"William W Johnstone - Ashes 26 - Triumph in the Ashes (txt)" - читать интересную книгу автора (Johnstone William W)

barbs at one another for years.

Anna, Ben's adopted daughter, squatted in the shade of a large bush,
sharpening one of her knives, which was already razor sharp. The young
woman, taken in by Ben during the Rebels' European campaign, was in her
late teens, and deadly. She had been orphaned while just a child-when
the Great War swept the

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globe-and had fought for every scrap of food while growing up. Ben had
seen something worthwhile in the dirty faced waif, and taken her in to
raise during her formative teenage years.

That was Ben's personal team. They had been together for a long time,
through good and bad times.

"Bruno's people have pulled back, Boss," Corrie announced, removing her
headset. "All the way across Africa. They packed it up and headed south."

"They didn't do it because they're afraid of us," Ben said, rolling a
cigarette. He looked at her. "Were they in a hurry when they hightailed
it out of here?"

"Didn't seem to be. Scouts report they left nothing useable behind."
Corrie paused for a moment. "Just a lot of dead people," she added.

"Is anyone reporting any action at all?" Ben asked. "Anywhere?"

"Nothing, Boss."

"This will slow us down to a crawl," Ben said. "I want every bridge,
every mile of road, checked for mines. If the village or town is
deserted, it's probably filled with explosives. Do we have anybody left
in South Africa . . . or what used to be called South Africa?"

"Not any more," Beth told him. "The last batch of our people that we
sent in about eighteen months ago just got out alive a few weeks ago."

Ben nodded in understanding. He lit his hand-rolled cigarette and
frowned, silent for a few heartbeats. "Bruno's going to bug out," he
finally said. "Bet on it. He's going to buy some time by sacrificing his
troops and then bug out through the southernmost ports, taking his top
people and his best troops with him. That's the only thing that makes
any sense. He knows he's finished here in Africa ... he can see the end
in sight.
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