“Took you long enough to call,” Michelle snapped after the first ring.
“Are you and the kids okay?” he asked.
“We’re fine, but I’ve been worried sick,” she said, and Nelson heard an adult voice in the background.
“Who’s at the house with you?” he asked.
“Nellie. Bernard dropped her off here an hour ago and headed back to the farm. She found out I was watching Ashley’s kids and came to help,” Michelle said with thankfulness.
“What have you heard?” he asked.
“There are riots in New York and L.A., and they are reporting unrest in several other places, but buildings are burning there, and the governors are calling in the National Guard. The banks are closed until further notice, and all the ATMs are out of money,” she said.
“Have you been able to pack?”
“You’re damn right I have.”
“Okay, baby, I need to go. I love you,” he said.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“Can’t say, and you wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” he smirked.
She groaned. “Please be careful. Nothing has happened in Springfield yet besides protest at some banks. I love you,” she said and hung up.
Hanging the phone up, Nelson walked over to a cooler and grabbed two bottles of water. Seeing a bowl for spare change, he dumped it out and filled it with water then called Zeus over, who started lapping it up. He opened the other bottle and walked to the back where the ATVs and boats were showcased.
On the back wall were several trailers. One was a long, twenty-two-foot able to carry four ATVs and another that was almost as big. Nelson knew which one he was getting as he walked over and looked at the ATVs. He had an electric, off-road buggy and a hybrid buggy, three UTVs along with two four-wheelers. He stopped and looked at the side-by-sides. He saw a new model that ran on diesel like one of his.
He looked it over, saw it had everything, then looked at the price and almost fell down. “I almost paid that much for Michelle’s Suburban,” he complained out loud. They had several thousand gallons of gas at the farm and twice that in diesel, and they had a setup to make biodiesel. “I can justify taking it,” he mumbled and continued to look around.
Finding another side-by-side that ran on diesel, he looked it over as well. It didn’t have all that the other one did but wasn’t lacking for much and wasn’t much cheaper. Looking at the trailer, he started figuring what he could fit on there when he heard Daren walk up.
“Yeah, those damn things are expensive,” he said, looking at the diesel side-by-side.
“I’m taking one,” Nelson said then turned around and headed back to the gun area.
Shocked, Daren ran up and fell in step with him. “How can you justify that?” he asked.
“I’m going to have to move the weapons around and probably bury them,” he said and walked past the counter in the back. He stood looking inside the gun room.
“Shit, then I’m taking one, but I’m taking one of the gas ones. They are much quieter,” Daren said, and Nelson smiled, hoping Daren was starting to understand this stuff in the store would be gone soon from looters.
Nelson started grabbing boxes of what the media called “assault rifles” but were only guns that held lots of bullets. He had taken the assault rifles from the fine gun room, and it took several hours to remove them and move the standard rifles into the gun room.
When they were finished, they walked out and looked at the pallets they had stacked full of guns. On each pallet was a D or an N for whose truck it would go into. Nelson shook his head at all the deer rifles and hunting shotguns Daren had on his; he had turned down most of the others.
“These aren’t full-size pallets, so I think we can get four into the back of each truck,” Daren said, walking to the forklift.
“Go ahead and start,” Nelson said, walking over to a stack of heavy duty plastic bins used to store hunting gear.
“I might scratch your bed up some,” he called out.
“That’s why I have a spray-on liner,” he called back, carrying several bins over to the ammo aisles. He started filling them with the ammo he needed. He was on his sixth box when Daren came over.
“Got four in barely,” he said, watching Nelson. “You’re seriously going to take ammo as well?”
“You heard Harry; we have to secure as much as we can,” he said, putting the lid on a full box and then grabbed another and went to work filling it.
Daren watched for just a minute then ran to grab some plastic storage boxes as the two stockmen came over to report the museum was stuffed in the vault. Nelson immediately put them to work helping them. They were hesitant since it seemed like Nelson and Daren were stealing, but Nelson explained what they were doing. When they heard how long the store was going to be closed, they seemed a little worried but pitched in.
Nelson sent one over to the reloading aisle and told him what to pack and went back to work with the other one, packing ammo on the shelves in bins. Hearing a flatbed cart roll by, Nelson looked up and saw Daren with the cart stacked high with survival food. “He’s understanding,” he mumbled.
Nelson told the two stockmen to grab some carts and start stacking the bins on as he headed to the back of the store. He found a trailer dolly, went over to the long trailer, pulled it over to his truck, and locked it on his bumper. Then, he pulled the other trailer over to the truck Daren was taking. He smiled, seeing Daren had already put the hitch on. After connecting the trailer, he took the dolly back and went to the key box and pulled both keys for the diesels and started both.
He drove the best one over and onto his trailer then went back for the other one. Getting out, he smiled at all the room left on the trailer. Hearing another motor crank up, he watched Daren drive by and load up the side-by-side he chose.
Grabbing some straps, Nelson locked down both the side-by-sides and headed over to see the two stockmen had finished loading half a dozen flatbed carts. “Hope you two know which is mine and which is Daren’s,” he said, and one walked over, wiping his sweaty face.
“Yes, sir. We put an N or D on them like you did the pallets,” he said, and Nelson looked down at his name tag.
“Keith, where did you two park?” he asked.
“Our car is broke down, so we rode our bikes in.”
Nelson looked at the back of the store. “If I let you two take one of those quad seats, will you take care of it and when this ends bring it back?” he asked, and Keith’s eyes got wide with joy.
“Yes, sir,” he said, grinning.
“We are just holding this for the company to keep it away from looters, and they will come here,” Nelson told him.
“I understand, sir,” Keith said.
“You two do much outdoors?”
“Oh yes, sir,” Keith told him. “We fish and camp all the time. We are from Oklahoma and took this summer job hoping to get picked up full time.”
“You hunt?”
“Yes, sir, but we live in an apartment, and they don’t allow firearms,” Keith said.
Looking at the young face staring at him, Nelson sighed. “Keith, you two need to get home, and if home isn’t in the sticks, you need to get there.”
Shocked hearing that, the smile fell off his face. “We both live on farms next to each other,” he said in a quiet voice.
“Then you need to get there sooner rather than later. When this blows over, you can come back, but I think it’s going to be a while. If I’m wrong, your jobs will be here waiting,” Nelson said.
Keith looked around. “This was our dream to work here,” he mumbled.
“You need bigger dreams now since you filled that one,” Nelson smiled.
Thinking about that, Keith smiled. “Hey, you’re right.”
“Let’s get the rest of this loaded up,” Nelson said as his radio went off.
“This is officer Netter out front. I have an officer Wolfe here asking for Nelson Jackson.”
Nelson
grabbed his radio. “Officer Netter, this is Nelson Jackson, the district manager. Let Officer Wolfe in please,” Nelson called back. “Keith, I’m going to see what he wants. Can you two help Daren till I get back and tell him to get the pallets of ammo off the floor and out of the shipping bay?”
“Yes, sir,” Keith said and took off running to his friend.
With Zeus following, Nelson trotted to the front of the store and found Matt walking back. He could see by Matt’s face he was tired. “Hey, Matt,” Nelson called out, and Matt headed toward him. Nelson stopped and pulled a bottle of water from a cooler and handed it over.
“Thank you,” Matt said and drained the bottle.
“How is it out there?” Nelson asked.
Shaking his head, Matt sighed. “Man, I’m glad I’m a cop in Springfield and not St. Louis. We only have a small trouble population, but they are making some trouble.”
“Any real problems yet?”
“Two banks are on fire, and someone shot a Homeland agent north of town,” Matt said.
“Gunfire already?” Nelson asked, shocked.
“Yeah, we have an ATF agent and several Homeland boys going to gun stores, making sure they are closed. They found one open and arrested the owner and his family then took everything in the store. We are sure the shooter is a relative,” Matt said.
“Serves the asshole right taking the family’s stuff,” Nelson said, leading Matt to his office.
“Yeah, but he was just following orders,” Matt said.
Nelson stopped and grabbed Matt’s arm. “You and every officer serving swore to uphold the Constitution. That action was going against it. The order to not sell is illegal, and you know it; we aren’t even going to talk about taking the money.”
“Yeah, but it still sucks seeing a fellow officer shot,” Matt moaned as Nelson headed down the hallway.
Looking over his shoulder, Nelson said, “Matt, there may come a time when you have to kill one.”
“I know, but I don’t have to like it,” he said as Nelson stopped at his secretary’s desk.
Nelson opened the bottom drawer and pulled out a cash box. “No, you don’t have to like it, but you better not hesitate to do it, or you’ll die,” he said, pulling out his keys and opening the box.
“Holy shit,” Matt said, looking at the stacks of money.
“Petty cash,” Nelson said, grabbing it.
Hearing that, Matt started coughing. “Just how much ‘petty’ cash?” he finally croaked out.
“We usually keep five grand, but I think Mildred had extra here. When we go out, the company reimburses us in cash if it’s under five hundred dollars. If it’s more, they send a check,” Nelson said, putting the empty box back.
Closing his eyes, Matt just shook his head and asked, “What are y’all doing here? The officers outside told me y’all have been stacking stuff up.”
“We have been,” Nelson said and explained. “You know as well as I do it’s only a matter of time before looters hit here,” he added.
Looking around to make sure they were alone, Matt stepped closer and whispered, “The ATF will be by this week to check and seize what’s here. They said the president is going to sign an executive order to cover them collecting existing stock of firearms and ammunition from all stores.”
The color drained from Nelson’s face. “You better be fucking with me,” Nelson said, stepping back.
“No, I almost fainted when I heard them talking about it,” Matt said. “It seems across the country, people are shooting any federal employee. Two senators have died from gunshots today, and the president was taken out of Washington to an undisclosed location.”
“You’ve been working with the feds?”
“Yeah, I’m one of several that have to follow and assist,” Matt groaned.
Reaching out, Nelson grabbed his shoulder. “You need to get reassigned,” Nelson said in a serious voice. “People are going to see you helping the feds and come after you,” he warned.
“That’s why I’m here. The captain finally released me but said I would be back with them tomorrow since I have SWAT training.”
“Get your shit out of your house,” Nelson said, heading back to the store.
Catching up, Matt walked beside him. “All my preps are at the farm. I just have guns and ammo not counting the personal stuff. I know I should’ve listened to you and Michelle and not bought that big ass house so we could have more money,” he said and looked away. “Ashley and I grew up in small trailers, and I wanted us to have a nice house,” he added in a low voice.
“So did I, Matt, but I would rather have assets I can carry. Kind of hard to do that with a house,” Nelson said as they came to the main aisle through the store. Matt stopped, seeing the mass of stuff loaded on the two trucks as one man and two teens pulled large, blue tarps over the loads and tied them down.
Breaking into a run, Matt caught up to Nelson and grabbed his arm, and Zeus gave a low growl behind him. Matt quickly let go as Nelson just looked at Zeus, who sat down. “Nelson, just how much shit are you taking out of here?” he whispered.
“A lot,” Nelson answered in a low voice. “I figure I have about five hundred rifles and about that many pistols. Then about five tons of ammo and other odds and ends,” Nelson said, knowing that was a low-range statement.
“Nelson, if the feds find out about this, they will lock your ass up. I don’t care what you have from home office. They want the guns from the stores. Hell, Wal-Mart just turned theirs over. They have a massive warehouse at the airport they are collecting them at,” Matt whispered.
“That’s why I’m taking these. Those guns and ammo will be worth more than gold, Matt. And if this goes really bad, we have weapons to arm fighters to take it back,” Nelson said in a low voice.
Matt looked over at the empty gun cases and ammo shelves then noticed the pallets of ammo that normally lined the aisle were gone. “Dude, if they catch you, they might just shoot you,” he mumbled.
“They can try, but I’ll shoot back,” Nelson told him.
Still in shock, Matt turned to look at Nelson. “When are you leaving?”
“I’m going at dark. I’m going to ask Daren to wait till then as well.”
“Before you leave, call me. I’ll escort you home and have someone do the same for Daren,” Matt said, knowing he was starting to slide down a slippery slope.
“You don’t have to,” Nelson said.
Matt let out a breath. “Yes I do,” he replied. “You are doing this for my family as well, and I can’t let you take all the risk.”
Patting Matt on the shoulder, Nelson smiled. “Glad you finally see what’s coming.”
“I’m going to send Ashley to your house if you don’t mind,” Matt said as they headed over to the trucks. “I don’t want her at home by herself with the kids. I’ll pack up what we have and bring my truck over, and we will just leave her Corolla at your house,” Matt said, not saying more since the others could hear them now.
Walking over to his truck, Nelson saw the back half of the trailer loaded, and the stack was taller than the two side-by-sides. “Shit, that is a lot,” he said, looking at the four axles and noticing the trailer was sitting low. “Won’t be able to go very fast,” he said, walking around the trailer, inspecting the load.
“That trailer can handle the weight,” Matt said, looking at it. “A guy on the force bought one from here, and he carried a thirty-five-thousand-pound dozer on his.”
Hearing that, Nelson felt much better and looked at his watch. “It’s about four hours till sundown. How about you come back around nine? That way, it will be good and dark,” Nelson said.
“I’ll meet you here,” Matt said, giving Nelson a man hug then headed to the front of the store.
Seeing the three carry blue tarps over to his truck, Nelson helped cover the exposed load. When they were done, he told them some of what Matt had told him. “Keith, I want you and your bud to get two of the biggest packs you can ca
rry and load them up like you were going camping for a week. Then, get some of those plastic storage bins, and load as many as you can fit on that quad Razor with what’s left of the food,” Nelson said, and Keith and his buddy took off.
“Daren, Matt is going to have a cop escort us home. I suggest you call your wife and tell her to pack up what she can and head to your camp tonight. You can come back to your house and get what else you need, but don’t come back to the store unless I call you,” Nelson told him.
“Shit,” Daren spat out. “Maybe I should just leave it here.”
“Your choice, but when your wife and kids are hungry, you will kick yourself. You know this is an unlawful order, and when this ends, the company will see your actions in a positive light,” Nelson told him but really wanted to hit Daren and knock some sense in him.
“Yeah, that will be the best route,” Daren finally said and held out his hand. “Thank you for explaining it to my dumb ass.”
Grabbing his hand, Nelson shook it and smiled. “One last thing: You better be ready to shoot someone. You have a family to protect and don’t have the luxury to call the police. In a few days, they won’t be answering many calls,” he told Daren, who just nodded with understanding. “Think of your family when you pull the trigger. Would you rather your kids be dead or someone else?”
“On that, you have no worries,” Daren said, letting Nelson’s hand go. Nelson brought out some of the cash from the petty cash drawer.
He held it out to Daren. “It’s a grand from petty cash to pay for your workout today.”
Slowly, he reached out. “Thank you,” he said, taking the money.
“It won’t be worth much for long, so use it, but be smart about it,” Nelson said. “I want you to call one of the assistant managers and tell them they have to come in tomorrow and pay the police that are guarding the building out of the store cash and put a receipt in the safe. Tell them I’m going to check on the other stores, and you hurt your back, and I gave you three weeks off,” Nelson explained. When Daren nodded, Nelson added, “Tell them until further notice, they are in charge of the store.”
Forgotten Forbidden America: Rise of Tyranny Page 8
