In a few hours, my bride and I would be boarding a train en route to Munich for a weekend of diversion before we hitched a flight to the US to tend to our latest business venture. I didn’t mind the work—I never had, but I’d be grateful when there was enough money in the bank and we wouldn’t have to do this anymore. I wanted to see Natalia’s smile free of the façade she’d obscured it with for so long. I wanted to see it become genuine and unfabricated someday. I thought she’d earned the right to be happy and live an ordinary life far away from the death we triggered off whenever we got the call, especially after all she’d been through.
And it was reassuring knowing when that time came, neither of us would have to live that life alone.
Acknowledgments
2019 has been a bear.
That said, the reception for the What’s Left of My World Series, Lauren and Alan Russell and their story, has been nothing short of breathtaking. My creativity has been goaded since the moment book one was published, and that is owed primarily to readers and fans. I simply cannot thank you all enough for making this dream a reality for me. With your praise, kind words, epic reviews, Facebook tags, and constructive criticism, you push me to write through the toughest of days without even knowing it. You have my eternal appreciation.
To the fam: Thank you for once again tolerating my eccentricities during one of the busiest years I’ve ever encountered. I love you and your loyalty to me means more than you’ll ever know.
Special thanks to Sabrina, Pauline and Felicia. All I do is talk to myself, type words and garbled nonsense. You guys align and make sense of them somehow while revealing to me what little I know about punctuation. Thanks also to #VOXAPOC Kevin Pierce for being my spokesman, for the laughs and encouragement.
A big thanks goes to Deranged Doctor Design for killing it once again with another round of captivating cover designs - and of course, to Darja, for making an appearance on her fourth consecutive cover, with a fifth on the horizon.
Finally, shout-outs to fellow authors Franklin Horton, Steve Bird, Tom Abrahams, Jeff Motes, R.E. McDermott, Doug Hogan, W.J. Lundy, Chris Weatherman, Boyd Craven and Lisa Akers. Thanks for your advice and guidance, for the inspiration, and for the teamwork.
About the Author
C.A.Rudolph is a self-published novelist who lives and writes within the pastoral boundaries of Virginia’s northern Shenandoah Valley. He spends most of his limited spare time pursuing outdoor adventures with his family. He is an avid backpacker and outdoorsman, proud gun owner, and an active amateur radio operator.
His first book, What’s Left of My World, published December 2016, became an Amazon post-apocalyptic and dystopian best seller.
Readers and fans can find Mr. Rudolph online on social media (using the links below) or via his website at http://www.carudolph.com
Subscribe to the free Preferred Readers List.
Endnotes - a list of gear and equipment with links
Chapter 8
1 Kershaw Induction - https://bit.ly/32KZlHz
Purchase at Amazon - https://amzn.to/302k0tA
2 Bushcraft 101: A Field Guide to the Art of Wilderness Survival - https://amzn.to/2Qb0aYA
3 ESEE Knives - https://www.eseeknives.com
ESEE-5 - https://www.eseeknives.com/product/esee-5
4 6” ferrocerium rod - https://amzn.to/2Nnv663
5 Ceramic strikers / scrapers:
ASR Outdoors - https://amzn.to/2O94LIt
Folding ceramic razor blade - https://amzn.to/2Ne4OCU
Wazoo Bushcraft Necklace - https://amzn.to/32CUurM
6 Best Glide ASE credit-card fresnel lens - https://amzn.to/2NfJEV2
7 Military modular sleep system Gore-Tex bivy - https://amzn.to/34KTovT
8 wide-mouth Klean Kanteen - https://amzn.to/300LobE
9 Ultralight Adventure Equipment - https://www.ula-equipment.com/
Contents
Copyright
Also by C.A. Rudolph
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
The Story Continues
Bonus Content
Until Nothing Remains - Chapter One
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Endnotes - a list of gear and equipment with links