The E.M.P. Chronicles (Book 1): 458 Miles & 24 Days

by McTatey, Zayden (Oz)

  As he walked in the store he was greeted by a young woman who said, “Sorry, but we’re closed until the power comes back on.”

  Randall’s first impression was not the words she said but how cute she was. She had long black hair which made her blue eyes stand out. She was slightly shorter than him and her smile was absolutely beautiful.

  It seemed forever before Randall said, “I understand. I can pay with cash.”

  “Sorry, but I can’t make change. Cash registers are electronic, and electronics need power,” she responded.

  “Not a problem,” Randall said. “I will write down everything I buy, add 9.5% for tax and then add an additional 10% on top of that.”

  The young woman looked confused and questioned Randall, “Why would you add an additional 10%?”

  “That’s for you. I know it’s inconvenient to have to record everything and then when the power comes on manually enter it into the computer system. It’s no fun, I’m sure,” Randall said as he stared into her beautiful blue eyes.

  She stared back at Randall and with a smile told him, “Well, I’m not doing anything anyway. Let me get some paper and we’ll get you what you need.”

  Randall started with over-the-counter medications checking the items off on the list one at a time.

  “My name is Stacey,” she said. “I haven’t seen you around here before. Are you new to the area?”

  Being somewhat coy Randall responded, “No, we’ve lived up the road for several years. I go to Beech High School.”

  Stacey was intrigued and responded, “So you’re one of those.”

  Randall looked perplexed.

  “Our high school is not good enough, but our town is?” she said as she smiled at him. “I’m playing with you,” she continued. “Why are you buying all this stuff?”

  Randall’s goal was to quickly end her questioning when he responded, “I have no idea. My dad told me I had to do it. You know parents. Half the stuff they make you do doesn’t make sense.”

  “Looks like you need a second cart. I’ll go get one for you,” she said.

  “Thanks,” Randall said.

  Fifteen minutes later Randall had purchased as many of the items on the list that the store had. He would need to try another store for the other items.

  “I told you my name, but you never told me your name,” Stacey said in a shy tone.

  “Sorry about that. My name is Randall,” he said.

  “Well Randall, your total is $420.42 which includes tax,” she said.

  “Don’t forget to add 10%. That’s for you,” Randall responded.

  With her eyes looking at the bagged groceries she said, “No. I don’t want the 10% but I would like you to take me on a date.”

  Randall was caught off guard and tried to respond but no words came out. After several seconds he said, “Stacey, would you go out on a date with me?”

  She immediately responded, “We’ll see,” then quickly changed her answer saying, “Of course. I would love to go on a date.”

  Stacey grabbed a piece of paper and wrote her phone number down, handed it to Randall, and said, “Call me. Well, you’re going to have to wait until the power is on. I need to charge my phone.”

  Randall was confused. He didn’t know her, but he liked her and felt compelled to help her. Of all the times in this world to find a beautiful young woman who had an interest in you, of course, it would happen at the beginning of the apocalypse.

  It looked like Randall was in deep thought when he did something he knew he shouldn’t have done. Something that would get him in trouble with his dad. He asked Stacey for a piece of paper and started writing. He handed her the piece of paper, looked at her beautiful eyes, and said, “Thank you for everything. I can’t wait to go on our date.”

  Stacey quickly looked at the note and with a look of confusion looked at Randall wanting to ask a question.

  Without hesitation, Randall turned, pulling the two carts behind him and headed for the Suburban. As he opened the suburban door to place the groceries in the back, he took one last glance at Stacey and waved goodbye.

  “Benny, let’s drive by Walmart and see how bad it is,” Randall said as Benny jumped on his lap.

  Randall passed four gas stations on his way to Walmart and quickly noted that without power it was useless to stop. Several miles later Randall turned the Suburban into the Walmart parking lot and was amazed to see the store was just as busy as any another day. The only difference was that today people were walking and not driving cars.

  Randall was about to get out of the Suburban and head into the store when he saw several Walmart employees stop people from entering the east door. People were pushing their way in while the Walmart employees were desperately trying to close and lock the doors.

  Eventually, they were successful and locked the set of sliding doors. The crowd of people simply ran to the west doors. The Walmart employees followed suit and rushed to the west doors and tried to shut and lock them. This proved to be a challenge since the crowd was growing larger by the minute. They demanded to be let in. Randall saw arms waving and heard voices screaming. He saw grabbing and pushing and within seconds the crowd simply overpowered the Walmart employees and forced their way in.

  Suddenly, Benny began to bark but something was different. It was a different bark; one Randall had not heard before. It was a deep bark that sounded truly menacing for a dog his size. Randall did a quick scan and realized that four men were approaching the Suburban. One man was walking toward the back of the vehicle, two were approaching from the passenger side, and one man on the driver side. The man at the back of the Suburban pushed the button on the door handle and the back door swung open. Randall could clearly see the man’s face in the rear-view mirror.

  Benny was now aggressively trying to break Randall’s grip and attack the man when Randall quickly glanced in both side mirrors and saw the other three men approaching. The men on the passenger side tried both the passenger and driver side door handles but they were locked. The man on the driver side tried the same, but the driver side doors were locked.

  Randall immediately threw the vehicle in drive and floored the Suburban. The Suburban weighed 6,500 pounds and was not meant for speed. It was meant for power and torque and that’s exactly what he got. When Randall floored the Suburban several gas cans flew out the rear door hitting the man in the face. Even though they were empty, it caught him off guard forcing him to loosen his grip on the door. The man flew to the pavement and was trying his best to stand up and run after the Suburban.

  Randall wasn’t concentrating on what was in front of him. He was focused on the men behind him and because he wasn’t paying attention he hit a parked vehicle 100 feet in front of him. He hit the car at a slow speed and because the Suburban had an extended front grill, there was no damage to the vehicle, but it scared him. He quickly recovered and while continuing to hold Benny in one hand, threw the Suburban in reverse and floored the vehicle. Once clear of the vehicle he just hit, he put the Suburban in drive and this time focused on what was in front of him. He was out of the parking lot and onto Main Street in seconds.

  Several miles later, Randall pulled over in a vacant lot and felt his entire body shudder. He looked in the rear-view mirror and noticed his face had turned white. He felt cold. He was in shock but he told himself he didn’t have time to be in shock. He needed to get home. He quickly checked Benny for injuries and found none. He looked in the back of the Suburban and saw that the rear door was still open and groceries were everywhere. He quickly jumped out of the vehicle, slammed the rear door shut, and drove straight home.

  AFTER FIFTEEN MINUTES, Randall turned into his drive and intently looked for Frank while driving up to the house. He didn’t see Frank this time but going forward he would be more aware of their neighbor.

  “My gut says don’t trust him but be wary of hi
m,” Randall said to Benny.

  Randall drove the Suburban as close to the house as he could, put the emergency brake on, and turned it off. He looked in the rear-view mirror again and saw he was still pale white. He wasn’t feeling good. Slowly, he opened the door and headed into the house to lie down.

  “We’ll unload the Suburban later, Benny. I don’t feel good,” Randall said as he held his stomach and headed into the house.

  As Randall opened the door he was surprised to see Cali. She had only been home for about thirty minutes and was excited to see her little brother. She could tell he didn’t feel well and helped him to lie down. Before he went to sleep, Randall handed her the SHTF – Elevated Threat Manual. He told her to read and then re-read it just as dad had instructed. He closed his eyes and quickly fell asleep.

  22

  Hunger Sets In

  BUZZ, FRANK’S SIX-YEAR-OLD SON, WAS LOOKING THROUGH the kitchen cabinets looking for something to eat.

  “Dad!” Buzz yelled. “There’s nothing to eat.”

  Frank stormed in through the porch door and went to the pantry. When he opened the door, he was staring at shelves that were almost empty. He grabbed the last can of chicken soup and tossed it to Buzz.

  “Chicken soup?” Buzz whined.

  “Eat it boy. Mom will go shopping later this week,” Frank growled.

  Buzz opened the can, poured it in a bowl and then placed it in the microwave. In his ever-continuing whiny voice Buzz yelled, “Dad, the microwave doesn’t work!”

  “Eat it cold!” Frank yelled.

  Frank kept looking at his watch expecting his wife, Veronica, to drive up to the house at any moment. The sun was setting, and this was unlike her. She was almost always home by 6:00 p.m. Several hours later, Frank was on edge.

  As best he could tell, it was around 8:00 p.m.

  “It’s hard to tell time when your iWatch isn’t working,” he said as he poked the watch with his finger.

  With a headlamp on, Frank went back to his car and started pulling at wires in hopes the car would miraculously start.

  Several minutes later he surrendered yet again but he needed to find his wife; not to mention they were almost out of food.

  Frank was frustrated and turned to go into the house when he noted the reflection of the Suburban’s bumper when his headlamp shown toward the McTatey’s house.

  “Suburban,” Frank grumbled. “It runs and I’m sure if I ask nicely, Randall will let me use it.”

  Without thinking twice, Frank headed up the drive toward Oz’s house. As he approached the house he could hear Benny barking.

  Randall was still sleeping when the constant barking of Benny going crazy woke him up. Randall peaked out the front window curtain and saw Frank standing at the door.

  “Randall, it’s Frank. Open the door. I need to talk to you.”

  Randall wasn’t sure what to do. If he opened the door it could simply be a conversation between the two or worse, Frank could do something stupid and then who knows what would happen. Randall remained quite while Benny continued to bark.

  “Randall, I know you’re in there. Open the damn door. Sorry about my language. I just need to borrow the Suburban. I need to find my wife. I’m worried about her!” he yelled.

  Randall knew he needed to say something; after all, Frank knew he was home. “Sorry, sir. I can’t let you borrow my dad’s car. I’ll get in trouble,” Randall said through the door.

  Frank decided to take the soft approach and said, “I understand. I would probably be mad too. However, I would loan your dad my car in an emergency.”

  Randall thought Frank had a good point but after everything he saw today, this was not the same world it was yesterday. “Sorry, Sir. I can’t loan you the car. As soon as my mom gets home I’ll let her know and you can ask her.”

  “You little jerk!” Frank screamed as he began pounding on the door.

  Without thinking Frank reached for the door handle and was shocked to find the door wasn’t locked. Randall fell to the floor when Frank threw the door open with a massive jolt.

  “Shut the dog up before I kill him!” Frank demanded.

  “Get out of our house or I’ll call the police!” Randall screamed.

  Frank threw his cell phone at Randall and said, “Go ahead. Call the police!”

  Frank had called Randall’s bluff.

  “Where are the keys, boy?” Frank said.

  “They’re in the Suburban. I didn’t feel good and left them in there by mistake,” Randall stated.

  Frank turned around and, once out the door, Randall stood up, shut the door, and turned the deadbolt. He had left his gun on the table and quickly ran to grab it. Cali had seen the entire event but was too scared to act. She had never seen her little brother act as brave as he just had but knew he was scared just a she was.

  Randall watched as Frank went to the Suburban and discovered all the doors were locked. He had been duped. Frank’s temper now flared. He ran to the front door and began punching, kicking, and pounding on the door. Randall knew the front and rear doors were security doors. They were made of pure metal and had reinforced hinges along with two deadbolts. The doors would hold Frank off long enough for him to grab the shotgun hidden underneath the couch.

  “You’re dead, Randall. I’m going to slit your neck and piss down your throat,” Frank said as he was getting angrier.

  Randall waited patiently with the handgun on his side and the shotgun in hand. Frank realized that he would need more than his fists to break the door down. As angry as he was, he knew he wouldn’t get into their house on this day. He decided to head home to see what tools he had that would make the job easier.

  With shotgun in hand, Randall listened and peeked out the window watching Frank head home. Randall was visibly shaken and had no idea what would come next or how he would react. He truly wished he had paid attention when he was being taught survival skills by his dad. He wished he had taken the handgun, shotgun, and AR-15 training that his mom and dad took. But he didn’t. He was going to have to deal with the situation the best he could given what he had.

  Having the shotgun in his hands made him feel better but he wasn’t sure if it was loaded or needed to be loaded. He looked at the shotgun and could tell the safety was on. He reached under the couch and felt for shotgun shells. He came up empty-handed.

  “It has to be loaded,” he thought to himself. “Why else would dad put it under the couch?” With Benny calmed down, Randall kept guard by looking out the window. He was tired but knew he had to stay awake for both he and Cali’s sake.

  23

  Almost Home

  “IT MUST BE LATE AT NIGHT OR EARLY IN THE MORNING,” NICKI thought as she continued walking on 31 West.

  With what seemed to be endless hours of walking left, telling time was not a priority for her. Her eye was black and blue and her head was throbbing. She was scared but found the strength to continue going.

  What seemed like three to four hours had passed before Nicki saw the ‘Welcome to Kentucky’ border sign. The walk along 31 W had been uneventful and Nicki was glad. She had nothing left in her. No will. No fight. It was time to get home and sleep. She had no concept of time and guessed that she was now only about an hour from her house and looked forward to taking two Tylenols and crashing.

  As she approached her drive she heard a very unusual noise; a noise that you don’t hear at that time of the night or morning.

  Thud, thud, thud, thud

  Nicki stopped and listened and heard the noise again.

  Thud, thud, thud, thud

  “That noise is coming from my house,” she thought to herself.

  Without thinking, she sprinted down the drive and stopped at the edge of the tree line. She had a good view of the house but was well hidden. As she continued scanning the area she could tell the Suburban had been moved
and she saw what appeared to be a man with a sledgehammer beating on her front door.

  It was hard to tell with no light but he, or it, was breaking into her house. She slowly approached the house with her gun drawn. This would be the second time tonight that she’s had to pull her gun to save the life of another human, but nobody was going to harm her family.

  Nicki was able to take a defensive position by using the Suburban to shield her body yet still have a clear view of her porch. She fired the gun which lit up the night with the muzzle flash and sent a loud thunder rippling through the air.

  “That was a warning shot,” she yelled. “The next two will be center mass ending your life!”

  The shadow slowly walked down the porch stairs with the sledgehammer still in their hand.

  “Drop the sledgehammer or I drop you!” Nicki continued.

  “Nicki, it’s me, Frank. You wouldn’t shoot your neighbor, would you?” he retorted.

  Without hesitating, Nicki said in a nice calm voice, “You bet I would. Drop the sledgehammer, Frank!”

  Though it was hard to tell, she thought she could sense Frank getting mad and more upset. She knew she needed to keep her guard up. With steady hands and the Keltec aimed at Frank’s chest, she said, “Get off my property. If you return you do so at your own risk; that being the risk of your life!”

  Frank burst out in a deep laugh and dropped the sledgehammer. “The power has been out all night. Cell phones aren’t working. Who you going to call, Nicki? You can’t call the police. You can’t call Oz. Nobody’s here to defend you. Even if the power comes back on nobody’s going to believe you. And you know what? You won’t shoot me.” Frank said in an ominous voice.