by Bobby Akart
Ryan opened the refrigerator and stared inside. He surveyed his choices on something to munch on, much like a bear who’d just entered a campsite and was faced with too many options. He pulled open the deli drawer and pulled out a pack of sliced Swiss cheese to satisfy his craving.
“You know how it is,” he began. “We seek these people out, or they’re referred to us. Then we scour the web and social media to see what we can learn about them. They have no idea we’re even interested in pitching the Haven to them. Yet, we know they’re open to the prospect based upon their Facebook posts.”
“I know,” interjected Blair. “Our whole approach is weird, but we can’t just open the Haven up to anybody. We have to be able to trust these people to have our backs, and everyone else’s who live here. You build a team through recruitment, not an open or revolving door.”
Ryan put away the cheese and munched on a slice as he spoke. “Well, this fella fills a void we have in the communications aspect of the Haven. When the time comes, knowledge will be power, or in our case, information will help us secure the place. Whether it’s within the confines of our fences and walls, or keeping abreast of events around the country, we can better protect ourselves from outsiders by keeping up with their activities.”
“His paperwork looks good, too,” added Blair.
When the Smarts came up with the concept of the Haven, they decided to be very selective in who they sell property to. Because of their financial windfall by winning the lottery, they didn’t need the money from prospective entrants into their secretive community. However, they felt it was necessary to charge their new residents something, so they had a financial stake in the Haven—skin in the game, as they say.
If a prospective resident had a strong resume, which meant having useful skills, a verifiable background, and a like-minded approach to preparedness, but were unable financially to make a purchase with cash, the Smarts would finance the property with only ten percent down and low payments thereafter.
Ryan grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator and drank half of it down. He rummaged through the junk drawer, as they called it. It was a catchall for everything from pens and notepads to scissors and Ryan’s pill box for his daily medications. Despite his excellent conditioning, now that he was in his sixties, his doctor suggested he continue his blood pressure and cholesterol medications daily.
He checked his watch. “Do you wanna meet him?”
She brushed past him and touched her hand to his shoulder. “Nah, I trust your judgment. The vetting part passed my test.”
“All you’re P-I training paid off,” added Ryan. When he and Blair met, she’d maintained a private investigator’s license during which time she became adept at conducting background investigations. With the explosion of information on the internet, her duties in vetting prospective buyers online was much easier.
“Somewhat, but you’re the best judge of character. Size him up, and if you’re not sure, introduce him to Alpha. He doesn’t like many people, so if he approves, then I say bring him on board.”
“He wants to buy an existing place. He’s into the rustic feel of the Haven.”
Blair laughed. “Good, sell him H13 down by the old mill site on the river. It’s got plenty of ghosts to satisfy his rustic feels.”
Ryan hit the bathroom before going back out into the cold and stopped to check the news headlines on his iPad. A lot of the focus in Washington was on the briefs being submitted to the Supreme Court in advance of next week’s big court hearing. He read part of the story to himself.
The Justices called for more briefs in the president’s attempts to shut down the 25th Amendment action taken against him by his cabinet. They seem to be singularly focused on the propriety of the attempt, so the Court granted review of the lower court decisions to determine if the overall case had merit.
There have been several amicus curiae, friends of the court, briefs filed by non-parties to the action from all sides of the political spectrum. One Court commentator referred to these additional briefs as noise, claiming they were purposefully designed to confuse the court as to the real matter at hand.
All eyes will be on the president’s legal team led by Pat Cipollone and Hayden Blount, a former clerk to Justice Samuel Alito. Court watchers believe Blount has a unique perspective into the minds of the justices that could tip the scales of justice in favor of the president.
Ryan closed his iPad and smiled.
“You go, Foxy!”
Copyright Information
© 2019 Bobby Akart Inc. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of Bobby Akart Inc.
Table of Contents
Dedications
Acknowledgements
About the Author, Bobby Akart
Author’s Introduction to the Doomsday Series
Epigraph
Prologue
New Year’s Eve
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Excerpt from DOOMSDAY: HAVEN
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