Russian Doomsday Page 11

  “I want to tell you about something which happened to me last week. I beg your indulgence, because I know that when you hear this, you will find it hard to believe.” He had their attention now. Their eyes were zeroed in on him. Once more, he felt the trickle of sweat down his back.

  “All my life, I’ve tried to follow and live by God’s Word. I’ve had times where my faith has wavered. I’ve always tried to listen to what God has tried to tell me or show me through prayer and meditation. But I’ve never before had a dream where I was sent a message.”

  Low murmurings started up around the room, heads leaning in and whispering.

  He lifted his hand and they quieted down again. “Now. I had a dream a few nights ago. It was about the end of our world as we know it. I saw hellfire, deadly winds and devastation the likes I’ve never seen or imagined. An angel told me that we need to prepare. He kept telling me, ‘Prepare, or run for your life.’” Once more, the murmuring and whispering grew louder and more animated.

  “I shall read from the Bible now, from Joel chapter 2, verses thirty to thirty-two.

  “‘And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the Lord has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the Lord calls.’

  “In my dream, I saw many horrific things. I believe I was sent it as a warning. To warn you to prepare. I believe something is coming. I don’t know when or where, but I do know that if we are not prepared, there will be much suffering.”

  He let a slow breath out. There. He’d said it. And they’d not jumped up and laughed at him. Yet.

  A man behind the second pew raised his hand, and Robert nodded and lifted his hand for the man to speak.

  “So, you’re telling us that, because you had a nightmare, you think God has spoken to you? Telling us to prepare for something that is coming, but you don’t know what or when?” the man asked, sarcasm heavy in his voice.

  Robert’s heart sank as he saw heads nod around the room. It was Rey Huval, an arrogant man and a thorn in his side.

  “Yes. I’m asking you to take a leap of faith with me. I’ve never had a dream so vivid as this. I ask that each of you prepare. Put food and water away. Prepare for famine, disease, and pestilence. Please, I understand it’s difficult for you to believe, but I urge each of you to prepare for the worst.”

  Rey stood, grabbed his wife’s arm, and together they began moving down the pew, leaving. Others began to get up and leave too.

  “Please, ladies and gentlemen, I urge you to listen and heed. I understand if you don’t believe me, but please, believe in the spirit of what I ask and what I tell you.” He watched in sadness as everyone got up and left, looking at him with either pity or scorn. His mouth trembled, and he tried not to beg them come back.

  Within minutes, his church was empty, and quiet but for the soft sobs he made. The people he’d known for years, had guided, laughed and cried with, had all walked out on him. He walked off the stage and went to sit in the front pew.

  “Lord, I tried to tell them. I will keep trying, but I don’t think they want to hear me. I’m sorry I failed you.”

  Lincoln, NE, 18 August 2018

  Pike arrived in Lincoln. He was a little nervous, and excited. He would finally meet the man who’d helped him begin prepping. He pulled into a repair garage and saw a tall man, slightly balding, put down a greasy rag. He smiled, clearly recognizing Pike, and Pike returned the smile.

  Pike got out of the truck and extended his hand. “Mr. Sayer Bleak, I presume. Good to meet you finally,” he said, grinning widely.

  Sayer took his hand and shook it heartily. “Good to see you Pike, and glad you made it safely.

  “It’s quitting time here. How would you like to go get a drink, maybe something to eat?”

  “Sure, Sayer, if you want. I’ll follow you and we can relax and have a chat.”

  “Sounds good. Let me lock up and I’ll be right out.”

  Pike looked around. It was a neat little garage, and seemed to suit Sayer. No muss, no fuss. He saw Sayer come out of the office and lock the door, so he got into his truck and waited. Sayer waved and got into his own truck, then pulled out. Pike followed behind, and a few minutes later they pulled into a pub. Both men got out and headed into the bar.

  A redheaded waitress showed them to a booth and Pike ordered a beer along with a hamburger platter. Sayer ordered the same and both men sat back and relaxed. There was soft rock playing in the background. Pike was glad it wasn’t too loud.

  “So, what have you and Margo been up to?” Sayer asked, smiling.

  “Well, we’ve bought a cabin, off grid, out on Mozingo Lake. We close on it in September,” Pike said, a grin plastered on his face.

  “Damn, brother, that’s some swift moving on your part, and good on ya, man. You might as well do it right, right outta the gate,” Sayer said, laughing. He rocked back and smacked his knee.

  “I had a long time to think on my way out here. If I rent, there is always a chance I might have to move. Also, in apartments there’s never enough room. I’m staying with Margo while we wait to move over to the cabin. She has a two-bed, but we’re running out of room trying to stockpile in there.” Pike pulled at his hair, recalling the frustration of finding places to store supplies. “There would be no way to defend the apartment either. It’s really an open target.

  “That is the truth. You need room to store all your supplies and I’m pretty sure that thieves would hit the easiest targets first before moving on.”

  “The cabin is expensive, especially if nothing ever happens, but I believe it to be a worthwhile investment,” Pike continued, shrugging. “We’ll at least leave a smaller carbon footprint and become self-sufficient.” He didn’t know why he felt he had to explain his actions. Perhaps he just wanted Sayer’s approval.

  The waitress came with their drinks and both men thanked her. Pike took a sip of his beer. It was cold and refreshing. Both men enjoyed the moment, sipping their beer. A few minutes later, the waitress came back with their food. They began to eat.

  “Joy, my girlfriend and I live out on a farm. It isn’t big, and it’s near town, but we can plant and grow our own food. We have a couple goats and a few chickens too,” Sayer said.

  “That sounds like a good idea, chickens I mean. Once we get moved in, I think we might start our own flock. Margo and I also talked about what would happen if radiation hit, and I wanted to run an idea past you and see what you think.”

  “Sure, go ahead. And chickens are also good for manure to fertilize your garden, by the way, nice and organic.”

  “Good idea. I’ll let Margo know. I think she’d like chickens. I just hope her dog doesn’t eat them. Anyway, we were thinking that maybe we should put away some dirt in plastic containers.” Pike watched the other man, hoping he wouldn’t laugh at his ideas. “We think, just as a precaution, we could use that to grow crops, or at least some food. Margo’s going to order non-GMO seeds, you know, the heirloom kind, the ones that reproduce. We found out that a lot of seeds you buy in stores won’t reproduce,” Pike said.

  Sayer laughed. “Yeah I know heirloom seeds. And that’s a good idea about storing soil. It would take a hell of a lot of containers, but maybe that would be a good project, just for in case. I have a small metal container on a trailer. I might use that to store soil in. It’s something to think about. It would at least give us a fighting chance, and is an easy do,” he said, taking another drink of his beer.

  “We’ll get worms from the bait shop to put in there; don’t want irradiated worms,” Pike laughed.

  “That’s good. And you are right. If we get radiated, it will kill everything in the soil, I think. Microbes and worms and seeds. Or it will mutate them. I
suggest putting tiny holes in the bottom of the containers. You don’t want the worms to suffocate… not sure they can… don’t know how they breathe.” Sayer laughed, then shrugged.

  “I also wanted to discuss getting some weapons. I don’t want to go about asking people I don’t know, but I assume you have someone you buy guns and ammo from?” Pike asked. He was a little nervous about this subject. People got a little weird when talking about guns.

  “Sure, no problem. I know a couple guys.” Sayer took a napkin and pulled out the pen from his shirt pocket. He scribbled a couple of names and numbers. “These are real good men, they have good weapons, and ammo of whatever you’ll need. They’re also fairly priced. You’ll need to check your Missouri’s gun laws, but I don’t think you’ll have much trouble. I think you’ll need a license to carry. Make sure you do it legal,” Sayer advised.

  “Thanks, I’ll do that when I get back home. There just seems so much to do. Margo and I feel a little overwhelmed with it all.”

  “One step at a time, one thing at a time,” Sayer said kindly. “You’re already thinking ahead, like with the planting and soil, seeds and weapons. If you’ve never used a gun before, make sure you get some kind of training. You don’t want to hurt yourselves.”

  “I sure will. Margo and I plan on finding a shooting range and practicing. We want to become proficient. We want to make sure we don’t injure ourselves, and we both want to feel comfortable handing them. I’ve never handled a gun, and she hasn’t either. We thought it important we did our utmost to be responsible gun owners,” he said.

  “I’d also invest in a gun safe, have it put in the basement if you have one,” Sayer suggested. “Make sure it is secured to the ground. You might also want to have some of your ammo and such put in other locations, easily accessed in case you are raided, in an apocalyptic scenario. The same with your long-term food supply: you don’t want all your eggs in one basket.”

  “Good info, thanks. Once we get settled in, I’d like it if you came out to see us one weekend. We can sit and brainstorm once you see the property,” Pike said, smiling.

  “I’d like that. I can bring Joy. She’s now getting on board with it all as well. Maybe she and Margo can also brainstorm about what to do with planting and all. Joy can also give her tips about farming and medical stuff. The more you know, the better prepared you’ll be. I’m always reading, always looking and doing research. You can never know too much.” He grinned.

  Pike nodded. He was liking Sayer a lot. The man seemed down to earth. Not a blowhard or know-it-all. Some people talked a lot but really didn’t know what they were doing. His mind went briefly to Johnny and a pang of sadness swept through him. He wondered how he and Bev were doing? He also wondered if they’d thought any more about POSEIDON and Russia.

  “I hear you. Sometimes I have information overload and I feel like my brain is going to explode. I dream about this stuff, I swear.”

  “I think once you get settled into your cabin, the pressure will be off and you can relax a bit. You’re almost there, and it sounds like you have a good amount of supplies set by already. Only a little bit longer.” Sayer grinned, and lifted his beer in salute. Pike grinned back and raised his glass.

  An hour later, Pike paid the bill, insisting on it. All in all, it had been a good first meeting. Sayer had listened to him, didn’t talk down to him, and he really appreciated that.

  “Next one is on me, Pike. I mean that,” Sayer mock-glared at him as they walked out the door.

  “Thanks,” Pike grinned. “I’ll head on back, then. Thank you again for everything. It was really good meeting you. Once we get settled into the cabin, I’ll definitely give you a call.”

  “Sounds good. Be safe out there, Pike.”

  They went to their trucks, and Pike waved once more before he drove away. He looked forward to his visit at the cabin, when they could talk more.

  He figured he’d swing by the one of the gun sellers on his way home. He would feel better once he had some more of the items on his long list of must haves. Each time he crossed something off, it felt really good. But then they’d think of something and it would be added to the list, making it longer again. He hoped that Sayer was right, that once they’d moved in, the stress of it that was weighing down on him would lessen.

  He was trying to keep it together for Margo; he knew she was trusting him to get them there. He’d never had that kind of responsibility before, and it was overwhelming. A year ago, he’d never have pictured himself here, and yet here he was, making a huge commitment to a home and a lifestyle.

  Maryville, MO, 30 August 2018

  Pike was really pleased. He’d just received his realtor’s license and was hired by Maryville Realty.

  “Look Margo, I got it! I got my license! And Maryville Realty have hired me!” he crowed.

  “Pike, that is fantastic! I’m so proud of you, Margo exclaimed. “When do you start?”

  “I have to go to orientation day after tomorrow. I want to go out to purchase a couple books. Do you want to come with me?”

  “Sure, and can we go by and pick up my weapon?”

  “Yeah, the guy said he’d have it today, didn’t he, so might as well.”

  He grabbed his keys to the truck and they went out. They first stopped by the bookstore. Margo went to the gardening section and he went to look for books on economics and strategies. He remembered the ones Johnny and Bev had. He was highly motivated now, and needed to make money both for the new mortgage he was about to take on and for buying equipment, weapons and ammunition for prepping.

  “I got my books, The Vegetable Gardener’s Bible and Mini Farming,” Margo grinned, holding up the two books.

  “I got Success as a Real Estate Agent for Dummies and Your First Year in Real Estate. I figure if I can get through those, they will help me and guide me to other books.”

  “Cool. Now, let’s go get me a gun,” Margo laughed.

  An hour and a half later, they were with the seller, Richard. He had a .38 Special for Margo.

  “Hold it in your hand and see if that feels good,” Richard said.

  Pike watched as Margo handled the weapon. She opened it up, pulled back the hammer, aimed, fired a couple times. She looked at Pike and shrugged.

  “It feels okay. Not too heavy. I like that it fits my hand well.”

  “You want something that you’ll be comfortable with. For you Pike, I think you will like this Sig Sauer P227. It’s a good weapon and dependable.”

  Pike took the weapon gingerly and held it in his hand. He worked the slide and ejected the magazine, then put it back in.

  “Now, if you find that after a time you don’t care for it, bring it back and we can see about something else,” Richard said.

  “That sounds good. We’re going to go the shooting range and make sure we get a lot of practice in. I think I do like this weapon, though. It feels good in my hand,” Pike said, grinning at Margo.

  “All right. Now we’ll get the paperwork filled out and then I’ll get you some ammo. I’ll set you up with target practicing and rounds you’ll have for defense,” Richard said, and pulled out registration forms.

  An hour later, they were on their way home. They’d spent quite a bit of money, and Pike felt almost breathless.

  “I never knew guns cost so much. It is almost frightening,” Margo said. She held both boxes containing their guns in her lap. The boxes of ammunition were in a bag at her feet.

  “Yeah. I think I will be putting in more hours at the hardware store,” he laughed.

  “Yeah. Boy, oh boy. Do you think we should have gotten the shotguns?”

  “Yeah, but for now I think we should get used to these guns. Set up some times and go to the firing range. I really want to get comfortable and good with the weapon. Our lives might depend on it.”

  “I know. Just kindof seems overwhelming.”

  “At least we’re going forward. And we have each other, Margo. You aren’t alone in this.” He smil
ed over at her.

  “I know, and I’m glad. Thank you for doing this.”

  “It has to be done, Margo. I don’t know any other way than to just keep planning and getting things we need.

  “Do you think we’ll ever get caught up? I mean, we’re putting a lot of money out there.”

  “I think that, once we get to the cabin and put everything in place, we can see what we need from there. Maybe take it slower. We have food now, a lot of food. We’ll need more, but that’s okay. We have shelter, and we move in soon. We now have weapons to defend ourselves. We’re gradually gaining the knowledge we need to survive.” He wanted to reach out and hold her hand, but didn’t.

  When they got back to the apartment, they took their guns and books and dropped them on the kitchen counter. Margo went and got a bottle of wine.

  “What is that for?”

  “A mini celebration, for your license and your new job. Let’s go out to the pool and relax,” she grinned.

  “Now that is a damned fine idea.”

  They sat out at the complex’s pool. There weren’t many children around, so it was quite nice. School would start soon, he thought, if it hadn’t already. Maybe that was why there weren’t kids around.

  “This is nice, no screaming kids.” Margo sighed and let her feet float in the water.

  “Yeah, wine is good too. I’m feeling so much better.”

  “It seems like each thing we do just makes us feel better,” she said.

  “Yeah. I want your opinion,” Pike said, looking into the wine, afraid to look at her. “Sayer is a really nice guy and I want you to meet him and his girlfriend, Joy. She’s a nurse, apparently. They have a small farm near Lincoln, which is a big city and kinda spreads out. If, or when, hell breaks loose, I was thinking that it might be good to have two more people guarding our place and helping with growing food. And, if Joy was there, it would help in case we got hurt or sick. Also, Sayer is a mechanic, and that might come in useful as well.”