The Last Blade Of Grass (7 page)

The Store

I turn to Hannah with a great deal of concern on my face. “Hannah, I’m not going to open the store today, and I have to go and tell those people out there. They might get angry and try to force their way in, but most likely they won’t. Just in case they do, take this Ruger and be ready to shoot anyone that comes through the door without me. If they knock me down to get in, they could hurt you and your brothers and sisters. Do you understand?”

Hannah’s eyes go wide but she nods.

“Good girl, Hannah. This is just like the riots we have looked at on the news, but it is coming here now. This is just like when we practiced for someone trying to rob the store.”

I have a concealed gun under my shirt, but put an exposed Kydex holster on my belt and put my five-seven into it. In this situation, I want my ability and willingness to use force to be plainly visible to the people outside. I walk to the door, unlock and slide the security gate open, and some of the people outside start crowding in and pressing against the glass, so I yell through the door for them to back up. They don’t back up right away so I draw my gun and tap it on the glass at face level. This has them backing out quickly into the parking lot, with a few of them falling down as they stumble backward in their haste. I open the door and step outside to speak with the crowd, sliding the security door closed behind me.

There is grumbling in the crowd, and you can tell these people are agitated—and not just from me pointing my weapon at them. There is a desperation etched in their faces, and I can’t let this get out of control. At least there are a couple of faces out here that I recognize that seem calm. They are standing off to the sides and scanning the crowd like I am, rather than staring at me with angry or fearful eyes.

Addressing the small crowd, I keep my gun at the ready in my hands in front of me pointing down. “I am sure all of you are frightened of the news and want to rush in here to get something to make yourselves feel more safe and secure. The time to prepare for potential problems is not today however, the time to prepare was yesterday. I am not opening the store. All of the supplies inside have been requisitioned by the government to assist the local populace if things get out of hand. There will be military forces here within the next few hours to collect everything inside and take it to a holding facility where it will be distributed to you, if and when you need it. Please go home and keep yourselves safe and secure, and if things get out of hand, the government will let all of you know what you should do.”

“We just need a few supplies,” one guy yells, and a chorus of
yeahs
erupt from the crowd.

“I understand what you believe you need at this moment, but these supplies are no longer available for sale. I and those inside have been ordered to protect them for government collection using any means necessary. There are about thirty of you out here, and my gun holds thirty rounds. Do not make me use it, but understand that I will if you do not leave.”

“This isn’t right,” one lady yells.

“We need to take care of our families too,” another says, but most of the crowd starts to head back to their cars.

I try to give an extra reassurance to those who are lingering instead of going back to their vehicles. “The local government is prepared for problems such as this and has stepped up preparations since the riots in the larger cities began. Your local leaders will tell you what steps you must take, if any. Just return to your homes and everything will be all right. You have put your faith in the government to protect you up until now, and you should continue your faith in those leaders that you elected to see you through any troubles that might occur.

“There are four of you here that have special orders you were supposed to pick up today. I will ask that you stay so you can pick up your already purchased items,” and I point out four individuals that I recognize as customers of mine.

The four of them, and one other man that I recognize, remain. We all watch the other people as they get into their cars and drive off, one by one.

I shake hands with the four I pointed out. “Billy, Matt, Katherine, and...Jessie. Good to see you. Is everything okay with you?”

Katherine says, “I was hoping to pick up a few extra things and got worried about what you would have left when I saw the crowd. How can the government take all of your stuff?”

“They didn’t,” I reply. “They can of course, based on executive orders, but they haven’t. At least not that I have heard.”

“I knew it,” the fifth person waiting nearby says. “You lied to all of those people. How can you do that? They just wanted to get some things because of what's going on.”

“Everyone, I would like you to meet the worm,” I mention with contempt. “If any of you remember the crappy article a guy wrote about me and this store a few months after I opened, this is the loser that wrote it. Meet, Chad Hansen.”

I turn and face Chad directly. “I remember your uninformed article which deliberately left out the critical information of
why
people should be prepared. Do you, Chad, remember what my reply to your article said?”

“Fuck you!” he replies.

“Very articulate, Mr. Moron. This idiot left out my mention that the government has recommended for the last few years that everyone should have at least a month’s worth of supplies on hand. A month’s worth of food and water, and at least three months accumulated funds to help pay bills and cover regular expenses in case of emergency.

“This sorry sack of left-winged drivel wrote that I was fear mongering, and how did you put it...? My ‘Biblical end of the world conspiracies should go back to the Bible-belt in South Dakota from whence I came.’ That’s it, right, Chad? That and my ultra religious-right mentality is not welcome in Oregon. What a wonderful welcome you provided to me, my family, and my new local business.” I just stare at him in disgust.

“I thought you were an Atheist,” Matt says.

“That I am, Matt. I am and have always been an Atheist. This idiot didn’t bother doing his research. He had no intention of writing a fair article about me or my store. He is just an anti-gun hoplophobe who wanted my store shut down. He doesn’t, or should I say he didn’t, see any reason for my store to exist.” I turn back to Chad, step up less than a foot away from him, and say, “So what is it? Why are you here right now? I doubt you are here for another article about my store.”

“I’m here for some supplies. And yes, I remember your reply to my article. The editor published it right next to my own piece in the paper, and it nearly cost me my job, you asshole,” Chad says angrily, pointing his finger at me.

“Listen, Chad, even if I liked you, which I obviously do not, you aren’t one of my regular customers, which these four people are. I am going to let them in and buy a few things. I will not let you have anything, and you can write whatever you want about it in your little column section of the paper. You had your chance to get ready for what is coming, and you chose to ridicule and harass me and people like these folks. You should have been more open-minded about the possibility that your government might not have all of the answers for you. And just to put things in better perspective, even if I let you have everything inside of this store, you wouldn’t know what to do with most of it, and would still probably die if you ever had to protect yourself.

“And as for my article, it did nothing to your credibility or job standing. My article was filled with non-vindictive truth that told people why they should prepare, and that while I am right wing, I am an Atheist and not the religious extremist that your whole piece made me out to be. It was your own article that nearly got you fired, and it is your own attitude and actions that are sending you away from here empty handed. Now, get out of here.”

“I’m not going anywhere. You’re not going to do anything to me. I’m a reporter,” Chad says desperately, with a little spittle flying from his mouth.

I rack the slide of my gun loading a round into the chamber and point it at his head. “I’m sure you’ve seen the news, Chad. You work for the paper so you might even have more information than we have on what’s going on at the bases, that’s why you're here. I’ll just tell the sheriff that you tried to bite me. They’ll have you bagged up and cremated before the sun is down. Make your choice.”

Chad’s face goes white with fear, and he stumbles a bit as he turns and quickly walks away. He gets into his car and drives off, giving me the bird as he goes.

“What a worm,” I say. “Okay, let’s get you four inside. Hannah, I’m coming in and bringing four with me, you can put the gun down.” We enter the store, and I lock the door and the security gate behind us.

“You have your daughter working security?” Jessie asks.

“Come on guys, this is a gun store, not just survival supplies, and we are uncomfortably close to anti-gun California for my liking. I have all of my kids trained on what to do if anyone gets violent and tries to rob the store for things they can’t get where they live. If anyone made it past me outside, they wouldn’t have made it past Hannah, or any of my kids that can hold a gun.”

“Damn,” Jessie replies.

Hannah innocently smiles and waves at him while nodding.

“So this is serious, isn’t it?” Matt asks.

“That’s why you and all of those other people were here.” I tell them about what Simone heard from the hospital administrators and how she thinks it sounds like zombies.

“I think this is it, the end game. The only people that can make it through a disaster of plague ridden violent cannibals are those who are already prepared like us. Unfortunately, there are many people out there who I’m sure wanted to be part of the prepping community, but just couldn’t put things together because of the economy.”

“Hopefully those people still developed skills they can trade to survive with,” Matt adds.

“I’m packing everything up and taking it to my ranch, so if any of you need a place to stay, you are welcome with your families and trusted friends. Before you go, I’ll give you all directions to my place. As for what is here in the store, your money won’t be worth anything in a few days, so just tell me what you want or need, and I’ll see if I can part with it. Billy?”

“I’m pretty well set up on my own land. I just came here for information, and I guess I found it,” he replies.

“Well, Billy, you know where my ranch is, so if these infected people overrun your place, you can come to mine.”

“Matt? What about you?”

“I’m in a different situation. My place is pretty well stocked for a regular grid down scenario, and I think I could have even defended my place for a while if the rioting made it here to Medford. However, I’m right in the heart of town, and not set up to defend against an infected zombie horde.”

I shake my head in disbelief, and say, “I guess that is what it sounds like then, isn’t it. When Simone said it sounded like zombies on the phone from the hospital, I couldn’t believe it. I’m having a hard time dealing with the books I read coming to life.”

Matt continues, “I was hoping you could help me out with a possible future place to stay and relocation of my supplies. My wife, Rachel, is visiting her parents in Idaho with our two kids, Lindsey and Paul. I am planning on heading there. They have a small farm and live away from any big towns, so we might just hold up there until things get back to normal. I was hoping you could take my stuff and store it at your place.”

“I don’t know, Matt. I don’t think this is going to be some easy fix where you can just come back and pick up your stuff in a few months. If this is some kind of virus and it's all over the country already, then the whole of society is probably going to get wiped out. You might not even be able to make it back for a couple of years. Think about it, there will be the infected to deal with, the desperate, the criminals, and the crazies that can’t get their meds. All of the infrastructure might be gone, and you can forget about motorized transportation if the roads get clogged.”

Katherine adds, “There’s sure to be a mass exodus out of all cities when they hear about a plague, and with the gasoline shortages we’ve been having, cars and trucks will fill the roadways with people unable to get fuel. If you go to Idaho, you should take all of your stuff with you. Get a rental truck or something, but don’t plan on making an easy trip back. This is just the type of thing we’ve all been preparing for.”

“I would, trust me, I would take my stuff, but I need to get there quick. Any long road trip with a truck full of supplies is just an invitation to disaster. I know you’re both right, that things will really crumble because of this disease. Things were already bad enough without throwing a pandemic in the mix. But my main priority now is getting to Rachel and the kids. The supplies are secondary. I know I’ll probably never see those supplies again. I just don’t want them raided or destroyed by staying at my place. Please, pick them up.”

“All right, I will if I can get to them with a truck. When are you leaving?”

“When I leave here I’m heading back home to pick up my guns and ammo. Everything else in the house that you can grab, take to your place. Save them for as long as you can, but use anything that you need. I have a detailed list of everything, in a binder on the kitchen table, and here is a key to the house. I know where your ranch is, so if I can make it back, I’ll stop in to say hello someday.” Matt has a somber look and an attempted smile on his face.