by Mark Goodwin
“It’s not a joke, and fear is a very appropriate response.” Josh looked to see his sister pulling into the driveway.
“What are all those boxes doing in the driveway?” Nicole stepped out of her BMW wearing her gym clothes. She spent most of her waking hours in the gym and it showed.
“We’re moving. What are you doing here?” asked Josh.
“Stephanie was supposed to come to cardio kickboxing tonight and she never showed up. Is she here?”
“Yeah. Micah took her car. She’s inside packing.”
“What are you talking about—moving?” She put her hands on her hips.
“I’ve been reassigned. We’re pulling out Monday morning.”
“To where?”
“Kentucky,” Emilio answered for him.
“Why are you here?” She eyed Emilio.
“I work with your brother.”
“Oh, right.”
Josh interrupted. “You should come with us.”
“You mean like to visit? I can’t take off work right now. We just started some new classes. If I don’t show, then about half the students will drop out.”
“I mean to live.”
“Yeah right.” Nicole shifted her weight.
“I’m serious, Nicole. I can’t tell you anything, but if you knew what I know, you’d start packing right now.”
She smiled at him, but her lighthearted expression soon changed. “You’re not kidding, are you? What is it? What’s going on?”
“He can’t say,” Emilio answered.
She looked at him. “Are you going?”
“Yeah,” Emilio said. “I’m going to go get something to eat and start looking for a place to stay. Are you hungry?”
“Me?” Nicole asked.
“Yeah.”
“I have a boyfriend.”
“Oh, I didn’t necessarily mean like a date. I was just thinking if you were considering moving—with Josh, we could share research, like for apartments or whatever.”
“If I go eat with you, are you going to tell me what’s going on?”
“I don’t even know.”
“Wait! You don’t even know what’s going on, and you’re willing to move halfway across the country?”
“Yeah.”
“Why?”
“Because I trust your brother.”
Nicole stared at Josh. “So do I, but if it were life or death, he’d tell me what’s going on. Anyway, I’m going in to talk to Stephanie. See ya.”
“Yeah, see ya.” Emilio watched her walk inside. “I thought you said she didn’t have a boyfriend.”
“I never said that. Why are you trying to get a date when the world is imploding?”
“The world is imploding? That’s news to me. All I’ve been told is that I have to move, and I only have three days to pack.”
“Okay, forget I said that. But what was all that about researching for apartments together? Seriously, has that ever worked for you?”
“I usually have my facts straight before I go into an operation like that one. Unfortunately, the person I was depending on for reliable intel turned out to be a double agent.”
“Honestly, I had no idea she had a boyfriend. But you’re better off. You need to focus.”
“And what about your sister? You’re not going to try to get her to come?”
“Is this because you’re concerned for Nicole?”
“Because I know how you’ll feel if you leave her behind and something bad happens to her.”
Josh picked up another box. “I’ll convince her—one way or the other.”
CHAPTER 4
The Fed took a dollar and eliminated 98% of its purchasing power and they’re doing that more rapidly than ever but it just hasn’t been fully discounted. When it is, gold is going to be much, much higher.
Ron Paul
Josh returned home Monday morning after cashing his moving-expenses check and making an additional $10,000 cash withdrawal. He rallied his family to the vehicles. “We’ve got a long drive. We need to get moving.”
“So, Aunt Nicole isn’t coming?” Micah put his final load into the back of Stephanie’s Audi Q5.
“She’ll come when the time is right.” Stephanie took the keys to the Charger from Josh. “For now, she’s helping us to get the house and the juice bar sold.”
“Whatever it is, obviously it’s not an imminent threat. I mean, like if an asteroid was going to hit Tampa or something, Dad would drag her kicking and screaming.” Micah got into the driver’s seat of the Q5.
“Nobody drags your aunt anywhere without her consent.” Josh closed the door for his son. “I’ll lead the way in the moving truck. You stay between me and mom. It’s important that we stick together.”
“Yeah, but I’m saying, since Aunt Nicole is staying here, why can’t I stay until she goes?”
“The topic is closed for discussion.” Josh began walking toward the moving van.
Stephanie smiled at Micah and headed to the Charger. “Kendra can come up for Thanksgiving— Christmas, too. You’ll still see each other.”
“If the world hasn’t been turned upside down by Thanksgiving, I’m going to be furious at having been yanked out of school, football, and away from all my friends.” Micah started the engine.
Josh looked at the house which had been home to his family for nearly two decades. He put the truck in gear and said, “Goodbye.” Josh felt sentimental and sad at having to leave in such a rush. He could only imagine how hard the move must be on his wife and son. Nevertheless, he knew it was the prudent thing to do. Most of the population would be blindsided by the coming chaos.
Josh switched on the radio to distract him from the stress of the move. He scanned the stations of the low-budget receiver, which was standard in moving vans. Eventually, he came across a news station reporting on the markets.
A female reporter said, “The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up more than 300 points since it opened this morning.”
“Did she say up?” Josh adjusted the volume louder. “I dumped my entire IRA because these bozos told me the end of days was upon us!”
The reporter continued, “The rally comes on the heels of OPEC’s announcement over the weekend. The secretary general of the global oil cartel said the organization would be pursuing a more open policy in regards to pricing future oil contracts. This news comes in the wake of various other global trade leaders who have called for a de-dollarization of the world economy.
“OPEC Secretary General Mahmoud Abbas said cartel member countries will now accept all global currencies to settle oil contracts rather than US dollars only. Global currencies will be standardized to the price of gold both at the time of the contract and again at the time of settlement, said Abbas, making gold the de facto currency for global oil trade.
“The announcement sent the US dollar into a tailspin as both oil and gold prices soared. Oil has already made its largest one-day gain in history, jumping $28 per barrel to $94. Higher prices are a boon for Dow-component companies like Exxon Mobile and Chevron.
“Analysts expect that the lower dollar valuation will help US businesses compete internationally and that any inflationary drag on the economy will be offset by relief programs and quantitative easing by the Fed and other central planners.”
“Yeah, right. Good luck with that.” Josh never looked at his phone while he was driving, but he simply couldn’t resist. “She didn’t mention how much gold surged.” He checked the price quickly. “$1,985! Up $120 an ounce. That’s gotta be a record. I wonder why she didn’t mention it. Maybe’s she’s being told not to.”
***
Josh watched the markets, checking his phone at every rest stop for the remainder of the day. The trip was otherwise uneventful and they arrived at their Frankfort, Kentucky hotel just before midnight.
Josh watched Stephanie and Micah taking their belongings out of their respective vehicles. “Just take what you need for the night. We need to get some rest. We’ve got a
n early start in the morning.”
Micah slung his backpack over his shoulder. “So this is it?”
“Yep.”
Stephanie locked the doors of the Charger. “Welcome to the middle of nowhere.”
“Are you kidding?” Josh smiled with one side of his mouth. “This is Frankfort, the state capitol. Twenty-five thousand people live here. Our other choice was Nebraska.”
Micah sighed as he walked past his mother. “It could always be worse.”
“I hope I made the right choice. Nebraska is probably where we should have gone.” Josh trailed behind his unhappy campers to the hotel lobby. They checked into their room for some much- needed rest.
***
Tuesday morning, Josh and the family met the realtor at the only property he’d scheduled. The mid-thirties realtor’s eyes were bloodshot and her heavy mascara was smeared.
“Hi, good morning, I’m Brooke. Come on in.” She pointed at Josh’s hat. “Are you in law enforcement? I dated a cop for a while.”
“Oh, this?” Josh quickly realized that he’d need a different hat. “I was. Anyway, I’m Josh Stone. Good to meet you.” He shook the woman’s hand.
“Are you Mrs. Stone?” Brooke offered her hand to Stephanie.
“Yes.” Stephanie complied with the obligatory gesture but said nothing more.
Josh followed the woman into the single-story brick home. Instantly, he realized the 1970s ranch-style home was in worse shape than the woman showing it. “I like the wood-burning stove. You could cook on it if you had to.”
“Well, it does have a kitchen for cooking. They’ve put down laminate wood flooring as you can see. The bathroom has a marble vanity top.” Brooke motioned extravagantly with her arms while her high heels wobbled as if she were walking a tight rope. “This house has great bones. They don’t build ‘em like this anymore.”
“Thank God for that,” Stephanie kept her arms crossed tightly.
“Is this plastic on the floor?” Micah curled his nose at the yellowed flooring in the bathroom.
Brooke seemed to not understand what he was asking, so Josh intervened. “It’s called linoleum.”
“Isn’t that the stuff that gives you lung cancer?” Micah inquired. “We can’t live in this place.”
“You’re thinking of asbestos.” Josh examined the floor, which could possibly be the original. “It might actually be in the adhesive but shouldn’t be a problem as long as we don’t disturb it.”
“The home has a finished apartment downstairs, complete with its own kitchenette and private bath.” Brooke began making her way down the green shag-carpeted stairs. “Whoops!” Brooke caught herself on the railing and continued down.
Stephanie gripped Josh’s arm and shook her head to show her displeasure as they entered the basement apartment. “You consider this finished?” she asked.
“It does need a fresh coat of paint,” said Brooke. “But the price reflects the fact that it might require a little TLC.”
“Yeah, right. TNT is what this place needs,” said Stephanie.
The tour returned to the upper floor where they visited the small bedrooms with minimal closet space. Next, Brooke led them outside to point out the features of the property. “You have a two-car attached garage plus a separate outbuilding that could be used as a shop, garage, or storage place. You also have an old barn, which is sagging, but it has a few more years left. The meadow was fenced in at one time. You could keep cattle or horses with some very minor repairs. Plus the wooded section gives the property a very private feel. It’s fifteen acres, so you’re only limited by your imagination.”
Josh thought about the potential for a garden and considered the benefit of abundant firewood. “Thanks so much, Brooke. I saw a ladder against the back of the barn. Do you mind if I crawl up on the roof and have a look?”
“Typically, we want a professional inspector to do that type of examination.”
Josh replied, “Typically, an inspector finds all kinds of stuff that the average Joe like me would never notice. Especially on a property like this. I’m a cash buyer. Do you want to take the risk of me getting scared off by the opinion of a professional?”
Brooke looked through her purse as if the answer to her moral dilemma might be lost inside, just under some loose mints and gently-used tissues. “I’m not going to tell you that you can, but I can’t really stop you. I’ll be out front if you need me.” She began walking away.
Josh smiled at Stephanie. “Keep her occupied for a while. I’m going to check this place out.” Josh got the ladder and found the roof to be in good shape. He walked back through the house, checking each faucet, flushing the toilets, and flipping all the light switches. Once satisfied that the house was at least livable, he joined the others outside.
Brooke handed him a listing sheet. “The sellers are asking $185,000, but they may be negotiable. I have some other listings with comparable acreage if you’re interested.” She passed him flyers for two additional offerings.
“This one looks less haunted,” said Micah.
“It’s a trailer,” Josh replied. “You don’t want to ride out a bad rainstorm in one of those, much less anything worse. Remember the story of the three little pigs?”
Josh directed his attention back to the realtor. “Thank you for your time. We’ll be in touch if we decide to make an offer.”
“Okay, have a great day!” Brooke put on her sunglasses and got back into her older-model Mercedes Benz.
Once back in the car, Stephanie and Micah simultaneously unleashed a barrage of complaints about the property. Josh held up his hands. “Guys, please, give me a minute.”
The two of them calmed down and let him speak. “I’m not asking you to love it. But please, have an open mind. A good cleaning, some new curtains, and a fresh coat of paint will do wonders for this place. But, we’re limited on funds right now, and we need to secure a place where we can be safe.”
“Yeah, but why do we need a farm? If we scaled down on the acreage, couldn’t we get something a little nicer?” asked Stephanie.
“You love that fixer-upper show,” said Josh. “I thought you’d enjoy the challenge.”
“I like watching other people fix stuff up. That doesn’t mean I want to rip up walls in search of cockroaches and rats’ nests.”
Josh raised his shoulders. “We need the acreage. Smaller lots mean closer neighbors. Plus, I need to get Micah up to speed with shooting. This place has a nice berm at the back of the meadow. It will be perfect for target practice.”
“Yeah!” Micah smiled. “Can I run your M-4?”
“Shooting? Why does Micah need to be shooting?”
“Because I’m going to be doing undercover work. I’m not sure how long of a stretch I might go without seeing you. He’s going to be the man of the house while I’m gone.”
“This just keeps getting worse and worse.” Stephanie looked out the window at the house which she obviously hated. “How much are we getting from the IRA?”
“About $210,000.”
“Plus you got $10,000 from work, and the other ten grand you took out in cash. If we look at properties in the $250,000 range we can probably get them to come down.”
Josh shook his head. “We need to get some supplies.”
“Supplies for what? Fixing the place up? If you get a place that doesn’t need TNT, or TLC, or whatever, you don’t have to budget for it.”
“No. Not those kinds of supplies. I mean like food, stuff we need to live for a while—until things get back to normal.”
“Josh, you’re frightening me.” Her eyebrows lowered. “How bad is this thing going to get?”
“From what they’re telling me, pretty bad.” He swallowed hard. “But for now, let’s get some lunch and head back to the hotel.” Josh put the Charger in gear and drove. “After lunch, you should look into getting Micah registered for school.”
“They actually have a school here?” Micah asked.
“Frankfort is
a fairly large town,” said Josh. “It’s small compared to Tampa, but it has everything we need.”
“It doesn’t have my friends. And I can’t get on the football team at this point, so what’s the use?”
“Because this isn’t the end of civilization. You’re still going to need an education,” argued Josh.
“I’ve learned as much as I’m going to learn from public schools in the past 11 years. It’s the same old stuff over and over. If I need to know something that I don’t, I’ll just Google it. If it’s more complicated than that, I’ll look up a tutorial on YouTube.”
“You’re going to finish high school,” added Stephanie. “This isn’t a topic open for discussion.”
“I thought I was supposed to be home defending you from the zombies while Dad is off playing 007,” said Micah. “How am I supposed to do that if I’m stuck watching the clock in third-period chemistry?”
“It’s not the zombie apocalypse,” said Josh.
“Then what kind of apocalypse is it?” Micah inquired. “I’m just trying to fill in the blanks here. Zombies cover all the basics, societal collapse, food shortages, grid-down scenarios, everything except nuclear. But you’re shopping for an above-ground bunker, so I’m assuming it’s not nuclear.”
“I hate this.” Stephanie’s voice grew louder and she repeated her complaint. “I hate this! I don’t like being in the dark myself, but I can’t stand the thought of my son having to invent disaster scenes in his mind to try and make sense of what’s going on! Josh, just tell us what is coming! Or at least tell us when!”
He felt terrible but knew he could not. “I’m sorry. You’ll know soon enough. It will be obvious when it comes.”
Stephanie looked out the window in silence.
Micah put a tender hand on his mother’s shoulder from the back seat. “I’ll be alright, Mom. Don’t worry about me.”
She put her hand on top of Micah’s and gave it a squeeze.
Micah continued his previous discussion. “What if I completed high school through like a distance learning program? I’m sure Florida has something like that.”
