The Ark of Asylum (The Ark Series Book 1) (5 page)

“That’s not the point. The point is they have no right to come on our land and take pictures of anything. It’s not right. It’s the principle of it all! Listen, I’m going to have Adam send off a briefing on exactly what we’re making here, explaining to them that we’re not building guns, just modifying them to make them safer and forcing the user to be more responsible. We will also be sending out a few of our prototypes to appease them, but that’s it. They are not stepping foot on our land, and that’s that!” John throws up his arms and plops them on his head as he turns and starts to walk out of the room.

“Honey, please don’t walk away from me. We’re in the middle of a conversation. You know I hate it when you do that.” Kate puts down the spatula and John stops in the doorway. “Please don’t make this out to be any bigger than it is. Let’s just resolve this issue and give them what they want and be done with it. We’ve worked too hard and come too far to start any . . . conflicts with our government. It’s just not worth it.”

“It’s the principle of it all, baby, the principle! I’m going to send that information and briefing off to them and see what happens, and we’ll go from there, alright, but that’s all I’m giving them right now, and that’s the end of it.” John comes over and kisses Kate on the cheek then snags another cookie.

“Fine, ya stubborn old kook, just keep me informed on what happens in case I need to move our family to the Ark when our government attacks us!” Kate shakes her head and goes back to irritably mixing the batter.

“No one is going to attack us. Besides, we are well equipped enough to defend ourselves.” John chuckles.

“That’s not funny, John. Remember you have three beautiful kids, a loving wife, and a couple hundred people to think about before you get all macho and territorial with the U.S. government, okay!” Kate increases her mixing speed, purposely wanting to look perturbed.

“I know, I know, and you know I would never put this family in harm’s way. I’m just trying to make a point. That’s all. I won’t let it go too far I promise. Okay? Just trust me,” John says apologetically as he walks out of the room.

About a week later, John sits in his office talking to his niece, Maggie. “Well, I understand you wanting to stay and finish school, and hopefully you’ll join us after you graduate, but that’s up to you. But get to class, and I’ll talk to you later—I love you too. Have a good night.”

He hangs up the phone and tries to refocus his mind back on working on some new material he received from his production company’s headquarters. When his intercom flashes and beeps twice, he picks up the receiver.

“Hello, Adam. Nice to hear from you. I hope you have some good news for me.”

“Good morning, sir. I hope I’m not disturbing you, but I have some news concerning our conversation last week.”

“You’re not disturbing me at all, just getting some work done. That’s all, but it can wait. Why don’t you come down to the house, and we can discuss this?”

“Sure thing, sir, I’m on my way.” Adam hangs up the phone and swiftly leaves his office. He rides his horse down to the house and knocks at the front door. Kate answers the door with a smile.

“Well, hello, Adam. Come in. How’ve you been?”

“Fine, ma’am, just fine. How about yourself? How are the kids doing?” Adam walks through the doorway and takes his hat off.

“We’re all doing fine, just busy. John told me you were coming. I hope you have some good news and that you can convince my stubborn husband to come to his senses,” Kate laughs as she closes the door.

“Not as good of news as you would like, ma’am, but I should probably discuss this with the boss first.”

“Of course. He’s in his office.”

Adam thanks Kate and walks down the hall and knocks on the office door. After John yells to come in, Adam opens the door, hanging his head.

“Come on in, Adam. Please sit. By the looks of it, it doesn’t seem like you have good news.”

Adam enters the room, shakes John’s hand, and sits down. “Well not so much, sir. I spoke with the head of Homeland Security, and he said they’ve received our briefing and the prototypes we sent out, but they are still requesting they come and take a tour of the facilities. He said that this is non-negotiable. He also said if we do not comply with their request, they will be forced to send in the ATF. He added that it wouldn’t be in anyone’s interest to go that route, but that non-compliance would leave them no choice in the matter.”

“Are you kidding me? They want to storm my house with ATF agents! Are they out of their fucking minds?” John raises his voice and starts getting very angry. “That is their response? To come into my home like another Waco and point guns at my family all because they are not satisfied with them not knowing what we’re doing out here? Unbelievable! You can tell them if they even try to step foot on my land, they will be met with strong resistance, but that it wouldn’t be in anyone’s best interest to go that route. Who the hell do they think they are, the fucking Gestapo?”

“Sir, I don’t think that’s a very good idea, being how the country is in and has been in a state of emergency for quite some time now. There’s no telling what they’ll do. They’ll probably come in here with force and aggression, and that would be bad, sir, very bad.” Adam pleads.

“This has gone far enough, and I will not stand for it! Bunch of control freaks! Fuck that! Listen, don’t tell my wife about this, and in the mean time, I want you to get with engineering and construction so we can build a steel-barred, gated fence around the entire perimeter. I also want to beef up the security personnel and the security around the perimeter. Also let’s get a few drones of our own up there in case they decide to send one of theirs out again; next time we can meet them in the sky. You tell them that they have no right on my land, and they will be violating everyone’s constitutional rights doing so. Remind them that we have been cooperative with information up until now and that we are doing nothing illegal or that would in any way endanger any U.S. citizens or the government!” John slams his hand on his desk and turns his chair around looking out the window. He can’t make himself let this go. He knows he is right about this.

“I’ll get right on that, sir. Try to have a nice day, John. Sorry for the bad news.” Adam quickly leaves the room and exits the house without saying bye to Kate. Kate immediately walks into John’s office, her curiosity obviously getting the best of her.

* * *

When days turn into weeks and there is still no word from the government concerning the issue, John starts to wonder if they have just given up or if they are planning something. He’s convinced it is the latter. He knows the government just won’t roll over on this, especially with what kind of state the country is in nowadays. The world is on the brink of a potential third world war, and tensions are high all over the globe. Reports from all over the world say that countries are being attacked by countries like Iran, Iraq, North Korea, and maybe even China. A new world war technically hasn’t begun yet, but it is only a matter of time before this happens.

Speculations of a joint effort by these counties are on the rise with tyranny and mass destruction as their main objective. England has been hardest hit by terrorist attacks, followed closely by the United States, both of which have been ruthlessly bombed and attacked for years and with no clear enemy responsible for the attacks. The four countries that are believed to be behind the attacks have claimed no responsibility, making some believe that these countries aren’t responsible for the attacks at all and that who are really behind these attacks are multiple and separate weapon manufacturing companies in effort to sell more guns to the American public and the world, thus making more profit from fear. After the banking crises, which happened over fifteen years ago, the public’s trust in corporations has never recovered, and the inhuman act of greed is always in the back of people’s minds.

John sits at his computer trying to grasp and comprehend just what could happen in the world much sooner than he thought. With countries that are under attack by terrorists now building their armies and increasing their offensive attack capabilities, it seems certain that war is inevitable. He contemplates the ramification of a world war and knows that the process of preparing the town for a massive attack must be sped up and fine-tuned. He picks up the telephone and dials out. “Adam. This is John.”

Adam answers, “Hello, sir. What can I do for you?”

“First things first, have you heard anything from Homeland Security or anyone about their issues with us?”

“No, sir, not a word, but of course I’ll be sure you’re the first one who knows when I do hear from them.”

“I know you will. Now onto the next topic, I need to know how far along you are in finalizing the security protocols and operational procedures for emergency situations. I would like to, as soon as possible, conduct the first emergency evacuation drill. I know that everyone, especially the children, has been trained on what to do in an evacuation, and I think now’s the time we get them used to the process of an evacuation to the Ark. Don’t you?”

“Most certainly, sir. I completely agree. We are pretty much fully operational now, just with a few tweaks and a bit of fine tuning to be taken care of, and a full emergency drill will most definitely help with the fine tuning. I say we could probably go forward with a drill within the week, barring any setbacks.”

“Okay, great. That sounds like a plan. You get a few of your men ready for the drill, but I don’t want you mentioning this to anyone else. I don’t even want to know the exact day it will happen. It needs to be as unexpected and unanticipated as possible. Just don’t do it in the middle of the night. We don’t want to traumatize any of the younger children while they’re sleeping, okay?”

“Of course, sir. I fully understand, I will prepare a couple of my men for the drill, and as far as you know it will happen sometime this week and not at night. And I will also be sure to let you know if for some reason we cannot perform the drill, but plan on it this week, sir.”

“Alright then, let’s make this as real and accurate as possible. I don’t want anyone to be underprepared or not ready for a real emergency. Alright, so I will speak with you after the drill and go over our strong and weak points of the evacuation so we know what we have to work on in the future, okay?”

“Excellent, sir, I’ll get right on the preparation, and we’ll go from there. Have a nice evening, sir.”

“You too.”

A few days go by and John tries feverishly not to think about the drill or anticipate when it will happen. He just concentrates on trying to be close to his family as much as possible so he can help them out when the time comes. He should have known this would make Kate suspicious. Kate looks at her cards then puts them down and cranes her head toward her husband.

“Okay, John, what is going on? You’ve been acting strange these last few days, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen you spend so much time with me and the kids. So what’s up? What is going on?”

John prudently responds while throwing a card on the pile, “What are you talking about? Can’t I spend time with my three wonderful children and lovely wife and not raise suspicion?”

“She’s right, Dad, you have been acting strange lately, and you
have
been spending a lot of time with us lately,” Erica replies as she picks a card from the deck.

“Well, sorry if I just want to spend a little quality time with my family. That’s all. Geez!”

“Oh, nice try, honey. I know something’s up, so you may as well just tell us.” Kate puts her cards down and gives him a look of skepticism.

“Alright, fine,” John crosses his arms and pouts a little. “All I can say is that something is going to happen pretty soon, and I want to be around you guys when it does happen. Okay? That’s all I can tell you, so that’s that. “

“I knew something was up. I’ve known you long enough to know that, so just tell me what it is. You know I don’t like surprises.”

“I can’t because I don’t even know the details myself, just that something will go down at some time, any day now, okay, and that’s all I’m telling you.” John grins at Kate.             

“Oh, fine, just don’t be surprised if you’re sleeping on the couch when it does happen, okay?” Kate says playfully as she picks her cards back up.

“Whatever, you’ll be thanking me afterwards.” John shakes his head and rolls his eyes. He kisses his wife on the cheek and throws in the rest of his cards.

Suddenly, an alarm sounds in the house and throughout the town with a bone-jarring effect. John jumps up from the table and shouts, “Let’s go! Let’s go!” As the lights go out in the house, the alarm is accompanied with a voice alerting everyone on what to do.             
“Attention! This is not a test. Please proceed to the nearest evacuation point immediately. This is not a test.”
The alarm keeps sounding as John grabs his youngest child, Markus, and picks him up and grabs one of his daughter’s hands. Kate grabs their other daughter’s hand as they make their way to the basement.

John yells for their dogs, Irma and Edmund, and their chocolate lab and golden retriever run after them. Only dim emergency lights and glow-in-the-dark arrows light their way as they rush down the stairs. A hatch opens up and reveals a hole in the ground with a slide attached. The basement door closes behind them and seals itself off. They get to the evacuation point, and John yells, “Honey, you go first, followed by the kids and the dogs, and then I’ll go last. Okay?”

Kate nervously responds, “Okay.” As she sits down and slides down the shoot and then lands on a seat in a cart, a bar lowers over and secures her. Immediately after she hits the seat, the cart bumps forward so the slide is directly over the second seat.

“Okay, girls, one of you is next.” John grabs Erica who is closest to the slide. “Okay, honey, just sit down and slide down the slide. Your mother is waiting for you. Okay?”

“Daddy, I’m scared.” Erica starts to cry as she nervously sits down.

“It’s okay, sweetheart. Don’t be afraid. We’ve talked about this. Remember it’s fun just like the slide at the playground,” Kate yells from down below.

“Okay, I’ll go.” Erica does her best to stop crying. She lets go of her daddy’s hand and slides down the slide and into the cart, which bumps forward as the bar lowers.              

“Okay, sweetie, you’re next.” John takes Ashley’s hand and helps her to the slide. She says nothing and slides down the slide and into the cart.

“Alright, little man. You’re up. Are you okay?” John takes Markus’s hand. Markus nods his head and then sits and slides down into the cart. John grabs Irma by the collar and pushes her down the slide and into the cart. It bumps forward, but the bar only lowers halfway. After pushing Edmund down the slide, John jumps on the slide.

The alarm voice announces, “
No human life detected above. Please hold on
.” The hatch closes, and the cart rockets off like the start of a rollercoaster toward the Ark.

Meanwhile, John imagines how everyone in town is going through the same evacuation procedure. Each household is set up the same, so everyone should evacuate in a timely manner. Over at the school, each classroom has an evacuation hatch, and the teachers and staff should be assisting in evacuating every child. Many of the children are probably scared and afraid and most of them crying, John believes, but everyone must practice getting into their carts safely and quickly.