by Hunt, Jack
“I’m telling you, Rayna, it’s not as far-fetched as it might sound. We’ve already experienced solar storms, and with the way things are heating up with North Korea it’s only a matter of time before someone launches a nuke.”
It wasn’t that she didn’t believe him, but she didn’t expect it the way he did. Perhaps it was his training in the army or his need to protect his family, but she recalled him putting into place things that might be of use. He’d started with something simple, the bug-out bag, and expanded it beyond that to creating a small storehouse of canned goods, grains, salt, water and pharmaceutical products. It wasn’t a lot, just enough to see their family through six months if push came to shove. Now she was beginning to see the benefit. She continued flipping the pages and remembering what he said.
“Come on, Elliot, don’t you think you’re taking things a bit too seriously?”
“I’m telling you, Rayna, the biggest threat facing our country right now isn’t chemical warfare, climate change or even a disease, it’s an electromagnetic pulse attack from a rogue nation like North Korea or Iran.”
“But we’re on the East Coast!”
“Doesn’t matter. All it would take is one or two ballistic missiles launched from a freighter or a sub in international waters and it could fry the electrical grid. Everything we have, food and water supplies, banking, medical care, law enforcement, communication and more, relies on a functioning electrical grid.”
She studied his face and could tell he wasn’t exaggerating.
“And if it did go down?”
“Some say it could kill up to 90 percent of the population in a matter of eighteen months. The fact is America is just not prepared to deal with that kind of widespread devastation. Add to that a lack of clean water, no air traffic control, no financial transactions, most would die from starvation, others from lack of hygiene and all of that without a rogue nation ever stepping foot on U.S. soil.”
“And what about fallout?”
“The casualties wouldn’t really be from the high-altitude explosion as it would happen too high for the nuclear effects to be felt strongly on the ground, so to speak, but it would be the domino effect that would knock everything else down.” He breathed in deeply. “That’s why I’ve put these things in place because I don’t know if I’ll even be in the country if and when it ever occurs.”
“Well let’s hope it doesn’t,” she replied.
Rayna gripped the notebook tightly and looked at the steps he’d wanted her to take if he wasn’t around.
“You’ll find in the shelter a set of two-way radios. I’ve already given one of these to Gary. Now if I was here, we’d get in contact with family and make sure that they knew to head to the shelter. Just remember, the landlines might still work if there is an EMP. While the cell phones will be down, many of the companies now use backup generators and they might kick in and last for another week so try that first, otherwise resort to the two-way radios. But remember, Rayna, if an EMP does happen, I want you to go through the process of doing a few simple things first to see how bad it is. Look outside, check if there are any other lights on? Can you hear traffic? Test your cell phone. Try the landline. If any of those work, try and contact someone across town then out-of-state. If there is nothing and you can’t communicate with anyone, then I want you to check the ham radio in the shelter. Turn it on and see if there are any updates on the disaster. But just remember the EMP might have taken out stations in range, so I’ve left a list of different stations to tune into beside the ham radio along with how to operate it. You got that?”
She remembered nodding but barely processing what he was saying.
“Next I want you and the kids to get into the shelter. There is enough food and water down there to last for six months. The only ones who know about it are Gary and Jill. That’s because I don’t want you to be alone and I trust Gary. There is no telling when looters will start checking homes.”
“And what if there is something you’ve forgotten?” she asked.
“There isn’t.”
“But what if there is?”
“Then you take the rifle with you and have Gary go get it. Few people are going to mess with a police officer,” he said, then he turned back to the gun cabinet and clicked his fingers. “Oh, and whatever you do, don’t go drinking the tap water without purifying it first. Once the power goes out, the water treatment plants aren’t going to be operating and I don’t want you or the kids to end up with some disease. You’ll find purifying tablets in the shelter.”
“You honestly expect us to go down into that bunker? Why not just stay in the house?”
He snorted. “You’re not seeing the full picture here, darling. Maybe people won’t show up within 72 hours, perhaps they won’t go searching homes in a week but eventually they will show up. Desperation will kick in. Starvation can drive a man to do all manner of things. Just do what I say and if you forget, refer to this book, okay?”
He placed it in her hands and laid his hand on top and she got a sense that he was doing this because he cared, not because he was paranoid or thought the world was going to come to an end, but because he felt it was his responsibility as a father and husband to take care of his own.
It was for that reason alone she never argued. Even as he replenished the shelter that he’d had built into the yard not long after they’d moved in, she didn’t question it.
Rayna closed the book and was about to head for the shelter when she heard a knock at the door. It was hard. Her mind went into overdrive. Who the hell was knocking at the door after eleven at night?
Chapter 8
Without the subway or cabs in operation, they were looking at it taking them at least an hour and forty-five minutes heading south on Broadway. It was a good five-mile hike to Williamsburg from Times Square. The only reason Elliot was willing to go was the possibility that Maggie’s vehicle would still be operational.
“So, run that by me again. You’re saying that all vehicles won’t work because the electrical is fried?” Maggie asked.
“We’ve never been in a situation like this before, of course, but essentially that’s it. It’s a bit more complicated than that, though. Newer cars today have had computers integrated into the functionality of moving parts. Obviously, manufacturers have done this to save gas, reduce breakdowns of major parts and so they can provide accessory options. The problem is that makes them vulnerable to an EMP blast. Then again, there is a lot of debate on it because some say that it depends on which way your vehicle is facing in respect to a nuclear detonation, the height of detonation, the output of the detonation, the distance and the strength of the magnetic field between the location of your vehicle and the detonation. Then on top of that you have other variables like whether your car is parked outside, inside a concrete or metal garage and so on.”
Maggie had a curious mind unlike the other two who were busy gaping at the devastation around them and at survivors trying to flee the area.
“And so you think my station wagon will work because of its age?”
“You said it’s a 1985 Mercedes station wagon, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, most manufacturers didn’t start placing computer chips in vehicles until the early ’80s, however there were a handful of vehicles in the mid ’70s that added integrated circuits. Basically, it’s a bit hit and miss when it comes to these things.”
“But fuel wouldn’t degrade or run out for a while, will it?” Jesse asked.
“No, it wouldn’t but it wouldn’t take long. Think back to Katrina. Gas prices surged, the lines were horrendous, and many people were having to drive farther away to find a station that was even open. And back then there was electricity for the most part. Without electricity the gas stations aren’t going to be operational. We’ll be left siphoning from stalled vehicles, and that isn’t always easy as the newer models have anti-siphoning in place.”
Jesse turned to Damon and frowned. “Remind me again
why you are coming with us?”
Damon didn’t crack a smile. “If Elliot plans on using a vehicle to head back to Lake Placid, I’m hitching a ride. That’s a long way to walk.”
Jesse nodded and turned his attention back to the road. They were heading southwest on Broadway towards West 43rd Street. Elliot had no intention of leaving the city until this shit storm had hit, and now he was starting to question why he’d told Damon that he was heading back to Lake Placid. He didn’t want to be responsible for anyone, and quite frankly he didn’t know any of these people. It didn’t help that Damon didn’t exactly look trustworthy. His skin was covered in tattoos and he had this hard look to his face as if he’d spent years on the streets. Elliot glanced at Maggie’s leg and then at Jesse. He had contemplated letting Jesse take her home by himself but without a vehicle, Damon was right, it would take them forever to get back. And he had to get back. It was one thing to leave Rayna and the kids behind when the world was functioning, another to know that they were alone while society unraveled around them. He only hoped that Rayna had remembered the notebook, or had managed to get in contact with Gary.
“So, if you’re from Keene, why are you down here? Where were you before this?” Jesse asked Damon.
He glanced at him and smirked. “You’ve got a lot of questions.”
“Just curious.”
“Yeah, well maybe I don’t like answering them.”
He pressed on and Jesse scowled. Elliot wasn’t too bothered by Damon’s wish to not discuss his background. He’d met all types in his time on the streets. People ended up in New York for many reasons, and it wasn’t uncommon to meet folks who were tight-lipped about those reasons. He certainly wasn’t going to share his life story with the rest of them. As soon as they reached Broadway, he’d test her car out and if it fired up, he planned on taking it with or without them.
Ahead of them there were hundreds of people threading their way down the sidewalk and around stalled vehicles in the middle of the street, all of them had this deer in the headlights look on their faces. He spotted a few homeless people, those he’d met in the underground, good folks. Several people shot by on bicycles, nearly bumping into people and causing some to curse. Besides the sound of chatter as people discussed what might have caused the blackout, it was eerily quiet. The regular sounds of the city had vanished. There were no cab drivers honking their horns, no tourist buses taking people around the city, no emergency sirens, just idle chatter.
Maggie turned around and looked back towards Times Square. “It feels wrong to leave.”
“There’s nothing you can do,” Elliot reminded her. As selfish as it might have seemed, their lives mattered as much as those who had fallen. Besides, they didn’t know the full extent of what had happened, right now he was going on his gut instincts and the news he’d read about North Korea in the days prior. For all he knew, it could have just been a solar storm and maybe only New York had been affected.
“But how will these people survive if there is no emergency service?”
Elliot shrugged. He was beyond having a discussion about it. His mind was too preoccupied by his kids. It seemed almost ironic that it had taken something as drastic as this to snap him out of the mental prison PTSD had placed him in. Fortunately, Jesse was quick to fill in the void and answer her question.
“They’ll have to deal with it the way they did before we had electricity, one at a time, however, I don’t expect many will stick around to help, would you?”
“Of course I would. If my damn leg wasn’t bleeding so much I would have stayed back there.”
“Well, aren’t you just the Florence Nightingale,” Jesse said.
She shot him a dirty look. “It’s called being human.”
“Yeah, well why does it take an event like this for people to start treating each other like humans?”
“What are you on about?” Maggie asked.
“I would clarify but I can’t be bothered. Not after the day I’ve had. I just want to get home, have a beer and wait for all this to blow over,” Damon said.
“It’s not going to blow over,” Elliot added gazing into dark stores.
“Of course it will. It always does. Look at 9/11. New York bounced back from that. Look at Katrina, New Orleans, and all the disasters that have happened around the world. Even if the U.S. is in dire straits, other countries will offer aid. Give it a week and someone will throw the switch back on, set up a GoFundMe page and a month from now we’ll be laughing at all of this.”
Elliot chuckled.
“What?” Damon asked.
“Flip the switch? You think this is just about flipping a switch?” Elliot said. “Think about this, Einstein. How long did it take the government to come to the aid of those in Katrina? It was painfully slow because they had to assess, create plans and put in place the teams who would help. That relied on communication, boats, planes, cars. None of that is working right now. We are on our own! Besides, if we just experienced two downed airliners in a small section of Manhattan, think about how many are flying over North America at any given moment? You are looking at around 5,000. Sure, not all of them are going to hit heavily populated areas when they come down, but many will. Then if you think that the emergency services rely on communication, such as online, satellite and telephone infrastructure to support 320 million in the USA, and you are now dealing with one hell of a problem that won’t solve itself overnight, nor will it fix itself within a week or even a month. Now consider the country’s food supplies being decimated by radiation and you have one hell of a serious problem on your hands.”
Damon cast a glance over his shoulder and looked as if he was about to say something but then looked away. Maggie shook her head. “No, I don’t believe it.”
“It doesn’t matter what you believe, look around you. Only the strong are going to survive this.”
“Like you?” Jesse asked.
Elliot smiled. “Look, folks like myself, and those that were spat upon by society have a chance of riding this out because we’ve been living in far worse conditions even when society was functioning, but the rest? Well, that’s a crapshoot. Most city slickers aren’t going to be prepared for this. They’ll have the same mindset as you. You know, that government will have safeguards in place for events like this. That someone is going to swoop in and save the day, but I pose this question to you? What if they don’t? Huh? What if you have to survive the next month or more before government restores everything? How will you manage?”
She starred back blankly.
“Exactly! The fact is most people don’t know how to make a shelter, a fire, how to purify water, or what food to stock. It won’t take long for people to fall sick. Pharmacies will be raided and without medicine in place, it won’t take long for people to die. The truth is no one stocks up in preparation. Most don’t do it. They spend thousands of dollars every year on a car, home and life insurance, they fill up their pension plans with thousands, and yet they don’t think for even a second about creating a bug-out bag or having some backup plan in place for when the shit hits the fan.”
“And you do?” Jesse asked. “Because forgive me for saying this but it doesn’t look like you’re ready. I mean you’re good at lecturing but what have you got in place, Elliot?”
Elliot looked at him and shook his head. There was no point trying to explain it. He understood Jesse’s frustration, but it was a little too late. “Listen, there is something I need to collect before we head over to Brooklyn. I need to duck down into the station on 28th Street. You can wait outside or come with me.”
“What is it?” Maggie asked.
“Just a few things I need.”
As they came around the corner that joined Broadway with 28th Street, there was a stream of people coming out of the subway station. Even as they pushed their way through, some of the ones exiting told them there was no point as it was pitch-dark down there and none of the trains were running. Elliot ignored them and elbowed his way d
own the steps, stopping only to take out a small LED flashlight from his pocket and switch it on. It illuminated the way as they weaved their way through the endless stream of grumbling New Yorkers. Hell, on a good day they were grumpy bastards, but this was truly bringing out the worst in them. Once they made it to the lower section and over to the platform, Elliot didn’t waste a second. He hopped down onto the track without even looking. He trudged on then stopped to look back at the other three standing on the platform.
“Well, are you coming?”
“Where the hell are you going, Elliot?”
“Fine, stay here, I’ll be right back.”
He continued on, leaving them there while he headed further into the tunnel. It wasn’t far from there. Even though he knew those that lived underground because he saw them on a regular basis, he didn’t trust them so he always kept his valuables in different spots, but this was one item he hadn’t returned to since arriving in New York. He hopped up onto a small concrete platform and went up a series of steps, pushed through a gate and entered a crew room. It was dark and dingy inside. A large rat scuttled across the floor out of sight. The floor was littered with dirty needles, clothes, a stained mattress and empty cans of beer and bottles of wine. He shone his light up to where all the pipes were and then put the flashlight between his teeth. He pulled himself up and carefully moved along the brake dust-covered pipes until he saw it. He reached for the backpack and pulled it out of its spot behind a piece of cardboard.