An Old Man And His Axe: A Prepper fiction book of survival in an EMP grid down post apocalyptic world (Old Preppers Die Hard 1) (7 page)

“OK, I got some extra crap I’m going to give you but I’m not going to go though the whole survival kit giz whiz with you but I am going to show you how to use a modern day type of survival tool. They call these things ferromecium rods, boy. They make sparks. Sparks make fire but there’s an art to it. And I’m going to give you this one and you’re going to wear it around your neck whether you like it or not because it’s the main thing you should have with you to survive... If you have fire you have life. Don’t lose your life because you forgot your fire. You now carry the fire and your own survival.” Farley said and then demonstrated the basics of using it and told him of the use of petroleum jelly and cotton balls much to the boy’s delight.

“Here’s you a survival fishing kit.” Farley said producing a pill bottle with the basics of one and cautioning the kid not to spill it out while looking at it.

“This big kit over here I been robbing some of the essentials out of, but it’s still good as gold and you’re an industrious and smart young man so I guess you can figure out for yourself how to use what’s left in it. Hey, wait a minute now; I got a copy of a book that’s going to be your new Bible.” Farley said digging around in what bits and pieces of his former life he decided just had to go with him.

“Hey, Mr. Farley, not to be disrespectful or anything, but I don’t need me no Bible. That’s one thing that hadn’t come up yet about my Mama – she tends to tote one or have one around when she’s in one of her spells but I am not any churchgoer, if you know what I mean.” Jeremy said.

“I am not giving you no Bible or such, check this odd book out! Now a lot of what’s in here won’t apply today, but there’s enough tips and tricks in here that might help you out that you might not think about with the survival gear I’m giving you.” Farley said producing a glossy covered book and handing it to the boy.

“Ha! Do what?” the boy cried looking at a book with a picture of a possum wearing spectacles. “The Possum Prepping Guide? What’s that?”

“That’s how this one old homesteader guy decided to tell folks how to get them a place for themselves without credit or resources in the country and teach a few of the skills they needed to hunt and fish from a country boy’s perspective.” Farley described.

“Neat! Thank you! But why a possum on the cover?” The boy inquired looking through the book at pictures of traps and snares he didn’t know about with a big smile on his face.

“Because, unlike a possum, a human don’t have everything he needs with him to survive. And that’s the best thing the author could think of to tell us about that idea of practical prepping. The boy’s southern like us. Anyway, there are some skills in there for backwoods or everyday living that might help you since I won’t be around to demonstrate them for you. Now then, me and you are fixing to be a pair of pack mules and I probably screwed up by dumping that water out back there but are you ready to start hauling some of my stuff back to the van for the deal I offered you?” Farley asked.

“I’m game, I’m strong. Let’s do it.” Jeremy said excited and fingering his new fire starter necklace.

3

Load Up! Load Out!

“You sure you didn’t have yourself a U-Haul when you dropped all this stuff off?” Jeremy asked, sweating and complaining.

“This is only the first cache, the other one’s about a hundred yards up the road. You ain’t done by a long shot.” Fraley said, laughing.

“What another one? I know you had a U-Haul now!” Jeremy said complaining and trudging behind what he used to think was an old worn out man.

“Boy, I know there ain’t any food around here these days, but didn’t your Mama tell you to eat your Wheaties? We ain’t even started the real messing around of loading the heavy stuff yet!” Farley said having fun messing with the boy that hadn’t ever worked at a pace like this before.

“This is taking too long, Farley. That old man is going to be wide awake and realizing we took his car! You thought about that?” Jeremy advised.

“No, what I’m considering is my sidekick can’t keep up with this old man and we still got another cache to get!” Farley said as the boy groaned.

Besides all the questions of what is this or that was and slowing old Farley down trying to load the van as best he could, Farley was having fun handing him every once in a while something that he knew was too heavy for him to carry and getting it back to carry it himself while kidding with him.

    How long can this ancient old bastard keep up this pace? And what about that other old man back at the house? Did he have that kind of stamina?  This kind of work was fun though he had to admit to himself no matter how horrible a day it had started out as. What his Mama would say once Farley dropped him off was going to be one of those future occasions he dreaded though. Thinking about Farley and his Mama discussing what they had been up to all day made his head hurt. That was way too much to think about at the moment he decided and went back to carrying Lord only knows how much stuff that Farley had stashed in the woods that seemed never ending.

“Hold up, boy! I hear a car! Hunker down and stay out of sight! Let’s see who that is before we start toting all this stuff down that way.” Farley said worriedly going back to the door of his half loaded van sitting on the side of the road.

An old beat up truck slowed and pulled in front of Farley’s half loaded van and two burr-headed rednecks got out.  You know the ones, for some reason in the south there is a type of person that for whatever possesses them, come the summer, they need to shave their heads in the oddest fashions imaginable.

“Damn, this is all I need today.” Farley muttered drawing his .380 pistol as he was peering through the woods while trying to hide behind a scruffy bush next to a tree. One of the men approaching his van had a shotgun and the other was wearing a pistol in its holster. The men looked around at the woods carefully for a minute or so before resuming their walk towards his van.

“Go sneak back off there somewhere, Jeremy, and in a minute or so holler to two imaginary people that we got company. If any shooting starts stay low and go hide in the woods.” Farley whispered and then pushed the kid lightly off in the general direction when he hesitated.

About a half minute later, Farley heard Jeremy call out, “Hey Paul, Yo Mike! We got company!” and Farley saw both of the country boys snap their attention his way.

“I see them. That’s my van, guys, we are just taking a little nature break.” Farley called out.

“O.k., we were just checking to see if anyone needed any help.” The man with the shotgun called back.

“No, we are fine. Thanks anyway!” Farley called out and then jumped himself a bit as Jeremy had evidently thrown a stick or something into the woods off to his right.

“O.k., good luck! We are leaving.” The one with the pistol yelled and the pair began their walk back to their truck.

Farley watched them crank up and begin down the road and waved for Jeremy to come back.

After the excitement of almost getting robbed by them backwoods ruffians, Farley was none too keen on having to next deal with the old man that liked to have axed him but he was going to return that car come hell or high water.

The problem was how to do it and do it as safely as possible. He thought about it for a bit and had no real strategy that sounded right. At first it made sense for him to drive the car back and let the boy drive the van but after almost losing his wealth of goods to them damn rednecks he had this vision of the boy just keep driving off with his stuff and called it a foregone conclusion. Besides, them local yokels might be pulled off the road somewhere ahead of him.

“You had enough excitement for the day, Jeremy, or are you up for one more rodeo?” Farley asked, joking with the boy a bit.

“I am up for anything you say, Farley, but I got the feeling I should have never got out of bed this morning.” the boy quipped back.

“Me and you both my friend, it’s been one hell of a day and it’s just getting started good it appears. Look here I have been studying how we are going to drop that car off and as you know I think I already pretty much took the fight out of that old man and unless he had a gun well hid somewhere I am not much worried about him at the moment. I am going to drive in front of you since I got my pistol and if we run into any trouble I will handle it. But you stay about 50 feet behind me, you hear? I don’t want you running into my ass or not giving me any room to maneuver so you keep your interval until after we get to the old man’s house, O.k.? You understand everything so far?” Farley said to the boy relatively calmly.

“Yea, I got you. You think them redneck boys have gone on home?” Jeremy said looking down the road and listening.

“I guess so, hell I hope so. I also hope they ain’t kin to that old man, but if they were they would have recognized that car and not have been so easy to run off. The sooner we get rid of that car the better, I say. Now then, right before we get to the old man’s you pull off a little. I will wave you on up if it looks clear and you park that thing in the driveway, leave the keys in it and haul ass back to my van and we are out of here, o.k.?” Farley said looking at the boy seriously.

“Sounds good, I am ready when you are.” the boy agreed.

Farley took it slow going back to the old man’s house and was glad he didn’t meet any traffic or see the pickup truck again that he was watching intently for. He scanned the old man’s property pretty good as he was coming up on it and then not noting anything amiss, he went ahead and waved for the boy to come on and make the swap.

Jeremy did just as he was told and Farley kept a close eye on the old man’s front porch door and the sides of the house until the boy got in and he backed very quickly out of the driveway and got on his way.

Farley had put together his survival rifle before leaving out and found it a bit awkward to back up and drive with it in his lap but it was better than the .380 pistol for this situation, he had thought.

There was no way he could really hit crap with the pistol shooting left handed out the driver’s window he had figured and had decided he would try broadside with the .22 semi auto rifle to cover his new friends’ escape.

4

Momma’s Misfit

“O.k., we got those little adventures out the way. Son, anyone ever tell you that you were bad luck?” Farley said grinning at the boy.

“I would say we were about even when it comes to being bad luck.” Jeremy said with a smile trying to pass some of the blame back on Farley for having his van stuck on the side of the road not long ago.

“Touché! You got me good on that one. How far do we have to go before I turn off to your Momma’s?” Farley asked.

“You got about a half mile before you will see a sign that says Willow Creek. I will tell you when it’s time to turn.” Jeremy said watching the road and occasionally looking in the rear view side mirror.

“When do you think you all will be heading out towards Mobile? You think you got enough gas now to make the trip?” Farley asked nonchalantly.  He had been thinking it might be a pretty lucky thing to know about a house soon to be vacant. “
I wonder if I can get them to leave me the key, maybe.”
Farley pondered.

“It might be a close shave but if momma wants to try it, I think we can make Mobile, maybe.” Jeremy said.

“You don’t want to take any chances of running out of gas on the road these days, boy. Is that the turn up there?” Farley said looking ahead.

“Yea, that’s it. Well, I could keep looking around here for some more gas but when momma hears about that encounter with the old man she ain`t going to let me stray far from the property. Do we really need to say anything about that?” the boy said beseechingly to Farley.

“I am thinking on that, hey isn’t that them redneck boys truck parked over there?” Farley asked, pointing towards a trailer off the side of the road.

“Sure looks like it, I guess that’s where they live.” Jeremy said as they slowed momentarily for a better look.

“Great neighbors you got.” Farley said frustrated that his plan seemed not so attractive now.

“I have never seen them before today but of course I never get by this way much. I cut through the woods to get to the old man’s place. We got about another mile or so to go now. The houses get nicer closer to the lake shore and we are staying on sort of a little cul-de-sac of rental properties. Hey Farley, I sure would like to avoid upsetting Momma, why don’t you just drop me off with that can of gas and she won’t be the wiser?” Jeremy said hopefully.

“O.k. boy, I will let you off the hook this time, that isn’t a story I much care to repeat to no one else anyway. Let’s pull over for a minute and get our stories straight.” Farley said slowing to ease over on the roads shoulder.

“Thanks, Farley!” The boy said with a big sigh of relief.

“I will tell her that I saw you wandering down the road with that heavy gas can and gave you a ride.” Farley began before the boy cut him off.

“I don’t know if that will work, Farley, I can barely lift that can and she is going to ask me where I stole it from anyway. I guess I need to come clean here.” Jeremy said going momentarily silent.

“Come clean about what?” Farley said raising one eyebrow.

“ Well, Momma gave me $20.00 to go try and buy some gas if I found anyone willing to sell any but  I somehow managed  to lose it tromping through the woods.” The boy said glumly.

“So you have been taking things instead of asking or paying for them?” Farley replied studying the boy shifting about nervously.

“Well, there are not too many people to ask around here and those that I did ask while I still had that 20 dollars said no way. The little bit of gas I have found was mostly from houses that didn’t have occupants.” Jeremy said hopefully.

“Well, I might be able to say I sold it to you cash but I don’t know if that would fly. Nobody is selling gas these days for obvious reasons. I tell you what; we will say you found me on the side of the road camping in the woods. We will include them country boys we saw so we can warn her that we think they live up the road. They might be dangerous, they might not be, but I say they bear watching anyway. Folks are desperate and hungry now, even good people are thinking about doing things they would have never considered doing before this disaster. They could have been out hunting or they could have been out like you stealing or pilfering, there is no telling. It’s a shame about that old man but that can’t be helped now and I am not willing to try to help him any more than I did. O.k., this is the deal, I am going to tell your momma that you told me about you and her wanting to go to Mobile and I proposed a deal. We will say I will give you that gas in exchange for the key to that vacation place you all got. I don’t really have any place in particular to ride this disaster out at and that lake cabin of yours sounds ideal to me for now. You all can stay around a few days before you leave if you want and if it looks like you won’t have enough gas then me and you can go find some more maybe or perhaps I will give you a couple gallons of mine.” Farley said watching the conflicting emotions crossing the boys face as he took in the story Farley was spinning.

“Sounds reasonable to me, she would probably go for that, I imagine. Are you saying you want to stay with us until we leave for Mobile?” Jeremy asked skeptically.

“Well no, not really, I could set my tent up in your backyard or if that makes your mom too nervous I could find me a place to camp out at not far from you.” Farley said.

“Sounds like a pretty good plan, Farley. Are you really thinking about giving us a couple gallons of your gas?” Jeremy said incredulously.

“Well, that still remains to be seen. How far out have you all been scrounging for gas and food?” Farley said wondering how he managed to get himself in this position and what a hard decision that might be to have to make to give up any precious fuel he had in his tank.

“Not far, we have been conserving gas and I pretty much walk everywhere. She fishes in the lake and doesn’t get out much, doesn’t catch much either but she is getting better at it.” Jeremy stated.

“Could be we will possibly find some more fuel further out if we have to. Let’s see what your Mom says about our little deal and get a better estimation how much gas you all have left in your tank and if you need anymore.” Farley said cranking the van back up.

“Mom might let you stay in the house since you are also throwing in that food you mentioned.” Jeremy said.

.

“I forgot about that part of the deal for the moment. Let’s not bring up staying in the house until I see if your mom likes me or not.” Farley said reservedly.

“You mean until you see how crazy Mom is, she is actually not that bad. I tend to exaggerate about her a little sometimes.” Jeremy said with a slight smile.

“Anything else you haven’t told me?” Farley said un-amused.

“No, that’s about it, turn left on that road coming up. We are in the last cabin on the end.” Jeremy said, anxious about what they were about to tell his Mom.