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It was a beautiful late autumn day as Sean sat on a large log beside the back pond in the lower pasture of their family farm. His eight-year-old boy sat next to him, his small fingers wrapped tightly around the handle of his little Snoopy fishing pole. There was a slight breeze and the smell of turning leaves reached his nostrils. He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see his beautiful wife looking down at him. She was wearing a flowered summer dress with a sweater buttoned over top. She looked at their son who was engrossed in watching the bobber ten feet from shore just like daddy had shown him. With their son being so absorbed in fishing, she took the opportunity to lean down and kiss her husband on the mouth. Sean reached up and ran his hand through her soft hair and gently pulled her in closer. A small splash from the lake and his son’s “whoop” brought Sean around in a rush.
“Hey, bro. It’s time to get up. Your shift starts in ten minutes.”
“Huh?” Sean’s head was groggy as the bright autumn day disappeared and was replaced with a flood of light coming out of the total darkness surrounding him.
“It’s time to get up. It’s your turn at watch.” Sean heard his brother’s voice clearly now as he slowly cracked his left eye open. His brother knelt next to him with a lantern in his hand. What Sean wouldn’t give to go back to that perfect dream world. But the dream was gone now. Then again, Sean thought, maybe it was a promising vision of the future eight years from now. He sat up in his sleeping bag and wiped his hand over his face trying to pull the dream out of his sleepy thoughts.
It had been six days since their night raid to Giant Eagle and Duke’s Gun Shop. There were now 26 adults and 8 children living between the two houses on the farm. The only family not to show up was his cousin Lucy, her husband and two children. A few days ago, his uncle Donald had ridden Sean’s bike into town only to find their house empty. It had been a harrowing journey for him. At one point he even had to empty an entire magazine from an M1A at a group of men armed with handguns who had tried to block the road in front of him. He was pretty shaken up over it and said he wasn’t sure if he hit any of them as they scattered in all directions. He fled in the opposite direction taking some side streets to circumvent the ambush area. He had reported back to everyone what Sean feared. The city was in chaos. He heard multiple gunshots as he rode through town. There were numerous fires and houses that sat smoldering, and he said that he couldn’t even count the number of bodies he had seen littering the streets. He said it reminded him of war movies set in some third world country.
As far as the supplies, they had split them up between the two houses. Everything had been organized and cataloged to keep track of usage. They still didn’t know how long their food supply would last and it would be a few weeks before they were able to track it and get a good idea. In the farm house they had taken one of the basement rooms and stored most of the extra shotguns and bolt rifles as well as any odd caliber handguns and some extra canned food that they had an overabundance of. They removed the door trim and built a section of shelves in front to hide the opening. Another cache of guns was hidden deep in the woods. One of the old fifty-gallon oil drums had been filled with numerous battle rifles, deer rifles, magazines, and ammo. A second barrel was filled with canned goods and some survival essentials. In each barrel a Remington Rem Dri 35 desiccant bag had been added to prevent moisture, and then both barrels were thoroughly sealed with tar. The oil barrels were hidden among a large pile of trash and junk car parts that had accumulated over the years deep in the woods behind the farm. If the farm was ever overrun, they would at least have a cache available to try and retake the farm.
Some other improvements had been the addition of an LP/OP on the hillside overlooking the farm. It had taken nearly two days to dig out, frame up, and camouflage into the hillside. A car horn had been wired up fifty yards away from the LP/OP which used their entire roll of Romex wiring that uncle Nathan had at his house. There had been some debate over using all their wiring, but everyone finally agreed over the importance of having the horn as far from the LP/OP as possible to prevent any intruders from zeroing in on its location.
A second watch position had been established in the barn to keep an eye on the cattle at night. The bay window in the farm house overlooking the road had received an upgrade as well. Empty feed bags from the barn had been filled with sand from the old sandbox behind Nathan’s house. It turned out to be a lot of work as the sand was frozen and had to be smashed with a sledge. The makeshift sand bags were stacked below the bay window for some ballistic cover in the event of a firefight.
Sean had also been coordinating and practicing some tactical drills and exercises from his limited experience. Hand signals from his days of teaching night evasion had been taught as well as basic techniques such as travel movements as a group, ambushes, ambush detection, and watching crossfire. Most of Sean’s knowledge came from his friend and retreat member Brody. Brody had been an Army Ranger in Afghanistan and Iraq before his squad was ambushed and he took a grenade to the legs. He had made a full recovery but scars still remained and not just on his legs. Over the course of the last two years, Brody had drilled their small group in tactics he had learned overseas. Sean still only possessed a fraction of the knowledge needed and wished Brody was there to help him square away his relatives. In the absence of Brody, Kenneth had proven to be a big source of information due to his experience in Vietnam. He had become Sean’s right hand man while they were drilling.
Two days prior they had spent a day teaching each female that didn’t have prior experience how to shoot. Kenneth and his son were also a big help with that. They had put it to a vote first since some in the group were concerned about the attention shooting may bring to the farm from the neighbors. But at the same time, Sean and some others felt it was vital that each person in the group was able to defend themselves. It had been the only close vote they had so far and Sean’s half of the group won out. There were risks involved in any decision they made, but a day spent shooting would also let the neighbors know they were well armed. They limited the shooting to a twenty gauge shotgun, a Glock pistol, and a small caliber rifle (which were in numerous supply). It turned into an all day affair with some of the older children getting involved as well.
Revolving watch times were written down and posted by the door as well as cooking and hunting schedules. It was tough coordinating sleeping arrangements for so many people between the two houses. Sean’s father had been smart enough to bring all the mattresses over from Danny’s, Uncle Luke’s, and his own house the night after the raid. Most were placed in Nathan’s large finished game room down in the basement next to the room with the wood furnace.
Their most recent dilemma was firewood. Although both the farm house and Nathan’s house had wood burning furnaces, both were previously used as supplemental heating for conventional gas forced air furnaces. Therefore, neither of them had a large supply of firewood on hand. They could probably make it another month or so but they would never make it through the entire winter months. At some point they would need more. Sean’s father and Uncle Luke both had a large supply of firewood at their houses, but a consensus on when the best time to go get it hadn’t been reached. Some thought to make hay while the sun shined, but some worried about taking the tractor out at night this long after the initial EMP strike. Sean was convinced that people would definitely be getting desperate by now. The tractor was very loud and would draw a lot of attention back to the farm. Although it was a little morbid, Sean felt it would be best to wait a while and see if the neighbors “thinned” out.
Sean’s brother, Joshua, was already in his sleeping bag snoring away by the time he was fully dressed and ready to leave. Sean had drawn barn watch for this shift. In the evenings he and Maria would share a shift at the two person LP/OP. It was the only two hours of privacy they got each day. It was fun whispering back and forth and discussing baby names as they kept watch over the farm. Sean stepped outside into the bitter cold and began his march over to the barn. It was still mostly dark but the very edge of the eastern sky was glowing orange and it wouldn’t be long before that large yellow ball began its daily ascent into the sky.
As Sean stepped inside the barn, the familiar childhood scent of cow and hay met his nose. It was humid in the lower barn as the large animals radiated body heat and steam slowly rose from their backs. It was pretty easy to coax them into the barn each night as his grandfather rattled an old metal coffee can with oats in it. The cattle could be in the lower part of the pasture near the swamp, yet they would still come running at the sight of Grandpa with that can in his hand. Sean wondered what would happen the day they ran out of oats. How long would it take them to figure out that the can Grandpa held was empty? Luckily, they had a large supply of field corn in the corn crib and the barn was filled to the roof with hay.
Apparently, Grandpa had sewn an extra field of hay this season for a neighboring farmer who was struggling. Grandpa had agreed to sell him the hay for his cattle on the cheap. Unfortunately, the poor farmer had been given notice that his farm was being put up for sheriff’s sale before the hay was even bailed. Grateful for my Grandfather’s efforts to help him out, one morning Grandpa woke up to find four extra cattle in the field. Although the neighbor would never admit it, Grandpa said the old farmer couldn’t help but smile every time he denied it. “Screw the tax man,” is all he would say.
Sean’s turn at watch was uneventful. When Bug came to relieve him, they opened the barn doors and ushered the cattle back out to pasture for the day. They chatted for a few minutes before Sean set off to go find Nathan. They had pushed Grandpa’s early eighties Chevy pickup into Jim’s garage a few days ago. Since it was carbureted and not fuel-injected, Nathan felt that he may be able to bypass the CPU and re-wire the truck to get it running again. It was a daunting task, but if he could get it to run, it would be a huge asset to the farm.
Sean was just turning the knob to the garage when a gunshot pierced the silence of the morning. His hair stood up on his neck as he froze trying to figure out where it came from. To the best of his judgment, it sounded like it came from the lower pasture, but being a hunter, he was also aware of how a gunshot’s direction could be deceiving. Two quick bursts of a car horn from the LP/OP got his adrenaline pumping. He burst through the garage door and ran through the kitchen door, scaring his aunt who was cooking breakfast. “TO ARMS!” he yelled. “We have gunshots in the lower pasture and two alarm blasts! Everyone meet up in the barn! Come in a group. Dad and Uncle Donald, split up and guard the houses! Hustle Up!”
Without waiting for a response, Sean ran back out the front door and sprinted back over to the barn. He knocked loudly twice and entered. “Bug, it’s Sean!” he yelled out. Bug came running down the stairs from the upper floor of the barn. “What’s going on? Where did that come from?” Sean asked hurriedly.
“I don’t know for sure, it was hard to make out from down here.” Bug answered shaking his head. “It sounded like it was close though. Do you think it’s someone deer hunting?”
“I sure hope so,” Sean replied. “I don’t think it’s a coincidence that we just put the cows out to pasture. If they’re cow hunting, we are going to have problems.” He pushed past Bug who followed Sean back up the narrow steps. “Did you signal the LP/OP yet?”
“Not yet. I was watching for any movement out the loft window.”
“Good, head back up there and keep watch. Everyone should be here shortly.” Bug climbed back up into the loft and took position at the one window overlooking the back pasture. “See anything?”
“Nothing,” Bug answered. “But all the cows are back up here now. They went down over the hill to the pond first thing this morning like they always do.”
“Damn,” Sean whispered to himself. Something must have spooked them. “Try and get a head count for me.”
“OK,” Bug answered as Sean was cracking open the main barn door. He took a red shirt they had tied to a stick and waved it back and forth in the opening three times in the direction of the LP/OP. He grabbed the 10-60x50 Bushnell spotting scope they kept next to the door and zeroed in on the observation post two hundred yards away. He could see one head-shaped shadow in the opening with another spotting scope pointed back at him. Another shadow moved and his cousin Danny reached his arm out the eight inch gap and waved back with his hand three times. Then he raised his hand and made a fist once, lowered it then raised it in a fist a second time. He paused for a few seconds then waved back in forth twice with his index finger pointed and thumb out in the shape of a handgun. Danny paused a few more seconds before pointing in the direction of the lower pond before his arm disappeared back into the shadows of the LP/OP. Sean waved the red flag in the opening once to signal the message was received. Sean made a pushing motion with his hand in their direction letting them know to stay put. Sean picked up the spotting scope and watch Danny’s arm come out of the shadows once more and wave once signaling that they got the directive.
“Looks like we have two intruders by the lower pond that are armed,” he hollered up to Bug.
“That’s not all,” Bug said as he walked back into view and leaned on the loft railing above. “I’ve counted twice now, and I’m coming up one short.”
“Damn,” Sean said aloud this time. He started trying to formulate a plan in his head as he grabbed an old car door that was lying on the ground with years of dust covering it. Not even considering why there was a car door in the barn, he laid it flat on the ground and started drawing a sketch of the farm in the thick barn dust. He heard the lower barn door open and quickly shouldered his weapon towards the steps. “Announce yourself!” he hollered.
“It’s us!” He recognized his brother Joshua’s voice right away as the group climbed the narrow steps.
“Alright, everyone. Gather ‘round. Tyler, relieve Bug from watch in the loft and send him down. You are going to keep a watch over the cows and for anyone coming this way.” Sean’s brother-in-law nodded, slung the deer rifle over his shoulder, and started scrambling up the loft ladder. Tyler was the least experienced with firearms and Sean wanted only the best shooters.
Sean waited for Bug to join the group before starting. “It looks like we have two people down near the pond who are armed. The cattle have been spooked back up from the lower pasture and it seems we are short one. Here is what I’m thinking. Kenneth, you will lead a support squad with Uncle Luke and Nathan up around the LP/OP and approach the lower pasture from the northeast hillside since we can’t approach from the open pasture to the east and west. Your job is primarily containment and making sure we have them surrounded. Stay out of the pasture and take positions near the edge of the woods overlooking the pond. If there is a fire fight, and you are SURE of your target, and SURE of your aim, you can engage with deer rifles but not battle rifles. If there is an engagement, it will probably be close quarters so watch your fire!”
“I am going to take the main squad with Joshua, Brian, Maria, Bug, Jackson, and Uncle Lawrence. We will double time all the way around the west pasture and down the neighbor’s fence line to approach the woods from the south. That patch of woods, as you all know, is only seventy-five yards wide and I’m guessing that is where we are going to find them if they aren’t dumb enough to be out in the open pasture. We’ll form a skirmish line and slowly, and I mean slowly, clear those woods. Uncle Lawrence, I’m going to have you post up on the fence line right here behind that large tree that’s all by itself.” Sean pointed to a spot on the car door where there was a single tree near the fence line they would be following. “That should give you a great view of the back side of the woods we’ll be pushing out. Alright, anyone have any questions?”
Joshua raised his hand like he was back in school. “What are we going to do if they are still there?”
“We are going to confront them as to why they are on our property and what they are shooting at. But to be perfectly honest with you, I fully expect to find a dead cow down there. We need to capture them and remove any weapons from them and put the fear of God into them to make sure they never return. Once we get them unarmed, we can have a meeting and vote how to go about that. For now we need to get down there before they get away. Cause if that happens; you can bet they will be back another time.”
“Let’s get a move on, guys. Don’t forget who we are dealing with here. There is a good chance they may be hungry, desperate and willing to kill for what we have. If they don’t immediately surrender and if someone raises their gun to their shoulder, you CANNOT hesitate! Not for one second! If you aren’t prepared to pull that trigger, don’t come. The result of your hesitation may not end up with you being killed; it may be the person next to you. We need to have each other’s backs out there.”
“Last couple points: we don’t know exactly where they are and we may stumble across them as we are heading down there. Remember the drills we practiced. Don’t bunch up and make it easy for them. Keep five paces between the man in front of you and behind. Remember concealment is not cover. Make sure what you take cover behind something that can stop a bullet. For those of us on the skirmish line: maintain visual contact with the guy to your left and right and don’t get ahead or fall behind. We’ll be moving five yards at a time, roll your steps from heel to toe and make sure you move from tree to tree. Don’t stop out in the open. Every ten yards, we are going to pause for thirty seconds to listen. Chamber a round now if you haven’t already. Safeties on, and watch your point of aim. Again, no hesitation or someone could get killed or seriously injured. Okay, let’s go.”
They filed back down the steps and stepped back out into a cold windy morning. Without any other discussion the group split up and went in separate directions. Sean’s group worked their way through the open pasture to the west of the barn. When they reached the far property line they crossed the fence one at a time. “Everyone make sure your safeties are on. Watch your spacing, and stay low.” Sean found himself whispering even though they were still four or five hundred yards away from the lower pasture. “Maria, come next. I want you in sight at all times.” Without waiting for a response, Sean turned and started moving at a crouch along the fence line.
Sean had his SU-16 shouldered and scanned the open pasture in front of him. He focused in on every clump of high grass and bush looking for movement or anything out of place. They were working their way up hill and would soon crest it leading down to the lower pond and pasture on their left. Sean slowed their pace as they slowly rounded the top of the knoll. His eyes scanned the lower pasture that was visible and couldn’t make anything out of the ordinary. They moved at a slow but steady pace until they reached the tree about hundred yards from the patch of woods they were moving to. Sean held up his fist giving the signal to stop. Each member crouched down near the nearest fencepost as Sean signaled for Uncle Lawrence to come forward. Without speaking Sean lifted the lower fence wire, allowing his uncle to low crawl under.
Sean grabbed his foot as he was almost through. “Take it slow and stay down” he mouthed the words to his uncle who nodded his head in response. The tree was about five yards inside the fence line and Sean watched as his uncle slowly dragged his body across the frozen ground at a snail’s pace. Once he was behind the large maple’s trunk he adjusted himself into a comfortable position and slowly slid out to the right of the trunk, looking through the scope of his deer rifle.
Sean was just turning and about to give the signal to move when he heard a “Psst” from his uncle. He turned back to see his uncle pulling his body fully back behind the tree. “There’s a guy down there gutting one of the cows near the edge of the woods by the pond,” his uncle whispered. “He has a deer rifle lying on the ground next to him.”
“Ok. Is he near the closest edge of the woods or the far end?”
“He’s almost at the very far end. I would guess maybe twenty yards from the far east side of the woods.”
“Ok,” Sean answered. “Can you see the other guy?”
“No. The guy I see is about a hundred and fifty yards away and I can barely see him around the close edge of the woods. I can’t see into the woods that far away to see if there is anyone else. However, I don’t see anyone in the wood line closest to us.”
“Alright,” Sean answered. He looked his uncle in the eye. “The man you can see is your target now, Uncle Lawrence. If things go south and he points that rifle in our direction, you have to take him out. Can you do that?”
Uncle Lawrence was looking back at him. It was real now and there was no going back to simpler days. He nodded his head in affirmative and Sean nodded back. He turned back and looked at his wife. He wished she wasn’t there, but at the same time he was glad she was. She was very proficient with the Ruger PC9 she clutched in her hands and Sean had no doubt that she would drop the first person that posed a threat. Sean gave the hand signal to move out and slowly continued down the fence line. They came to the edge of the woods on their left with the neighbor’s field continuing straight. Sean paused long enough to turn and signal their group to keep their eyes focused into the woods. They continued another fifty yards until they were about halfway down the wood line. Sean gave the rally up signal as he trained his rifle into the woods and looked for the slightest movement or color that was out of place. When everyone was gathered in a tight circle, he turned back to set the game plan.
“Uncle Lawrence said there is a guy gutting one of the cows by the pond on the other side of the woods.” Sean pointed in the direction he thought the guy would be, based on Uncle Lawrence’s description. “Bug, you’re going to take first position by continuing to the end of the fence line and following the back edge of the woods. If things go bad, make sure you step into the woods and take cover. I don’t want you stuck out in the open if they make a run for it in your direction. Joshua, you are going to take second position fifteen yards into the woods from Bug. I am going to take third position fifteen yards from you. Maria you take next, same distance. Then Brian with the BAR, and Jackson, you’ll be at the end. We should be able to cover this whole area. If you see someone, give them a chance to give up by yelling ‘freeze’. If they don’t freeze or if they raise their weapon at you, then drop them and don’t hesitate.”
“Be aware that there may be more than two of them. For all we know there are ten people in there, so keep your eyes open. Again, move from cover to cover and don’t stop in the open. Every ten yards we are going to pause for thirty seconds to listen. Watch your steps, roll your feet and try not to step on any twigs. If you step on a loud branch or the person next to you does, then we all freeze and listen. Be aware of the guy to your left and right and let’s keep a straight line.” Sean wanted to say something else but wasn’t sure what to say so he just paused. “God help us and keep us safe. Let’s go.” Sean grabbed his wife’s sleeve and pulled her close as everyone started moving to their position along the fence line. “Don’t be a hero, baby, and make sure you stay behind cover at all times.”
“You don’t be a hero,” she said sharply in reply.
Sean pulled her close and gave her a hug and quick kiss. “I love you.”
“I love you, too,” she said as she turned and walked to her position. She seemed surprisingly calm. Sean’s heart was pounding with adrenaline and he felt as if his heart would burst at any moment. Once each person was in position, Sean gave the signal and they climbed over the fence line in unison. Once across they slowly started into the woods. The next few minutes passed by in a haze. Sean was so entirely focused on every tree, every bush, and every step that he entered into what can only be described as a precision-like daze.
They were over halfway through the first time he heard voices whispering in front of him. He snuggled up to the tree in front of him and waited for his brother to look his way. Sean pointed at his ear and held up two fingers before pointing in front of him. His brother nodded in understanding. Sean turned and did the same thing to Maria who also nodded. He waited for the signal to make it down the skirmish line before proceeding further. Sean couldn’t very well yell for someone to freeze if he couldn’t see them. At the same time, the smallest twig cracking underfoot could ruin their whole element of surprise.
They moved another ten yards when Sean caught a glimpse of a red jacket just ahead near the far edge of the woods. Sean looked at his wife and she nodded before he even signaled anything, so he turned back to his brother who signaled towards his eyes and held up two fingers. Sean signaled back towards his brother and mouthed the words, “Can you see them?” His brother nodded in the affirmative. “Here we go,” he mouthed back. “Stay out of sight and let Bug know. I’m going to yell ‘freeze’!” He turned back to Maria and mouthed to her. “Here we go. Let them know I’m going to yell ‘freeze’.” He watched her turn towards Brian, whom he couldn’t see, and a moment later she turned back and braced herself against the tree with her rifle pointed towards the two men.
Sean waited another thirty seconds to make sure the message got passed on to Jackson before turning and pointing his SU-16 at the man with the red jacket who had stepped out from behind the tree and had his back to Sean. There was a deer rifle leaning against the tree beside him. Even though he was only ten or fifteen yards away, he still couldn’t see the second person. He turned and nodded to his brother who nodded back at him before Joshua turned back and aimed his AR-15 around the tree he was crouched behind. It was now or never.