The EMP Lodge Series: Books One to Three

by Grace Hamilton

  Megan stayed calm, waited for the right moment and pulled the trigger. The buck dropped.

  “Damn! That was an excellent shot!”

  She stood, dusting off her backside, “I know. Let's go get our dinner.”

  It took them about an hour to field dress the buck. She reminded Wyatt of the importance of dressing the deer right away. The body heat of the deer would spoil the meat quickly, which was why hunting season was during colder weather. It gave hunters wiggle room to get their harvest back and hung. Megan used her hunting knife to make a small incision in the belly and slicing upwards to the neck exposed the muscles. She then used the blade to puncture the muscles before turning the knife to use the gut hook and followed the same incision back down. Once the rib cage was exposed, she sawed through the bone to reveal the lungs and heart.

  “You get to do the icky part,” she told Wyatt.

  He reached in and pulled out the intestines and internal organs, leaving it in one big pile in the meadow. Predators would be dining well tonight.

  Once the deer had been dressed out, they loaded it into one of the game bags. Without a way to get the large animal back to the lodge without dragging it, she wanted to keep the meat as clean as possible. She unrolled the plastic game sled and between the two of them, they managed to get the deer onto it.

  Wyatt pulled the sled while Megan kept her rifle at the ready as they walked to Brenda's house. They knew the Raiders were actively searching for Megan and Brenda.

  Megan heard a noise. The look on Wyatt's face said he heard it too.

  He dropped the sled rope and pulled his pistol from the holster.

  Wyatt put his finger to his lips. She nodded. Her heart raced. They couldn't tell where the noise was coming from. She didn't know where to hide. They could be surrounded.

  “There,” Wyatt whispered pointing ahead and to the right.

  Megan inched forward, her rifle trained in the direction. Wyatt walked beside her. They were prepared to shoot whatever came out of the trees.

  A rabbit came barreling out from the woods hopping for the meadow.

  Megan and Wyatt both laughed in relief.

  When they got there, being careful to avoid the traps Brenda had told them about, Megan gasped when she saw what was left of Brenda's little house. The windows were smashed. Brenda's clothes had been strewn about and discarded.

  “We need to go,” Wyatt said, hyper alert now.

  “I'll grab the traps,” Megan said, running for the barn. There were too many to fit into her pack. She fit as many as she could and hung a few off the carabiner clips attached to her backpack. She put the rest on the sled with the deer.

  Megan ended up helping Wyatt drag the large buck to cover more ground faster. They were in a hurry. Being outside the safety of the lodge made them nervous.

  When they got close, Albert shouted to Chase they were back.

  Chase came out to meet them and took over the dragging duties being careful not to get too close to any of the traps.

  Megan looked at Wyatt. Sweat had broken out across his brow and he was favoring his bad leg.

  “You good? Maybe take it easy the rest of the day?”

  “I'm fine. It’s just a little weak. If I don't work it, it only gets weaker.”

  She nodded, not wanting to push the issue. Rosie would say otherwise.

  “This is great, Megan,” Chase said with a huge smile on his face.

  “How do you know I didn't get it?” Wyatt asked.

  Chase laughed. “Am I wrong?”

  “Well, the next one I guarantee will be one I got.

  “Sure, buddy. Keep telling yourself that.”

  Megan didn't want to insult Wyatt, but he was not the best hunter. It was a timing thing. He was too used to hitting human targets that didn't have the instincts of a wild animal, instincts evolved over thousands of years.

  “He did try that bow, though. You gotta give him credit for that,” Megan added.

  “I think we all better get used to that bow. Once we get all this other stuff taken care of, we will need to do a lot more practice,” Chase said. “It seems like we are always behind the eight ball. No matter what we do or accomplish, there is always so much more to do.”

  All three nodded in agreement. No one said it, but they were all thinking the same thing; if there were more people in the group, they could divide and conquer. Many hands make light work. They would get more done and not have to worry about being unprepared or vulnerable.

  Megan hated the thought, but Jack was right. If they had Evan's people here, the defenses would already be set up. Willow and Rosie would have help to get the camouflage net completed and there would be time to hunt and gather.

  As it was, they were all working from sunup to sundown and beyond. They were exhausted and all of them could use a little downtime.

  The ten minutes they got here and there to play catch with the kids was nice, but she wanted more. She wanted to spend more time with Caitlin just having fun. More people would mean less work and more time with Caitlin and Wyatt. But could she trust the newcomers?

  10

  Wyatt was not about to admit to anyone how bad his leg was killing him. He was very happy the deer hanger was only enough to support one animal at a time. That gave him about three days to rest before they went hunting again.

  In the meantime, he was going to stay close to the lodge and rest when no one was looking.

  His plan was soon completely tossed out the window though. Chase was waiting for him when he walked out of his bedroom, with the glint of a plan in his eye. Wyatt had thought everyone had already gotten started for the day.

  “You good?”

  Wyatt pulled his shoulders back, threw his chest out, “Of course. Why? What's up?”

  Chase looked him up and down, focusing on Wyatt’s limp.

  “I'm fine. What do we need to do?” Wyatt asked, narrowing his gaze at Chase.

  “I want to work on reinforcing the lodge. If they get through the traps out there, we need to be ready in here. If they breach the doors, I think you and I both know our chances of getting out of it alive are slim to none.”

  Chase would never talk like that in front of the women or kids, but given their history together in the military and Wyatt’s time working in SWAT, he knew Wyatt would know exactly what he was talking about.

  Wyatt huffed out a breath knowing it was time to get to work. He was all business now. The leg could rest tonight. There was no way he was going to let anything happen to his family. Not again.

  Wyatt shook his head, “We can't let them get in.”

  “I agree, but we have to be ready for anything.”

  “Our main problem is that front door,” Chase said pointing at the door they rarely used.

  “Let's barricade it.”

  Chase whistled, “I don't know, man. That only gives us one way out. I don't like that at all.”

  Wyatt winked at him, “We can make another way out. My dad originally planned for that outdoor storage room to be a panic room.”

  “Is there access from the inside?” Chase asked.

  Wyatt could see the excitement in his eyes.

  “Well, not technically, but we could make one. That wall over there goes into the storage room. It wouldn't take much to remove the sheetrock. It is basically a hollow wall. We only need a big enough space for us to squeeze through. We wouldn't even have to take out any of the studs.”

  Chase slapped him on the back, “You are a frickin’ genius.” Chase paused, rubbing the side of his face with his thumb, “Or your dad was. Either way, it’s perfect.”

  “We will need something to hide the hole in the wall.”

  Both men looked around the room, searching for an appropriate object.

  Rosie shouted down from upstairs, “If you boys are going to be making a mess in my dining room, you’ll be the ones cleaning it up.”

  Wyatt laughed, “It will actually be the kitchen, mom.”

  “Wyatt
Morris, don't you dare destroy my kitchen!”

  Chase held back a laugh.

  Wyatt rolled his eyes. Big mistake.

  “I know you just rolled your eyes, mister, and I am being completely serious. You better think long and hard about what you are going to do before you start tearing into walls.”

  “I will, mom.”

  He turned to Chase, “Let's go to the storage room and measure just how deep it goes in. That way we can get a better idea where to start tearing walls down.”

  He said the last few words nice and loud so his mom would hear.

  She snorted in response. He could hear her complaining to Willow about the destruction of her kitchen.

  Wyatt opened the side of the lodge that led to the hidden storage room. Chase walked behind him, stretching out a tape measure. They spent a few minutes, tapping walls and measuring distances. They were going to have to move a couple of the water barrels, but their plan would work. It was an excellent idea and one they wished they would have thought of earlier.

  “Okay, so, we need to work on this and how do you want to take care of that front door?”

  Wyatt winked, “Have no fear, my friend. I have a plan.”

  They walked towards the shed. They had been collecting building materials for months and with what his dad had left over from the construction of the lodge, they had quite a pile. Wyatt pointed to a portion of chain link fence that was on top of a pile of wood.

  “That.”

  The fence was picked up with the intention of using it to build of an animal pen. It was a small section, maybe four feet wide and six feet high, but in this world, they knew everything could be useful.

  Chase didn't look convinced, so Wyatt explained his plan.

  “We nail that to the outside of the door. Think of it as bars on a door, but chain link instead. They aren't going to get through the fencing. Hopefully they won't even try,” Wyatt explained. “Plus, we can still open the door for some fresh air.”

  Chase nodded, “Yeah, I guess that would work. Couldn't they just pry the nails out? A drill sure would be nice right about now.”

  “We have the old hand-crank drill, but we also have plenty of nails. I like the idea of shooting at non-moving targets while they pry the nails out,” Wyatt said with a laugh.

  Chase agreed and put it on their list of things to-do.

  “We can also put up the barricades like Megan said Brenda had done. It’s old-fashioned, but effective,” Wyatt added.

  “What about the windows,” he said, looking up at the huge picture windows that overlooked the area. The windows were completely uncovered and allowed plenty of natural light into the lodge, but they were a vulnerability.

  Wyatt shrugged, “There’s nothing we can do about them. We’ll hang the camo nets down, but other than that, we can't do much else. The only way someone is getting through those windows is with a ladder. They can break the windows, but they aren't coming in.”

  Chase had complained about the windows in the past. From a security standpoint, they were a nightmare, but they were also necessary for group morale. If they didn't have plenty of natural light and the appearance of a wide-open space, the lodge would feel like a prison. It was a well-known fact people needed daylight and sunshine. Moods would suffer if they were cooped up in a dark space, day in and day out.

  Both men walked around the lodge, paying careful attention to every detail.

  “We need to cover the smaller windows on the ground floor. Obviously, nobody is coming through them, but we don't want them tossing anything in either,” Chase said pointing to the one window in the kitchen that was still intact.

  The other window had been boarded up after the storm sent a tree limb through it.

  Wyatt walked back to the front of the lodge, looking up at the windows and imagining what it looked like inside.

  “Do you think we can cut holes into the wood up there?” Wyatt asked Chase who was walking towards him. “You know like we had in our bunkers?”

  Chase nodded, “You are just full of ideas today, aren't you? That would be helpful, but I don't know how thick that wood is. Maybe use a chisel and hammer?”

  “We'll figure something out. Then we can have Megan and Willow upstairs with guns. Megan has proven her skills time and again. With a bird's eye view up there, she can take out anyone that gets close. That will also keep them relatively safe.”

  “Okay, well, we have a lot to get done. You sure you’re up to it?”

  “I told you I'm fine. I was just a little stiff after being in bed. Once I get moving, I’ll be just fine.”

  Chase didn't say it, but he clearly didn't believe him.

  “Let's get to it,” Wyatt said, walking away, gritting his teeth through the pain.

  He wanted to drive home the point he was fine. He was back to his old self and ready, willing and able to fight. The leg would heal, eventually. He could get through the pain until it did. If a bit of pain now was the difference between beating McDaniels and being overrun by his raiders, he was willing to suffer. He hoped it was enough.

  11

  Megan finished filling the water bucket for the goats—again. She had to take some extra time to hammer a few pieces of wood together to create a frame for the bucket. The frame was nothing more than a couple of eight-inch pieces of wood nailed to the corner of the fence, about twelve inches off the ground. This created a V for the bucket to sit in so she could pull it out if needed, but the goats wouldn't be able to tip the bucket. They had already spilled it several times, making their pen a muddy mess and wasting precious water.

  “There, now you kids quit knocking it over!” she scolded.

  Duke barked as if to add his own two cents.

  “That's right buddy. They are being naughty goats.”

  Duke barked again.

  Caitlin and Ryland came out of the lodge looking as if the weight of the world was on their shoulders.

  “What's up guys?”

  “Grandma says we have to get all this stuff done before we can play with the ball,” Ryland said revealing how upset he was.

  Caitlin looked at Megan, “Do we have to, mom? We just wanted to play. This is going to take us forever.”

  Megan smiled. Everything was so dramatic at this age. Even an apocalypse wasn't enough to rid the world of preteen attitude.

  “Well, you guys are both old enough to help out. We have a lot to get done around here. Just think about how much fun you’ll have when you’re finished,” she told them, smoothing back Caitlin's hair.

  Ryland kicked at an invisible something on the ground, “Well, we better get started, Caity, or we’ll never finish.”

  “How about this?” Megan started, doing her best to sound positive and upbeat. “You guys take care of your chores, Wyatt and I will take care of our chores, and if we all get done, we can play a game of baseball. Maybe we can talk everyone else into playing as well.”

  A huge grin spread across Caitlin’s face, “Yes! I want to play baseball, mom!”

  Ryland played it off, but she could tell he was excited by the idea.

  “Okay,” he said, “But this is a big list. I don't know if we can finish all of it.”

  “Then we’ll have to wait until tomorrow or the next day. We can't play until the list is completed.”

  She hoped that would be enough incentive for them. They did tend to get a little off-task when they were together. Willow had decided to keep them separated when it came time for their school sessions. They would either laugh over the silliest things and lose focus or grumble at each other about every little thing.

  They were best friends, which made all the adults happy. They kept each other occupied and the friendship provided a sense of normalcy.

  Megan told them to stay close and headed towards the back door.

  She could hear Ryland grumbling about how much they had to do. They were kids and shouldn't have to do so much work, but this was the new world they lived in.

  Rosie w
as in the kitchen, cleaning up after breakfast.

  “I saw the kids,” Megan said.

  Rosie started to laugh, “I know, you would think I sent them to dig their own graves.” She held up the baseball. “Who knew this thing would wield so much power.”

  Megan laughed, “In the old days, we could threaten to take away the smartphones or television. Today, we get to take away their ball. Boy have things changed!”

  “Yes, they have. They only have a few things to do. I asked them to collect more moss, some grass and twigs that are already on the ground. We are hoping to finish those nets today so Chase and Jack can get them hung.”

  “I can help. We aren't going hunting until the other deer is off the hanger.”

  Rosie grimaced, “Yes, that is why we need to finish the nets today so we can start processing that thing tomorrow. Don't get me wrong, I am excited for the meat, but I do not relish the slicing and dicing part of it.”

  Megan agreed with her. The luxury of going to a butcher for her meat was something she vowed never to take for granted again. That is, if the luxury was ever available again.

  Jack came in through the back door. He didn't look happy.

  “What's up?” Megan asked.

  “Albert needs a break. He has been up in the lookout since daybreak. I have to go up, but I wanted to grab a jacket. It’s chilly out there when you aren't working up a sweat.”

  Megan thought about it for a second, “I'll take the watch. That way you can keep working on the perimeter.”

  When it looked as if he was going to argue, she shook her head, “Don't even try to say something along the lines of me being a girl and all that. You all know I can shoot better than most of you and my eyes work just fine. I can also scream like a banshee if I need to. Just go back to what you were doing and I will relieve Albert.”

  Jack hesitated and looked towards Rosie.

  “She'll be fine, Jack. Get some water before you head back out,” his mother lectured.

  “Okay, I’ll grab my coat and then head out there. Thanks, Megan.”