Shelter: Book 2, A Long Days Night (23 page)

“Shit, you’re saying we’re facing a war on the continent worse than in the 1940’s?”

“That’s correct. Many of you no longer have a viable military. You relied on us, well, we’re gone. The President withdrew our troops and equipment from Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. By the time we could load troops and equipment, the war will be over.”

“I don’t understand, you moved half a million people to the Middle East in the first Gulf war.”

“We have a third of the front line forces we did then. David, I’m sorry, but we’re sitting this one out. Frankly, the future of America is still in doubt. We can’t shift focus from our internal issues to Europe. Frankly many of our people think it’s about time you people settle your own issues. We’re tired of bailing you out only to have you turn on us until you need us again.”

“General, will you sell us some of your mothballed ships and planes?”

“David, I’m sorry, but this was also discussed, given our losses in the Pacific we’ve started to recall and refit our mothballed fleet. Unless our President and the Chinese Premier can reach an agreement on a payment plan, we’re going to need everything we have to fight the Chinese.”

“Do you think your spat with the Chinese is going to expand?”

“Yes, both leaders’ feet are in cement, neither are changing their bargaining positions. Hence, we’re going to talk our way into an expanded war.”

“How are you going to pay for it?”

“That’s above my pay grade. I fight them, I don’t pay for them. I’m sure Congress will find a way to give us what we need. My staff thinks the dollar will rebound when your war breaks out. When it does, we’ll be able to buy what we need to teach the Chinese a lesson.”

“General, thank you for listening to me. I wish America had a different mind, but I understand your answer. My own military told me what your answer would be. I told them I’d try to convince you to help us for old time’s sake.”

“Mr. Prime Minister, I’m sorry, but America is sitting this party out. I wish you the best of luck.”

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Seven weeks into the crisis the price of a loaf of bread, if one could be found, is $35.00, a gallon of gasoline costs $100.00, that’s if anyone outside of the military or first responders could find a gallon of gasoline. The only milk available was powdered unless one lived near a dairy farm and had something of value to trade what the farms needed. When the economy crashed, millions of immigrant workers who usually worked on the farms returned to their native countries. They were replaced by average people who offered to trade their labor on the farms for fresh milk and vegetables. They quickly learned the work was backbreaking, it was long and hard, office work or playing video games didn’t prepare people to work in the fields. It was work that many lined up for, work that started at sunrise and ended at sunset. Too many people had grown overweight and lazy, many gave up, they walked out of the fields within the first hour, they couldn’t handle the backbreaking manual labor. As people gave up, others were lined up to take their place. Many seemed willing to try anything to put food on their tables and feed their hungry families.

In scenes taken from the pages of American history books, every city has people set up tables trying to trade or sell their goods and services for food. Streets that were once filled with cars and trucks are now lined with people trying to trade everything they have for a scrap of food. Rats and mice are caught for stew. Dogs and cats are captured and killed for food until most have disappeared from the towns around the country. Small game animals have been hunted to almost extinction by the hungry. Women and even children reverted to the oldest trade in history for food. Slavery’s made a rebirth as people were willing to sell themselves for food and shelter.

The US military and FEMA tried delivering MREs to the hungry, the strong and well armed stole the MREs from the weak. Most first responders left to be with their families, there was no fuel to make their patrols and being out in the cities was a dangerous adventure. Their jobs have been taken over by the Army, who dislike their assignment of policing US citizens. Washington D.C. issued orders to the Army to search homes for hidden food and precious metals, the Army is ordered to confiscate any food supplies in excess of three days for the use of the local town.  Most of the soldiers refuse to follow their orders. Local militias contact their local Army commanders to discuss the situation. The militias inform the Army officers that they’re on the same side and there’s no reason for them to be fighting each other. Both are Americans, the militia begs the Army not to follow their orders. In most cases, the Army and militias reach an agreement not to fight each other. Most Army officers agree their number one job is the protection of the American people. Washington tried to replace officers with political ones who agreed to fire on Americans and follow orders to strip assets from Americans. These new officers weren’t field officers, most had never set foot outside of the Pentagon or another similar office. Unfortunately for these officers, they usually met with deadly accidents.

In the rare instances where the new political hack Army officers survived, the militia and Army fought each other in senseless battles. While the Army had heavier weapons, the militia knew the area and fought with a spirit the Army didn’t have. Washington wasn’t happy with the Army’s results. The President sent the Department of Home Land Security, dressed in black, into the towns and cities to locate and confiscate the supplies the Army couldn’t locate so these supplies could be redistributed to the needy.

The Army and militias joined together to fight the DHS black shirts for the soul of America. The battles were long and bloody. Outlaw gangs fought against both the army and the black shirts. This resulted in the militias, the Army, and the black shirts working together to clear the country of the outlaws.

When the financial crisis struck, many thought it would quickly end and everything would quickly turn around. Unfortunately, too many learned too late the economy didn’t quickly turn around. When the electrical grid died, taking with it the pumping of fresh water, millions died, completely unprepared for life without modern conveniences. They weren’t prepared nor did they know how to defend what was theirs. Those who had supplies were quickly overrun by hungry family and friends who figured out they had supplies. Hundreds of millions of tears were shed when front doors were slammed shut on hungry neighbors and friends. The hungry, with nothing to lose, got together to break into people’s homes to take what they needed. Mini civil wars broke out across the country.  America became covered in blood. Fifteen percent of the country lost their lives within the first seven weeks of the financial meltdown and loss of electrical power. Bodies were left were they died, no one had the time or resource to collect the dead to bury them. Family members and friends tried to bury some in shallow graves, resulting in some bodies being eaten by hungry animals.

The decaying bodies smelled horrible, the putrid smell reeking with disease, made millions sick, entire areas of cities were abandoned due to the smell of the dead. These areas became no man's lands, left to rot and fall apart. A few homeless refugees tried hiding in the no man's lands before they came down ill from the many diseases spread by the dead. Fleas and other insects spread diseases through the cities. In New York City alone, hundreds of thousands became ill from the diseases. Mayor de Blasio worried he was going to lose his city. He ordered the city sanitation workers to stop picking up trash and start picking up bodies. He ordered the various hospitals and the city FEMA to provide all of the body bags available to wrap the dead in. People were instructed to place a white towel in their window to show they had a body to be picked up. The sanitation department drove through the city looking for white towels, they stopped, picked up the bodies which were zipped into body bags and dumped in the trash trucks. He ordered the disposition of the bodies kept secret. He knew if word spread what he was doing with the bodies he would have a mass riot on his hands. As a kid, one of his favorite movies was Soylent Green. In the movie, bodies were turned into food, he commissioned a study group to determine if he could turn bodies into food, thus feeding his city. He learned in reality, science hadn’t advanced as far as it had in the movies. His commission did propose using the bodies to run the city’s electrical plants, which he quickly adopted, the city’s remaining population didn’t know how the mayor got the lights back on, but they loved him for it. They were overjoyed to have their lights back on.

Mayor de Blasio considered how to deal with the spread of diseases from the no man’s areas. He decided to set the area on fire, he was sure the fires would burn out the insects and the diseases, saving the rest of his city. He ordered the NYFD to turn natural gas trucks into large flame throwers. The NYFD started with five streets in Harlem. The fires soon took on a life of their own, burning out of control. The plan to burn four blocks turned into a major disaster when twelve blocks flamed out of control. The NYFD was pressed between setting fires and trying to put other fires out. Dense black clouds covered the city, residents felt like hell had erupted upon them. Panic consumed those trying to escape the city. With the tunnels and GW Bridge destroyed, hundreds of thousands tried to walk towards Connecticut. They quickly learned it was much further than any realized.

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We slowly approached my house. The back door was open. I raised my hand to tell my group to pause and be quiet. We waited at the open door to listen for any sounds. We didn’t hear anything from inside my house. I forgot there was a camera mounted on my helmet which was broadcasting what I saw back to the monitors in the security room. I didn’t realize Lacy and Cheri were sitting in the security room watching the images from our mission. My heart felt like it was beating in my throat. I admit I was scared to take the next step across the threshold into my own house. Tony tapped me on my right shoulder, he bend close to my ear, “Jay, want me to go first?”

“No, it’s OK, I’ll do it.”

“Are you sure. I know it can be very stressful.”

“I’m ready.”

I take a deep breath, holding it in, I take the first step into my house for the first time in seven weeks. I debated turning the lights on, but I didn’t want to announce to those in our other homes we were here, so we kept the house in the dark. I turned my helmet light on and walked into our kitchen, standing to the right of the doorway I held it open for the rest of my team to join me. We scanned the kitchen with our helmet mounted lights and stood in shock. My kitchen has been destroyed. Even our stove has been pulled away from the wall, all of the sheetrock has been ripped open. The floor is covered with trash and waste. The walls of our refrigerator had been ripped open, Dutch must have been looking for money we’d hidden in the walls. If the rest of my house looks like this, I’m going to have to tear apart the entire inside of the house and rebuild it. I’m happy Lacy doesn’t see what they did.

Lacy and Cheri sat in the security room in shock, they were viewing the images from my helmet camera. Lacy sat in silent shock before she started crying. Cheri tried to console her friend. “Lacy, everything can be replaced.”

“How? There are no stores open anymore. How are we going to rebuild? It’s not like we can call in a contractor to handle everything. Oh, Cheri, we might as well burn the house down. I don’t know if I want to set foot in it again.”

“Lacy, everyone will pitch in. We’ll be able to make it better than new.”

“Cheri, just a few months ago it was new, it was my dream house, look what they did. Look at my kitchen, look at the fridge, look at the range, it’s in the middle of the kitchen.” Tears flow like waterfalls out of Lacy’s eyes, she’s uncontrollably shaking.

“Lacy, why don’t we get a cup of coffee, I don’t think this is a good idea.”

“I want to see what’s happening.”

“Lacy, everything is being recorded, we can watch it when Jay and the others return, it will be easier for you to watch it with Jay, he’ll be able to give you the details of what you think you’re seeing.”

“Cheri, I don’t think I see something, I know what I see. You might have a good idea to wait for Jay’s return.”

While Cheri and Lacy are hugging each other, an alarm in the security room sounds. They look up to see the sensor marked “WEATHER” flashing red. Cheri says, “Lacy, what does that red flashing light mean?”

“Cheri, I think it means a severe weather front like a tornado is headed towards us. Crap, the boys, are up top in our house, they don’t know about the weather front, we don’t have any way to contact them. They could get caught in the middle of the storm.”