S Ison - Russian Doomsday

Christy came into the kitchen in her pink fuzzy robe and sat beside him, grabbing his coffee as she did so. He put his arm around her and kissed her soft blonde head.

“How long you gonna be gone this time?” she asked, sipping the hot brew.

“Only four days. Just heading over to Raleigh. You want anything while I’m there?”

“No, honey. Just come home safe.” She smiled, leaned over, and kissed his cheek.

His eyes crinkled in a smile. “The boys are out and playing. Wanna go fool around?” he asked hopefully.

She sniggered and got up, taking his hand. Pulling, she led him to their bedroom. With one hand, Harley began to tug at his bright red tie while he kicked off his shoes. Christy looked back at him, grinned widely, and jerked him the last stretch into their bedroom and slammed the door. All thoughts of the Army and bad news fled.

Pike chewed the straw. Both Johnny and Beverly were out with clients and he was glad for the quiet. He’d been out earlier in the morning and shown his client his listings, and then several from other agencies. The man had been very indecisive. Which was normal. Purchasing property was an overwhelming process, apparently, and such a large purchase was not to be undertaken lightly.

Either way, Pike was now lazing around online, looking up things about medical supplies he might need in a SHTF situation. He had started a first aid kit and thought perhaps he should order some potassium iodine tablets for radiation poisoning. He’d send it on to Margo; he didn’t want anything being delivered to an old address.

He was also looking for properties around Mozingo Lake. Preferably the western side, as there were fewer tourist spots in that area. He was looking for forested land, but also keeping an eye on the more secluded properties with bigger acreage. He figured it would be better to have land around the homestead, putting space between himself and his neighbors.

That also meant privacy, something he’d read was necessary for preppers; one didn’t want the neighbors watching one stuffing the home with supplies or building a bunker. People were naturally nosy. They were nosy at work and nosy at home. He already had a couple neighbors who watched him. He’d felt their eyes on many occasions, drilling into his back.

Looking at the listings, there were several properties with four- and five-acre lots that didn’t have neighbors anywhere near, just plenty of forest. He had a kernel of an idea. He needed to discuss it with Margo before he could seriously consider it, though.

His heart sped up just thinking about her. He really needed to get a grip on his emotions. They hardly knew each other, truth be told. Better to stay on task and keep his mind on the issues at hand. There was such a gulf of years between them.

He’d found one property that was perfect for what he had in mind. Thee others almost made the grade, but this one was simply tailor-made. It was off grid with solar panels and boasted a small wind turbine. Having one or the other was great, but both? It gave options. It would also generate power on cloudy days. He was certain they’d have to watch power consumption on those days. It also had the most land, and was nice and secluded.

It had five hundred feet of waterfront on the lake, several storage sheds, and a small barn. It also had a buried propane tank. So, propane stove and maybe water heater? The only real problem that he could see was that the log cabin was expensive, and rightfully so: it was well equipped as far as he could see.

From the photographs, it appeared to be well built with an open-concept living room and kitchen. Some of the furnishings would be left behind, which would work in their favor. Two bathrooms as well. That was always good.

And this was where Margo came into the plan. They would need to pool their money and buy the property together, if he could get a job. It was something to discuss once he got there. There was no way either of them could afford to buy the property on their own. However, combining their money, he was pretty sure they could. The thing was, he didn’t know if it was a good idea to suggest living together, given the way he felt about her.

Though they had been friends in school, they hadn’t seen each other for years. And well he knew people changed when they became adults. He would essentially be meeting her for the first time as a grown man, and that was unsettling. Especially since he still had a crush on her.

But their lives perhaps depended on them making the right decisions. Pike knew he had to take his emotions off the table. He only hoped he could. Saying it was easier than doing it.

Johnny walked in, belching and grinning, breaking into Pike’s thoughts. Clearly he’d made a sale. Pike waited, knowing Johnny was about to crow. And he did. Pike put his fingers in his ears. Johnny was an okay guy, but he could get obnoxious at times.

“Congrats, Johnny. Glad you got a sale,” Pike said after unplugging his ears. And he meant it.

“Had them in the palm of my hand. They were looking to live in a gated community. Showed them three of my most expensive ones and wifey fell in love. She had to have the last one. Got to love it when the wifey falls in love. Hubby just can’t say no to that. Easy peas’. How about you? Did you score? No don’t tell me. Bombed.” Johnny sniggered, his face turning bright red. This was the part where Johnny was annoying and obnoxious.

“At least you got rid of those stupid books. Dude, did you see that the Ruski Orlov is meeting with the President? See, you were all worried for nothing. You shouldn’t get all frantic about that shit. You know that the U.S. is the most powerful country in the world. We got nothing to worry about. They should be scared of us.” He laughed, which nearly sounded like braying.

Pike smiled sadly at him and shook his head. That poor idiot . He has no clue, nor does he want to learn or even listen. “Yeah, I know, that was yesterday.” He turned back to his screen and noted down the information on the property. It had been on the market for well over six months, so there was probably a bit of room for negotiation. He could hope. Sometimes it was a seller’s market, sometimes a buyer’s market. And other times, the seller just wouldn’t budge.

He needed to get home and finish packing up. He was glad he had a truck, in which he could haul nearly everything he owned, which sadly wasn’t a whole hell of a lot. He’d have to look into getting an older model truck eventually, but he’d just wait and see. One thing at a time. Not too many irons in the fire or he’d burn up or burn out.

Hamish sat at his desk, reading through intel. The work day was coming to an end, and he’d just set Mermaid into motion. There were three stacks of intel: Important, Really Important, and Read Now. Nothing new that he could see, which was neither good nor bad. He sent some orders out, moved assets around and moved up the schedule. He had several ops active around the world, though currently POSEIDON was one of the top priorities. There was always movement somewhere in the world, always something going on.

He needed answers and needed them as soon as he could get them. He had several assets on this task. Mermaid was just one of them. The others were in key places and could provide real-time intel. However, the Russians were, as always, cautious and careful. It was always a gamble. That was just the way it was. Keeping one step ahead, having that vital intel. It was always a race, getting the intel, moving on, interpreting the intel, and so on. One never relied on one asset alone. This was a game played on many levels.