But the EMP had changed it all.
Drew wasn’t dumb. He was deviously clever, able to read people and situations with ease. He knew, after the first week, that everything had come tumbling down. Much faster than expected.
And that meant that all his hard work had amounted to exactly nothing. His money wasn’t even just a string of zeros in a computer bank somewhere. Those computers weren’t on, and they likely wouldn’t ever be again.
He had nothing.
Nothing except the skillset he’d spent his life honing.
When he’d been in the business world, he’d always looked for the meanest, most ruthless guys to team up with. Sure, they wore suits and didn’t look vicious, but Drew knew well that appearances didn’t mean anything. Drew had been able to align his own skills with that of people just as vicious as him. And that was how he’d made the real money.
So after the EMP, Drew quickly teamed up with the most vicious guys he could find. He knew that he could use their muscles and they could use his brain. He’d be the leader, and in that way he’d get what he wanted.
And he didn’t want to just survive. That was just the foundation. Soon, he’d move his way up the ladder. Soon, he’d amass his own little fortune here in the post-EMP world.
First, though, he needed the basics. And they were severely lacking in that.
After making his way out of Philadelphia, he talked his way out of any problem he came to, and when he couldn’t do that, he resorted to cold-blooded violence.
Drew had taken a car to an upstate penitentiary. There, he’d found the prisoners freed. The electronic security system had shut down, and the guards had all fled. The prisoners had had no option but to escape, unless they wanted to starve to death.
Drew felt sympathetic towards them. He saw himself in them. After all, if he’d been born with a little less intelligence, he would have wound up there himself.
Many of the prisoners had already left, but others hung around, not sure what to do. It’d been years, if not decades, since they’d been out in the real world. Many didn’t understand the consequences of the EMP, and many were confused. They spent their time milling around the outskirts of the defunct penitentiary, unsure of what to do.
People who were unsure of what to do were the easiest to manipulate. That was what Drew had always found. And that instinct didn’t fail him. Soon, he had his little band of big, muscular, vicious guys.
Unfortunately, things hadn’t gone exactly as Drew had planned. A powerful militia group had formed in the suburbs, recruiting many of the prisoners, and Drew and his group found themselves unwelcome unless they submitted to the authority of the new boss.
So Drew and his group had moved north, with plans to build a community there, on the outskirts of the new “government” that was developing in the suburbs.
The group of his four big guys was lying in wait along the trail.
Drew was leading the men and women he’d met right to his muscle men.
The group Drew had found was armed. But only somewhat. Only two of them had guns, at least visible guns.
One of them looked like he might be a problem. He was suspicious of Drew. Drew knew how to sense that.
But that wouldn’t be a problem. His guys would take care of them all.
Drew’s guys, lying in wait, were getting hungry. It was only a matter of time before they got fed up with Drew. Drew knew he had to prove himself soon, or else risk losing his little group that he was going to do so much with. He was going to lead them to great heights.
Drew was smiling to himself as the five of them walked along.
Up ahead, Drew recognized a small boulder that marked the spot where his guys were lying in wait.
“We’re making good progress,” called out Drew.
“We’re lucky we found you,” said Derek.
“No,” said Drew. “I’m lucky I found you.”
14
Max had been resistant to the idea, but in the end, he couldn’t say no.
Mandy couldn’t believe their luck. Kara had driven ahead of them, leading the way for the Honda and the Bronco, taking them all the way into the heart of the compound.
Kara, a beautiful woman who had a sort of elegance about her, gave them a tour of the community.
Mandy almost cried for joy when she saw the showers. They were rigged up so that there was even hot water. Mandy didn’t listen to the explanation about how they’d gotten hot water without electricity. Probably it involved someone heating up the water over a fire. But she didn’t care. It was hot water, and she was already relishing the time she’d soon spend in the shower.
It had been weeks since any of them had bathed, and while they’d all gotten used to the smell, Mandy could tell that Kara wasn’t used to it. She was polite about it, but whenever she got close to Mandy, Max, Georgia, or whoever else, she couldn’t help wrinkling her nose a little.
Kara and the dozens of others had been living in relative comfort since the EMP. As they toured the compound, Kara gave them a rundown of the history of the place. Basically, some friends, years ago, had gotten together and planned this thing out. Word had gotten out, and people had joined up. Most everyone who lived there now had contributed something major to the facility.
Since the community had been started before the EMP, they’d had the luxury of trips to Home Depot, of ordering supplies online, and also just simply stocking up on food and provisions.
“There’s a fully functional medical facility,” said Kara, gesturing off to the right. “We even have a doctor. He was a surgeon before the EMP, and he’s highly qualified. Of course, he’s going to have to learn to get by without x-rays and other high-tech things from our now bygone era.”
Kara spoke as if the pre-EMP world would certainly never return. It shocked Mandy a little bit. Sure, that was the way Max had always talked, but secretly Mandy had held out some hope that things would eventually go back to normal. She’d hoped that the government would eventually get its shit together and basically come in and save everyone. She’d hoped that it was merely Max’s own pessimism talking, but to hear it from a stranger, that was something different.
“What about the defenses?” said Max, looking around the large compound.
“Well,” said Kara. “As you can see, we have concrete walls around the entire property. All our food is grown within the walls, and there’s a registry for people coming and going. That way we can cut down on people sneaking in, should they find us. But as you can see, it’s a pretty hard place to find. We chose it to be out of the way.”
“The guards are always there?” said Max, eyeing the rudimentary towers, manned by men with rifles.
“Of course,” said Kara. “We’re serious here about security, if that’s what you’re worried about, Max.”
Max didn’t say anything.
“Let me show you the new crops,” said Kara, pointing off to one of the fields.
“This is awesome, Mom,” said Sadie, as they all moved to follow Kara.
“It’s nice,” said Georgia, in a noncommittal way.
“You don’t like it, Georgia?” whispered Mandy, so that Kara couldn’t hear her.
“It’s nice,” repeated Georgia. “I just want to be cautious.”
“What’s there to be cautious about? This is what we’ve been looking for.”
Georgia didn’t answer. Instead, she looked behind them. “Where’s Chad?”
“I’ll go get him,” said Mandy, spotting him. “Looks like he’s wandered over to that guard tower.”
“Hurry back,” said Georgia. She sounded nervous, as if she didn’t want Mandy to get separated from the group.