EMP

by Jonathan Hollerman

  The table was silent for a few moments before Nathan spoke up. “From what you said it sounds like your brother and sister are coming at some point. Between the two of them they have five children. I would assume we are going to see your parents, Lawrence and Barb, show up,” he said, nodding at Jackson and Bug. “We need to make a trip over to my sister’s and grab her and Donald. Tammy is in Las Vegas, but Lucy, her husband, and their two little ones live up the road and we’ll need to run up and grab them soon as well. That puts us at....” Nathan had been writing as he was talking and it took him a few moments to count everyone up. “By my count that is twenty-six adults and ten children. I think we will be in big trouble if we don’t get more food... a whole lot more food.” Everyone was silent at that and sat pondering the huge task of feeding that many people for any extended period of time. Sean had known there probably wouldn’t be enough food, but after hearing the actual number of people involved, he knew they were in trouble.

  “Well, then, that settles it. We have to hit the grocery store as well. We have a long couple days ahead of us.” Sean looked at his watch. “It’s almost four o’clock; we have to boogey. It will be dark in a couple hours. Dad and Nathan, I’d like the two of you to get the hay wagon and sprayer attached to the Massey and work on the hand pump. If you get that done in time, see if you can start on our warning system. Bug and Jackson, can you help Grandpa get the cows away from the road and into the back pasture? When you’re done, help Naomi and Grandma carry all the food, mason jars and canning supplies over. Grandma and Grandpa, if you guys can get started canning the deer meet out of Nathan’s deep freezer, that will give us a head start for tomorrow.

  “I also have a feeling we are going to need more people for tonight’s run. Maria and I are going to swing by my parents’ house and check in on mom and Allison and let them know what’s going on. Then I am going to stop by and grab Danny for tonight. Anybody have any questions or comments?” Nobody said anything, just nodded their heads.

  “Ok then, let’s get started.”

  Chapter 10

  It was getting dark quickly by the time Sean, Danny and Maria pulled in the driveway on the bicycles. Sean had shown up at his parents’ house to find his dad’s brother Lawrence and Aunt Barb at the house. It didn’t take long to explain what had happened because Sean was close to Lawrence and had been forwarding him emails on EMP and other survivalist related articles that were sent between Sean and the other members of his group. They established that Barb would stay with Allison and his mother, his Uncle Lawrence would walk over to the farm while Sean and Maria swung by and grabbed Danny. Now that they were back at the farm, Sean’s blood was pumping in anticipation and anxiety over the coming expedition.

  As they rode up the driveway, Sean noticed his uncle Nathan bent over the bumper of Bug’s Toyota Celica pulling the battery and horn. Nathan stood as they pulled up and Sean noticed his rifle casually leaned up against the bumper right next to him.

  “Two minutes and I’ll have the horn pulled out of here. I already have the horn and battery pulled out of Susan’s car and set up in the back room of the farm house. This one will get wired up to the bus horn for now till we figure out the best spot for the L....O...P... the observation post.”

  Sean hid his smile, not wanting to embarrass his uncle for not remembering the military acronym for LP/OP. “Perfect. I was actually thinking a little earlier that we need to find some extra Romex cable or pull some out of my parents’ house and wire up the horn far away from the LP/OP. If we ever needed to use it, it will definitely draw attention and I would like their attention drawn away from where our shooters are. But we can do that later, for now let’s get it up and running.”

  “That’s a good idea,” Nathan agreed.

  “Where’s my dad at?” asked Sean.

  “He’s up at my place with everyone else except Bug who’s taking first watch at the bus.” Nathan breathed on his hands and rubbed them together to try and warm them up.

  “Do you need any help?” Danny asked.

  “No, I only have one more bolt to remove before pulling the horn and then it’s just a matter of a few minutes to wire it up in the bus. I already ran the wires there so it should only take a few minutes. Can you let everyone know at the house that I’ll be testing it shortly? I’ll let Susan know upstairs so she doesn’t panic.”

  “Yeah, we’ll give everyone a heads up. I feel funny asking this but we kind of need Susan and Naomi to rotate watch tonight We’ll get them some extra blankets and they can take turns sleeping. We just don’t have anyone else to keep watch right now till some of the other family members start showing up tomorrow.”

  Nathan grimaced at having to convince his wife that she was going to be sleeping in a cold house overnight.

  “Yeah, I’ll talk to them. What about the cows?” Nathan asked.

  “I’m going to talk to my dad about staying behind tonight. I think he is struggling inside with what we are doing. I know he is fully prepared to come, but we need someone to stay behind anyways, so I figured it might as well be him. It’s not like we can have Grandpa or Grandma out there in this cold all night. What do you think?”

  Nathan nodded his head in agreement, “That’s probably for the best.”

  “Did you figure something out for the hand pump?” Sean asked to change the subject.

  “It’s all ready to go,” Nathan answered.

  “Okay, then as soon as you’re done, come in and warm up for a few minutes. I’d like to head over to the wagon and go over some tactical maneuvers so everyone is on the same page tonight. Then we need to get a few hours of shut-eye for the long night ahead of us.”

  “Alright. I’ll be in shortly,” Nathan said as he turned back to his work.

  They rode up to the main house and Sean knocked on the door, curious to see how his family members responded.

  “Who is it?” he heard his cousin yell through the door.

  “It’s the Police!” Sean joked out loud. “Just kidding. It’s Sean, Maria, and Danny,” Sean yelled back.

  Jackson opened the door and Sean could see the shotgun cradled in his arms. “You had me going for a second there,” he smiled.

  They quickly shuffled inside, trying to prevent as much heat as possible from escaping. The smell of boiling meat made all three of their mouths water. The kitchen seemed overcrowded with people performing various tasks with Grandma directing it all from a dining room chair. Sean took his boots off and leaned his rifle in the corner and then removed his tactical vest and coat in the refreshing warmth of the house. Sean loved the smell of a wood burning furnace and the roaring fire in the living room fireplace.

  Sean walked over to his Grandmother and gave her a hug. She hugged him back and said, “Thank you, dear.”

  “Hey Grandma, I’m going to grab a pen and paper and I need to know every prescription drug that you and Grandpa are on, okay? When we go to Giant Eagle tonight, hopefully we can find some of the other medications you guys need in the pharmacy.”

  “Ok, Dear. That would be really great.” Sean found a magnetic tablet and pen on the fridge and set about writing down the long list of medicines his Grandmother recited off to him.

  “Which of these is the most important, Grandma? I mean... which ones do you guys really need... to be ok, if you know what I mean.” She thought about it for a while and then smiled at him.

  “I think we need them all.”

  “Wow,” Sean thought to himself after putting the list in his pocket. He wondered what might happen if he couldn’t find them all. He walked over to the kitchen’s island where his dad and Uncle Lawrence were cutting up some deer back straps into small cubes to be canned.

  “How’d everything go son? I see you found my brother.”

  “Yeah, he wasn’t hard to find hiding at your house. Dad, can I talk to you for a minute?” He nodded his head and looked up briefly but continued cutting the deer meat. “I need you to stay behind tonight to watch over the c
attle.”

  His dad’s knife came to a stop as he looked up at his son. Even though he was indeed struggling with what they were planning to do that night, he knew that it needed done. “Son, I don’t want to stay behind. I need to be where my family is and helping in the best way I can.”

  “Well Dad, the way you can help everyone tonight is by staying here and watching over the cattle and the farm for us. It needs to be done and you’re the only one I can trust to stay awake all night long.” They both smiled at that, his dad catching the inside joke. The first time Sean had been hunting with his father was when he was twelve years old. He kept falling asleep all day and snoring, which forced his dad to keep poking him in the ribs to wake him up. When a group of doe came through late in the afternoon, Sean had been asleep and needed to be awakened. But when his dad poked him, Sean startled awake and the deer took off. His father had never let him live it down and would bring it up jokingly on occasion—usually on their hunting trips.

  “I said I would follow your lead son, and if you think that is the best decision, then so be it.” Sean saw his Uncle Lawrence glance over at his dad and nod in some unspoken brotherly understanding. Lawrence nodded in what seemed like agreement and turned his gaze back to Sean. Sean was a little confused by what just transpired between them but continued.

  “I think that is the best decision, dad, for all of us.” Sean smiled at his dad in reassurance. His father understood what his son was doing and felt pride in his son’s keen sense of awareness and understanding.

  “Okay then,” he agreed.

  “Okay then,” Sean repeated. “However, I would like you to come outside in a little bit with the rest of us. I’m going to be running through some tactical maneuvers from the hay wagon and with you making some of the runs tomorrow to the different homesteads, we need to make sure everyone is on the same page.”

  “Sounds like fun; count me in,” his dad said.

  It was quickly growing dark inside the house now as Sean turned and walked over to take a seat at the table next to Maria where she had begun helping the others cut deer meat into cubes. “So is there any extra meat over there for some hungry mouths?”

  At the sound of his Swiss Army alarm, Sean sat upright and had to once again figure out where he was as he turned it off. It was still dark in Nathan’s living room. He looked over at Maria, who stirred next to him. What he wouldn’t give to be able to hit a snooze button just once. It seemed as though every muscle in his body ached and deeply protested his waking. He turned over and gave Maria a light shake. “It’s time to go, baby.”

  “Okay, I’m up,” she responded groggily as she sat up.

  “How’s my son doing in there? I’m really worried about you overdoing yourself, babe. What would you say about staying here and getting some rest, then giving Naomi and Susan a break on watch a little later?”

  “I’d say you’re nuts,” she responded with a smile that Sean could barely make out in the dim light.

  “You know at some point we are going to have to do our own jobs and when you’re eight months pregnant, you won’t be able to tag along every time I go someplace.”

  “Well, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there, but tonight I’m coming with you, discussion closed,” Maria said firmly.

  “You got it, boss. Let’s get a move on then.” Sean could hear some rustling from downstairs in the quiet house and knew that the others were also getting up and around. Once dressed and ready, the small group made their way out to the hay wagon. Nobody said anything as everyone knew their place and responsibility for the night ahead. Everyone also knew the potential danger that they faced. There were seven of them that would be making the trip: Uncle Nathan, Uncle Lawrence, Danny, Bug, Jackson, Maria and himself.

  As they reached the old Massey, Sean’s father wandered out of the darkness from his watch position at the bus. “Before you go, I would like to say a short prayer.” Everyone agreed and Sean remembered back to his childhood and his father’s nightly prayers by his bedside. He prayed for their safety and that God would lend his wisdom to the group to make wise decisions. When he was finished, he hugged Sean and Maria and said, “I’ll see you both soon.” With a quick smile he was gone, headed back towards the lonely bus and the cold night ahead on watch.

  They loaded up into the wagon and each one took up their position. “Ok guys, chamber a round and place your weapons on safety,” Sean said as he racked the bolt on his Kel-Tec SU-16, sliding a steel tip penetrating 5.56 round into the chamber. “Stay frosty and scan your sectors. Let’s go, Nathan!” he said to his uncle. Nathan turned and fired up the old tractor. There was a puff of exhaust out of the stack and it rumbled to life with a distinct putter, putter, putter. The sound took Sean back to his younger years and tossing square bales of hay and stacking them in the wagon with his brother. “It wasn’t this cold though,” Sean thought as he rubbed his hands together for warmth. He looked up at the sporadic cloud cover and a half moon that was giving off a decent amount of light, now that his eyes were adjusting to the night.

  With a jolt, the tractor was moving down the driveway. Sean glanced back at Maria who was posted behind him facing the other direction. “Lord, please keep both my babies safe tonight,” he said silently to himself. His eyes wandered over the tools in the middle of the wagon. They had brought a full toolbox, lock cutters, a wrecking bar, digging bar, and a few other miscellaneous items that may be needed. The tractor turned onto the road and started up the first hill. Each farm and house they passed was completely dark. A couple of them had smoke coming out of their chimneys which was the only sign of life. It ended up being a short and uneventful ride to the local Sheetz gas station. Luckily, there were no houses immediately nearby, only a couple other businesses that were dark.

  Nathan pulled the tractor to a stop, cutting its engine while his three cousins jumped off. They started roaming the parking lot until they found the covers to the underground storage tanks. Sean had climbed up the wagon racks so he could getter a better view of any movement up or down the road. Jackson walked back to the side of the tractor and informed Nathan, “We found a cover marked ‘diesel’ and it looks like a single three-quarter inch bolt holding the cover down.”

  “Well, grab the tool box out of the back while I bring the sprayer over.” Jackson hustled around the backside of the wagon and jumped aboard, grabbed the large heavy tool box and slid it over to the edge.

  “Hey, Nathan. What do you say we position the sprayer in between them and the road to provide cover and allow them to duck down if someone should come wandering up the road?” Sean suggested.

  “It won’t provide much cover, but I suppose it’s better than nothing,” Nathan replied. “Hold on up there or jump down—we’re moving.” Sean climbed down and held on as his uncle fired up the tractor and put it in gear. Bug held his flashlight on the appropriate cover so Nathan could position the sprayer to his liking. Then Nathan hopped down and grabbed the two short four-by-fours Lawrence handed him to chock the wheels. Jackson had found what he was looking for in the tool box and carried a large ratchet and a handful of sockets over to Danny, who quickly went to work removing the cover while Nathan set about unhitching the sprayer.

  “Maria, Uncle Lawrence, keep your eyes peeled. Bug, come with me. We’ll be back in a minute, guys.” Maria looked at him crossly as he hopped down from the wagon, but Sean ignored it. They crossed the short distance to the Sheetz store front which had its front doors shattered. “You have your shotgun chambered?” Sean asked as he glanced over his shoulder at his cousin.

  “Is the Pope Catholic?” he responded sarcastically.

  “Alright. Safety off... let’s see what’s left inside. I want to clear the place first, so follow my lead, stay on my left shoulder and you take anything from the left and behind.”

  “I got cha back, cuz,” Bug said, reassuring him.

  They both shouldered their weapons and slowly made their way around the store, checking each aisle and then
the back storage room and bathrooms. The place was a disaster and looked as if a tornado had come through. Most of the missing items were food related, though. Once Sean was sure there would be no threat from inside the building, they made their way back outside.

  Danny was pumping away, and when they got close enough Sean could hear the diesel splattering inside the tank. “Looks like it works,” Sean said out loud to no one in particular.

  “Of course it works!” Nathan said, pretending to be offended, but he couldn’t hide his smile.

  “I never doubted you,” Sean replied with a grin. “Alright, let’s hit the road. Again, as we discussed, Danny and Uncle Lawrence are going to stay behind and take turns pumping. Bug and I cleared the store so you shouldn’t have any issues there. My recommendation is whoever is not pumping will take cover behind that car over there in case somebody sneaks up or wanders in unnoticed. That will give you the element of surprise if things turn nasty with whoever is pumping at the time. The watchman should have a handful of small stones in case they spot someone approaching. You can throw a stone at the guy pumping to get his attention instead of hollering at him and giving up your position. Again, don’t get into conversations with anyone or let your guard down for one second. And if you get a bad feeling about a situation, don’t hesitate because the other guy probably won’t. We may be gone awhile, so stay alert. And if you finish pumping before we get back, take turns rummaging through the stuff inside for anything we could use.”

  “I’ll go ahead and take over for a few Danny. You take first watch,” Uncle Lawrence said, stepping up to the hand pump.