Once Upon an Apocalypse: Book 1 - The Journey Home - Revised Edition
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ONCE UPON AN
APOCALYPSE
Book I
The Journey Home
Revised 1st Person Narrative
By
JEFF MOTES
Copyright © Thomas J. Motes, Jr. 2015, 2016
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
Note
This is a work of fiction. While some of the locations in the series describe actual locations, this is intended only to lend a sense of authenticity. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
This work is intended for entertainment and to promote “outside the box” thinking. This is not a “how-to” guide. Neither the author, publisher, nor anyone else associated with this work assumes any responsibility or liability for the use or improper use of any information contained herein.
Credits
Editor – Felicia A. Sullivan
Cover Design – Brandi Doane McCann
Cover Models – Kay Counselman and Dwain Roberts
Formatting – Polgarus Studio
ISBN - 978-1-946321-00-8 (soft cover)
ISBN - 978-1-946321-01-5 (hard cover)
ISBN – 978-1-946321-02-2 (Kindle)
ISBN – 978-1-946321-03-9 (ePub)
ISBN – 978-1-946321-04-6 (audiobook)
Library of Congress Control Number: 2016920553
Thomas J. Motes Jr., Jackson, ALABAMA
Published by Pine City Press
Acknowledgements
Many individuals have helped make this work possible, providing encouragement, advice, helpful tips, and an ear to bend new ideas over. Some of you are truly the reason this work didn’t stop months ago. I thank each of you: Brenda Dolbear Jones, Stephanie Andrews Atchison, Sheila Brandenburg Wright, Sam Meadows, Holly Meadows Bridwell, Glenda Allen, Sherri Plybon, Ron Steelman, and J.R. Stewart.
Lynn Chalkley White, you did it again, prompting me to do something without even knowing it. Without the help of my dear sweet sister, Lisa Lanier, this work would have never been more than a series of blog posts.
A very special thanks to my wife, Donna, for her patience.
Jeff Motes—Author
Foreword
This story started out as a series of Facebook posts on “what if” type scenarios to engage my friends in thinking “outside the box” about cataclysmic events. To draw readers into thinking about preparedness for a deeply traumatic wide-scale event I decided to tell a story so as to place the reader inside the events portrayed. Once Upon an Apocalypse is the result of those efforts. This story has been revised from its original second person point of view to a first person point of view of each chapter’s main character. Keep that in mind and it should flow smoothly.
Acronyms have been used in various places. If you have difficulty understanding a term, please consult the Glossary in the back of the book.
I hope you enjoy the story as much as I have enjoyed writing it.
Jeff Motes—Author
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements
Foreword
Chapter 1 Jill - The Day - The Event
Chapter 2 Jack - The Day - Uncertainty
Chapter 3 Jill - Day 1 - Time to Move
Chapter 4 Jack - Day 1 - Realization Sets In
Chapter 5 Jill - Day 1 - A Long, Slow Walk
Chapter 6 Jill - Day 1 - The End of a Long Day
Chapter 7 Jill - Day 2 - At Mary’s Home
Chapter 8 Jill - Day 2 - On the Road Again
Chapter 9 Jill - Day 2 - In a Hurry
Chapter 10 Jill - Day 2 - Darkness
Chapter 11 John - The Day - Nor the Next
Chapter 12 John - The Day - Ready for the Night
Chapter 13 John - Day 1 - Heading Home
Chapter 14 John - Day 1 - Officer Brunson
Chapter 15 John - Day 1 - On the Road
Chapter 16 John - Day 1 - Introspection
Chapter 17 John - Day 2 - Plan for the Day
Chapter 18 John - Day 2 - At the Barn
Chapter 19 John - Day 2 - She Lives
Chapter 20 John - Day 2 - Jill Barnes
Chapter 21 John - Day 3 - Waiting for Jill
Chapter 22 Jill - Day 3 - It’s John Carter
Chapter 23 John - Day 3 - Staying at the Barn
Chapter 24 John - Day 3 - Standing Too Damn Close
Chapter 25 John - Day 3 - A Misunderstanding
Chapter 26 Jill - Day 3 - Many Questions and No Answers
Chapter 27 Jill - Day 4 - Catastrophe
Chapter 28 Jill - Day 5 - How Can It Be?
Chapter 29 Jill - Day 5 - Jill, Are You Okay?
Chapter 30 Jill - Day 5 - I Forgive You
Chapter 31 Jill - Day 6 - I Don’t Snore
Chapter 32 John - Day 6 - A Small Voice
Chapter 33 Jill - Day 6 - Don’t Let Him Fall
Chapter 34 John - Day 6 - A Walk Around the Farm
Chapter 35 Jill - Day 6 - Jill Talks
Chapter 36 Jill - Day 7 - A Talk in Bed
Chapter 37 Jill - Day 7 - John’s Pack
Chapter 38 Jill - Day 7 - Jill’s Pack
Chapter 39 John - Day 7 - The Honda ATV
Chapter 40 John - Day 7 - The National News
Chapter 41 John - Day 7 - A Starry Night
Chapter 42 Jill - Day 8 - Target Practice
Chapter 43 Jill - Day 8 - Leaving for Home
Chapter 44 Jill - Day 8 - On the Road Again
Chapter 45 John - Day 9 - Roadside Campfire
Chapter 46 Jill - Day 9 - Talking With Lisa
Chapter 47 John - Day 9 - I’ll Still Have Them When We Get There
Chapter 48 Jill - Day 9 - With a Loud Bang
Chapter 49 John - Day 10 - There Goes the Neighborhood
Chapter 50 Jill - Day 10 - It’s Not a Fair Question
Chapter 51 John - Day 10 - Please Protect Jill
Chapter 52 Jill - Day 10 - Theo and Cassandra
Chapter 53 John - Day 10 - The Perry County Militia
Chapter 54 John - Day 10 - On to Marion
Chapter 55 Jill - Day 10 - I Don’t Want You To
Chapter 56 Jill - Day 11 - I Have To
Chapter 57 John - Day 11 - Just in Case
Chapter 58 Jill - Day 11 - Leaving Marion
Chapter 59 Jill - Day 11 - Keep Moving
Chapter 60 John - Day 11 - End Around
Chapter 61 Jill - Day 11 - Hello Theo
Chapter 62 John - Day 11 - We Aren’t Stupid
Chapter 63 Jill - Day 12 - In Clarke County
Chapter 64 John - Day 12 - The Swarm
Chapter 65 Jill - Day 12 - Jackson
Chapter 66 John - Day 12 - Jill’s House
Chapter 67 John - Day 12 - The Jackson PD
Chapter 68 Jill - Day 12 - Jack’s Wife
Chapter 69 John - Day 12 - On the Reservation
Glossary of Acronyms
Chapter 1
Jill
The Event
The Day
Wow. I’m glad that meeting is over! I didn’t want to come to Birmingham anyway, especially on such short notice. Like a call last night asking me to be here today.
The meeting started at 9:00 a.m. My boss, Julia Sanders, called last night at 8:00. She had to cancel her plans to attend the last day of the meeting and wanted me to attend in her place. That was a
ggravating. She should have called sooner, but she has always been nice so I agreed to go. It did mean getting up at 4:00 this morning!
The meeting, well, it was so boring, I kept dozing off. It was embarrassing.
At least it’s over and I’m on my way home. My daughter Lizzy and I are planning a trip to the Gulf this weekend. The room is already booked. It’s just going to be us two girls. Mom isn’t going this time. She said she wanted to stay home. I love my mom and always enjoy her company. She has always been good and kind to Lizzy and me, especially considering the events surrounding Lizzy’s birth. Since Dad died, she’s been living with me. I didn’t want her living alone and she didn’t want to either.
Even so, this weekend will be a good break.
I sip a little more of my McDonald’s coffee. I bought a large this time, thinking I might need the extra caffeine to stay awake. McDonald’s coffee is pretty good and less than half the price of Starbucks.
I call mom to let her know I’m on my way. Her voice is loud and clear when she answers.
“Hello, Jill.”
“Hey, Mom, I’m on my way home. Let’s see…it’s right at 4:00, I should be home by 7:30 or so.”
“Okay, honey, drive carefully. I know you’re tired.”
“Yes, I am a little. I have a large cup of coffee, I’ll be fine. See you later, love you.”
I switch the radio to Sirius XM Love, channel 17. Love songs, my favorite. I’m not sure why. I haven’t been on a date in more than ten years. The dating scene wasn’t what I was looking for. Ever since my snafu with Clyde, the guys hitting on me only wanted one thing. That’s a mistake I won’t be making again. I’m waiting for Mr. Right this time, if there is such a thing. It’s been so long I sometimes wonder if there is love out there somewhere, yet love songs make me dream anyway.
The music stops abruptly, the car slows down, and the gas gauge goes to empty. The RPM needle drops to zero. The speedometer indicates zero, even though the car is still moving. My car is a Nissan Murano, burnt orange in color. The inside is black, so on a hot summer day the seats get really hot. I get the oil changed every three thousand miles. I listened to Dad fuss at Mom enough over running the gas tank down to near empty that there is no way I would let the tank go below a quarter full. Well, except for that time… skip that thought. I’ve never had any trouble with this car. Why has it stopped?
I start easing over onto the shoulder of I-459. Coming to a complete stop, I put the transmission in park and try to crank the car. Nothing. Nada. Even the radio won’t come on. The battery must be dead or a main fuse has blown or something. I’m not a mechanic, but Dad taught me enough to know how to check the battery connections and the fuses. Popping the hood, I get out of the car, being careful to stay out of the traffic lanes. I lift the hood and inspect the battery. The connections appear to be okay. The hood light is on. Opening the fuse box I don’t see any obviously blown fuses. Dad used to check them with a meter, but I don’t have one. Good thing I joined AAA. One of the perks from the bank when I bought my house was a free one year membership in AAA. I’ve kept it ever since.
I get in the car, pick up my cell phone, and disconnect the charger. The phone is dead. It was low when I got in the car, but it’s been charging for at least half an hour. I plug it back into the charger. Nothing happens. Even the little blue light on the charger is not working. This is not good. Not good at all. How am I going to call for help if my phone doesn’t work? Maybe it just needs to build up a charge. I’m going to have to sit here and give it a little more time to charge enough to come on.
It’s starting to warm up in the car. It’s not really hot outside, with the temperature only in the eighties, but this closed car with all the glass is like a greenhouse. I try letting the windows down, nothing happens. I don’t want to leave the driver’s side door open to the traffic, so I move around to the passenger side after first trying my cell phone one more time before getting out. It’s dead. I leave it hooked to the charger, reach over to the glove compartment to retrieve my Glock 19, and my pink inside-the-waist-band holster. Dad rolled his eyes when he saw it. Well, I like pink. I also get the spare magazine. I tuck the Glock and its holster into my waistband behind my right hip, then put the spare magazine in my left front pants pocket. Pulling the Glock from its holster, I check to see if it’s loaded. It isn’t. Racking the slide, I load a 9mm round into the chamber, then holster the pistol and step out of the car.
Looking around, realization hits. Why didn’t I notice before? No cars have passed by since my car died. I look in both directions on both sides of the interstate. All cars are stopped, some on the side of the road, some in the road itself. This is getting scary. I remember Dad talking about something like this. In fact, he said perhaps the most convincing evidence of an electromagnetic pulse attack, or EMP event, was the mass stalling of cars. If this is an EMP event like what he described, stalled cars will not be the biggest problem. If this is what he described, then practically all computers, electronics, and those things depending upon them will cease to work. That includes the electrical grid, telephone systems, cell phones, internet, and radios. In other words, I have no means of calling for help. Help is not coming. Not now, not later this evening, not in the morning, not at all.
I’m not sure what I should do. I’m at least 175 miles from home. This is scary. How am I going to get home? I can’t allow myself to panic. Dad taught me how to control my fear. He said fear was the mind killer, and without your mind, you would perish. I must not fear and I must not panic, if I ever want to see Lizzy and Mom again.
I assess my situation. This is what I know: The car is dead; it’s not out of gas; the electronics inside the car will not work; my phone is dead.
I reach into the back seat and open my computer bag, pulling out my laptop. It won’t come on either. It had a one hundred percent charge when I left this morning and it hasn’t been used since. I’m on the side of I-459 somewhere near Pelham. I’m going to have to check the road atlas and see if I can pinpoint my location better.
People are starting to mill about, some walking, some standing around. There are a few cars near me, stalled as well. I see a young mother and her two children, a construction crew, and a police officer stalled with felons in his cruiser. His radio is not working either. That’s a disturbing thought. No police services. A man and his son are walking. Each is wearing a backpack. The man has a pistol on his hip. It scares me a little, but they look okay, if okay has a look.
When they come abreast of my car, I ask the man, “Excuse me, sir. Do you know what has happened?”
The man looks at me with some pity in his eyes. “Not really, but I have an idea it’s probably an EMP. You need to get to where you’re going within the next three to four days. We’re heading up toward Fort Payne.”
“Three to four days?” I echo. “What does that mean?”
“Things might get kind of tough around then, if it’s an EMP like I think. We are in some serious trouble. Wish I could stay, but my son and I have a long way to go to get home. Good luck to you.”
I have a foreboding thought that this guy is right. I’m not sure why.
***
This scene is being repeated all across America. The Chinese, the Iranians, the North Koreans, or some unknown enemy has managed to evade NSA probes and counterterrorism efforts. They launched a nuclear missile from a large container ship off the East Coast. The U.S. government had five minutes’ warning before the twenty mega-ton nuclear warhead exploded high in the atmosphere above Kansas. The explosion sent out a massive electro-magnetic pulse (EMP) that blanketed nearly all of the contiguous U.S.
In an instant, nearly every electronic device in the U.S. has been fried. Cars don’t work, phones don’t work. Nearly the entire electrical grid went down. No lights, no refrigeration, no sewers, no city water, no 911, no internet, no mass movement of goods across the country. In other words, America has been sent back to the 1800s in an instant. An America unprepared for the
1800s.
***
Despite the cars stalling and the progress of America coming to a halt, time has not. The day is moving right along and the sun is getting low. I’m going to have to stay the night inside my car. It’s probably not a good idea, but I don’t know what else to do. I don’t want to be walking around in an unfamiliar area after dark.
I get my LED flashlight from my purse. It’s a great little light. It uses a single AA battery, and puts out a lot of light. I push the button on the end cap and the light comes on. It works and that’s good. I also pull out a can of Mace. Sitting in the passenger seat, I lock the doors. At least that works. As the sun sets, I lift the lever on the seat and let it recline. My mind is reeling from the implications of what the man said.
“Dear God,” I whisper. “I don’t understand what has happened to us and why, but I trust You. Please guide me home to see my Lizzy and my mother. Please keep them safe and secure. Please help our country through this apocalyptic time. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
The EMP event, or whatever it was, happened after the school day. Lizzy should be home, and so should Mom. Fear and worry start invading my mind. I try pushing them out, yet they hang on. The words of my father come back to mind: “Fear is the mind killer. Without your mind you will perish.”
I pray again, “Lord, please calm my spirit. I trust You. Amen.”
Slowly, I drift to sleep.
Chapter 2
Jack
Uncertainty
The Day
Things are going good for me. The promotion to vice president I received at Merchants Bank is a great milestone for my career in banking. The image of the new nameplate on my office door makes me smile: ‘Jack Chance – Vice President’. There wasn’t a large raise associated with the promotion, but perhaps with another year or so of experience, I’ll be in a position to pursue more advancement, either at my bank or one of the larger banks opening offices all over the place.