Chapter 1

On Earth

Jack Parsons left his health club and started jogging toward home; it was only ten blocks and provided a good cool-down after his workout. He thought about his life as he ran.

He'd graduated from the University of Texas with a Bachelor's degree in Business, five years ago. A hint, from a computer nerd, caused him to take two computer courses. They weren't advanced - Microsoft Visual Basic and Microsoft Visual C++ - they only gave him a basic starting point. Luckily, those courses alone were nearly one hundred per cent responsible for his situation today.

After graduating in nineteen-ninety-seven, he'd been fortunate to get a job with an Internet startup company which went public a year later. To this day Jack congratulated himself for having the foresight to liquidate his hard earned stock two months before the bubble burst in 2000.

That move left him with twenty-nine million dollars in cash, and now, at twenty-seven, he'd retired. He often thought how odd it was that he had spent twice as much time at UT learning how to make his fortune as he had spent making the fortune. Shit happens, and sometimes good shit happened.

He didn't look like a computer nerd and wasn't really, but the hint he'd taken from the real nerd, about the computer classes, had been worth more money than anything before or since in his life.

Jack was living what his mother might have called A Charmed Life, he was a single multi-millionaire living in Austin Texas, and there were plenty of beautiful women here looking for a rich husband. He outfitted himself to announce his wealth, and even though he had no intention of marrying, he didn't feel it necessary to announce that.

He stood six foot two, weighed two-thirty-five, and had regular features, easily tanned skin, dark hair, and dark blue eyes; he was hardly a nerd. He bought a new Corvette every year, wore a Rolex, and expensive clothes. He owned a six-bedroom ranch house with a pool and hot tub, and he got pussy from beautiful young women whenever he wanted it.

He did a lot of one-night stands while usually stringing along at least one really fine example for three or four months at a time, just to see how good she could get at pleasing him.

Sometimes he'd have a conscience attack, but when he did, he'd just think back to the treatment he'd received throughout his high school and college life, when he was just a po boy, and he'd recover. He figured right about now was pay back time for money-grubbing women.

Jack kept himself in excellent shape at the health club and with karate and boxing lessons. He hated tennis and golf, but enjoyed hunting, shooting, and horseback riding. He had a bird lease in West Texas and another in Mexico, and a deer lease in North East Texas.

He wasn't too proud to go fishing if things got slow and he'd even tried bow, black powder, and handgun hunting. He had time on his hands now and he spent it amusing himself. He would even stoop to camping and hiking if times got hard.

Tonight, Jack was alone, on purpose; he was taking a break from skirt chasing to relax. He fired up his grill and did a New York Strip rare, and warmed some Ranch Style Beans, washing it all down with a couple of Lone Star Longnecks.

On his own, his tastes in food were simple and he couldn't think of anything he liked better than beef and beans. After supper, he climbed in his hot tub for a while, and later hit the rack, watching TV until he fell asleep.

Jack woke at ten-thirty the next morning and switched his TV to CNN, wanting to see what the poor people were doing. Shit-ola! Some kind of sickness had hit the jails and prisons on the east coast around midnight, Eastern Time, last night. All the prisoners that came down with it died within a couple of hours; they all died.

That was weird, but even weirder, the plague had moved westward across the country with the time zones, and it hit California about midnight Pacific Time. Odd, it was more than odd though; suddenly any prison sentence was a death sentence.

None of the news channels or anyone else had any idea what kind of illness it was, but everyone found it strange that none of the guards had come down with it. A lot of airtime was given to discussing what would be done with the bodies.

The circumstances of the deaths were mysterious, but obviously there wouldn't be time to autopsy every victim. The staggering numbers had turned this into an emergency situation within mere minutes and there were so many bodies that it wouldn't even be possible to embalm and give a separate burial to each of them. The great majority would have to be put in mass graves or cremated.

Jack shook it off and decided to get away from the world today, since there wasn't a damned thing he could do about it anyhow. All the criminals died last night, but really, who gave a shit?

After showering and dressing, he grabbed his latest toy, a Barrett M82A1 50 caliber semi-automatic sniper rifle. It was a customized model and he could easily hit a coffee can with it at a thousand yards.

The rifle had no real value for hunting anything in the United States, but he loved the big cannon anyway. What the hell, he was rich, he wanted it, and he could afford to buy one. He put the Barrett and a couple of hundred rounds into the back of his Jeep Cherokee, his shooting wagon, the rest of his gear always stayed there.

He owned a few hundred acres about thirty miles out of Austin, where he'd had a shooting range built. He headed for it, stopping on the way for ham and eggs with biscuits, gravy, and hash browns. After spending four hours up close and personal with the Barrett, Jack left for home, but stopped for Bar-B-Que and a couple of Longnecks on the way.

Back at home, Jack took a shower and went down for a nap. Rousing himself later, he avoided the TV and decided to do a little Boot Scootin' tonight.

Dressing in Levis, a Rodeo Shirt, a belt with a big buckle and his name on the back, he pulled on his lizard skin hand made boots, and grabbed one of his custom cowboy hats. He was headed for the Broken Spoke, one of the last Honky Tonks in Texas. The Spoke was a rough little country bar, so he mounted his dual wheel four door Silverado.

He didn't frequent the Spoke specifically expecting to snag a woman. The cowgirls weren't as likely to be looking for a rich husband as the gold diggers that Jack usually sought. He just enjoyed the place for itself; it was a classic Honky Tonk, always good for a fun time.

Of course, he always dressed to make his best rich cowboy impression when he went, just in case. Some of the best one night pussy he'd ever found had been with cowgirls from the Spoke.

Inside, he saw that there was a good crowd and he spied a beautiful redhead as soon as he got a table. She was with two other lookers and as he watched, for fifteen minutes or so, he saw about ten guys ask her to dance. She turned down all but two, and only danced one dance each with them.

Nancy, a sharp looking and well made waitress he'd tried to dick a dozen times came by and he asked for a Lone Star, then asked her if she knew anything about the redhead.

"Jack, I thought you were saving yourself for our wedding night," Nancy said, teasing him.

"You know, Nancy, if I thought marrying you would get me into your Levis I would save what's left of myself, but I know damn well it wouldn't. I'm pretty sure you like guys instead of girls, but I'm positive that your pussy is some I'm never gonna be able to get," Jack said, trying to tease her.

"They're Wranglers, but you're only about half-wrong. I do like guys, and no matter how it seems, I might share a little pussy with you someday. Just don't get the idea I'm dumb enough to think you'd marry me to get it.

"You're a nice enough guy and good looking; I know you're rich and single, and I also figure you'll never get hitched. Hell, I like a little friendly fucking as much as anybody, you and I just never synchronized our watches.

"You keep coming around every now and then or calling me some, and one of these times I'm gonna let you carry me to your big old ranch house and give me a couple of days worth of dick. Tonight ain't the night though.

"That redhead has been known to leave with a guy every once and a while, but not often. You probably have a better shot than any of the assholes here tonight. Go over and dance her around a little, but if she'll only dance one dance with you, give up, cause after the first time that she turns you down there's no need asking her again," Nancy said.

Taking a chance, I went over and ask for a dance, and she agreed. We danced five or six songs until the band took a break, then she invited me back to the table to join them. Her name was Karen, and the friends were Jana and Beverly. Nancy was paying attention and brought my beer over to their table, and when I offered, the three ordered a round on me.

The band came back and I danced a couple with Jana and then a couple with Beverly, and then got back to the main course with Karen. She was a good dancer and wasn't boner shy on the slow ones. We finished up that set and went back to the table.

It was nearly ten PM now, and when Nancy came by, Beverly was the only one to order. Karen and Jana both had their cars. Jana was Beverly's designated driver, unless she went off to test-drive a cowboy.

"What brings you to the Broken Spoke?" Karen asked me.

"Just trolling for redheads," I said, smiling.

"Damn our luck!" said Jana and Beverly, both blondes, and we all laughed.

"Does that mean it's my lucky night?" Karen asked, smiling again.

"No, but I'm hoping it might be mine," I said.

"If you've got a place of your own, I guess it's ours," she said, smiling again.

"You make me glad I bought a house."

"Let's get moving then, I've gotta work tomorrow," she said.

This was a little abrupt, but what the hell, it suited me fine. I stood and helped her with her chair and as she snagged her purse, she turned to Jana and Beverly.

"We'll talk tomorrow girls and I'll give you all the details," she said, and they laughed, probably at me.

There was nothing for me to say, I blushed, put my arm around her waist, and steered her out.

When we got to the parking lot, she said she'd follow me in her car, explaining that her shift at the emergency room started at noon, and it would cut down on the rushing around in the morning if she could just shower and leave from my place.

There wasn't a damned thing wrong with that thinking, so I pointed to my truck, gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, and told her I'd see her there. I made sure I drove slowly enough for her to keep up.

When I parked in my drive, I hopped right out and made it to her car to get the door for her. She came out with her purse and an overnight bag. I glanced at it but didn't comment.

"You didn't think I was going to work tomorrow in my dancing clothes did you?" she asked, teasing me again.

"Thinking isn't my strong suit, I didn't think anything, but how glad I am you're here."

"You may be even more fun than I thought, you can't tell from tonight, but I really don't do this often," she said.

"I knew that before I asked you to dance."

"How?"

"I saw you turn down eight out of ten guys that asked you to dance before I did and so I asked Nancy about you. She said she'd seen you leave with a guy maybe three times in the last year, and she told me if you only danced one dance with me, I might as well forget about it," I said.

"Nancy, is that the waitress?" she asked.

"That's her, we're friends," I said.

"I'll have to make sure to tip her better next time," she said, grinning.

We went inside and I could tell she was impressed even if she didn't want to be.

"Pretty damn nice for a cowboy," she said.

"Well, things aren't always what they seem; I was born country for sure, but I got in with an Internet startup right after graduating and just happened to liquidate my stock before the bottom fell out.

"It was mostly a lucky shot, but I hit it, and I'm through working now," I said, and tried not to sound like I was bragging.

"Damn shame I'm not hunting a husband and you're not hunting a wife, this could be a dream come true for some girl," she said.

"How do you know I'm not hunting a wife?" I asked.