“At our home on Orchard Park we had firepower and tactics. We had the first and second well covered, so we won. At George’s cabin we had the first, second and third covered, so we won big time. Here, you guys have almost no firepower, so tactics and concealment are critical.
“Let’s give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you have sound tactics, a strategic plan to deal with raiders. You still have no concealment, Hal. You’ve got four huge glass buildings out front, for crying out loud. They probably reflect light half way down the damn road. Camouflaging them, by blacking out the glass or covering them with branches, would basically defeat their purpose. That takes concealment off the table.”
“What are you saying, Stu? There’s no hope?” Corey asked.
“Not as they stand now, no.” Stu replied. “It’s truly amazing to me that you haven’t had any serious problems yet. If something doesn’t change around here soon, Hal, you’ll lose this place to the first gang of assholes that comes down the road. George, if we would have been those assholes, do you think Hal’s men out there could have stopped the four of us? Tell the truth.”
George looked at Hal apologetically and said, “No… I’m sorry, Hal, but we would have owned this place by now. We’re all carrying fully automatic Army rifles, buddy. You guys would have been screwed.”
“Damn…” Hal said as he stared at his brother.
“Not everyone’s gunna have machine guns on them though.” Rob said.
“That’s true, probably none of them will.” Stu said. “Most likely you’ll be facing a group armed with hunting rifles and shotguns. That’s what the assholes we’ve gone up against were carrying, for the most part. I doubt any groups will be travelling with less than a dozen people though. Certainly, it will be too much for only a small group of guards to handle.”
“Alright, Stu, we’ve heard the problem. Now let’s hear the solution.” Hal said. “You mentioned that you had an idea. Hopefully, this wasn’t just about scaring the living shit out of us.”
“I’m sorry about that, guys.” Stu said. “I’m not an authority on any of this crap. I’m just considering our experiences and using what we’ve learned to give you my honest opinion here. I’m not very good at the… diplomatic stuff.”
“None of us are.” Corey added. “Our friend, Brian, that’s his department.”
“I do have an idea, Hal, but it’s gunna sound a little extreme.” Stu said. “Please, let me finish my thought before you kick us out of your home, though, okay? My friends need to hear this too, so we might as well get it out in the open and figure out if we can make it work.”
“I understand, Stu.” Hal said. “Please go ahead.”
Stu turned to George and Corey and prepared to explain what he was thinking, completely unedited, in full Stu Cooper style.
“If we accept this deal with Hal’s group, we’ll be linking our survival directly to theirs. Our search for canned goods will effectively end and we will become dependant on their crops alone. Without them, we’ll be in a lot of trouble. To say that we have a vested interest in their survival would be a massive understatement.
“What I’m proposing is a real investment in this place. We give them the truck, of course, but also some weapons and ammo. Those US Army guys can teach them tactical weapons handling and we’ll send some people back to help with fortifications, show them what worked for us. We supply Hal with all the wild game he needs and the means to keep this place safe and they keep us supplied with the fresh vegetables that our families need to stay healthy.”
“They supply the green stuff and we supply the red stuff.” George said.
“…and the stuff that goes bang.” Corey added.
“Exactly.” Stu said. “We give Hal’s community their missing second element… overwhelming firepower.”
“Hang on a second here.” Hal said. “Just how much weaponry have you guys got?”
“A shitload.” Stu replied with a smile. “It’s kind of a hobby, I guess.”
◆◆◆
“Yeah, we’re from down south too.” Olivia said. “Niagara Falls. We were up here visiting with my aunt and uncles when the first EMP happened. Hal and Rob are my mom’s brothers. There was no way to get back home and nothing to go back to anyways, so Mom and Dad decided to stay and help out around here.”
“Cool. Did the second EMP mess with any of your stuff?” Leo asked.
“What, EMP 2.0?” Olivia asked with a slight laugh. “No, everything we had was already messed up. The guards were the only ones that saw it. They said it lit up the whole area and then the sky was all colourful for a while. I guess it happened late at night again.”
“Yeah, at around 1:00 in the morning, my dad told me. I was already asleep too. We had a shortwave radio and some walkie talkies that got fried. My dad even had a working iPhone with some older games on it. Losing that one really sucked.
“Candy Crush?”
“Plants vs Zombies.”
“Sick.”
“We lost this awesome off road vehicle too.” Leo continued. “My Bronco survived it again, though. All of our trucks did.”
“Your Bronco?” Olivia asked. “You mean your dad’s Bronco, right?”
“No, it’s mine.” Leo replied, looking back at it proudly. “Got it for my birthday just before EMP 1.0.”
“Oh… How old are you, Leo? I thought you were my age.”
“Oh, sorry, my parents gave me the truck a year early. I’m only 15… How old are you?”
“I’m 15 too. I’ll be 16 on May 9th.” Olivia replied.
“Cool. Maybe I can take you for a ride on your birthday.”
“I’d like that.” Olivia said.
“Is there anybody else our age around here?” Leo asked.
“I wish. The Campbells and the Greens each have a son, but they’re both 19. They’re from Toronto. Three of the American families have kids too, but none of them are over the age of nine.”
“At our camp, the next oldest kid is only 12.” Leo said.
“Sucks not having someone your own age around to talk to.” Olivia said.
“It sure does, Olivia. Maybe we could be friends… if you’d be okay with that.”
“Of course, Leo. I’d like that a lot. If we’re gunna be friends, though, you need to start calling me Liv. Only my parents call me Olivia.”
“You got it. Liv, it is.”
“Do you live far away?”
“I’m not really sure.” Leo replied. “I mean, we didn’t come straight here from our place, but I’m thinking we’re probably two or three hours away by truck. Once the snow starts to pile up, it would be hard to come by for a visit.”
“That sucks.” Olivia said.
“Yeah, it does. My dad is trying to make a trade deal with Hal, so they’ll be meeting up once a week. Maybe we can tag along and catch up.”
“That would be alright.” Olivia said. “If Mom and Dad let me go.”
“Leo, let’s roll.” Stu suddenly called out to him.
“Alright, I’ll be right there.” Leo called back.
“Try your best, Liv. I’ll be with the guys on the first meet up.” Leo said as he began jogging backwards towards the Bronco.
“Okay, Leo, I’ll try. It was nice to meet you.”
“Nice meeting you too.”
◆◆◆
“They’re back.” Brody suddenly called out. He and Dion came jogging back up to the cabin with their dog, Jersey, leading the way.
“Already? Didn’t you figure they’d be gone for a few days?” Fran asked.
“I did.” Brian replied. “They must have found a treasure trove.”
“…or they ran into trouble.” Fran said, offering an alternative explanation.
“Did I hear that right?” Sydney asked, opening the front door and stepping out onto the porch. “Are they already back?”
“That’s what Brody said.” Brian replied as the Bronco’s grill finally came into sight.
“Oh
, thank goodness.” Sydney said. “I hate it when they’re out…”
“…Weapons ready!” Brian suddenly shouted. “There’s two strangers with them!”
Brian swung his rifle around, leapt over the railing and bolted for the horseshoe pit bulwark. Sydney grabbed Jersey by the collar and pulled her into the cabin with Fran. Fran didn’t normally carry anything with her, but Sydney should have known better. As head of cabin security, her job was to always be carrying. Her Glock 19 and her Army rifle were still hanging from the weapons rack inside the cabin. She hadn’t needed them in weeks and as a result, had relaxed her discipline somewhat. Stu, as overall head of site security, would have plenty to say about that… if they made it out of this little screw up unscathed.
Brody and Dion, both armed with .22 calibre rifles, veered off behind the cabin and took up positions on either corner. They both had a clear view of the driveway and of both trucks as they came to a stop. The others kids were out on the dock doing some martial arts exercises with Stacey. She had them all scramble into the boat house to take cover. Doctors Terrell and Nichelle Jackson and Gwen were inside the cabin already, so they simply crouched down and got behind a solid piece of furniture. Grace and her boyfriend, Cole, were nowhere to be found. Despite repeated instructions, George and Gwen always seemed in the dark as to the whereabouts of their 20 year old daughter.
Stu opened the passenger’s side door, stood on the door sill and cupped his hands around his mouth.
“Hello, the cabin!”
The phrase was a familiar one, but it’s meaning had changed considerably since they had begun living on George’s property. What was once meant only as a friendly greeting between friends had evolved into much more. It was now a way to let everyone know that everything was alright as well. If a vehicle showed up and the greeting wasn’t offered, everyone knew to stay hidden and immediately flip the safeties on their weapons to the ‘fire’ position.
“All clear. We brought some friends with us. You can all put your weapons away and come out.” Stu added as he walked over to Brian.
“What the hell are you doing, Stu?” Brian asked, getting up from behind his fortification. “You guys scared the crap out of us, man.”
“I thought this would be a good opportunity to run that little fire drill we’ve been talking about.” Stu replied as he turned and motioned for the others to get out of the trucks. “Good news, Bri… you passed!”
“Oh, thanks a lot.” Brian said. “I’ll just head down to the lake now and clean out my shorts.”
“Ha! I’ll explain it all in a few minutes.” Stu said. “You want to get everyone together for a meeting? We’ve got good news.”
“Okay, Stu.” Brian said as he shook his head and turned to leave. “I’ll have the kids help me set up the chairs on the dock.”
“I’ll give you a hand in a sec. I just want a word with these guys first.” Stu said.
When Leo, Hal and Rob got out of the Bronco, all three of them left their rifles behind. Leo even unholstered his CZ 75 and set it down on the seat. Stu had warned them that this little impromptu exercise might cause some alarm in camp, but insisted that they would all be safe as long as they kept their rifles out of sight. Continuing with that philosophy, they were also asked to leave them in the Bronco for the time being. Once everyone was unarmed, they would gather and have a nice conversation as friends.
Corey, George and Leo hung back by the trucks with Hal and Rob while the dock was set up for their introductions. Stu made a point of setting up three chairs at the front facing the others and took a seat in one. Once everyone was seated and staring back at them, Stu waved them in. Corey and George reached into the back of the Bronco, each pulling out a bushel basket heaping with assorted freshly picked vegetables. They then walked over to the dock, set them down in front of Stu and took a seat in the back with Leo. Stu asked the new comers to take a seat with him up front.
“I know you guys are curious as to what exactly is going on, but first I have to say that I was fairly happy with what I saw when we pulled up.” Stu said. “Brody and Dion, you guys win top prize. You saw a truck coming and you ran to tell an adult. Great work, you two. All the rest of you did well too.”
Stu looked over at his wife knowing that Sydney hadn’t been nearly as prepared as she should have been. When they pulled to a stop, he saw that she was still struggling to strap her holster on. He smiled and thought better of pointing that out though. This experience would serve as a good lesson without him saying anything else… and risk sleeping in the damn Bronco tonight.
“Now, let’s get to the real business of the day.” Stu said, turning everyone’s attention to his two guests. “This is Hal and Rob Weyr. They own a cottage resort a couple of hours away. They also happen to have four of the largest greenhouses in the area. Hal gave us a tour of those greenhouses today and I’m happy to tell you that they are all still operational and full of growing vegetable plants. He even sent us home with these two bushels as a gift. We have a deal pending, but nothing will be finalized until you all sign off on it. I should tell you that George, Corey, Leo and I all believe that we should accept this deal. They will supply us with fresh vegetables every week, but it will cost us one of our trucks.”
“Which truck?” Brian asked.
“The Bronco.” Stu said, offering everybody a little wink.
“Opposite of funny, Dad.” Leo said, completely unamused.
“One of the two we’re not currently using, Bri.” Stu said, correcting himself. “The four wheel drive Ford. They’ll need something that can run in the snow up here and handle a plow. That rear wheel drive Ford will be less than useless in another few weeks. They’re just used for fuel storage anyway, so we won’t miss one too badly. We can always find more jerrycans.”
“Is there a way to get the veggies without giving up a 4X4?” Stacey asked. “I mean, we decided that they’d be saved for an emergency. What if we all have to get out of here in a hurry?”
“That’s a good point, Stacey, but we think that the benefits far outweigh the risks.” Stu replied. “We were out for a day and a half and we only found six lousy cans of creamed corn so far. The snow’s already here and we still haven’t even found plows for the trucks yet. We really need to get on that because it won’t be long before we’re stuck here waiting for the snow to melt. I seriously think we’d be in trouble without this deal, guys.”
“What was that number again, Sydney?” Brian asked.
“750. We need 750 more cans of vegetables to get all of the vitamins and minerals we need to stay healthy this winter. After that, we’ll be stuck foraging in the forest for weeds to eat until the fall harvest.” Sydney replied.
“Was that number you gave Sydney accurate, Nichelle?” Brian then asked. “10 cans per day?”
“That’s at the low end, the very low end.” Nichelle replied. “Depending on what we’re eating and the size of the person, it would barely meet our daily recommended requirements.”
“That makes my mind up then.” Brian said. “I’m in favour of making this deal too.”
After a short discussion and a few more questions, the group decided to endorse Stu’s plan.
“There’s one other thing.” Stu said. “Hal and Rob are willing to make the deal just as we laid it out, but they’re here to discuss a second idea as well, one that involves taking partial ownership of their operation.”
Chapter 4
“Xander, that you in here?” Mars called out from the garage door.
“Yeah, get in and shut the door before you let all the heat out.” Xander replied.
Carrying a large cooler, he stepped in where Xander was working on a truck.
“This is all of it. Nine guys and this is all we managed to find today.” Mars said.
“You were gone all day.” Xander said, looking out from under the bright yellow hood.
“What can I say? Things are getting pretty sparse out there. I’ll have to pay our boys out at the Sa
veCor another visit soon.”
“Yeah, we’ve gotta get on this move south soon too.” Xander said. “Add it to the pile and bring me over a quart of oil from that shelf there.”
“I saw Bray on my way over here.” Mars said. “He said we lost another 25 guys today?”
“Yeah, screw ‘em. We won’t have enough room for them all anyway. Actually, if 50 more want to wander off that would be fine by me.”
“What about our guns, Xander? You fine with them wandering off too?”
“Let them have the damn guns, Mars. They can consider it a severance package. The bulk of our ammo is still locked away.”
“You’re the boss.” Mars said.
Turning his attention to the truck, Mars gave the small pick up a good looking over. He immediately took notice of the logo stuck to the side of its hood.
‘MINECAT UT99’
“Bray mentioned what was going on with these trucks too. How many is this now?” Mars asked.
“This is the fourth they’ve brought back so far. The other three are already at the warehouse.” Xander replied. “Those guys said there should be a lot more down there though.”
“How the hell did they even know about them?”
“Mick and a few of the other guys used to work for the mine before that big layoff last year. They said the company bought them to run people around down there. I guess the environment underground is really hard on electronics, so these were built with only the basics. There’s no computer or any delicate electrical systems in them at all. They’re just a small diesel engine, a heated cab and a cargo box bolted to a frame.”
“If being underground didn’t protect them their lack of electronics probably did.” Mars said.
“That’s exactly what Mick figured.” Xander said. “As soon as he told me about them, I got him to grab a few guys and go take a look. A few hours later they came back with four of them. I told Mick to take 20 guys with him this time and whatever supplies he needed. We’ll see how many they find, but there’s kilometres of pitch black tunnels to search through. It could take a while.”
EMP [Collateral Darkness] | Book 4 Page 4
