EMP

by Jonathan Hollerman

  “We gotta get these cows to the back forty and away from the road,” Sean said to himself in regard to the cows huddled together in the front pasture.

  “Dad, can you swing by Nathan’s house and grab him and Naomi? We’ll grab Bug and Jackson and meet you upstairs.”

  “Ok, son,” was all he said as they reached the basement entrance to the farmhouse. Samuel continued up the drive to the larger brick house his aunt and uncle lived in. Sean hopped off and helped Maria out of the grocery cart. Maria knocked on the door which was quickly opened by his cousin Bug.

  “Hey girl, what’s going on?” Bug said as he gave her a hug. “What’s up, bud,” he offered to Sean as they stepped inside and closed the door.

  “Hey Bug, how’s it going?” Sean greeted his cousin with his childhood nickname.

  “Not much, not much. Just hangin’ out, waiting for the power to come back on. Can’t even head into town ‘cause the car is all crapped out, same with Nathan’s. Sheesh, you guys look geared up for the Zombie Apocalypse,” Bug said with a smirk.

  “You’re not far off,” Sean replied, more serious. Just then Jackson came around the corner from the living room.

  “Hey!” he said as he swooped Maria up in a hug. “I thought I heard my favorite cousin-in-law.” When Sean and Maria first moved back to town, they had lived just down the road for a few years while getting their coffee shop up and started. Maria had been immediately drawn to Sean’s quirky cousins. Being only a few years older, they still loved to joke around and poke at each other in a brotherly fashion.

  “How are you guys makin’ out?” Maria asked Jackson. “You guys meet those hot twins yet you’ve been looking for?”

  Jackson glanced over at Bug and they both smiled. “Not yet. We’re still looking though. How about it? You’re the one that’s supposed to be hooking that up.”

  “I’m lookin’,” Maria said with a smile. “I just haven’t found any that would live up to your standards yet.”

  “That’s too bad. It looks like we’re forever destined to be bachelors.”

  “Well, maybe I would have had some luck if you weren’t looking for two blondes between 5’3” and 5’7” with rockin’ bodies that like to fish, know how to butcher a deer, and smoke jerky.”

  “Maybe,” Jackson conceded.

  “So, what’s up with the gear?” Bug chimed in.

  “Long story. Are Grandma and Grandpa upstairs?” Sean asked.

  “Grandpa was up at the barn earlier, but they have been staying over at Nathan’s, so I doubt it.”

  “Tell you what. Why don’t you guys throw on some coats and we’ll run over to Nathan’s and I’ll tell you what’s going on.”

  “Ok,” Jackson said. “I needed to talk to Grandpa anyways. Before the power went out, he wanted me to fix a section of fence down by the swamp.”

  “So what’s going on?” Bug asked again while grabbing his coat.

  “It’s a long story, Bug. I’d prefer to go over everything one time with the whole group.” Bug was still looking at him so he continued “I believe the country has been attacked.”

  “What?” they said in unison.

  “By who?” Jackson asked.

  “Russia, China, North Korea, some terrorist group that was able to get their hands on a nuclear warhead: take your pick,” Sean answered sarcastically.

  “Nuclear. Won’t there be fallout?” Bug asked, very serious now.

  “No, it’s complicated. Let’s get over to Nathan’s and I’ll explain everything.” They walked over to his uncle’s house just as his dad was coming out the door.

  “I was just coming to get you. Grandma and Grandpa are over here,” his dad informed him.

  “Yeah, Jackson said they had been staying here.” They stepped inside and took their boots off. They walked into the kitchen where everyone was sitting around the kitchen table. “Hey guys,” he said to everyone. They all responded in kind but were really reserved. Sean could tell that his dad had told them a little bit. Sean laid his rifle on the table and took a seat, followed by Maria. Jackson and Bug leaned against the kitchen counter as all the seats were taken. At the table were his Uncle Nathan and Aunt Naomi, their nineteen-year-old daughter Susan, Grandma, Grandpa, and his father.

  “Well... where do I start?” Sean began. It took another hour to lay everything out and answer all their questions, but in the end they all seemed convinced and agreed that it was best to get the extended family together on the farm.

  “Ok, now that we are in agreement, the first thing we need to discuss is security. With all the welfare folks in the trailer park up the road, it won’t be long till someone comes for a cow. Here are my thoughts. First, we have to get the cows away from the road, down in the lower pasture and up in the barn at night. We need to have a set of eyes and a rifle watching them twenty-four seven from here on out. From a tactical standpoint, it is imperative that the person stays out of sight. At some point we will need to get an LP/OP set up on the cliff wall overlooking the lower forty.” They all looked at him, confused with the acronym, so he explained. “In the military an LP/OP stands for Listening Post Observation Post. We’ll probably dig a large hole in the ground at the top of the hill and cover it with logs and branches but until then I figured we could just post up in the old bus. Is it still sitting out there next to the barn?” Sean asked, looking over at his uncle.

  “Yeah, it’s still there, but I don’t know if you’ll be able to see all the way down by the swamp,” Nathan answered his nephew.

  “Ok. Well, we will have to figure something out soon. Maybe we can drag it over closer to the fence line with the Massey. How’s the ol’ Massey running, Grandpa?”

  “Oh she’s runnin’ just fine, just fine. The old gal is a real work horse. I just used her earlier this morning to take a fresh round bale into the pasture.”

  “Ok, good. We are going to be putting her through the paces since it’s our only form of transportation for the foreseeable future. Do you know how full the diesel storage tank is?”

  “Oh, it’s pretty full. Just had it filled up a couple weeks ago,” his Grandpa answered.

  Sean let out a sigh of relief at that. He wasn’t completely sure if they would have been able to figure out a way to get diesel out of the tanks at the gas station. “What about those 50 gallon drums you had stacked up behind the barn for burn barrels? Are there any left? I want to make a run to the Sheetz and try and get as much diesel on hand as possible.”

  “There are five left back there, but why don’t you just take the crop sprayer? That will hold a good five hundred gallons,” Grandpa offered.

  “Great idea, Grandpa!” Sean exclaimed. “Nathan, do you have any ideas on how to get the diesel out of the ground? Dad thought about pulling the hand pump off the diesel storage tank and trying to rig it up to a garden hose. What do you think?”

  “It should probably work alright. That’s gonna be a whole lot of pumping though. You realize that, don’t you?” Nathan said matter-of-factly.

  “Honestly, I hadn’t thought of it. I was mainly thinking about filling a couple fifty-gallon drums. Do you have any better ideas or something that might be more efficient?”

  “Not really, especially without electricity,” Nathan answered.

  “Ok, then. When we get wrapped up in here, do you think you can get started on that? Maybe find a way to wire it to the frame of the sprayer or something.”

  “Yeah, I’ll figure something out.” Nathan had recently retired from a large manufacturing factory in Grove City. He had worked there for over thirty years and his dad had told him that Nathan was the best maintenance man down there. Apparently there wasn’t a machine on the assembly line floor he couldn’t fix. In fact, even though he was retired, he was routinely called in as a consultant to fix some machine that no one else could figure out. Nathan’s ingenuity was going to be a huge asset in the years ahead.

  “Second, we need to have a set of eyes stationed at the front bay window of
the farmhouse day and night watching for drifters and anyone coming up and down the road. If someone tries to come on the property we need to have a warning system of some kind. I was thinking about pulling the horn and the battery out of grandma’s old Cadillac and setting them up next to the back window facing Nathan’s house here. If someone starts heading up the driveway, the person on watch can run into the back bedroom, open the window and connect the battery. At some point we could add a light switch or something to it. I’d also like to get the same system set up in the barn and bus as well.

  “We should have a universal alert. If someone like a neighbor or traveler is spotted entering the property, the watchman will produce three short honks. Three short honks will bring everyone to that location except the other watchman on duty. If the trespasser is armed or looks suspicious, or there is a small group of armed men then one short honk. At the sound of one short honk, then everyone needs to come quickly at the ready. Last, if the watchman sees a large raiding party or they are in immediate danger, they need to just attach the horn and leave it running. The sound of a running horn means that everyone runs for the strip mine. We can cache some supplies and extra food where the old path goes up the high wall and meet up there. There is no use in getting in a gun fight with a large raiding party. We know this farm better than anyone, and once we get the women and children safely to a nearby farm, us men will return and use guerrilla tactics against them.”

  “We all have hunting rifles and can surround the farm and pop them off one by one from the security of the woods. That will allow us to take a couple shots and relocate or retreat. The sight of their friends’ heads exploding next to them should convince them to move on. Even if it takes a couple days to convince them, how much food can they eat in two days? I think this is a much better strategy than facing a large gang of hardened looters head on. It should definitely cut down or hopefully eliminate loss of life on our end. What do you guys think? Anyone have any suggestions or ideas on this?”

  Nathan cut in briefly, “Grandpa sold the ol’ Cadillac a few months ago, so it’s not around. But we have enough immobile vehicles around here that we can pull the horns out of.”

  Everyone else nodded their heads in agreement and nobody had anything else to add, so Sean continued. “How is our water situation, Grandpa? Is the old hand pump still working in the barn?”

  “Sure is. I just used it this morning,” he replied.

  “Good, so we have access to fresh water. I’ll skip food for a minute and come back to it. The next topic I feel we should put to a vote. Outside of Maria, myself, and my dad, I don’t believe any of you have assault rifles, do you?” Sean looked around and no one spoke up; they just shook their heads. “All of you have deer rifles, but I’m guessing you only have a box or two of shells left over from hunting season. This is going to be a problem. We need the ability to hunt for food the next couple years or longer. We may have to start fighting gangs or groups of looters on a regular basis to protect our crops and cattle. A couple boxes of rounds are not going to cut it. I plan to take a small foraging group tonight around midnight. My plan is to pull the sprayer behind the hay wagon and head to Sheetz gas station. We’ll unhook the sprayer and leave three people behind to pump the diesel and run security. The rest of us are going to Duke’s sporting goods for battle rifles, ammo, and other supplies.

  “If there isn’t anyone there, I plan to take just what we need and leave. I believe it will be looted in the next day or two anyways. I’m hoping and guessing that there is someone guarding the place because the idea of stealing doesn’t sit well with me. Here is where things get tricky. I am going to need to barter with them. I don’t want to try and haul a cow or two out there, so I plan to reason things out and maybe offer some gold and silver bullion. The owner’s days are numbered if he tries to hold the fort. I need to make sure he understands the full circumstances we are in and how the power is not coming back on. At some point there will be a large enough raiding party to eventually kill him and take the guns by force. I have to make the owner see the fact that if they stay there, they are dead. Doubtfully, but maybe, he will let us trade for some ammo and supplies. That is the best case scenario. If not, I plan to invite them to join our farm. We can load everything we can fit on the hay wagon and head back to Sheetz. This will definitely increase the speed by which we go through our food supply. But in the long run, I believe that the extra guns and ammunition can easily be traded for food at a later date. And what good is extra food if you can’t protect it? Now I know that Uncle Will, Danny, my brother Joshua and sister Faith and all their family members aren’t here to vote, but I feel that we need to go tonight. For all we know, Duke’s may have already been looted, and I don’t want to wait one more day. So I think we should take a vote unless someone objects. By show of hands, who agrees to bring in some extra members if it means we will get a whole arsenal of guns and ammo in trade?”

  Sean was unsure of the response he would get because they were a close knit family and bringing in a stranger could jeopardize that. To Sean’s surprise, everyone to the last raised their hand and no objections were raised. “Ok, good. We are in agreement then. Until we are able to gain some more small arms, I’d like to get an idea what kind of guns and ammunition we have available. Nathan, what do you have here?”

  “Well... I’ve got my .270 Winchester hunting rifle, my old 30-30 Marlin lever action rifle that has a scope on it but hasn’t been fired in a few years, so I can’t promise it’s still on paper. I have a pump action shotgun and a bolt action 17 HMR for groundhog hunting. As far as handguns, all I have is a .357 revolver. I have two boxes of .270, maybe one box of 30-30 rounds. There are probably three full boxes of twelve gauge 00 buck shot, a good one hundred rounds of 17 HMR and maybe fifty rounds for the .357.”

  “Have you ever taken Naomi or Susan shooting before?”

  “A couple times with the .357 and the 17 HMR, but it’s been a while.”

  “Alright then, when we get done here, Naomi, would you mind taking first watch at the farmhouse? Do you feel confident with the 17 HMR?”

  “I can take first watch,” Susan chimed in. “I know how to shoot it. I shot three groundhogs the last time dad took me out.”

  Sean looked over to Nathan and Naomi who both nodded their heads in agreement. “Ok then, Susan. You can take first watch. In the meantime, until we get a warning device set up, if you see anyone coming up the drive or entering the pastures, just step out back and fire a shot up in the air, okay?”

  “Okay, I can remember that,” she said confidently.

  “Great. Nathan, can you also grab her a pair of binoculars?” Nathan nodded his head in affirmative. “Let’s leave the binoculars on the window sill in the farmhouse and whoever relieves the watchman takes the 17 HMR. That will be the watchman’s rifle for now. I’d like to keep the shotgun in the coat closet by the front door in here. All exterior doors need to be locked at all times. We should slide something large in front of the back door and basement door and only use the front door for entry. To get inside you have to knock, and the person inside does not open the door until they recognize the person’s voice on the other side.”

  “Nathan, you should take your .270 with you. I’ve heard you in the woods with that thing and you can rattle off rounds like a semi automatic rifle. Would you be ok with letting Bug carry the 30-30 and letting Jackson carry the .357?”

  “That would be fine, I suppose,” Nathan agreed.

  “I’ve got a .22 magnum in the house with a couple boxes of shells,” Grandpa pitched in. “I use it for killing rats in the barn. It’s in the closet in the spare bedroom and the boxes of shells should be in a box on the top shelf,” Grandpa offered.

  “Thanks, Grandpa. Naomi, when we’re finished, if you would be so kind to grab that for us and bring it back over here and put it in the coat closet next to the front door?” She nodded in reply but Sean could sense the worry on her face over everything that was happening. He smiled back
at her reassuringly. “Just for the record, guys, a gun doesn’t do you any good if you don’t have it within arm’s reach at all times. All you guys know that the second you leave your gun leaning against the tree and walk a few paces to take a piss is exactly when the deer run by. We’ve all told the funny stories at camp before. The difference is the deer won’t shoot and kill you. So from now on, that rifle or handgun you are carrying needs to become like a part of your body.

  “Last, we need to discuss food. I brought a whole bunch of seed with me, but that’s not going to do us any good for the next four months. We have plenty of meat to get us through between the cattle and any deer we can take. Aside from that, I have a couple grocery carts of canned goods we brought. My Dad, thank God, was able to put away a few buckets of long term food storage like rice and beans and some other items as well as some extra canned goods. He also has a fifty-pound bag of salt and fifty pounds of sugar, but I think that is going to go fast in these circumstances. Remember, it could be years before we see more. Dan and Heidi and Will and Eva have some decent cupboards they will be bringing, as well. However, once other relatives start showing up, I’m guessing that we are going to go through our food supply really fast. To help with this I’d like you, Grandma and Grandpa, to help my Mom, Allison, Maria, Naomi and Susan to start canning all the deer meat we acquire from everyone’s deep freezers. It will be going bad really soon. We need to get this done in the next two days if we are going to salvage it. I know that each family has a pretty full deep freezer from hunting this year. I know that my mom and I are assuming Naomi already knows how to can, but I’d like you, Grandma, to teach the rest of the women everything you know on the subject, ok?”

  “I’ll do what I can, Sweetie,” Sean’s grandmother said in response since she was blind.

  “So now the big question: do you guys think we have enough? I was planning on hitting up Giant Eagle tonight as well if things go smoothly and we have time. I think there is less risk than going to Duke’s Sporting Goods, but there is always risk when you are hauling a hay wagon with supplies. The other thing I want to be sure of is that we make it back before dawn. The last thing we need is the neighbors seeing us haul all of this stuff back here. So... what do you guys think? Do we have enough food or should we go after more?”