by C. A. Henry
When the children began to wind down, Rose started a Disney video for them in the house, and the adult conversation on the patio turned to the recent events in Afghanistan.
“Why hasn’t OPEC announced a decision yet? The oil ministers are still in Riyadh, and we know that they have met several times, yet we’ve heard nothing. What are they waiting for?” Tanner’s grandfather demanded.
“They must be considering serious options if they’ve deliberated this long without reaching an agreement,” John added. “The longer it takes, the more drastic the sanctions will be, is my guess.”
“When the announcement is made, if the sanctions are severe, the effects will be immediate. Panic, maybe even rioting and looting, are possibilities. If they cut back on oil sales to us, the price will go up and that will trigger general inflation. Or they might keep selling the same amount, but raise the price,” Tanner mused. “Either way, we are going to be paying more for gas.”
***
It was late when Tanner and Erin got back to the lodge. The night was lit by a full moon. Tanner held Erin’s hand as they sat in his truck to talk and gaze at the twinkling stars. Finally, Erin was no longer able to stifle her yawns.
“It’s been a long day. I need to let Blitz out, then I think it’s bedtime for me. Thank you for this evening. Your family is wonderful.”
Tanner pulled her into his arms and kissed her, softly and deeply. “I’m glad you enjoyed it. I’ll walk you to the door, and wait until Blitz is ready to go back in.”
Chapter 12
Last Week of May
After church on Sunday, the congregation had a potluck luncheon in the fellowship hall, located in the old building’s roomy basement. Erin sat with an older couple she had met, but did not know well. Lee and Naomi Gibbs were in their seventies. Lee was tall, but slightly stooped, and had only a fringe of white hair. Naomi was plump, with short, curly hair and deep blue eyes filled with joy. They introduced her to their son, Jimmy, who looked like Lee must have looked when he was younger. Jimmy was in his in his early forties.
The Gibbses lived only about a mile from the lodge, and Erin was glad to get a chance to know them better. Ken and Terri Abbott joined them when the crowd began to thin.
“Have a seat, preacher,” Lee invited. “We were just about to solve all the world’s problems.”
“Well, that would sure be something to brag about if you did, especially with the mess in the Middle East. Terri’s cousin is in the Air Force, stationed at Bagram, and he says that all the Afghan civilians who worked on the base were forced to leave, except those who were charged with poisoning our airmen. Those people are being detained while we argue with the Afghan government over jurisdiction. Any Afghan military personnel who leave the base have to be strip-searched when they return. Tensions are high, to say the least.”
“I heard on the news that we’re sending another carrier group to the Mediterranean. Trouble is brewing, for sure,” Jimmy added. “My boy is draft age, so I sure hope it doesn’t come to that. If he was in the military, his sister would join, too, just to prove to him that she could.”
“Where are the twins?” They didn’t come home yet?” Terri asked.
“No, they stayed in Stillwater for a summer mini-session, trying to get more courses out of the way at OSU. They’ll be home next week, though. Those two are so competitive, I think they’re in a race to graduate, and see who has the highest GPA, too. Heather keeps trying to set Hunter up with her friends, hoping a girlfriend will distract him enough that he’ll make a B.”
“Well, tell them hello for us. We’ll be praying that there’s no reason to activate the draft,” Ken promised.
“Me, too.” Jimmy grimaced. “This situation is so volatile, anything could happen. We all need to be praying a lot.”
When Erin went upstairs with her empty casserole dish, Angie Foster hurried to open the door for her. “Erin,” Angie spoke softly. “Nolan and I would like to visit with you about something real soon. When could we get together?”
Erin looked a bit surprised. “Just about any time. Did you want to meet somewhere?”
“How about your place, tomorrow afternoon, about 1:00?”
“Do you know how to get there?”
“Nolan does. He is one of a very few people who were invited out when Ernie bought the place. We’ll see you tomorrow”
***
Erin pulled the cookies from the oven and set them to cool, then made a pot of coffee. She was getting out cups and small plates when she heard a knock on the front door.
“We hope you don’t mind that we brought our kids, Erin. We try to include them when we can, so they know their way around and understand what is going on. This is Paul, our eldest. He’s a senior at the high school and works at the grocery store.”
Erin shook Paul’s hand, noticing that the tall, thin young man with dark blonde hair had the bluest eyes she had ever seen. Then Angie introduced the other two: Quinn, a green-eyed high school sophomore with wavy brown hair, and Amaya, who was a freshman. Amaya had slightly darker skin, straight black hair, and brown eyes, and looked nothing like the rest of the family.
The girl smiled, and explained. “I’m different, I know. I was blessed to be adopted into this family. I have Japanese ancestry. My biological parents died in a car wreck when I was a baby. ”
“You have a beautiful name. What does it mean?” Erin asked.
“It’s from a Japanese word that means ‘bright star’.”
Erin got out soft drinks for the kids while Angie poured coffee for the adults, and everyone grabbed a cookie or two. Once they were all seated in the living room, Nolan cleared his throat and looked at Angie, who gave an almost imperceptible nod.
“We’ve been wanting to get with you for a few weeks, Erin. Ernie and I made plans for our family to join him if things got too dangerous at our place, or vice versa. We were supposed to be each other’s fallback if an emergency bug-out became necessary, but then Ernie got sick. The McCoy family is part of the plan, too. Did he ever say anything to you about it?”
“No. Of course, I knew he was a prepper, but for a long time, I didn’t take it seriously. That’s probably why he didn’t tell me.”
“He always wanted the best for you, so I assume he left a lot of food and gear, but that’s not why we’re here. We have our own preps, but we would like to discuss whether you want to continue the group plan that we worked out before Ernie passed away.” Nolan paused, and took a deep breath. “We’re convinced that whatever OPEC decides, rough times are coming. You can’t defend this place alone, if it comes to that, and Claire McCoy can’t defend theirs, if Mac is out of town when things go down. She’s pregnant, and they have a little girl, so Mac is trying to get the trucking company to either give him short runs or put him in an office job.”
The plan is that any of us who feel seriously threatened will contact the others by radio, and make arrangements to head to whichever location seems safest, bringing as much in the way of supplies as possible. We all have skills that would be useful. Mac is a ham radio operator and can work on radio equipment and almost anything with an engine. Claire is a fantastic cook and she cans, too. Angie is an ER nurse and knows a lot about emergency medicine. We have a hobby farm, so we have that skill set covered. Our kids all take kenpo classes, and Paul has his black belt. Quinn and Amaya both have brown belts. I was a Marine for twenty years, and we all hunt and fish. We all shoot, too. We’ve taught the kids all sorts of things, like gardening and first aid, and they’ve all been to a survivalist summer camp at least once. Paul has been three times.”
The three teens were listening politely, and petting Blitz. Erin was amazed at their respectful manners.
“This is a lot to take in. I’ve been thinking about who I could get to help if I needed it, and I guess this is the answer.” Erin suggested. “I’ll need to know where your house is. Is it close enough to get to if I have to go through the woods?”
“It is. We ar
e so relieved that you want to be in our group. We’ll need to get together with you and the McCoys to work out details and plan projects,” Angie explained. “We won’t keep you. Thank you for the cookies, and we’ll be in touch soon.”
***
The next morning, Erin took Blitz to Tanner’s facility for a refresher training session. Ian was unavailable, so Tanner put on a bite-suit and Erin ran Blitz through the whole series of commands. The dog performed exceptionally well.
Tanner smiled and scratched Blitz’s head. “I’m super proud of this mutt. He’s the best, the smartest dog I’ve ever trained.”
“Which brings up something you’ve been avoiding,” Erin scolded. “I know, because I did some research, that a dog like this can cost tens of thousands of dollars. I have the money, with royalties coming in from Uncle Ernie’s books. The new one is at the top of the bestseller lists. You need to tell me what I owe you, Tanner.”
Tanner looked perturbed. “To be honest, I never planned to sell Blitz. I wanted to keep him, but for you, I wanted the best protection available. I can’t put a price on him, not for you.”
“You have to. If you sold him to some stranger, what would you charge? I can’t accept him as a gift, not when you earn your living breeding and training dogs.”
“How about this? You keep him healthy, and when the new pup I bought on my trip is old enough, we’ll let him breed her, and I’ll keep the puppies to train and sell. They will be worth a whole lot more than just one dog, even Blitz, because with the bloodlines they have, those two will make some wonderful pups.”
Erin hesitated. “Here’s a better plan. I’ll pay you $20,000 for him, and let you use him as a stud. I can’t keep him otherwise.”
“I don’t want your money, but I have learned already how stubborn you can be. Okay. I’ll use the money to prep some more, which will help us both.”
“It’s a deal.” Erin stuck her right hand out.
“Deal.” Tanner used the handshake to pull her closer for a kiss.
Chapter 13
First Day of June
Erin went to town the next morning to see Richie Baxter. She had thought about what he had said the last time she was in his store, and wanted to know more about him and the plan he had for a collapse. The pharmacy was busy, but she did eventually get a chance to invite him to have lunch with her. They agreed that Erin would pick up some burgers from the diner and bring them back to the drugstore so they could talk privately in his office. Richie put a “Gone to Lunch” sign on the door, and locked it so they could visit in peace.
“Richie, I’ve been meaning to get by and talk with you a little about what you said when I was in here before. You said you have a plan?”
“Erin, I am going to trust you on this. Your uncle was a big influence on me, and I was hoping to have more time to get to know him and learn from him. He got me to thinking about surviving if the world changed drastically, and I’ve done a lot of thinking about things he said in his books. I also read a lot of other books, mostly fiction, about things like EMPs and pandemics, and I realized that a pharmacy becomes a major target for looters if things like that happen.”
“So what will you do? You have narcotics and other drugs in the store, and your life could be in danger if addicts or people who need medicine get desperate.”
“I have decided that when I get the first whiff of the brown stuff impacting the rotary air impeller, I have to move it all out of here, and take it somewhere safe. I’ve changed the way that I stock the drugs. They’re all arranged like normal, but in shallow trays. Those trays are actually lids for some plastic boxes that I purchased, and all I have to do is slide the tray out, put the box on it upside down, and turn the whole thing over. That way, I can have everything boxed up, still pretty much organized, in a matter of minutes. Liquid medications are in a different type of container, so I won’t have to turn them over, and I have a big cooler for the drugs that need to be refrigerated. It’s in the back room, and we sell bagged ice, so I’ll just grab some and dump it in the cooler. The problem is, I don’t really have a safe place to go once I pack it all up. Almost everyone in town knows where I live, so I can’t take the drugs to my house. It wouldn’t be any more secure there than it is here in the store.”
“And you’re wondering if you can come out to my lodge,” Erin guessed.
“Well, yes. I am not sure of the exact location, but who would suspect that I hid the drugs there? I guess it would also mean that I come with them, because the druggies here in town would never believe me if I told them the drugs were gone. I think they would torture me for the location, so I’m not safe anywhere in town.”
“I would like a little time to think on this, Richie. I would love to help you, but I am not the only person who will be affected by your coming out. And I really don’t know you well, but I will say that I am inclined to tell you to come on. I think you would be an asset. I am just trying to make certain that it’s the right decision, because it will be hard to undo if it’s not.”
“I understand.” Richie looked disheartened. “If you decide to let me come, or even if you don’t, we should probably not be seen together in town after today. People might figure out that we’re friendly and come pay a visit to your place, looking for me. I don’t want to put you in danger, even if you say no.”
“Richie, I think you just put several points on the scoreboard. That you would be concerned about me, even if you aren’t to invited to come out to the lodge, says a lot about your character. I’ll get back to you right away. And we’ll just talk on the phone from now on, to preserve security. If I have to come into the store for anything, we’ll act like we are just customer and pharmacist, okay?”
“Okay. I hope you let me join you. I promise not to talk to anyone about your place, regardless of what you decide. And thanks for lunch.”
***
Tanner didn’t answer his phone, so Erin took a chance and drove out to the training facility. He was working the new female shepherd that he had bought on his recent trip. She was a beautiful puppy, and showed real promise as a protection dog. Erin watched as he finished up the session with her, then strolled over to where she sat watching.
“What brings you out here today, gorgeous?”
“I need to run something by you, and it wasn’t something we should talk about on the phone. I tried to call to tell you I was coming, but I guess you were busy. What did you name the new girl?”
“Moxie. She is as courageous as any dog I have seen, and doesn’t back down.” Tanner shrugged. “I have named so many dogs over the years that I’m about out of original ideas.”
“I like it. Can you take a break, or should I come back later?”
“I’m actually through for the day. What’s on your mind?”
“How well do you know Richie Baxter?”
“I’ve known him for about twelve years. He’s a good guy. Why do you ask?”
“Apparently, he’s worried about the possibility of trouble. He said he knows that if things get bad, he and his store will be targets for druggies, and he wants to come out to the lodge and bring the drugs from the store with him. I just don’t know him well enough to answer, without talking to someone who does know him. Uncle Ernie said he thought he was okay. What do you think I should do?”
“I think you should tell him yes. His chances of survival alone are not good, and it isn’t just druggies that he will need to fear. Anyone who needs medication on a regular basis, like diabetics and people with heart trouble, will be frantic. If he runs out of something, and someone needs it, they probably won’t believe him when he says he doesn’t have it. Parents of children who need medicine will be also be desperate, and that’s understandable, but it puts Richie in a bad place. He has always been honest with my family, and I have never heard anyone say anything negative about him.”
“Okay. That’s what I needed to know. Thanks.”
“So, what’s on your schedule for the afternoon? Would you lik
e to take a drive and grab dinner somewhere?”
“Persistent, aren’t you?” Erin gave him a big grin. “Yes, I’d love to, but first, I need to call Richie and tell him that he just joined our group.”
Chapter 14
Second Week of June
Erin threw back the covers and stretched. Sunlight streamed in the bedroom window, promising a beautiful day. Life sure has taken some unexpected turns lately, she thought. A new home, new friends, a new dog, and Tanner. I miss Uncle Ernie, but I am going to do my best to do what he wanted me to do: be happy. No matter what happens, I will try to find good in it.
She had met with the Fosters and the McCoys a few times, and they all knew the evacuation plan, if necessary. All of the things she had ordered online came in, and although it had taken several trips into town, the items were safely stored in the cavern.
She had Tanner’s family over for dinner and it went very well. The pots on the upper deck were full of healthy, growing vegetables that she had already begun harvesting and preserving. There had been no more evidence of prowlers around the lodge, but she knew where Ernie had guns stashed, just in case.
She slipped on her house shoes, let Blitz out, then shuffled sleepily to the kitchen. Two fried eggs, toast, and two cups of coffee later, she was ready to start the day.
The Expedition needed an oil change, so on the recommendations of Lydia and Tanner, she took it to Gus Jenkins. Then she crossed the street to Lydia’s shop. Opening the door, Erin gasped in shock at the mess. Merchandise lay scattered on the floor, as did the obviously damaged cash register. Shelves had been toppled, and Lydia was in tears.
“What happened? Was it a break-in?”
“Yes.” Lydia wiped the wetness from her cheeks. “I already know of several things that are missing. Jewelry, a few paintings, but until I can clean it up, I don’t know what else was taken. The cash register is ruined, and for nothing. I never leave money in there. I put it in the safe in the basement. I don’t think they even went down there.”