“Your mother and I need to make a decision,” he told them.
The mood grew somber. He took the next several minutes to explain to all of them as best he could that the country and possibly a chunk of the planet had either been hit by a solar flare or an electromagnetic pulse. John had begun prepping three and a half years ago, so those terms were very familiar to each of them. John’s preps had been geared toward a wide array of natural and man-made disasters, an EMP being only one of them. There were plenty of ways the country could implode, or explode, depending how one viewed it. A total collapse of the financial system, civil wars over gun control, meteor strikes, earthquakes, even alien invasion had been discussed. Either way, being ready for a complete breakdown of law and order had been his focus.
In some ways, the cause was merely academic. The EMP, however, had represented the worst of the worst since in one fell swoop the country would be sent back to the mid-1800s. Even the simple loss of electricity could be devastating, let alone the loss of ninety-nine point nine percent of all transportation and perhaps a hundred percent of communication. These were networks which bound modern society together, helped to preserve order. Now that they were gone, the thought of what might come next was frightening.
Every so often as he spoke, the kids checked their phones to see if somehow they would miraculously switch back on. It was a normal impulse and John knew how addicted to technology the younger generation was. For these reasons he didn’t say anything. Sooner or later they’d figure out their precious gadgets weren’t coming back.
After he explained what he thought was happening, Gregory raised his hand.
“Say what’s on your mind, son.”
“What does it matter if we were hit by an EMP or a solar flare? The result is the same.”
“That’s a good point, but there is an important difference. One is a random act of nature that occurs roughly once every five hundred years. The other involves the detonation of a nuclear weapon high in the atmosphere, say three to four hundred miles up. If that’s the case, we’re probably at war and it could mean that foreign troops are headed our way.”
“Unless they’re already here,” Diane said, under her breath. She’d been sitting quietly until then, scratching the red polish off her nails.
“That is a distinct possibility.”
Emma shifted in her seat. “Dad, you’re starting to scare me.”
“Good,” John said. “’Cause these are things we need to be prepared to face.”
His wife was trying hard to bite her lip.
“So we need to make a decision but I’m open to hearing input from each of you. We have the reinforced bunker downstairs that can keep us protected and fed for about a month. We also have the cabin about ten miles east of Oneida where we could survive for a year or longer. The bunker, however, was really designed for short-term emergencies. The problem we’re facing is the longer we remain in Knoxville, the more dangerous the situation may become. Most of the government agencies that have wargamed a possible EMP attack suggest that within ninety-six hours the shock will begin wearing off as folks begin to get hungry. As we’ve talked about before, the average household only has enough provisions for a couple of days.”
Emma shrugged. “I don’t like the idea of abandoning all our things. What if they get things working again, but we’re not here to protect the house? Someone could just come in and take all our stuff. Besides, what was the point of that submarine thingy you built in the basement if we’re not going to use it?”
“She may have a point,” Diane echoed.
The cabin wasn’t nearly as comfortable as the house. John knew that as well as any of them, but he hoped it wasn’t secretly factoring into their decision. He turned to Gregory who looked like he had something on his mind.
“What happens after those ninety-six hours you talked about?” Gregory asked. “Will it be too dangerous to leave?”
“It shouldn’t be. We have Betsy.”
“I’ll go with whatever you say,” his son said.
“Doesn’t it make more sense to stay a few days,” Diane said, “and keep an eye on the situation outside? Besides, maybe the community could use our help.”
That did make sense. “Okay, for now we’ll stay a day or two and see how things progress. I’ll keep Betsy fueled up and ready for an immediate evac in case things get hairy. That means there’s an incredible amount of work to do. Gregory, run upstairs and begin filling the bathtubs in the master bedroom and the one next to your bedroom with water. Make sure the tub itself is scrubbed before you do so.” He turned to Emma. “I need you and your mom to bring the water and canned food I bought down to the pod and place it in the pantry.”
“Shouldn’t we board up all the windows?” Diane asked.
“Not all of them. That’ll be a dead giveaway that we’re in here and have stuff worth taking. For now we want to blend in and look like any other house on the block. We’ll also need to create a stash with some food and weapons and bury it in the backyard in case we’re overrun.”
“Overrun?” Emma was giving him a strange look, like he was being too paranoid.
“You wanted to stay in Knoxville, well, this is the price. There’s a chance roving bands might form to loot and plunder. We have to be ready in case that happens.”
“Your father’s right.” Diane turned to Emma. “Let me get out of this skirt and throw some jeans on before we get started.”
John headed into his basement office for the gun safe he kept in the corner. From there he took out one of his two Ruger SR22 pistols and a box of Winchester .22 bullets.
He was heading back upstairs when Diane intercepted him.
“I thought you were getting changed?”
“I will,” she said. “But first I’d like to know where you’re going with that gun.”
“Next door to have a friendly conversation with Al.”
Chapter 10
John went out the back sliding door and hopped the fence into Al’s backyard. He didn’t want anyone in the neighborhood seeing him going back and forth. He’d already been less than pleased at having to parade Betsy around the whole community.
John knocked on Al’s back door and his elderly neighbor peered out at him from the blinds. A second later he opened up.
“You had me frightened to death, John,” Al said, holding a baseball bat.
“Bad guys don’t knock,” John told him as he entered. “I wanted to check in quickly with you and Missy. See how you’re holding up.”
“’Bout as good as one could expect under the circumstances.” Al closed the door. “Did you find Diane and the kids?”
“They’re back at the house, getting things ready.”
“I thought you were leaving?”
“We’ve decided to stay. At least for now.”
Al smiled. “No bug-out?”
“That tends to be a knee jerk response for many who like to be prepared for the worst, but it isn’t always the best idea.”
“You still won’t tell me where your secret hideout is, will you?”
“I could, but then I’d have to—”
“Kill me,” Al finished, laughing. “Yeah, I know. I think Missy and I would be better off here anyway. Least till this mess is straightened out.”
The two men went into the kitchen. “That’s part of why I’m here, Al. There aren’t enough supplies at our place to support two extra mouths, I hope you understand.”
“Perfectly.”
“Getting ready for the worst can be a full-time job, which makes it hard when you can’t give it all the hours it deserves.”
“No need to explain. Your only job is to keep your own family safe, I get that.”