort Worth they can surrender at discretion or try to break out and escape and evade. Then we'll send a battalion to Santa Fe...if we can."

"Can?" questioned the governor.

"Between where we have that battalion and Fort Worth there's some cover. There are first cla.s.s roads. There are towns to hide in. The people are mostly our our people or, at worst, neutral. Between where they are now and Santa Fe it's open and mostly flat and they can only people or, at worst, neutral. Between where they are now and Santa Fe it's open and mostly flat and they can only hope hope to make any progress without being spotted and hammered from the air. The people there will probably support us just as our own would...but there are a lot fewer of them. No joke, Juani; it's going to be hard." to make any progress without being spotted and hammered from the air. The people there will probably support us just as our own would...but there are a lot fewer of them. No joke, Juani; it's going to be hard."

"Okay, then. It's a risk. But it's a risk we have to take, yes?"

"I don't know," answered Jack. "Garrison's too good a man to let go under. New Mexico's too good a state, too. They supported us-openly-when no one else would.

"But, Juani, the guys in the Currency Facility are good men, too. They're big boys now, all grown up. They know the deal and I'm sure they won't hold any hard feelings.