When he met the Bluhms’ at the hospital again, they told him they were staying in the city to have dinner and thanked him again. Judy was doing fine, but was going to stay in the hospital overnight, then stay with a cousin in the city until the baby came.
He made another stop, at the larger of the two shopping malls the city boasted. He spent much of the early afternoon there and left with a dozen shopping bags. He’d made three trips out to the Suburban to take things out, he’d bought so much.
Percy didn’t particularly like firearms, though he did use them like the tools they were. He’d ordered a few items almost three weeks before. There’d been a waiting period and this was the first time he’d been in since the waiting time was up.
The clerk helping Percy carry out the ammunition and the reloading supplies and equipment asked Percy, “How’d you know so far ahead this was going to happen?”
“Know?” Percy asked. “I didn’t know. I just… like to be prepared.”
“Yeah. You’re definitely prepared now. You know good stuff when you see it. That is a cool Suburban.”
“Thanks. And thanks for helping me load. I need to head back.”
“Sure thing. Come back any time. Ask for me. I made a nice commission on this sale.”
Percy waved politely. He didn’t like that clerk much. He wasn’t bloodthirsty and out to hurt anybody. It was just prudent to have the most effective means available to protect himself and those in his care. The clerk was of a mind to just go out and shoot someone for sport, using the situation as an excuse.
With the Assault Weapon Ban not having been renewed for the moment, he decided to get a few things he couldn’t get while the ban was in effect. A pair of the old pistol grip, collapsible stock Heckler and Koch HK-91 .308 rifles and thirty twenty-round magazines, plus thirty thirty-rounders. The two collapsible stock versions would give him six of the HK-91s, including the four HK-91A2s he already had in the gun safe at home. He’d had those since well before the ban, along with four of the very rare, and very expensive, G8 50 round single stack drum magazines.
He’d picked up some thirty round Ruger 10-22 magazines. He had three of the .22 rimfire rifles. The shop had two Mossberg Model 590 12-gauge riot guns and a Remington 11-87 semi-automatic. He’d taken all three of the shotguns and an extended magazine tube and folding stock for the Remington. They brought his total combat shotgun count to six, including two more of the 11-87s with extended magazines and a Remington 870 with pistol grip folding stock and extended magazine.
Again, since they were available once more, he’d added another thirty AUG thirty-round magazines to the order for the four Steyr AUG carbines he’d picked up when he got the original HK-91s. That gave him a total of a hundred AUG magazines.
He hadn’t ordered any additional handguns or hunting rifles. He had plenty of both, including five Para-Ordinance P14s, 3 Glock 21s, a Browning Hi-Power, three Ruger 22/45s, four HK-4s with all four conversion kits each, and an assortment of Ruger single actions, some with interchangeable cylinders, to handle a variety of other calibers.
His hunting rifles included Remington 700s in .223, .243, .270, and .350 Remington Magnum. He had a pair of the rifles each in .308, .30-06, and .375 H&H Magnum. Percy didn’t really count what he considered his fun guns. He’d grown up watching re-runs of the 1950s and ‘60s westerns and had Marlin lever action rifles in .45-70 and .45 Long Colt. He had a pair of Stoeger 12-gauge coach guns and three Ruger Blackhawks, also in .45LC. He also had companion American Derringer Corporation derringers in .45LC and .45ACP.
Also mostly for fun, though they did have serious uses, each of his highway vehicles carried a Marlin Camp Carbine in .45ACP with half a dozen spare magazines.
As far as ammunition went, this order included ten thousand rounds each of .308 and .223 to bring his total up to fifty thousand rounds each. Also included two thousand rounds each of 12-gauge slugs, 12-gauge #4 buckshot, and a thousand rounds of various numbered shot. He already had similar amounts for the .45s, and over a thousand rounds each of the other handgun and hunting calibers he used.
When it came to .22LR he was just as well supplied. Another fifty thousand rounds, ten percent of which was BB caps, CB caps, and shorts.
Since he only expended a few rounds a year for practice and to do the little hunting he did, Percy had never really done much reloading. The twins were into it and provided him with some specialty ammunition he liked to keep on hand. They had pretty extensive reloading equipment and supplies and he’d just bought a complete set of reloading tools and components to reload every cartridge and shell he used, except the rimfires. He counted himself lucky to have found another three hundred 12-gauge brass empty shells. He’d ordered two hundred fifty of them once before and paid the twins to load them for him.
His errands accomplished, except for getting Sara to agree to move out to the estate, Percy headed back. He wanted to get there in time to help take care of the animals. He didn’t want Susie to have to do it on her own, though she was perfectly capable of doing so.
Percy smiled when, at four o’clock, he heard Jock’s voice on the radio mounted in the Suburban. “This is Jock. Radio check. Percy, are you there?”
“I’m here,” Percy replied, picking up and keying the microphone. You’re loud and clear.”
“We’re just going in to get something to eat and thought it’d be a good time to do the radio check.”
“Consider it a successful check,” Percy responded.
“We’re checking in, too,” Susie said. “Everything is fine. Have you seen the news?”
“Negative,” Percy replied. “What’s up?”
“Korea is looking worse,” Susie replied. “Oh. And we moved. I went ahead and moved the rest of our stuff to one of the rooms in the utility barn. That way the cottage is available for someone else to use if you need to.”
There was a hint there that Percy didn’t take to let them know if Sara was coming out to the estate. “You didn’t need to do that. But it might not be a bad idea.”
When he didn’t elaborate, Susie said, “Okay, Boss. I can take care of the animals if you’re running late.”
“Nope,” Percy said, activating the gate opener remote. “Be there in a minute. I’ll help with the animals.”
“Mom didn’t argue at all when I said you wanted us to move into the house for a while,” Susie said when she met him at the animal barn.
“I didn’t think she would, actually,” Percy replied as they worked to bring the animals in and get them fed and bedded down. “Your mother is a very practical woman. She knows I’m going to be pretty active ‘til this is all over and it’ll be easier for her to just be there around the clock to keep me out of trouble.”
Susie laughed. “She did actually mention something to that effect.”
They were silent after that, until they’d finished. When Susie went to help him move the things from the sporting goods store, she exclaimed, “Geez, Boss! You expecting a war?”
“Yes,” Percy said quietly.
“Oh,” Susie replied softly. “Maybe you’d better teach me to shoot something besides a twenty-two,” she added after a moment.
“I don’t want to do that unless you really want to. I don’t want you to feel like you have to defend the estate. That’s my responsibility.”
With a ferocity that surprised Percy a little, Susie replied, “This is my home, too. You’ve said so, Mr. Jackson. I’ll do what’s needed to protect it.”
“Well, if you’re sure, we’ll get you started at the first opportunity.”
Susie was grinning at him suddenly. “You didn’t say after we checked with Mother.”
Percy grinned back. “You’re a big girl now and can make your own decisions. Your mother said that herself. I should treat you more like the woman and lady you are, rather than the girl I tend to treat you like.”
“I don’t know. Sometimes it’s a lot easier being a little girl than it is a woman.”
�
��You can handle it just fine. Are handling it. You obviously got Andrew headed in the direction you wanted.”
With a fond smile Susie responded. “Well, not completely, but… yeah… I think he might just ask me to move in with him soon. Maybe even marry him.”
“He’s a fool if he doesn’t.”
“That’s so sweet, Mr. Jackson. You sound just like a dad.”
“Yeah? Well…” He let the words trail away, slightly pink. “I’ll get the rest if you can help your mother. I’d like to eat in the dining room. I can see the TV in the living room from my chair in the dining room.”
“Okay,” Susie said. “I’ll set the table for Mother.”
Percy moved the things he’d bought at the mall to his suite of rooms in the two story seven bedroom, eleven-bath earth sheltered dome home. He had a large bedroom with attached bath and large walk-in closet. The suite also included a small den slash home office. It was as nice as the estate office in the big den down stairs, just smaller. What was once intended to be a nursery adjoining the bedroom Percy used simply as a storage room. That’s where he dropped his recent purchases. He’d put them away later.
They were all a bit subdued as they ate. The stalemate in Korea seemed to be heating up. China was making noises about the fallout coming from Pakistan caused by the Indian nuclear attack. One report indicated that India was warning Pakistan to withdraw from the disputed area and acknowledge India’s sovereignty or they would renew the attack, the implication being with nuclear weapons again.
“This is bad. It might be all the excuse China needs to invade India,” Percy said. “I saw a report last night that indicates China is massing troops along their common border.”
“If China gets involved directly, there or in Korea, do you think the US will respond?” asked Mattie.
“Yes. Other reports are linking China and or North Korea with the terrorist attacks here. I think they might have been trying to keep the US at home with the disasters to take care of, plus put the UN out of easy commission. Not like they can’t meet at The Hague or something, but most of the ambassadors and their staffs died in the attack. Lot of embassies put out of commission directly or due to radiation. The UN is not going to be effective for some time to come, if ever.”
Suzie looked at Percy and said, “I’m afraid if North Korea uses a nuke in South Korea, the US will have to respond. Our troops are directly involved in that fighting.”
“Carolyn Mathew’s boy was killed over there yesterday, apparently. They got word today. I talked to Helen today and she told me,” Mattie said.
“Too many people are dying in too many places,” Percy said quietly. “Let’s just hope and pray it doesn’t come any closer to us than that. Uh-oh.”
The news channel changed to a shot of another mushroom cloud. There was no audio at the moment, but the words Seoul, South Korea were superimposed over the cloud.
“That tears it,” Percy said.
Another news channel was reporting that China was again warning all nations to stay out of the troubles in the Far East. The station showing Seoul now had another mushroom cloud on screen, this one listed as New Delhi, India.”
Yet another channel now had a translation of a Chinese announcement that due to the attacks in Pakistan by India, China was receiving fallout and therefore considered the attack by India on Pakistan an attack on China and had retaliated in kind. There were reports that the Chinese were massing an amphibious force on the coast facing Taiwan. Again China issued warnings to leave the Far East to deal with its own problems.
“No way is that going to happen,” Percy said. “Okay. It’s time to batten down the hatches. Susie, do you think you can use the Bobcat to move straw bales in front of the barn doors?”
“Sure, no problem. But why?”
“I want to put up a dirt berm in front of all the doors of all the barns. We’ll use the straw as a vertical backstop. I’ll use a Unimog to move the dirt from the stockpiles I had Reynolds build. This is the future construction I was talking about. Mattie, I want you to keep an eye on the news and fix us something to eat about midnight. It’ll be that late by the time we get finished.”
It didn’t take quite that long. Percy picked up speed on each circuit from the stockpiles to the barns. It was the same with Susie. She was good on the Bobcat anyway, but her speed picked up significantly as she took straw bales from their stack near the storage barn and stacked them in a curve in front of each of the barns where the doors were located. They didn’t need to do the houses. Susie realized that one of the design elements of the houses was a berm similar to what they were building, but as part of the total design of the structures.
She thought they should go higher, but Percy pointed out that any radiation coming over the berms from ground level would only hit the roof projection that covered the space where the doors were located. Susie had never seen the need for the awnings Percy had put on the projections. They seldom extended them. There’d been a few times when they’d worked under them in the heavy rains when they needed to work on a piece of equipment.
Their use in this situation became obvious when Percy finished the first berm. He’d taken one of the rolls of plastic from the shop barn and tucked one edge under the top layer of straw bales before he started piling dirt. Susie thought it was just to protect the straw. When he piled the dirt on the slope the tiered straw created, then brought the plastic up and over it, to tuck under that top row of bales again she realized that the awning would direct any fallout that would have fallen between the berm and the building onto the plastic covered slope of the berm.
There was enough room to allow the Bobcat 5600T to get through and into the barns. The only one they did differently was the equipment barn. They had to leave enough room to bring out the equipment. On that one, Percy had Susie build a row of bales two high about where the berm was on the other barns. He laid down a sheet of plastic between the berm and the short wall, forming a channel that would catch anything from the awning. With the slight slope he put on it, he would be able to wash any accumulation of particles to outside the area of the berm.
“Clever,” Susie said when she saw what he was doing.
“I’ve been thinking about things like this for years. Let’s just hope it’s a big waste of time,” Percy replied.
“Yeah.”
Mattie had the snack ready, despite their having finished by shortly after eleven. “Things still the same,” she told them as they ate and watched the news. “Just more posturing on everyone’s part.” She sighed. “And aid efforts. Everyone that can is sending teams and equipment. Or at least getting them ready to go. No way they can travel at the moment.”
“What’s the US response to the nuke on Seoul and the activity on the China coast?” Percy asked.
“Nothing,” Mattie replied. “At least nothing on the news. I can’t believe they’re just sitting there doing nothing, though.”
“They aren’t. Have there been any shots of the President’s helicopter landing or taking off from the White House?” Percy asked then.
“Why?” asked Susie after Mattie had indicated there had been.
“Probably means he’s headed for an airborne command post or a bunker. I’m glad we got things ready. I guess we might as well go to bed. Nothing we can do and tomorrow may be a long day.”
When they got up the next morning they saw the reports. Japan had asked for help, since some of the islands were in the fallout path of the detonation in Seoul. Two carrier battle groups were headed that way to support the one normally stationed in the area. There’d been three communist coups in the Russian republics and more seemed likely.
The Germans were demanding the US turn over the nuclear arsenal within their borders to them so they could protect themselves against the newly communist Russian Republics. France was rattling sabers at everybody. Great Britain had finally ordered her subjects to come back home, rather than the strong suggestions given before. Brazil warned all the involved nat
ions to leave them out of the mix. They all but said they had nuclear weapons and would use them if attacked.
Little additional information came to light that day. The next day was different. They woke up to reports that the US Navy had used a nuclear cruise missile to hit Pyongyang and issued an ultimatum for North Korea to withdraw from South Korea and for China not to interfere further. The ultimatum included a warning that the US would help defend Taiwan if there was an invasion.
Percy was debating on whether to call Sara and try to talk her into coming out to the estate again. He didn’t have to. Sara called him. She was excited.
“Percy, have you heard? The federal government has announced a new Sheltering Plan. Information and instructions are in the process of being issued to implement it. It just came in a little while ago in the state offices. We’re supposed to start distributing as soon as we can. From the little I saw, it looks like they are following your advice.”
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