Return ...Part 26 ...Trust Issues

Do not trust governments more
than governments trust their own people
―Andrei Sakharov

Apocalypse

We made the break from the city and its social security nets but now I felt stranded out on the land. I was feeling quite apprehensive about our prospects but curiously, Brooke was fascinated with the off-grid cabin and thought we could not only survive but do it in luxury.

She insisted I give her and Angelica a tour of the property and I grudgingly complied with misgivings that my off-grid technology would give them false hope about out ability to thrive. It was going to be damn hard especially come winter and I wasn't relishing the prospect of foraging for food.

Also, in back of my mind, was the fear the cabal would come hunting for me and we'd have no defence other than the rifle I kept as protection from wolves or coyotes.

And although I was intimidated by the cabal and its sinister motives it wasn't just human evil I feared. I had been raised Catholic and knew little about the end times or teaching about the Apocalypse.

Eschatology was not a popular topic even in the Catholic college I attended. All I knew about the last days were the cryptic comments my mentor, Father Breton, occasionally made.

And yet, my night terrors involved being pursued by the Beast―a Leviathan-type entity, a form of dragon I knew was a metaphor for the Devil. I could sense the current world-wide emergency was not simply the result of solar flares but the ensuing events had a spiritual dimension and it was dark and menacing.

So, the last thing I wanted to do was to play into Brooke's fantasy that living off-grid was going to be some kind of wilderness adventure. I was actually terrified when I thought how vulnerable we really were.

At any rate, I tried to follow Angelica's approach―that we needed to take stock of our resources so we could make the best of what we had.

"Up on the roof is an array of twenty solar panels, " I explained. "It's an A-frame house and there's a lot of roof space to take advantage of solar energy."

"What happens when the sun goes down?" Brooke asked.

I opened a door to the garage and pointed to two Tesla Powerwalls-- ample battery storage to power the house at night.

"In addition to the solar panels, I have a 4500 watt gas powered generator that can power the house if needed. We draw water from a well and there's a spring-fed pond on the property too."

Angelica was gazing at the woods. "We certainly won't lack for firewood."

"No, we have several acres of woodland and in back of the house is a vegetable garden. Let's see how that's been faring."

I led the girls back to the area where I had planted a good-sized patch of land in the spring and was amazed to see it was producing results although it was somewhat overgrown.

"I guess we'll all have to pitch in and start weeding," Brooke laughed, "but I'm actually quite impressed, Zach―who knew you had a domestic side to your character?"

As we started to walk back to the front of the house, Angelica noticed an envelope taped to the wall of the shed. It was addressed. To the Owner.

I felt a pang of fear―an envelope meant someone had been on the property―I hoped we could lie low and go unnoticed.

Angelica handed me the letter. She frowned, "I wonder why the letter was left back here?"

I opened the envelope and read the contents aloud:

Dear Neighbour,

I hope you don't mind my harvesting some of your produce. It was wilting and not doing well and seemed a waste of good food.

My wife and I dropped by to see if we could barter―we keep livestock but hadn't planted crops aside from corn and because of the emergency fresh produce was scarce.

We dropped by each day and watered and turned the soil and rescued your crop. We hope to meet you and repay you for what we harvested.

Frank and Helen Clifford

"They seem like nice people," Angelica said.

"They do," I sighed, "but that makes it harder to keep our distance. We can't reveal too many details about us."

"Maybe we can use the plague as a reason to avoid socializing but still take advantage of their idea of bartering for things we need."

"I like that―sounds like a plan," I smiled.

Inwardly though I had my doubts. It was sad not knowing who we could trust. Even a well-intentioned neighbour could let a detail slip that could put the cabal on our trail.

It wouldn't take much because I could already sense the presence of evil and it seemed to be all around us.

To be continued…

© 2021, John J Geddes. All rights reserved

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