Prepper's Apocalypse | Book 2 | Prepper's Collapse
at that odd angle? The pointy end has jammed the turbine. I’ll disengage the clutch and let the wheel turn freely.”Rick asked, “How does it work with all of it below the water line?”
Tom said, “The wheel is in a box built into the pond's overflow pipe on the spillway. The wheel is offset so that only the bottom half of the wheel touches the flowing water. That spins the wheel, which turns the turbine to generate electricity. It could be a simple above the water contraption if we weren’t afraid someone would find it.”
Tom reached under the water, found the lever, and pushed it out toward the middle of the pond. The limb fell into the water, and Tom dragged it up on the bank. “We can’t put a screen small enough to stop the limbs or every fall the leaves would clog the spillway every day or two.”
Tom showed Rick how to engage the clutch and explained how the mechanism worked. A half-hour later, they joined the women who’d saved the heavy lifting for them. Kate pointed to the massive load in the trailer and pickup bed. “They must have stripped everything not nailed down at the ranch they came from. No wonder they borrowed a two-ton truck to haul their booty.”
Tom looked over the supplies and said, “My God, there are mechanic’s tools and a small gas-powered generator. Let me try the generator.”
Tom checked the generator for gas and oil and found it ready to go. He flipped the on switch, turned the gas feed to on, and pulled the choke out. He pulled the starting cord, and the generator sputtered and then ran as smooth as glass.
Rick said, “There’s more to this story, and inquiring minds want to know.”
Tom filled them in on what Granny B and the boy had told him. Kate said, “Skeletons in the closet always surface and bite people in the butt. What else do I need to know about this family I care about so much?”
Jackie shrugged. “Well, I wanted to wait until you and my brother tied the knot, but what the heck? Tom is a crossdresser. He likes to wear my clothes.”
Kate cocked her head and looked from Tom to Jackie. “How does he look in heels with a black thong? I always wanted a man with great fashion sense.”
Tom was speechless, but gave both of them the finger. Kate replied. “Not yet. I’m playing hard to get.”
Everyone broke out laughing except Tom, who pretended to be mad just to screw with his sister.
Tom and Rick unloaded the equipment into the barn while Jackie and Kate put the food and smaller items away. The food went down into the first fake storeroom at the bottom of the entrance to the bunker. Tom and Rick finished and joined the others in the kitchen area. Tom saw his grandma rocking the baby off by herself and joined her. Tom asked. “How are Doris and Jerry doing? Are they fitting in with the others?
“All is okay now. They’re stuck down here until you have a job away from the burned ranch house.”
Tom mentally slapped himself. “Yes, we can’t have them escaping and come back looking for a burned down house with the gang from Ashland. I’ll have Jack and James blindfold him and take him out on the range to check on the cattle. We need to have a roundup to figure out how many cattle have been lost.”
Granny B rocked the baby and put the pacifier back in its mouth. “That’s a good idea. I think you need to fetch that farm truck and catch some of those goats and fancy rabbits.”
Tom replied, “We’re going to get the truck in a few minutes. I just wanted to check on our new family before leaving. This should be a quick trip. We’ll use a temporary plug for the gas tank, put in five gallons of gas, and be back here ten minutes later.”
“I guess you’ll have to hide the truck up at the old cabin.”
“Yes, and we’ll have to figure out a new hiding place when we add farm machinery and a couple of vehicles. Don’t tell Jerry we’re bringing the truck up to the ranch,” Tom replied.
Tom, Rick, and Jack took the old pickup down the hillside, heading southeast to avoid leaving tracks close to the ranch under the powerline clear cut path. They crossed under the powerlines a quarter-mile east of where they thought the truck would be and drove through the sparse brush. The ground was rocky and covered in knee-high grass. Tom looked back in the mirror and saw two obvious tire tracks in the grass.
“Crap, Ray Charles could follow us in that grass.”
Rick snickered, but Jack gave Tom a dumb look. Tom said, “You know the blind singer from back in the 1970s.”
“Never heard of him,” said Jack.
“Young people!” was all Tom said
Tom drove north on Chinquapin Road and saw the powerlines ahead. “The truck should be hidden on this side of the road to our right side. I’m parking the truck in that stand of trees over there.”
Before Tom parked, Rick saw a glint of light coming from a stand of trees. “Look over there. Yep, it’s a truck.”
They pulled the brush away and off the hood exposing a 1955 Chevrolet Series 6400 - two ton flatbed truck. The truck had removable sides and tailgate. Tom looked at the truck and saw Bald Mountain Farm’s painted on the door. He said, “This isn’t a regular farm truck. It’s got a headache rack and a roller on the bed. It looks like an oilfield truck that’s been used on a ranch or farm to haul heavy equipment.”
The truck looked old and rusty until they were closer. Rick said, “This is one of those ‘rustorations’ where the truck is completely