The E.M.P. Chronicles (Book 1): 458 Miles & 24 Days

by McTatey, Zayden (Oz)

  “Grandpa, I have to help her,” Randall said with a quivering voice.

  “No. I’ll go, Randall. You switch positions with me. Cover me. If you get hurt, I’ll never forgive myself. No time to argue.”

  Lloyd placed a fresh magazine in his handgun and rifle and headed toward the front door.

  “Right behind you, Grandpa. As soon as you open the door I’m going to fire a volley in every direction. When you run, don’t stop until you get to the LP/OP,” Randall said.

  Lloyd opened the door and began running for the LP/OP. Randall followed him onto the porch, knelt on one knee and quickly scanned the area firing three rounds in every direction. The bolt on his AR-15 locked back. He quickly ejected the magazine, inserted a full magazine and sent the bolt home. He continued with his three-round burst.

  Lloyd could see the LP/OP, and Nicki was indeed pinned down. He was going to do everything in his power to save his daughter-in-law. Lloyd was about to engage a man running toward him with what looked like a sledgehammer when he felt a sharp sting in the back of his leg. He fell and without thinking quickly got up and shot at the man.

  Lloyd hit the man in the shoulder and chest and he fell to the ground. With a slow limp, Lloyd continued to head to the LP/OP. A second and third bullet hit him. Lloyd felt warm blood spurting from his neck and placed his hand over the wound hoping to stop the bleeding. He then said a silent prayer. His prayer was for the safety of his wife and family and oddly enough, the hope that he would see Fred, his pet Shar Pei who died many years earlier.

  “I’ll meet you all on the rainbow bridge,” he said as his breath became shallower and shallower and he collapsed to the ground.

  As Naomi broached the tree line she saw a group of three people converging towards something, but she was unsure of what they were approaching. She saw what appeared to be gunfire coming from the ground but didn’t see anyone only the end of an AR-15 firing straight up.

  “Must be a foxhole or something similar. Probably Oz’s family,” Naomi thought.

  She dropped to the ground and placed the reticle of the Ruger PC Carbine center mass on one of the men and fired two rounds. The body fell limp. She quickly transitioned to a second person and pulled the trigger twice more.

  “Like shooting fish in a barrel,” she said to herself.

  Naomi saw a woman turn in her direction, trying to determine where the gunfire was coming from. Before the woman could determine where Naomi was hidden, she fell to the ground with her chest completely blown away. Naomi looked and saw where the shot came from. It came from an older man wearing full combat gear.

  Naomi looked down and then up to only to see the man fall to the ground and die. Out of her left side eye, Naomi caught a glance of a man running wildly at her.

  “Does this ever end?” she said out loud.

  As soon as the man jumped into the tree line towards her, he was met by a volley of armed fire. The last thing in life he saw was Naomi.

  CHEYANNE HAD HEARD the gunfire. It was coming from everywhere. She was scared. She understood what Oz had told her but felt the need to move. She stood up and moved from tree to tree taking cover getting closer and closer to Oz’s house. Bullets were flying everywhere. Cheyanne crouched and prayed that the gunfire would stop but it didn’t. She stood and continued moving when she saw Oz down on the ground. A man appeared over him with a baseball bat. The man with the bat was saying something to Oz as he brought the bat above his head. Cheyanne quickly drew an arrow from her quiver and nocked the arrow. She aimed the sights and let the arrow fly. The arrow hit the man high on the right shoulder. He dropped the bat and began screaming. Cheyanne nocked another arrow and slowly began walking toward Oz and the man. She seemed unaware of the battle that was raging around her. Her sole focus was on Oz.

  The man looked at Cheyanne and started yelling, “You bitch! You shot me!”

  He picked up the bat with his left hand and started walking towards her.

  “Don’t do it. Please, stop,” Cheyanne said as tears streamed from her eyes. “Please, stop.”

  The man was now within ten feet of her when she released the arrow, striking him in the stomach. She nocked another arrow and placed a third shot perfectly centered in the middle of his neck striking the carotid artery. Blood began spurting everywhere as the man grabbed for his throat. He fell to the ground in a pool of blood and stopped moving.

  Cheyanne ran to Oz. She put her fingers on his wrist and felt nothing. She tried again but this time pushing harder on his wrist. Nothing. She tried one last time and felt relieved when she felt an ever so slight pulse. She would stay by Oz’s side until help arrived. She grabbed his AR-15 and was ready to kill anyone who came near him.

  46

  Reunion

  AFTER WHAT SEEMED LIKE AN ETERNITY, THE GUNFIRE HAD ceased. The bodies of men and women were strewn throughout Oz’s property. Randall immediately picked up the phone and cranked the handle.

  “Answer. Answer. Mom, answer the phone!” Randall said frantically. There was no answer.

  “Grandma, go from room to room and report what you see. Are there still people out there or did they bug out? I need to know if they’re regrouping,” he said.

  “Ok. I’ll call over the radio,” his grandma said. Randall peered out the window but did not see any movement from the LP/OP. He wanted to leave the house but knew he couldn’t. It was too risky and he would protect Cali and his Grandma come hell or high water.

  Randall turned and continued looking through the window waiting to see his mom walk in the door any moment when he saw his grandpa on the ground motionless. Panic set in. For the first time in his life, his thoughts turned to terror and he froze. The thought of not seeing his mother or grandfather again weighed heavy on his mind.

  Naomi remained in her position and waited fifteen more minutes to ensure everything was clear before beginning to walk towards the LP/OP. She needed to make sure that whoever was in there was okay.

  Her training had taught her not to walk directly up to a foxhole, or LP/OP, as she would more than likely end up dead. Instead, she crawled within ten feet of the LP/OP and yelled, “My name is Naomi and I’m with Oz. If you are a family member of Oz you need to come out with your hands up, identify yourself right now, and tell me what his last name is. If you don’t come out or you get his last name wrong, I will shoot you.” There was no response. She repeated her instructions and saw two hands appear out of the LP/OP.

  “Don’t shoot. My name is Nicki and our last name is McTatey,” Nicki said.

  Naomi immediately lowered her rifle and walked up to Nicki extending her hand. “I’m Naomi and I’m with your husband,” she said.

  “Where’s my husband?” Nicki said.

  “We split up to help defend the house. I’m sure he’ll be around soon. Can you contact your family in the house? The last thing I want to do is walk across your property, be seen as a stranger, and get shot,” Naomi said.

  Nicki went back into the LP/OP and dialed the house. Randall answered and heard his mom say, “Don’t shoot. I’m coming out with a friend. Cover us.”

  “Mom,” Randall said with a panicked voice. “Grandpa is on the ground near the LP/OP. I can’t see him moving. Get to him quickly. Please help him, mom.”

  Naomi helped Nicki out of the LP/OP and handed her the AR-15. They both cautiously walked out of the tree line immediately seeing Lloyd on the ground not moving.

  As Cheyanne protected Oz, she saw her mom and another woman walking out of the tree line to the house. Cheyanne left Oz’s side and while behind cover, waived her arms hoping to get the attention of her mother.

  Nicki quickly brought her AR-15 to her should and yelled, “Keep your hands in the air where we can see them and slowly walk toward us!”

  Naomi put her hand on the barrel of the AR-15, lowered it, and said, “That’s my daughter.”

  �
��Sorry about that,” Nicki said.

  “Don’t be sorry. In this new world we need to always be ready,” Naomi responded.

  “Mom, Oz is unconscious. He needs help,” Cheyanne said as her voice trembled.

  “You take care of him and I’ll check on Oz,” Naomi said.

  Naomi ran towards Cheyanne who pointed into the forest. She ran as fast as she could until she found Oz. He lay on his back. Naomi noticed his chest slowly moving up and down and was instantly relieved. She ran back to Nicki who was aggressively working on Lloyd. Both men needed to be taken into the house where the medical supplies were.

  Nicki told Naomi to go inside the house and get Randall. She would need help moving Oz and Lloyd into the basement.

  As Nicki frantically worked on Lloyd, she saw Randall and Naomi carrying Oz into the house. She knew in her heart he would be okay and turned her attention to Lloyd.

  In her head she said the words, “Oz, I knew you would make it home.”

  Several hours later, Oz slowly opened eyes and though groggy, was excited to see Nicki staring at him.

  “How’s my concussion boy?” Nicki said with a smile.

  “Major headache, but I’ll be fine,” he said and reached up to hug her.

  “Come in you two,” Nicki said with a smile.

  Randall and Cali came running in.

  “We missed you, dad,” both kids said.

  “Buzz, do you remember Oz? You haven’t seen him in a long time but he and I are going to be taking care of you from now on,” Nicki said.

  Oz looked completely perplexed by Nicki’s statement when Buzz looked up at him and said “Yeah. He used to help my daddy mow the lawn.”

  “It’s great to see you again Buzz,” Oz said as he realized that by Nicki’s look and comment they were now responsible for him.

  “Cali, what happened to your shoulder?” Oz said.

  “As they say, it’s a long story dad,” she responded.

  “Hello Chief Petty Officer,” Oz said shifting his attention to Naomi and Cheyanne.

  “Morning, sir,” Naomi said.

  “We did it, we all survived?” Oz asked excitedly.

  As far as Oz knew, everyone he loved had survived that terrible day.

  Nicki held Oz’s hand and began crying.

  “What’s wrong?” he said.

  “Your dad was shot three times,” Nicki began. “Only one of the three shots was lodged in his body. I had to cut away some tissue and muscle to get to it but I eventually pulled it out. I cleaned all the wounds and stitched them up. His neck wound is the most concerning. He won’t be able to move for weeks for fear of not healing properly. The bullet nicked his jugular vein and he lost a lot of blood. I did everything I could including something that in the real world you would never do.”

  Oz looked perplexed but waited for his wife to continue.

  “I gave him a direct human-to-human blood transfusion. I know he is AB-Positive. He can receive any blood type. Thank God. Grandma and Naomi volunteered to donate. Now we sit and pray that he’ll survive.”

  “I’m proud of you and you should know that you did the right thing. It will work! Going forward we’ll all being doing things differently. The old ways are gone. If we’re going to survive, we’re going to have to use ingenuity as you did.” Oz said as he grabbed her hand.

  LATER THAT NIGHT, Nicki approached Oz crying and said, “Oz, I can’t get BJ off my mind. Did he have a Bug Out Bag?”

  “He has a Bug Out Bag. It has everything he needs to make it to Brian and Elizabeth’s. He knew that if he couldn’t drive to Kentucky he was to go to their house. I have an agreement with Brian that if BJ doesn’t show up to their house within five days of an SHTF, and he and Elizabeth are safe, Brian will find a way to get to SIU and find BJ,” Oz said.

  “I can’t just stand by and wait for him. Not knowing if he is safe is painful,” Nicki said in a muffled voice.

  Oz thought for a moment and then hugged Nicki. “I’ll set up the shortwave radio tomorrow and we’ll try and contact Brian and Elizabeth. They know the emergency communication protocol we set up. If they’re okay there’s a good chance BJ is with them,” Oz said.

  Nicki kissed him on the lips and turned to check on the rest of the family.

  47

  The New Beginning

  EARLY THE NEXT DAY, OZ, NICKI, AND NAOMI WERE DISCUSSING the challenges each had faced in the past weeks when Naomi said, “Oz, this is a new beginning. You know we’ll have to prepare even more now. Survival is no longer guaranteed.”

  “I agree with her, Oz,” Nicki said and continued. “In the short time since the EMP I’ve seen rape, murder, hunger, desperation, and the will of people to do anything to survive.”

  “I, too, have experienced the same,” Naomi said and then began crying. Oz knew Naomi and Cheyanne had a difficult road ahead of them but knew that he and Nicki would be steadfast in the support of both of them.

  “Well, then,” Oz said. “We have three main priorities. One, re-secure the house and property. Make it better and more secure than before. Two, find BJ and get him home. We have no idea if he left Illinois or is on his way. Three, get Naomi and Cheyanne home. California is a long way away, but I promised I would do everything in my power to get them home.”

  Before Oz could continue, Naomi interrupted and said, “Cheyanne and I have been talking. When we lost Johannes, we lost our family. Yes, we have a house in California, but we lost our home when he died. We have nowhere to go. This is our home if you’ll have us.”

  With that, Naomi began crying and hugged Cheyanne.

  Nicki immediately walked up to Naomi and Cheyanne, embraced them and said, “You’re welcome in our house. You’re family now, and besides,” Nicki continued through tears of her own. “It will take both of us to keep Oz under control.”

  Out of nowhere, a faint, barely audible but familiar voice said, “Randall, it’s time to get your dad’s SHTF- Elevated Threat Manual out. We will never be caught off guard again.”

  It was Lloyd. The group rejoiced but realized he, and they as well had a long way to go.

  Oz, Naomi, Nicki, Connie, and Randall worked hard for the next several days re-establishing the LP/OP, securing the house and property, and setting up the shortwave radio. Cali was making a slow recovery and, with the help of Nicki, would begin physical therapy soon. Lloyd would take many weeks, perhaps months to recover. Nicki’s primary concern was an infection but as a nurse, she had confidence in her abilities and with the medications they had stored, knew that Lloyd would have a high probability of surviving.

  Using the shortwave radio Oz was able to contact Brian and Elizabeth. Their situation was dire. Within 10 miles of their house was a federal prison. After the power was completely lost, the area experienced something it had never seen before: A mass prison escape. Brian had learned that in a complete power outage the prison doors would automatically open. This was a safety precaution that prevented prisoners from being exposed to events such as fires.

  Brian further explained that even when outside their jail cells, prisoners would only have access to their quadrant and most definitely no access to the outside world. As with most things, the prisoners discovered a vulnerability in the system and were able to escape en masse. To make matters worse, BJ had not arrived at their house. Brian knew he had agreed to find BJ but given their circumstances he needed to protect his family. The responsibility of finding BJ now fell on Oz.

  IN THE NEXT couple of days, Oz and the family had some very important decisions to make, tasks to complete, and realizations to understand. Would they bug out or would they remain at the house? Would they be attacked again by the same or different group and, if so, would the family be ready? If they stayed, would they find like-minded people and be able to form coalitions, or could they find other Mutual Assistance Groups (MAG)? Would they be able
to grow and store enough food for the upcoming year? Would they be able to find others with whom they could trade and barter with? When and how would Oz find BJ?

  Though there were many more questions than answers, Oz knew that he had to take action. This is exactly what he told his family time and time again and because they had prepared, they were safe at least for now. Oz’s focus shifted to worry for BJ, Brian, and Elizabeth. Not knowing if they were safe weighed heavily on him. He would do everything he could to make sure that they were. Though he had just arrived in Kentucky, he was ready to travel to Illinois and risk his life yet again for the safety of his family.

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