America

America

by David Seed

Smashwords Edition

Published on Smashwords

by Western Grebe Publishing

All Rights Reserved

Copyright 1992, 2016 by David Seed

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

Thank you for buying this ebook. It is licensed for your personal enjoyment and may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you want to share this book, please purchase another copy to share. If you’re reading this book and didn’t buy it, please buy a copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Table of Contents

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

About the Author

Prologue

What did they expect? Really, was it any surprise when they took to the streets chanting Black Lives Matter, blocking streets, tearing down patriotic statues?

White Power is what they got. White Power took over the Army and Air Force. White Power took over the Government, disbanded Congress, the Supreme Court; opened the prisons; broadcast that terrorists had done it.

When the shooting and bombing began it was no longer time to chant. The news reports said it was time to find terrorists and escaped prisoners; it was time to use all those guns and bazookas and machine guns that cluttered up their houses, just waiting for this to happen, as they had always expected. It was time for aggressive self-defense. It was time to round up all the terrorists and send them someplace where they couldn’t chant, couldn’t be uppity or claim they had rights. Where they couldn’t clutter up the streets and rape the women.

Some tried to fight back, to resist. Some tried to hide. Skin color decided if you lived or died. Brown, beige, black: none of it mattered. White only mattered. Huge cash bounties were offered to certified Guardsmen.

Chapter One

Joshua dreamed he clung to the top of the boxcar. He was numb from exhaustion but he heard the train screaming in his ears and felt the cold wind whipping down his back. The boxcar swayed and Joshua thought he might fall. He tightened his hold on the boards of the catwalk and struggled to wake up but he couldn't open his eyes. He shivered and tucked his head in tighter against his shoulder. His eyes rolled up in their sockets and focused on oblivion. For a time he slept a sleep of desperation while the train hurtled into the black night.

Pain goaded Joshua back into the world of dreams. He heard growling sounds and felt his body being shaken. He was suddenly aware that his foot hurt. He thought a dog was biting him. The sole of his jogging shoe was wedged in the dog's jaws which were locked across the arch of his foot. He tried to jerk free but started to lose his shoe.

He panicked, thinking the dog would attack his bare foot. He shoved his foot deeper into the shoe and curled his toes to keep it on. He kept the shoe firmly in the dog's mouth and gritted his teeth against the pain as he tried to remember what was happening.

~~~***~~~

Then, he dreamed of what happened the night before. After the explosions and fire, he tried to get out of the city. He ran in smoky darkness down back streets and away from patrolling Guardsmen.

Joshua knew that if the Guardsmen caught him, they would kill him. They would club him down and drag him to the curb. They would cut his throat and shove his head into a storm drain. He had seen it happen to his friends.

~~~***~~~

They sat at the lunch table in the basement of the Youth Center. Emily was the first to speak.

The Church isn't going to save us. Her haunting voice hung in the gloom.

I'm sure they've tried, Delbert said. He was hunched low with his elbows on his knees and held his head in his hands. In the flickering candlelight he looked like a decapitated ghost holding his severed head above the table. I'm afraid we're on our own, he said.

What can we do? Emily asked.

We can get away through the sewer system, Joshua said. He leaned into the light. We haven't had any rain. If the storm drains are clear, we can make it back to the Church.

And have sanctuary. Annie's voice was as soft as a whisper. The Church will get us out of the terrorist zone.

I'm not going down in the sewer, Delbert said. He seemed to be using his hands to shake his head from side to side.

Consider World War Two. Joshua held up his right hand as if he were back competing on his high school debate team. When the Nazis destroyed the Warsaw ghetto, only a few Jews got away. They escaped through the sewer system.

Spoken like a true history major, Annie said. In the heavy darkness her wide smile was the only glimmer of brightness and the only smile.

This isn't World War two, Joshua. As Emily spoke, her left hand reached into the wavering circle of yellow light, and her index finger pointed down to touch the table.

I see some similarities, Joshua said.

This isn't the same at all. Emily's hand rose and seemed to float above the table. The hand moved expressively and dominated the sphere of light. We're not at war. Besides, this is America. We're citizens and we have rights. We can prove we're not terrorists.

We might not get the chance, Joshua said.

We can tell them who we are.

What if they don't care?

Hold it right there, both of you. Delbert sat up and appeared to place his head back on his huge shoulders. We have to get to the Church. We can't stay here. They've cut off everything, and we're out of food and water.

I checked the fire hydrants, Joshua said. They're still dry.

We don't have a lot of options, and I'm too big for the sewer, Delbert added. I'd get stuck and be eaten by rats.

Rats? Emily's hand darted back and out of the light.

I've got wire cutters, Delbert went on. I'm going through the fence tonight.

What about no-man’s-land? Joshua asked.

When they bulldozed the buildings, they left some deep ruts, Delbert said. If I crawl, I can stay out of sight.

I'm going with Delbert. Emily said and gave the table a final tap with her index finger.

What do you say, Annie? Joshua leaned into the light and gazed at the dark outline of Annie's face. Will you come with me?

I'm sorry, Joshua. Her lips parted and pulled back into an apologetic smile. I'm afraid of rats.

I'm out voted then. Should we stick together?

Wait a minute, Joshua. Delbert dropped his head back into his hands. Maybe you should try your way. If you make it and we don't, you can send help.

What if you make it and I don't?

We'll get somebody to go around tapping on manhole covers. Delbert laughed and seemed to be shaking his head with his hands.

Fair enough, Joshua said.

That night he said good-by and held back the cut edge of the fence as Delbert crawled through the opening. Emily was quick to follow.

Good luck, Joshua, she said in a hushed voice.

See you later, Joshua whispered.

Annie stopped short of the opening. She took the gold chain with the little medal on it from around her neck and placed it over Joshua's head.

Why are you giving it back? Joshua asked.

You'll need your lucky medal tonight, Annie answered softly.

I only told you it was lucky to help you get through finals.

I know, but it worked Joshua. I was lucky and I want you to be lucky.

Hurry up, you two. Emily's ghostly whisper reached out of the darkness and startled Joshua. Then Annie kissed him and she was gone.

Just before dark Joshua found a storm drain with a loose grate. He pried it open with a crowbar. He could see the drain was clear with plenty of room in it for him. That figures, he thought. A lot of water runs out of the hills during the rainy season. A storm drain would have to be large down here.

After he saw his friends on their way, he went back to the open storm drain. He paused for a moment to collect his thoughts.

He wore his favorite jogging suit and a hooded sweat shirt. He had on two pair of socks and his jogging shoes. He fastened his pants tight at the ankles in case rats tried to run up his legs. He pulled his hood over his head and tied it tightly to keep spiders from dropping down his neck. He took the crowbar with him and also the handle of a sponge mop. He planned to use the mop handle to explore the darkness. He patted the little pocket of his jogging pants to make sure he had the keys to his Pontiac. The car was back at the Church parking lot.

Let's go, he thought to himself. Let's get this over with and not keep anyone waiting.

He held onto the crowbar and mop handle as he lowered himself down into the drain. He slid to the bottom and found it dry. Darkness was all around him and only a faint light showed through the opening above his head. He explored the drain by tapping the mop handle against the walls. He could stand without hitting his head.

This is going to be easy, he assured himself and started in the right direction.

He used the crowbar as a cane and waved the mop handle out in front of him as he advanced into the pitch blackness.

He moved at a steady pace but he knew he wasn't alone. He heard small things scurrying away in the darkness as he tapped the mop handle against the concrete.

When he noticed a faint light showing through a grate above his head, he knew he was in the next block.

I'm halfway across no-man's-land, he thought.

He knew a two-block swath had been bulldozed all along the fenced-in ghetto. He wondered how his friends were doing.

They have to crawl, he thought. I'm probably keeping up with them.

He hurried on while swinging the mop handle back and forth and tapping it every now and then on the floor of the drain. He saw a flickering glow of light ahead and watched it get brighter as he approached a large grate. Then he heard people running and yelling. The grate was suddenly illuminated as he stepped under it.

Over here! a harsh voice called out.

I've got this one, Lieutenant! another voice answered above the din.

Drag her over here, the Lieutenant ordered.

Then Joshua recognized Emily's voice.

We're college students, she yelled. We work at the Church Youth Center. We're not terrorists. We're Americans.

Cut her throat, the Lieutenant ordered.

No! Let go! Emily screamed. Joshua heard the sounds of a struggle.

Hang on, Soldier. I'll take care of her, the Lieutenant said.

No! Emily screamed again, but the scream suddenly ended with a gurgling sound, and her body landed on the grate. Her left hand reached through the opening, and Joshua saw the blood dripping off her index finger. He didn't move.

Then Joshua heard Delbert yelling and fighting.

Hang on to him! the Lieutenant yelled. Don't let go of his arm!

He's a damned bull, a Guardsman muttered. Can't we just shoot him?

No, we're under orders. Use your bayonet, Soldier. Chop his neck. Chop his damned head off!

Joshua heard the grunting and groaning. He heard the sickening sound of a bayonet striking flesh and bone. His stomach revolted. He just stood there retching without realizing it. His stomach was empty and only a few drops of bile dripped out of his open mouth.

Then Delbert's head rolled onto the grate, and his body fell heavily on top of Emily. Her hand reached farther through the grate opening, and a stream of blood splattered at Joshua's feet.

Here's the other one, a Guardsman yelled, and Joshua heard scuffling footsteps and Annie's voice.

Please, don't do this, Annie pleaded. Oh, Mother... Her voice trailed off with a rush of air from her severed windpipe. She fell head first onto the grate; and as her face pressed into the iron bars, her lips stretched wide to expose her gleaming white teeth.

Joshua started to call out her name but he choked. Then he felt her blood soaking into his sweat shirt. He reeled back against the wall, hit his head and slumped into a sitting position.

The sound of footsteps faded, and the light was gone. Joshua was suddenly sitting in the darkness. All was silence, except for the sound of dripping blood.

Joshua rose slowly to his feet. He was still holding the crowbar and the mop handle. He dropped them both. They clattered onto the concrete, but no one was there to hear the noise. Not even Joshua heard it. He turned from the smell of death and staggered headlong into darkness.

He didn't care anymore. He wished he had gone with his friends and died with them. He didn't want to feel the pain that was clawing at him. He curled up in a tiny ball inside himself and tried to make himself disappear. He could hardly feel his arms and legs as he stumbled blindly forward.

He tried not to think about what happened but he couldn't blot out the images. Tears flooded his eyes. As he started to mourn his friends, the pain uncoiled inside him. He stopped and clutched his arms around his body and shook with sobbing.

Why? he screamed and found his voice. It echoed back from the concrete walls. Why?

He stood still in the shattered silence and listened but there was no answer.

Joshua didn't see the faces but he knew that Guardsmen murdered his friends. The act was genocide, and he was a witness. He remembered the precedent set at the Nuremberg trials. Some day he might testify against the man who ordered the killings but first, Joshua had to report the crime. He had to get to the Church and tell the leaders what happened.

He stretched out his arms and plunged into the darkness. He stumbled and scraped against the wall but stayed on his feet. He had to feel his way along but he didn't slow down. He passed under another large grate. In the dim light, he noticed drain openings coming in from the sides. He realized he was at an intersection but he kept going straight ahead. For a few moments he heard traffic moving on the street above but after that, all was silence again.

By the time he got to the next intersection, he started to hear splashing sounds coming from somewhere behind him. He thought water might be flowing in from one of the side drains, but he was above them and not much concerned. He staggered on at steady pace.

A moment later, Joshua heard something else beside the sound of splashing. He heard high pitched, squeaking sounds echoing out of the darkness behind him. He stopped and listened as the screeching grew louder.

A shiver went up his spine, and the hair stood out from the back of his neck as he realized that hundreds