American Exit Strategy: Book 1 (22 page)

"It’s in transit. The funds will be cleared on Monday morning." Matt answered. "I just have to send a screen shot of the transaction page to the realtor who listed the farm. That will serve as proof of funds for the farm. The seller just wants to see it before he accepts our offer. Hopefully we can close on Monday afternoon."

Everyone was getting ready to head to the flea market. It was a huge metal building with over 200 vendors. In addition to the booths, people would also sell things out of the back of their cars in the parking lot.

"I can't believe I am going to a flea market on Black Friday!" Shelly exclaimed.

"You will love it." Wesley told her as he gave her a hug.

Most stores opened on Thanksgiving in recent years and the tradition of people waking up at 4 a.m. for door buster deals on Black Friday had been replaced by people stopping at the drive thru for Thanksgiving dinner on the way to the mall. The stores still advertised Black Friday deals to market to the remaining hold outs who still thought a day to give thanks to God was more important than a $5 toaster.

Adam went over the list of items everyone was to be on the lookout for. "Karen and Janice, you ladies are going to be keeping your eyes out for canning equipment; an extra canner, jars, lids, rings. Also look for good quality clothes for anyone in our group. Especially look for things that wear out like socks and underwear. We need to find outfits that the girls will be growing into over the next few years. I hope things are back to normal, but I would rather have too much than not enough. Also pick up any heirloom seeds that look like they are in good shape. Stay away from hybrid seeds. They either don't produce the same product in the following generations or they may be completely sterile in the second generation of seeds.

Shelly and Wesley, your first priority is to find a really good bug out bag for Shelly. Everyone else is good in that department. We hope it never comes to that, but everyone in the group needs to be able to get in the woods and lay low for a few days, just in case. After you get that, look for hand tools in good condition. We have plenty of screwdrivers, hammers and pliers, but we need things that will replace the power tools we have become dependent on. Specifically, a hand drill, saws, axes, a garden hoe, a plow and sharpening equipment.

Matt and I will be looking for deals on guns and tactical equipment. We have plenty of guns, but I would like to have an entire extra arsenal to stash in case we get overran or if there is a surprise confiscation by our caring government. We should try to stick to the calibers that we have. We have a lot of ammo. We should be fine on that."

Wesley asked "What about fuel? Do you want to buy gasoline if anyone is selling it?

"Good question, Wes.” Adam said. “I think Al Mohammad will get the gas stations back on line, at least temporarily. When he does, we will all get gas 'independence' cards, even Mandy and Carissa will be entitled to cards. Matt has plenty of plastic gas cans to fill up. There are eight of us, that gives us 40 gallons a week at five gallons per ration card. I think if we hoard that, it should do us. Anyone selling at the flea market right now is going to be price gouging. I don't blame them, it’s a free market, we just don't need the gas bad enough to pay prices inflated higher than what we pay at the pump already."

"What calibers of ammo do you all have stockpiled?" Shelly asked.

Adam responded "12 gauge, .223, 7.62x39, .308, .22, 9mm, .45, .40, and .38.”

Matt added "We also have a couple hundred rounds of .32 auto."

Everyone piled into one of the two trucks. Matt unhitched his trailer and took his truck, and Adam drove his work truck and pulled his work trailer. He had put all of his roofing equipment in the barn the night before. This made plenty of room for any big finds.

The adults all had a bit of cash and each carried a concealed weapon. Matt brought along a few silver and gold coins.

Once they arrived, Janice asked Mandy if she wanted to go with Karen and herself.

"No, I want to go with Dad." she answered.

"I'm going with whoever Mandy goes with." Carissa shouted.

"OK" Janice agreed, "But you have to watch your little sister. They’re men and they aren't capable of doing two things at once. Shopping and watching kids are two things to them."

Adam chirped back "I can watch Carissa."

"No you can't." Janice said as she walked away.

Matt, Adam and the girls walked along the backside of the building to check out some of the large farm equipment before going in. Matt's sharp eye caught a booth selling fudge near the far entrance.

"Let's get the girls some fudge." he said. What a great cover story. No one would suspect it was really his own sweet tooth he was concerned with. They bought the fudge and the girls walk around to the front of the entrance to eat their treat while the guys checked out a booth of odds and ends.

Mandy saw a beautiful grey horse. The horse was strong and muscular. She asked the owner if she could give the horse a bit of her maple walnut fudge. He gave a gentle nod, and Mandy slowly offered the candy to the majestic creature. The horse ate it and nuzzled Mandy's hand. Carissa came over to pet the horse above the nose.

The girls went back to where Adam and Matt were. Adam was looking over some camo gear. He found a couple of tactical vests with cross draw pistol holsters and rifle magazine pouches. The merchant was asking $200 each. They were good quality, but that was a rotten deal. Adam offered him $400 for three of the vests. The man countered at $500 and let Adam know that was his final offer. Adam took the vests. He didn't expect to find anything else like that at the market, and the money wouldn't be good for anything except starting a fire within a few weeks anyway.

Matt asked the man about Kevlar helmets and ballistic plates. The vests Adam had bought had plate carrier pouches for ballistic body armor plates. The man shook his head no.

The next booth had some older shotguns and rifles.   There was a bolt action .270, a lever action 30-06, a single shot 20 gauge and a pump action 20 gauge. There was also a bolt action .308 with a black synthetic stock and a good 3 to 9x40 scope.

"Do you have a good long distance rifle?" Adam asked Matt.

"No." Matt answered.

"Nothing fancy, but this one will do you good." Adam said as he passed the .308 bolt action rifle to Matt to inspect.

"I might have shot it 20 or 30 times." the seller added. "It’s a good gun."

Matt didn't negotiate with the man, he just handed him the $350 bucks he was asking.

"This here 20 gauge is perfect for that youngin’." the man said as he nodded toward Mandy.

"I don't have ammo for it." Adam replied.

"I'll give you three boxes of shells, the 20 gauge pump and the 20 gauge single shot for $250." the man offered.

Adam called Mandy over to ask if she liked the shot gun. She had a Ruger 10/22 and was a great shot.

"I like it, but I would rather have a horse." Mandy said.

"Well, there are no horses here." Adam said.

Carissa was fast to correct him. "There is one in the front!"

Adam was stuck. He bought the guns and ammo and walked to the front to see the horse. It truly was a nice looking horse. "How much?” he asked.

"Half ounce of gold or the equivalent in silver." the man said.

"That is pretty steep." Adam answered.

"Think of it as a two for one." the man countered.

"She's pregnant?" Adam asked.

"Yes sir." the man replied.

"Well, I don't have any gold or silver yet." Adam walked away.

Mandy was disappointed, but she understood.

Matt called Adam close."When is your metals order getting here?”

"Next week." Adam answered.

"If you want to accept the risk on the pregnancy, I'll put up the half ounce. You pay me a quarter ounce when you get your gold and I'll take the foal when it is born. If there is no foal, you pay me the other quarter ounce of gold though." Matt said.

"It would be good to have a horse. Let me explain this to Mandy." Adam called Mandy over. "Sweetie, we’re going to buy the horse, but it is going to be the family horse. You can spend as much time as you like with it, but it’s going to have to do some work on the farm if we need it to. Is that understood?"

"Yes sir!" Mandy said. She couldn't believe they were going to get a horse! This was the best day she could remember. 

They walked back over to the man with the horse. Matt produced a half ounce Gold Eagle coin. The man asked to see it so he could verify the coins authenticity. He put it on the scale to check the weight. The weight or the size was always off on the counterfeits. The half ounce gold eagle was real. It was just under 17 grams. Gold eagle coins were 22 karat which was 92% gold. The alloy metals of silver and copper made up the other 8% and were in addition to the 15.55 grams or one half Troy ounce of gold contained in the coin.

"Can you throw in the saddle?  We have to ride her home. If it’s OK to ride her while she is pregnant, that is." Matt asked.

The man really wanted the gold coin, so he agreed to throw in the saddle. "She is about two months pregnant; she should be OK to ride until the last month or two. They carry a foal for a total of 11 months, so you have a while. If you see her getting tired easy, stay off her until a few weeks after the foal arrives."

Everyone shook hands on the deal and they wished each other well. Mandy led the horse to the truck where she and Carissa stayed with her for the rest of the afternoon. Mandy soon had the animal named. Smokey was to be the horse’s name because of the deep grey color of her coat.

The guys found a 9 mm Beretta, and a Taurus Judge .38. They were both worn, but in great working condition. They quickly paid the full asking price for the pistols; $400 for the Berretta and $275 for the Judge.

The final deal of the day for Adam and Matt were six 55 gallons black plastic barrels. They would make great rain catch barrels. They were labeled as having been used for pickles. They had a bit of an odor of vinegar, but it would fade in time. When purchasing barrels that would be used to catch water for human consumption, they had to be sure they had not been used for toxic chemicals. The faint scent of vinegar was almost a reassurance of the fact that they were safe. 

The ladies returned with two large boxes of mason jars and three boxes of reusable Tattler lids. They paid a premium for the lids, but they would last for years. They did not find any canners, but they each had one already. Janice had an old heavy duty stainless steel canner. Karen's was a newer aluminum canner. It was light and well made, but you had to be careful with it to avoid warping the thinner lightweight aluminum. It would have been nice to find another stainless steel one like Janice's.

They were also able to find three new packages of socks and some clothes for the girls. The clothing was used, but just barely.

Karen found a complete set of home school curriculum for 9th grade through 12th grade. She looked it over to make sure it taught creation and accurate American history. She bought the entire set with the intention of starting a school if things didn't get back to normal soon.

Wesley and Shelly found a very good condition used U.S. military ALICE pack. They were hard to come by. There were plenty of replicas made in China, but the durability and ruggedness of the U.S. military ALICE packs would last a lifetime. They found a good tent from the same seller. Shelly spotted a U.S. army field medical kit. Wesley told her that Matt and Karen had an entire hospital at the house, but she bought it anyway because of the compact design.

They also found a guy willing to sell his full size Glock 17 for silver bullion. Wesley had quite a few silver coins he had bought on Matt's recommendation over the years. Being a student of history, he knew silver and gold were the money of the ages. The Glock would be Shelly's everyday carry weapon.

Shelly found an old coffee grinder. It was one of the larger ones that would have likely been used in an old store. Because of its size, it could be used to grind corn as well.

Wesley bought a few old saws and a large ax, but he was unable to find a hand drill.

Janice drove Adam's truck home and he rode the horse home. They were about ten miles from the farm. It was a long trip for the horse that obviously had not been taken out much. Adam took it very slow and let her rest and drink every time they were near a water source.

The group returned to Adam's farm and each displayed their loot to the others. Mandy waited in the drive for Adam to return with Smokey. When he arrived, he explained that Smokey was too tired for Mandy to ride that night. Mandy didn't care; she was content to pet Smokey.

The next morning, Matt and Adam made a few caches to bury. Matt thought they should bury them near the house, but Adam recommended taking them far back in the woods. Adam's reasoning was that if the farm house was overrun by looters or military, they would want a fallback position deep in the woods. Matt understood his point and agreed.

They made cache tubes with large plumbing PVC pipe that Adam had saved from when he put in his septic tank. They put in the two pistols they had purchased at the flea market with several rounds of ammunition for each. Adam also put the single shotgun and one box of 20 gauge ammo for it. Finally, he put a very basic AR-15 that he had bought for Janice. He had his own AR-15 that was fully tricked out as well as his .308 AR-10. The .308 was configured as a long range weapon, but he could quickly change the scope out for a reflex site and use the AR-10 as a close range battle rifle.

He put six 30 round magazines in the tube with the AR-15 and 300 rounds of ammunition.

He made a separate tube for his AK-47. He included four thirty round magazines and 500 rounds of ammunition for the AK.

They made sure all of the weapons were well oiled before wrapping each one individually with thick contractor garbage bags. Matt inserted an old sock filled with rice which would help remove any moisture in the tubes when they were sealed.

Wesley had a similar arsenal. He had an AR-10 which he used for hunting as well as an AR-15 and an AK-47. If times got though, he would use the AR-10, Shelly would use the AR-15 and Wesley had said Karen could use the AK-47.