Our End Of The Lake: Surviving After The 2012 Solar Storm (Prepper Trilogy) (20 page)

The Arrival

Ok, final turn coming up, not a whole lot I can do about my appearance, but I start fiddling with my hair and trying to get the sweat off my face anyway before I turn in her driveway and zip around her car to get it ready to go in the garage. I smell wood smoke I am thinking, as my favorite cat dog appears to great me. Sally Cat always runs to say ‘hi’ to me and sounds like she is saying ‘Davie! Davie!’ In her meow meow voice.

We call her a cat dog because she has dog like tendencies and follows me around like a pup if I am in the area.

“Hello, Sally Cat, where is mamma?” I say as the back gate opens and Sherry and I rush to great each other.

“David, you’re safe!” Sherry says hugging me and flinching at my whiskered face, as I nuzzle her back.

“Hey, Betsy. Sandra.” I say over Sherry’s back at the two faces appearing around the entrance to the gate and looking startled at my odd entrance on a tractor, but nonetheless looking pleased.

“Hi.” the two chorus and step out as I put my arm around Sherry and escort her back towards them.

“What’s for dinner and who has a beer?” I said to an immediate response of laughter and giggles

“Where did you get the tractor, Dave?” Betsy said sort of beyond herself with my strange arrival.

“That is a story unto its own, I take it we lack alcohol?” I said to my familiar tribe of friendly faces.

“Not a drop, we went through it almost day one.” Sherry said dejectedly.

“I got a half gallon of George Dickel that a man named Donnie donated to the cause in that tool box on the side of the tractor...” I barely got out before volunteers a plenty started to go retrieve it and Helga came out of her house to see what the commotion was all about.

“David, welcome home! She boisterously said.

“Good to see you! You want to join us?” I offered following Sherry and a bottle I did not want to lose sight of.

“Maybe later.” she called back and returned to her own home.

“We got water?” I said immediately reaching for the tap once inside the kitchen.

“Don’t try to drink that!” came the admonishments from the girls and horrified looks from all around.

“We got boil water warnings David,” Sherry said heading towards a 5-gallon bottle and a Harbor Freight pump set up.

“We heard it on the radio but there is an Army truck that comes by broadcasting it to” Sandra pointed out.

“That little crank EPSON is receiving then?” I directed my question towards Sherry

“See, darling, I do listen, it was in the steel file cabinet and works fine.” she said looking pleased with herself.

“I noticed the guns, you just prepared or having problems,” I said inquiringly.

“Well, you occasionally hear someone shooting one off, but I locked and loaded every one in the house as soon as I managed to get home, just like you said to do if this ever happened David.” Sherry said confident of her leadership role.

“Were you at work when it happened?” I asked Sherry

“No, Betsy and I were working on our side entrepreneurial business and got caught totally unaware.” she began before Betsy interjected her comments.

“Sherry made me lug that 2 quart canteen FULL of water all the way over here, even after I showed her the taps still worked.” She pouted

“I already told you why you had to.” Sherry began before Betsy cut her off.

“But, I had my clothes bag with me, too, and that canteen is heavy.” She said indignantly.

“Coffins are heavier.” I began but let the subject drop picking up a clue to do so from Sandra.

“This stove thingy you bought Sherry works real good.” She said motioning towards a Stove Tec rocket stove.

“Does that water pasteurizer kettle thing work good, too? Sherry got me one off the same web site also, that funnel shaped water jacket inside of it is supposed to make it very efficient.” I responded looking at what looked like a giant stainless steel two-gallon teakettle.

“I can’t imagine being without it, it seems to be heating water for something all day.” she said in her best ‘told you so’ voice.

“I can certainly see its uses.” I conceded and thought how nice it was to be back amongst this happily bickering trio.

“David, I biked over to see your Mom yesterday and she is doing fine. “ Sherry told me while placing a hand on my leg briefly and looking at me compassionately.

“Hey, I really appreciate you doing that, it means a lot to me.” I said thankfully and reached for the drink Betsy was handing me.

“I am really glad you spent the extra money and got the wood/charcoal model of that stove, Dave. We cook the big meal using charcoal and use the extra burn time to heat water to wash the dishes in sometimes, but I want to save as much charcoal as we can, and besides with the right wood in it, it makes its own charcoal.” Sherry said gesturing at the various piles of sticks and twigs everyone had collected.

“You all have been busy.” I said admiringly looking at all the efforts that had taken place in the privacy-fenced back yard.

“She has been ordering us around to do some project or another every day. This morning’s project was to take those green tarp like sheets out of those British personal protection units you bought a pile of and cover the windows so our lanterns don’t shine out as a beacon to the street thugs.” looking suspiciously on a self approving Sherry. “David, did you really buy sandbags, too? What the hell for?” she said looking at me.

“They go under the windows of this wood frame house if there is a need, but I will talk on that later. Right now I want more news and another drink, does anyone else want one?” I asked while heading towards the backdoor.

Various “I am ok” responses come back and I peeked into the living room to see the latest transformations. Not a whole lot had changed; it was in typical hurricane party configuration with extra bedding for guests and various lanterns or flashlights in handy places.

Hey, I get to use a real bathroom! I better check to make sure Sherry didn’t block the pipe with rags through the rotor rooter access in the front of the house, thinking sewage could back up in the sewage system went down before I tried it though.

No garbage bag lining the bowl, must be all right I thought. So nice to have water, any kind of access to water and indoor plumbing I considered finishing up. I walked outside and rejoined the party and for once, my audience was waiting to talk to me instead of me listening to them.

“David, they say they are going to start having food distribution points next week, you think FEMA can take care of this?” Sandra asked and everyone’s gaze turned in my direction.

“That’s not FEMA responding most likely, although it might be.” I considered. “The headquarters for the State National Guard is here in Montgomery and we have that dedicated but pitifully sized 24 man response team stationed here. They will have communications with the Governors office and the Alabama Emergency Management bunker in Clanton but since there is no plan and they got to be super short staffed, its most likely a independent effort from one of the Guard officers.” I said sipping my drink and trying to wrap my head around what really might be going on.

“What do you mean there is no Government plan? I thought you been studying how to plan for this shit for years.” Betsy said accusingly towards me.

“Hell, why do you think I prep so much? It is because I KNOW there is not a plan for something of this magnitude. At least ways nothing I have seen for civilians. They have continuity of Government plans, but those plans are for the fat cats and politicians!” I responded a bit brusquely, as it hit a nerve I had not been able to change policies in my short tenure.

I continued a bit aggressively, “While the House last year passed the "GRID Act, addressing vulnerabilities of the bulk power sector to natural threats and cyber attacks, action in the Senate is tied up by conflicting bids for jurisdiction by five different committees. So that means everyone is still talking about it and doing nothing and when they get around to it, will be slow as hell and bureaucratic B.S.” I said choking from turning up my drink up too fast.

“So where is the food they’re talking about coming from?” Sandra directed towards me with a shoot the messenger attitude.

“There are some pre staged supplies in warehouses here they use to pre position for Gulf disasters. This is a rally point for all the trucks that head out, remember Katrina? Maybe they are commandeering the local Winn Dixie and Piggly Wiggly warehouses, I do not know! Give me time to think on it,” I said sitting back and trying to fathom the unknown, while being pelted with more questions.

“Do you know where your distribution point is yet for this address?” I said putting a hush to the babbling around me. Knowing where it was, would give me some inclination as to who was orchestrating this show.

“They said for our zip code we go to Normandale tentatively and it would be confirmed next Wednesday.” Sherry said while shushing her charges and seeing my warring emotions and thoughts.

“They didn’t assign colors or refer to anyone as sectors? Think back to the exact wording, it makes a difference in my understanding of things.” I said slowly and clearly searching the contemplative faces around me.

“No, they definitely said distribution points were being assigned by zip code.” Sherry said looking at me furrowing my brow and studying the meaning of what was just revealed.

“It sounds like they are using a vaccination or drug distributing plan that maps out central points for drive up delivery of medications in case of a bioterrorism attack. It will be military trucks doing the food drops; they are the only ones that can move possibly at the moment but I am still not sure who has those public health plans in their hands.” I considered and wandered towards the house with Sally Cat following me and reminding me with an occasional meow that I usually gave her a treat when asked politely.

“How is the Kitty chow holding up?” I addressed Sherry from the stairs to the house.

“I am being careful, but all we got is that big sack of dry inside the door.” she said worriedly.

“Ok, a few nibbles I give her won’t hurt.” I replied assuring the cat I would provide her something for playing tag along. I fixed a drink and gave the cat a tiny amount of kibble, and returned to my chair.

“Sandra, you and Betsy are at a disadvantage now if they are checking residency papers. But I do not foresee that as a problem at the moment. The problem is going to be this delivery is going to be a first come first served affair.” I stated reminding myself of how many times I had served on Ice distribution lines while in the Guard in response to the aftermath of a hurricane.

“Its basically hand stuff off the truck to a line of people and whoever doesn’t get any first go round is SOL and has to wait on another truck at another time or day. People get hostile about that, let me tell you, if they are one of the unlucky ones,” I said warningly.

“This first go round, all three of you go and get there early. The house should be safe enough because most people will be going after the free distribution stuff for the first time and not studying robbing houses.” I let this sink in for a moment and then carried on.

“The longer this crap lasts the people in the other zip code not being served on that day, figure you’re not home, so break ins start happening. If stuff is in short supply or now high valued, then robberies of people coming back from distribution points start happening. They will lay in wait for you.” I said ominously, but seriously, as I had seen it before as man’s inhumanity to man started to surface after a prolonged disaster.

“It won’t be long before at least one of you needs to stay to guard the house while the other two go out to get what is available.” I said instructing the girls to the realities of things to come.

“But, we have food David; we don’t need to even get out in that danger.” Sherry said while exchanging glances of apprehension with the group.

“That is a smart consideration, but not fully thought through.” I cajoled not wanting to detract from the notion, but needing to get to a main point of our survival without scaring anyone too much.

“Look ladies, everyone in the neighborhood is going to be observing and talking about this possibility of getting some food distribution. You must be just as worried, just as frantic as they are that it will be successful, without letting on you have a margin of safety.” I said as realizations started setting in.

“You need to be just as dirty, just as tired from walking all that way to get something to eat as everyone else to be able to not stand out, or someone will start thinking something is abnormal. Watch out for your trash you pile out on the curb, lose weight with everyone else, don’t be over confident and above all else do not let on to anybody what you have been blessed with storing.” I strongly advised.

“We get it David, I have been talking to everyone, already about just that, but we got neighbors and elderly here in the community that we can’t just ignore.” She said with a bit of venom in her voice.

“I am not saying, we don’t try to help them or shoot someone raiding our gardens to feed their families.” I objected.

“I am merely stating the obvious and making you aware, that I do not need a target painted on the back of any one of us, if we hope to get through this.” I replied a bit strongly while raising my hand to obvious dissent, but indicating I had a plan.