When A Plan Comes Together (5 page)

Kathy was a bit put out they hadn’t called her outside for the broadcast, but understood that it was short, and over before either thought of it.

All three listened to the next several broadcasts. There was no real news. Just the reiterated requests for people to stay home, help others, and follow orders of local authorities.

As the sun started to go down, Rex shut down the PV system and isolated the panels from the controllers and battery banks. They’d still have power, but it would be drawing down the batteries.

When asked by his mother, Rex checked all the blackout curtains again. She’d just read that Jay considered keeping their preps a closely held secret, and that included not letting anyone know they had power by seeing unexpected light from a window.

“Roxie, get some of the candles out and have them ready… You know… Just in case…”

“Okay, Mom,” replied Roxie, and went out to the garage to look for the tote that held backup lighting supplies. She grabbed several candles and holders, and a couple of small boxes of strike anywhere matches.

It was rather eerie as the light faded while the family sat outside to listen to yet another word for word announcement. Normally the area street lights would be on, and there would be light pouring from just about every window in the houses along the quiet residential street.

Now, only the occasional window showed light, and several of those had the flickering effect of candle light. Rex, upon thinking about it, decided that the bright, steady light was probably from camp lanterns, and the steady, softer light was produced by flashlights.

There was some movement up the street and Rex’s hand went to the pistol on his hip. He could tell Roxie and his mother tensed up. But it was only Dave Monroe. He called out before he got very close.

“That you, Kathy? And the kids?”

“It is, Dave. Come on up.”

“This is bad, isn’t it?” he asked, putting one foot on the bottom step of the stairs up to the porch and leaned forward slightly.

“Yes. How bad, we don’t know. The radio announcement…”

“Announcements? What announcement?” Dave asked, obviously surprised. “I didn’t think any radios would work.”

“It’s the NOAA weather and alert radio systems,” Rex explained. They are somewhat protected from EMP and some of the transmitters survived the attack. The small size of the antenna on the radios didn’t pick up enough EMP to fry them.”

“I don’t suppose you have a spare?” Dave asked. “And some candles… And matches…”

Rex and Roxie both looked at their mother.

“Get Mr. Monroe six candles and one of the boxes of matches. Rex, get the other windup radio flashlight.” Both teens got up to do as their mother asked. And then it came out automatically, without her thinking it consciously. “We don’t have much to spare, Dave.” The idea of keeping what they had quiet was already an unconscious thing.

“I understand. I sure appreciate you loaning me these things. I’ll replace them as soon as things get back to normal. At least I have a little food in the house. I tried my car after… what happened… happened, and it won’t start either. That van is the only thing I’ve seen that runs.”

“Thank you,” Dave told Roxie and Rex when they handed him the items they gone to get out of the house.

“They’re broadcasting on the hour,” Rex said. “But the one just past is the last for the night. They’ll broadcast again at nine, eastern time, tomorrow morning.”

“I’ll be listening. Thanks again.” Dave fumbled with the flashlight radio, but finally got the light to come on. He walked back to his house by the light shed from the crank-up device.

“Let’s go in,” Kathy said. She could see several people looking toward Dave, back lighted by the beam of the flashlight.

The three went inside and Rex closed and locked the doors, and then used the remote control to close the shutter. The shutters were some of the few items on the emergency circuits powered by the off-grid power system.

It was a somber evening meal, each of the three lost in their own thoughts. They did the dishes together and then went off to bed, two hours earlier than usual. Kathy took the binders with her and read in bed until she fell asleep.

CHAPTER FOUR

She was groggy the next morning and it took her a few seconds to figure out why the binders were on the bed and it was so dark for the time the battery operated clock showed. She sucked in her breath in dismay when the memories of what had transpired the day before came back to her.

She got up and did her morning routine, thanking Jay silently for his forethought of preparing. The off-grid power system allowed them to maintain a relative normal life at home for the meantime. Kathy wasn’t sure how long that would last, but she planned on enjoying it for as long as she could.

Rex and Roxie were both at the kitchen table, eating cold cereal and milk for breakfast. “Morning, Mom,” each said.

“Good morning,” Kathy replied, sitting down at the place the kids had set up for her. She added cereal and then milk to the bowl sitting there.

“This is all real, isn’t it, Mom?” Roxie asked. “Not just a bad dream?”

“I’m afraid it is real,” Kathy replied. “I wish it was just a dream. But we can cope with what is happening. Thanks to your father. He had the foresight to try and prepare the family for this. I’m just sorry I didn’t try to help. I hope you will forgive me some day for letting you both down this way.”

“It’s okay, Mom,” Roxie said. “I didn’t do as much as I could, when Dad offered us the training to learn how to be prepared for things like this.” She looked over at Rex. “Thankfully, Rex found it interesting. He knows ten times what I do.”

“Don’t know nearly as much as Dad,” Rex said.

“Well, before this is over, we’ll all know a great deal more than we do now,” Kathy said firmly. “The plan contained in those binders of your father’s will get us through. Just like he intended.”

Suddenly there was a knock on the shutter covering the front door. It made all three of them jump. Rex grabbed his gun belt from the closet and put it on as Kathy opened the door, and then slid aside the steel plate covering the peephole in the shutter.

It was Dave Monroe again. “Hey, it’s me. I was wondering… Do you have any water? I finished the last bottle I had, and thought you might have some.”

Roxie looked at her mother, and Kathy nodded, holding up one finger. Roxie headed for the garage and returned in moments with a six-pack of water bottles.

Rex operated the door shutter manually, Kathy took one bottle of water from the six-pack and handed the other five back to Roxie. Roxie set them out of sight.

“Some set up you have here,” Dave said as the shutter slid clear. “Is that bullet proof?”

Dave’s eyes went to Rex when Rex said, “It’s intruder resistant.”

Then Dave saw the holster and pistol. His eyes narrowed. “Is that really necessary?” he asked, nodding at the gun.

“We hope not,” Kathy said. “But after what happened yesterday, we’re not taking any chances. Don’t worry. Rex has had professional training on how and when to shoot.”

“Really?” It was obvious that Dave didn’t really like the fact that Rex had the gun. “Didn’t do Humphrey any good. He had a gun and he died. The other guys had bigger guns.”

“Here’s a bottle of water, Dave,” Kathy said, not liking the way the conversation was going. “You should probably try to make it last. I’ve only got five more in the six-pack for us.”

Dave had a definite sour look on his face when he nodded. He started to turn away, but hesitated. “Look. I know Jay is gone, and probably won’t make it back. If you need a man around the house for protection, just let me know.”

“Rex is doing just fine,” Roxie said immediately.

“Yes, he is, Dave. But thanks for the offer. If we run into something Rex or I can’t handle, we may call on you. It was nice of you to offer.”

Dave cut a glance at Rex. He was standing stiffly, lips even, not frowning, just looking at Dave coolly. Dave noticed the glint of steely determination in Rex’s eyes and turned away from the look. He walked slowly back to his house, looking around from time to time. Rex stood in the doorway until Dave was in his own house.

“Mom,” Roxie said, “You aren’t going to let him in here, are you? I’m… I’m a little scared of him. He creeps me out.”

“What? Has he done something?” Kathy asked. Rex was closing the shutter again.

“No, not really. I just don’t like the way he looks at me.”

“I see,” Kathy replied slowly. She had never told Jay she felt the same way about Dave. He seemed a nice enough guy; but she could feel his eyes on her whenever she was out and about in a skirt and blouse, dress, or shorts and a top. Like Roxie, his looks creeped her out, too.

The three went back to finish breakfast. Rex hesitated, but decided to put the gun back in the closet. He would wear it whenever he went outside, but they were quite secure inside the house, and could retreat to the shelter if needed.

It was time for the next broadcast and Rex gave the handle of the radio a few turns to charge up the battery. He turned it on and got the carrier frequency that always preceded the actual broadcast. “I think it will be loud enough,” Rex said. “I think we should stay inside for a while.”

“As long as we can hear the broadcast,” Kathy said. She took one of the living room chairs by the sofa, as Rex and Roxie sat down on it. Rex held the radio in his lap. Finally a voice came from the speaker. It was simply another reiteration of past announcements.

“Aren’t they going to do anything?” Roxie lamented.

“I bet they are,” Rex said. “But they sure aren’t talking about it.”

The three spend the rest of the day inside, keeping themselves and each other busy, stopping to listen to the NOAA radio every hour. It was not until almost nine that evening when there was a change in the broadcast.

The next voice you hear will be the President of the United States.

There was silence for another moment, only the slight hum of an unmodulated carrier wave. Then the easily recognizable voice began.

My fellow Americans and Citizens of the World that may be listening, it is with great sadness and pain that I must inform you that I, as President of the United States, and Commander-in-Chief of this nation’s armed forces, have ordered the intervention of our forces in the dastardly attack Communist China has made upon Australia. This action brings great risk to all of us here in the United States, and around the world. China has made grave threats, that should they be carried out, will be the biggest disaster in human existence.

I urge you to prepare yourselves for the worst. The Federal Emergency Management Agency will be distributing the most current, effective, plans we have available for expedient fallout shelters, for those that must stay where they are during this time of crisis.

For the area’s most in danger, beginning the morning of the day after tomorrow, massive evacuations will be conducted, removing citizens at greatest risk to areas where they can be provided for the most efficiently. Please continue to give what aid you can to your friends and neighbors and cooperate with local authorities as these measures take place.

It is my greatest hope that the leadership of China will reevaluate their plans and withdraw fully from the course they are now on. Thank you and…

The radio fell silent. Rex hurriedly cranked it, but there simply was no sound. Not even of the transmitter carrier. “That’s not good,” Rex said slowly. He ran the bands of the simple radio. There’s nothing on any of them.

The three family members looked at one another in alarm. “I’ll try outside,” Rex said, getting up from the sofa. Roxie and Kathy followed him to the front door, but Rex hesitated. “Might be better in back of the house. In case someone is watching.”

They all headed that way. Roxie opened the back door shutter and Kathy opened the regular door. Rex stepped outside and ran the bands again, but there was still nothing, except louder static. Rex shook his head and started to turn around to go back inside when the sky lighted up brighter than daytime for long fractions of seconds.

All three stood there frozen until the brightness turned an ugly purplish orange. Suddenly Rex pushed his mother and sister inside, following right behind them. “A nuke! There will be a blast wave any second. Get down to the shelter!”

The two women ran. Rex stayed behind to close the door and shutter, but followed the two as soon as the task was completed. He was on the third from the bottom of the stairs when the basement began to shake.

The movement threw him off stride and he fell into the basement, landing awkwardly. Roxie and Kathy were waiting for him at the door separating the two sections of the basement. Grabbing an arm apiece, they helped Rex up, and then into the shelter.

Roxie released Rex and stepped back out into the unfinished section of the basement. It was a struggle, but she carried all five of Jay’s binders into the shelter from where they’d been dropped after she and Kathy scooped them up on the way to the shelter. Roxie set the binders down and shut the vault door.

Several loud clicks sounded, and all three looked around, unsure what was causing the sound, or even where it was coming from. Rex hopped on one foot over to one of the chairs at the table near the kitchen area of the shelter.

“Did you break your ankle?” Kathy asked, kneeling down to examine Rex’s leg and foot.

“No. Just turned it, I think,” Rex said through clenched teeth.

The shelter shook again, and again the clicking sounds were heard a couple of minutes later.

“I think I know what those sounds are. The blast valves on the airlines and stuff,” Rex said.

“You mean… from a nuke?” Roxie asked softly.

“Yeah. I think two went off near enough to us to shake the foundation by ground shock, and surface overpressure high enough to trigger the blast valves.”

“It’s okay, Mom,” Rex said. Kathy had the hiking boot off and was manipulating his foot this way and that. Not without some pain. “Ow!”

“Well, it isn’t broken, thank goodness,” Kathy said after standing up. “We’ll need to ice it for a while, and then wrap it for support.”

“First, I need to go out and check for fires around the place,” Rex said. He leaned over and pulled his boot back on and laced it up.

“No. Roxie and I will do that. You just sit here until we get back and I will ice your ankle.”

It was a mother’s tone of voice that children didn’t argue with. “Okay. But be careful. Here,” he said. Rex unfastened his gun belt and gave it to Roxie.

Kathy looked at her two children for a moment, but didn’t protest when Roxie fastened the belt around her waist.

“I’m ready, Mom,” Roxie said and moved toward the shelter door.

“Roxie,” her mother said, “We just look for any fires and deal with them if we have to. Do you have your dosimeter on?”

Roxie showed Kathy the dosimeter clipped in the pocket of her blouse. Kathy touched hers, aware now, after reading the manual, the importance of keep track of radiation. “Okay. Let’s go.”

It was an anxious five minutes for Rex, and a whirlwind five minutes for Roxie and Kathy. There were no fires around the house. In fact, there were no signs of any damage at all to their house. The same couldn’t be said for many of the other houses on the street. Including one at the far end of the street that was already a blazing inferno.

“Mom?” Roxie asked.

Kathy hesitated. Normally she would be right there helping. But she had her children to think of, especially with Jay away. “No,” she said softly. “The plan calls for battening down the hatches, as your father put it. Since there is a fire nearby we’ll turn on the sprinklers and then get back in the shelter.”

The elaborate sprinkler controls were in the basement where the water line from the well entered. All the controls were labeled. Usually, all one had to do was turn on one valve to feed the automatic underground yard sprinkler system. But Kathy had discovered there were sprinkler systems for the roof and all the outside walls.