The fractures in the family only grow as each side becomes entrenched behind resentments that threaten to shatter an increasingly uncertain future. But as the Healy family drifts farther apart, the enemy has been anything but idle. Eustace has amassed a new and lethal force with a single goal: Take the Healys’ ranch by any means necessary and make them pay for permanently disabling him.
And when Eustace kidnaps one of their own, the Healys will face the most difficult choice of all: Sacrifice the ranch or risk the destruction of their family.
Prepper survivalist author Grace Hamilton invites you to step into a post-apocalyptic, EMP-ravaged world filled with strong, resourceful characters, survivalist knowledge, and edge-of-your seat action.
Prologue
Sometimes, Eustace felt like he was losing his mind. Of the people working for him in the warehouse, only one showed any real competence, and sadly, she was currently in town on assignment. That left only local goons like Donald and Benny, who did what they were told but lacked any real skill. At the moment, Donald was attempting to hoist a large metal drum onto a concrete plinth beside the metal cage that housed the backup generator.
“Lift with your legs,” Eustace said. “If you throw your back out, you’ll be useless. How many times do I have to tell you?”
“I’m trying to,” Donald replied. “Can’t you see that?”
Donald had been a local police officer before everything went bust, and he still wore the same black coat and a shiny silver belt buckle. Apparently, he’d worked for the former mayor before that gentleman had gotten himself killed by crossing wires with Tabitha Healy. That didn’t speak well of the man’s competence.
Hopefully, I’ll be compensating for his lack of skill soon, Eustace thought.
He had big plans, but he couldn’t get out of this foul mood. Of course, it didn’t help that his left arm was largely useless now. He felt the wound burning beneath the bandages, a constant source of frustration and fear that set his nerves on edge. Though he could move the arm, he couldn’t bear any weight, his grip was close to nothing, and antibiotics hadn’t helped. The wound hadn’t started off all that bad. Indeed, he’d expected it to heal after a few days, but lately it had taken a turn for the worse. Without access to proper medical care, nothing could be done about it at the moment. He would just have to endure it.
Eustace was standing in the broad, open doorway that connected the loading bays with the rest of the warehouse. Before him, tall shelves ran in long rows all the way to the front wall. Currently, most of the shelves were bare. However, as he gazed across the length of the vast gray space, he could envision the warehouse bursting at the seams with food and supplies. He would make that vision a reality, no matter what it took. Of course, Eustace Simpson wasn’t interested in simply hoarding stuff for his own enjoyment. What was the use of that?
As he made his way across the warehouse, he spotted Benny, another of his recently acquired workers, repairing one of the shelves near a side door. Apparently, it had been damaged by the former mayor’s cronies during a looting. Benny was a dull-eyed former pig farmer, with rough skin like the surface of Mars and fat hands. He didn’t talk much unless directly addressed, which was just fine.
“Can you see it, Benny?” Eustace said as he passed him.
Benny was screwing a bracket to the underside of the shelf, and he only spared Eustace the briefest of glances.
“What’s that, boss?” he said.
“This warehouse as a central hub for the whole community,” Eustace replied. “People coming and going, making deals, trading, signing contracts. Heck, we might even have to expand.”
“Before we expand, we have to fill the space we’ve already got,” Benny replied.
“Oh, we will. We will.” Eustace wagged a finger at him. In truth, he spoke as much to convince himself as anyone. Inwardly, he suffered from a sour stomach and a constant fidgeting anxiety. He desperately needed competent people—dangerous people.
“People in town don’t like us,” Benny replied. “They preferred Mayor Filmore.”
“I don’t need you to remind me of how the locals feel, okay?” Eustace said. “There are going to be dramatic changes. Mark my words.”
“If you say so,” Benny replied.
The backup generator only produced enough power to get the lights and automatic doors working. It couldn’t handle the refrigerated storage or the HVAC, but at least the walls were insulated. That kept out the worst of the cold. Indeed, Benny had worked up a sweat.
Eustace turned. Donald was still struggling to get the oil drum onto the plinth, and he was bent at the back again. It would go a lot quicker if he had help, of course, but Eustace was determined to make the man do it himself.
“You’re still lifting with your back, Donald,” he shouted across the room. His voice echoed against the high ceiling. “How many times do I have to tell you not to do that? I’ll thump your skull for you.”
“It’s heavy as hell,” Donald shouted back, dabbing his cheeks and forehead with his sleeve. “It’s a full drum of diesel oil. I need help.”
“No, you don’t. Toughen up. I’m sick of it, Donald.”
He heard a strange cry then. It came from the front office, where he’d stationed two of his men beside the building’s main entrance. The old grocery distribution warehouse was like a little fortress. It had insulated walls, solid metal doors, and no exterior windows. To keep an eye on the exterior, he had to either appoint someone to walk the perimeter or periodically peer out the doors.
“Sounds like we’ve got company,” he said, beckoning Benny to follow him.
With a scowl, Benny set down his screwdriver and followed Eustace to the front of the building. A small door led into a carpeted hallway that bent at a right angle before joining up with a sparse reception area. Eustace had plans for this part of the building, big plans, but that was not a priority. Supplies, weapons, and local control came first. It was all precarious, though. This was the most fragile time. The next few days would lay the foundation.
He strode down the hall and entered the reception area. The room had a table in the middle and a large, unadorned desk in the corner. At the moment, one of his men was standing near the table, rifle in hand, while another man stood with his back to the front door.
“What are you yelling about?” Eustace asked the man at the door.
“A whole bunch of people approaching the parking lot,” he replied. “They’re armed.”
“Is Pam with them?” he asked.
“I don’t think so. I didn’t get a good look. As soon as I saw the weapons, I shut the door, but the man in front seems dangerous.”
“Oh, for God’s sake. What kind of a guard are you? Worthless.” Eustace waved the man aside. When he didn’t move out of the way fast enough, Eustace planted a hand on his shoulder and shoved him. This sent the man stumbling toward the table, where he knocked over a couple of chairs before catching himself.
“Be ready,” Eustace said, laying his good hand on the door handle, “just in case it’s a bunch of hostile locals or roaming bandits. But don’t open fire unless I say so.”
“You got it, boss,” Benny said.
Eustace would have drawn his weapon—he always had a handgun holstered at his hip—but he couldn’t open the door and hold a pistol at the same time. His injured arm was no good for either task. He looked down at it, cursing under his breath, as he felt fresh blood seeping into the bandage.
I’ll get revenge, he thought, for the thousandth time. Whatever else happens, that’s a priority.
“Back me up, Benny,” Eustace said. “Come on.”
With his good hand, he turned the door handle and flung the door open, catching it with his foot. Then he reached for his pistol. He saw the group, six people bundled up against the cold, approaching from the driveway beyond the parking lot. Well-armed, each bore a rifle. The one in the lead had a pair of mirrored ski goggles hiding half his face, a high fur-lined hood hiding the rest.
“What do you want? Who are you?” Eustace called out, raising the handgun.
The man reached up and pushed the hood down, revealing a short and thick black beard, lips bisected by a shiny scar. Then he raised his goggles, revealing a set of small, fierce eyes.
“Is that any way to greet your only hope, Eustace Simpson?” he said.
A person behind him strode forward then, tipping back the broad-brimmed hat on her head to reveal a sharply angled face. “I found him at his sister’s house,” Pam Grasier said. “He seemed reluctant to come. That’s why it took so long.”
The man brushed past her and approached the front door.
“James,” Eustace said. “James Teagan.”
“I don’t like being summoned like a criminal,” James replied, waving Eustace aside.
Eustace wouldn’t have responded to such a gesture if it had been anyone else. For James Teagan, he willingly—if grumpily—stepped to one side, holding the door for him. The man strode inside the building as if he owned the place, giving a brief, unfriendly look at the two guards beside the table.
“There’s nothing hostile about sending a welcoming committee,” Eustace said.
“I told you I’m in town on personal business,” James replied. “I intended to come here as soon as I was good and ready. By the way, this town is in sorry shape. Is that your doing?”
“Of course not,” Eustace replied. “The mayor of the town was a bit of a loose cannon, which got him murdered. He left things in an unfortunate condition.”
Pam stepped through the door, following by four other men that Eustace didn’t know.
“I picked up a few more locals,” James said, gesturing at the men. “You need more muscle if you’re going to whip the community into shape.”
“Very good,” Eustace said, letting the door swing shut as the last of the men stepped through. Being both relieved and anxious at the same time produced a curious discomfort, and Eustace didn’t know what to do with himself.
“Well, if you’re looking for help with your little operation here, you’ve got it,” James said. “As long as you make it worth my while.”
“Don’t I always?”
James took a seat on the edge of the table, cradling his rifle like it was his very own child. “Well, I suppose if I’m going to help you whip things into the shape, I’ll need a grand tour. How do you feel about taking a nice long walk with me? I’d like to scout the area.”
Eustace nodded. “I was planning on taking a walk anyway.”
“Good,” James said. “Things are about to change, Eustace. You know what I’m capable of. This town doesn’t, but they’re going to learn.”
“That’s what I hope.”
1
It wasn’t the most beautiful, or technically precise, birthday cake he’d ever seen. Unlike the sheet cakes he was used to getting from Loblaw’s, this one was a bit crooked, sort of wilted on a couple of corners, and the icing was a bit lumpy. Still, it was a real, live birthday cake, made without any prepackaged grocery store ingredients, and that made it glorious.
“Wow, Grandma, that looks amazing,” Darryl Healy said. “It’s a real cake! How did you get all the ingredients?”
His grandmother, Tabitha Healy, was grinning. She was a leathery old woman, gnarled brown hands with prominent knuckles, rough skin, and short gray hair. And she had a voice to match. “Had to trade with a neighbor for the eggs. We’ll need some chickens on this ranch, I suppose, so we can get our own eggs, but there it is. We had all the rest of the ingredients, even a bit of cocoa powder. Chocolate is your favorite, as I recall?”
It wasn’t, but he wasn’t going to say it. “It’s the best, Grandma. Thank you.”
His entire family—his new family, as he thought of them—were all standing around the dining room table, where the cake was displayed on a glass cake stand for all to see and admire. Despite the fire crackling in the fireplace, it was cold in the house, and everyone was wearing multiple layers and thick sweaters. His mother, Marion Healy, was pouring iced tea into cups—well, iced tea wasn’t accurate, since they didn’t have ice, at least not clean ice. There had been a brief discussion of using snow in place of ice, but no one had been particularly excited about that.
“How did we have enough sugar for all of this?” Darryl asked, gesturing at the tea and the cake. “It must’ve taken a lot.”
Tabitha glanced at Marion, hesitated a moment, then said, “Well, actually, we had to use the last of the sugar, but don’t you worry about that. It’s your birthday, and we’re going to celebrate. We need to celebrate, if you ask me, after all we’ve been through.” She shook her head, and for a second Darryl thought she was going to cry. But she didn’t. Instead, she pressed her lips together tightly, took a deep breath through her nostrils, and seemed to regain control of herself.
Still missing Grandpa, Darryl thought. Of course, she was. The funeral had been a little over a month ago. Sometimes, Darryl felt as if all of the death and bloodshed hadn’t sunk in yet—the awful gunfight, dragging the bodies, all of it. That’s my life now.
“Emma did most of the work,” Tabitha added. “She found a recipe in an old recipe book of mine in the den, and she mixed the batter and made the frosting. Your sister is pretty good at whatever she puts her mind to.”
Darryl’s younger sister, Emma, was standing in the kitchen doorway in a puffy pink sweater, beaming. Darryl wasn’t surprised to learn that she’d baked the cake. She was always finding something to do around the ranch. Though she was the youngest person in the family, she had the most initiative, and she liked to find new tasks to occupy her mind. Darryl couldn’t keep up with her. The poor girl had been shot in the leg not a month earlier, and even that hadn’t slowed her down. Though she was mostly healed now, she walked with just a slight limp, hardly noticeable. But she never complained about the wound. In fact, she rarely mentioned it.
They’d managed to scrounge up a couple of candles for the birthday cake, and Darryl’s father brought a long match from the fireplace to light them. As the candles crackled and flickered, Darryl thought it felt like a little bit of normalcy in a world that had otherwise turned to absolute chaos.
“Blow out your candles,” Justine said, “but make a wish first. A good one. Don’t waste it.”
Justine Carmichael, his closest friend—and a lot more than just a friend—was standing beside him in her purple hooded sweatshirt. Her long black hair spilled out of the front of her hood on either side of her face and hung down like strange tassels. The only survivor of her family, she’d moved in with the Healys after her parents and sister were killed by the corrupt former mayor, Gene Marshall Filmore. She’d taken over the upstairs guest room, and as far as Darryl was concerned, she fit right in. It felt like she’d always been there.
Darryl leaned over, but he couldn’t think of a good birthday wish. He wanted to ask for something specific, something meaningful, but long seconds were passing and everyone was staring at him. For a better future, he thought finally, then he blew out the candles. Everyone applauded, as if he’d accomplished something, and he smiled, embarrassed.
“Seventeen years old,” Horace Bouchard said. The old man was the only one sitting down. He’d taken one of the padded chairs and pushed it back into a corner of the dining room. “Almost old enough to vote.” Horace had been the nearest neighbor to the Healy ranch for years—a crusty but kindhearted old Canadian Armed Forces veteran—but once violence broke out in town, he’d moved in with them as well. As a double amputee, he depended on a pair of prosthetic legs to get around. Though the legs were old and uncomfortable, he never complained.
“If there even are elections by the time he’s eighteen,” Darryl’s mother said.
She cut the first slice of cake and tipped it sideways onto a plate.
She handed the plate to Darryl, but he passed it to Justine, who accepted it with a nod and dug in.
“There’s one thing I’ve been meaning to ask,” Justin
e said, through a mouthful of cake. “So, you’re just now turning seventeen, but you’ve got college textbooks on your desk upstairs. What’s that all about?”
“He skipped a grade,” Marion explained, cutting a second slice of cake. “Just like me. Got started on college early.”
Darryl’s dad spoke up. “Skipping grades runs in the family, on Marion’s side, not my side.”
“Well, now, Greg, let’s not forget, your father skipped three grades,” Tabitha said.
“That’s because he dropped out of school to take care of the family farm,” Greg said.
“It still counts as skipping,” Tabitha said.
“If you say so.”
Darryl finally accepted a slice of cake. His mother made sure he got an enormous slice. He dug in with the fork and found that the texture wasn’t quite right. It was dense as a pound cake, and when he tasted it, he realized it wasn’t sweet enough. Still, it was cake, and he couldn’t remember the last time he’d eaten cake.
And this might be the last time ever, he realized. A world without birthday cake! How awful.
As if to confirm this thought, his mother said, “I guess for the next birthday, we’ll make waffles or something. I don’t know.”
“Wow, what if this is the last bite of cake I ever eat in my life?” Justine said, holding up the last small chunk of her cake on the end of her fork. “I guess I’d better burn it into my memory, like I did the last time I ate a slice of fresh pineapple. Gone forever. I’ll only eat cake in my dreams.” And with that, she plunged the cake into her mouth and appeared to roll it around on her tongue.
Watching her eat, with his whole family standing around the table, Darryl had a sudden realization. Even though the world had changed, even though they struggled every single day, and even though he might be eating the last piece of cake he would ever eat, he was still happier than he’d ever been. Before the EMP, he’d been struggling to find enough motivation to make it through college, just sort of drifting from day to day, but now he had purpose. He had work to do, people to care about.
EMP: Return of the Wild West Box Set | Books 1-3 Page 25
