by Miles Maresh
Clint had an idea to check out auto salvage yards. The cars in such businesses were usually older, without computer chips. Most were in serious states of disrepair as they were parted out to rebuild other cars. Clint was a good mechanic and he thought if he could find a vehicle not missing too many engine components, he could get it running at least long enough to make it to the farm. The first junkyard they came to was still open for business, although they had no power. The proprietor of the yard said he had several EMP free vehicles that were not running, but had not been parted out yet. The matter of payment was a more serious issue. The man would not take cash and asked what they had to barter. Clint had some extra firearms and offered one and the man agreed to let his try to get a vehicle running. If they left with one he would want more supplies or benefits he said, looking creepily at Megan. Although Jim had given Barry a couple of krugerands when they had parted, he was not going to pay this pervert. The three travelers had nothing much else to trade and they were not going to let him have a chance to molest anyone. Clint said he would work on a vehicle, but they would just take it when they left. The rifle he had already given the man was worth more than any ruined vehicle in the lot.
Clint and Barry chose a 1972 Ford Galaxy. It was not in the best shape, but with lots of other Fords in the lot, Clint would be able to scrounge up enough parts to make the old sedan roadworthy. While Clint worked, Barry and Megan went to look for supplies, primarily gasoline. The older vehicles left in the lot may have some gasoline left in their tanks but it had surely degraded by now and gas tanks probably needed to be cleaned. The Galaxy itself appeared to be bone dry, but any sludge in the tank would cause the fuel filter to clog. Clint wanted a full tank in the car before he tried to start it. A few miles from the salvage lot, Barry and Megan found a country club with a large golf course. While they would not have been allowed in the club as a white man with a black woman, there was no one to stop them now as the club was closed. There was a sign in front saying it was closed for the duration of the emergency. Barry thought even rich people could not waste time playing golf, when they had no food to eat. Barry found a good sized rock and used it as a key to obtain his club membership. In the kitchen of the club they found a surprisingly large supply of canned food that had been left when the club was deserted. They gathered the provisions and headed out to the golf course. There were a number of electric golf carts outside some plugged in and some not. Several carts they found had almost full power and were still operational. Barry was a former caddy and he knew the carts had a range of about 150 miles.
In the storage area of the club Barry found a large generator. From working at a golf course before, he knew the generator was used to charge the carts when they died out on the course He put the generator on the back of the cart and located several gas cans. A number of high end vehicles had been left at the club when they died in the lot. Barry had a pump siphon in his bag and he used that to fill up the gas cans. He could always siphon with just a length of hose, but he hated getting gasoline in his mouth which was unavoidable when siphoning without a pump. They loaded the gasoline on the cart and drove the electric vehicle back to the salvage lot. The cart did not go faster than about 20 MPH but Barry thought it might be a backup if Clint could not get a car working. Or course, even using the generator it would take hours to recharge the batteries in the cart and they would have to stop frequently to do so.
When Barry and Megan arrived back at the vehicle Clint was working on they found him frustrated. He had pulled parts off every Ford in the lot and was still missing parts that had been stripped off the Galaxy and were necessary to get the car running. He also suspected that the engine itself had a cracked head which meant the engine was completely unusable and he did not have the parts or time to do an engine removal and replacement. He was skeptical of the wisdom of using a golf cart to get to the farm, but agreed that it beat walking. The proprietor of the salvage lot ambled back and said he had decided that if they wanted a car. The girl would have to work it out with him. Barry said “I should beat the hell out of you for even suggesting that.” The man was carrying a rifle at his side and moved to bring it up. But 3 pistols beat his move and he took two shots in the body, and one in the groin from Megan. He lived just long enough for Megan to tell him he would not be sexually assaulting any more women. They searched the office for keys and the grounds for a working vehicle the man had but could not find anything and assumed he did not have his own vehicle.
Because it took too long to charge the golf cart using the generator, Clint strapped the device to the back of the cart and ran the charger cable to the batteries. By running the generator as they drove their range would be greatly expanded. They would still need to charge the cart overnight but with the generator running they could drive the cart virtually all day. Due to the low speed of the cart and the need to take cleared roads it would take 3-4 days to reach the farm. Because the small vehicle had insufficient power to push stalled vehicles out of the way. The group would also have to backtrack when they ran into logjams of dead cars which were common on city roads. The generator also make a lot of noise, especially since there was nothing else mechanical in operation anywhere. When they were in congested areas they turned off the generator and relied on the silent electric motor to take them out of the area relatively unnoticed. Megan and Barry took turns driving, while Clint rode the dirt bike and kept his automatic weapon at the ready. Barry had thought they would all travel on the cart, but Clint felt it was better to have the bike so he could scout ahead and warn them of trouble on the road. Clint had already lost his Blazer to attackers. If anyone had a thought of taking this cart or motorcycle away, one look at Clint convinced them to stand aside.
In the small Eastern Indiana town of Decatur, Clint rode ahead of the cart to check out the conditions. While he was out of sight two men appeared on the side of the road laughing at the golf cart. They then ran to the cart and jumped onto the slow moving vehicle. One whipped out a knife and held it to Megan’s throat while he ordered Barry to stop the vehicle. Clint idled back to the main street and looked for the golf cart. He realized he should not have left Barry and Megan unguarded in the town. Two men had made their way onto the cart. One had a knife at Megan’s throat while the other had Barry at gunpoint Clint knew he could take out the gunman with a well-placed shot, but the one with the knife concerned him. Taking out his partner might make him panic and cut Megan. Because he was holding the blade to her throat, if Clint shot him he could slash her while he fell. Firing at him first would also give his position away to the gunman. At least the two had not seen him, and thought Barry and Megan were traveling alone. The gunman ordered Barry out of the cart and had him lay prone on the ground, He then moved to the back of their cart and started rooting through the group’s supplies. He told his partner excitedly “Look at this, they have food!” holding up an MRE. As Barry went to the ground he had spotted Clint holding his rifle in the shadows 50 yards down the road He realized Clint was waiting for the best time and kept his eye on him. The gunman started digging into an MRE unable to contain himself as he was probably really hungry. His partner released Megan as he ran to get his own food. The gunman had laid his weapon on the back of the cart as he shoved the MRE into his mouth. Barry had his eyes on Clint who mouthed “Now” as he sighted his automatic weapon on the two hungry attackers. Barry rolled over on the ground and reached into the cart where his Sig was lying on the floor and Megan, upon being released had grabbed her rifle out of the cart. Clint fired a volley just over the heads of the attackers who froze, MREs falling from their hands. Clint approached the cart holding the rifle on the two men. The one with the gun looked at it, lying on the back of the cart but then saw Barry and Megan both armed and approaching from the sides. Both men put their hands up and whined “We were just hungry” “So you attacked innocent people and threatened them?” Megan responded. Clint said “We should execute them just for being stupid. But they attacked you, so it’s your call,
” gesturing at Barry and Megan. Barry conferred with Megan while the men awaited their fate. Although the men had put them at harm, they were not hardened criminals and certainly not intelligent. They agreed to bind and gag the men with duct tape. Eventually someone in town with probably free them, but by then the travelers would be gone. They took the knife and gun which were both junk. They would throw both away once out of town.
Chapter 17
Barry managed to reach his father on the sat phone and relayed the loss of the Blazer. He relayed that they had acquired a motorcycle and a golf cart and were back on the road. His father wanted to send Jim out to pick them up in the plane, but Barry said they were moving and making good time considering the low speed of their transportation. He did not want to tell his father of the trouble they had encountered. The three travelers agreed it was too dangerous for Jim to take the plane back up, since the trio continued to make progress towards the farm. They also did not want to wait around an airport even if he could find one. Most large airports were not cleared for planes to land even if they were deserted. The back roads they were taking did not go by any airports and he did not want to go into any medium sized cities where the generator on the golf cart was sure to attract unneeded attention. David agreed, but urged Barry to call him if needed. The plane was fueled and ready to go.
At the farm several attempts had already been made to scale the wall. One group threw a mattress over the razor wire. The first to go over took two steps into the minefield before he stepped on a claymore. His lifeless body fell on another mine. The resulting blasts and the brutal death convinced the others to stay on their side of the wall. Jennifer was up in the front watchtower and the group launched a volley of gunfire at her position. Jim and David had concealed firing positions close to the wall and took out the gunman. When the group retreated. David had the bodies buried outside the wall. He didn’t want the children to see what had happened. He felt bad about the man who stepped on the mine, but the signs outside clearly stated that the area was mined and that trespassers would be shot on sight. They actually waited until the guard tower was fired on first, but Jim said a larger attack would not give them the chance to be compassionate. They had to be aggressive and act first when people ignored their warning signs. As former infantry servicemen in covert groups both Jim and David realized the defenses they had prepared were only set up to repel small scale invasions. The two men put in more firing positions along the wall and set up a schedule to keep these manned. Most of the other people at the house except for Clem Jim and David had never been in combat, and were reticent to fire at attackers even if they had fired first. David knew Clint and Barry would not hesitate to defend the homestead better, and Jim had reported that Megan had also held her own. David had everyone trained on how to clean and use their firearms. Because some had barely shot guns before, they also instituted target practice on a field towards the back of the farm. The mindset was a harder characteristic to teach but all the people using guns at the farm had to know that if someone pointed a weapon at you it was too late. People that acted last in a gunfight were dead, and he wanted everyone to know enough to be proactive. Not knowing how to use your weapon when the situation required it as a problem that could be taken care of through preparation Frank’s teenage children and all adults were told to keep their weapons on them whenever they left their residences.
A military hummer pulled up in front of the driveway gate followed by three older pickups. None of the occupants had uniforms on and Evan, who was manning the gate radioed to the house that the men were claiming to be the local police department. They said they had received reports that someone at the farm was killing civilians who were just walking through the area. David knew the actual police would have other problems to worry about and not be concerned about his right to defend his land, but he needed to get Evan back inside the compound. He radioed back that one vehicle and two occupants could drive to the wall where they would meet outside. Additionally, David requested that they leave their weapons inside their car when they went inside the main gate. They refused, and said that as police officers, they would not surrender their firearms. Evan asked for identification since they were not wearing uniforms. They looked uneasy and said that the uniforms could not be worn since people thought uniformed officers had to help them survive. They would not provide badges either and Evan let David know that these intruders were almost surely not there in an official capacity.
David agreed to meet the men inside with their weapons since they had not made any aggressive moves yet. Of course his own family was armed in strategic positions and the men outside had stayed at the driveway gate which Evan only opened long enough to let in the Hummer and two of the occupants. He radioed Evan to hold his position and keep the rest of men from approaching the house. He sent Frank and Justin to back Evan up from concealed positions where they could disable the vehicles if they moved past the gate. When the two men met David outside the wall they introduced themselves as the Sheriff and a deputy. David doubted very seriously that these two were actually law enforcement, but he allowed them into the compound to meet inside the main house. Once inside the gate they were astounded by the mine field inside the wall, and the line of mobile homes behind the main house with an airplane sitting on a strip at the other end of the property “Nice place” the Sheriff commented. “How many people do you have living here?” Alarm bells went off in David’s head. There was no way he was going to announce his defenses or the number of family members to intruders who would not even prove who they were. He ushered the two inside the house without responding to the question. The fake sheriff persisted “I need a list of everyone that lives inside your gates.” The two bogus lawmen claimed to be sent by local townspeople who had been murdered by residents of David’s compound. They wanted to take the shooter into custody and they wanted David to clear the wall of the minefield. They said the mines were illegal. David, as a military munitions expert knew the explosives were entirely legal, and easier to obtain than firearms. He told both men that everything they had done was to protect private property. The men complained “You can’t just fence off land inside a national forest.” David responded. “This land is not in the forest. I own it outright and I have the right to evict trespassers and defend my family and friends against those who attack us.”
Outside, at the gate on the driveway the men in the three pickup trucks were getting antsy. They had been told that this farm was only defended by one man and his children. They thought they just should drive in and shoot anyone that resisted. They had already visited several smaller compounds in the area and took the supplies from each, killing the residents that refused to comply. It wasn’t right that this family got to keep all their supplies to themselves. They were hungry and it was everyone for themselves in this new world. One of the men walked up to Evan, who was armed but had not drawn his weapon. He said “Give me your gun, and I will let you live.” Evan relinquished his weapon and stood off to the side of the driveway as the men yanked the gate open and started to drive the three trucks through. Evan slipped back into the woods where he had an extra rifle stashed as shots rang out, first at the trucks and then up at the main house.
When he heard shots coming from the driveway. David realized things had gone south. The men posing as police officers also knew that and attempted to arrest David only to find five other guns pointed at them. Clem tied up the attackers as they protested feebly that they were the police. David didn’t believe them, but on the off chance they were, he wanted to leave them alive and was glad they had surrendered. He was still hearing sporadic gunfire from the driveway and sent out Clem and Jim to see if his brothers needed help. They approached the driveway from the front not wanting to get caught in a crossfire. As they peered down the road from cover, they were surprised to see 2 men obviously dead inside their truck, and 3 other men from the trucks lying on the ground in various stages of injury.
As the trucks came up driveway, Frank and Just
in aimed for the tires. They had been told they did not have to shoot the men, just try to disable the trucks. Of course David and Jim knew that if things went bad they might need to shoot at the men anyways, and he warned them not to allow the men near the house. Protecting the families and especially the children, had to take precedence over being nice to invaders. They had been briefly trained them on how to use the weapons, but not nearly well enough where they were totally proficient with them. Disabling the vehicles and getting the men to surrender was something they were comfortable with. Of course Jim had given them fully automatic weapons with extra ammunition so they were prepared if the attackers refused to surrender. Frank conferred with his brother as the trucks approached He said he would fire at the first truck and Justin the second. Once they had disabled the first two vehicles, the one in back should be pinned in on the narrow driveway. Frank shredded the left side tires on his assigned truck. The automatic weapon disintegrated the tires so much that the truck was instantly on rims and lurched to the side throwing out the man standing in the bed to the road. Justin accidentally aimed too high with his weapon and the recoil caused him to fire even higher. Instead of the tires Justin hit the driver with a barrage of automatic weapon fire, some which went right through him and hit the passenger as well. The two men from the cab of Frank’s truck came out firing wildly in the general direction of Frank and Justin. As they stayed hidden they heard two shots and peered out to find the men on the ground. They noticed Evan across the driveway and realized he had flanked the men and shot them from behind. Evan motioned toward the third truck which had stopped down the road. The men had left the vehicle after seeing Justin fire into the cab of the one ahead of them. They didn’t realize he had done it accidentally, and Frank saw them down the driveway fleeing on foot. Clem and Jim showed up and Frank said “Do you want us to chase them?” Clem responded “No, maybe they learned their lesson.” Motioning to the downed men who Jim had disarmed “There’s been enough death today. I don’t think they will be back “. All three vehicles and the Hummer were operational even though one had bullet holes and blood and one needed tires. With no operational vehicles and few weapons the remaining attackers were not considered to be a danger to the compound or anyone else although Jim thought they should have pursued the ones who fled.
