The Borrowed World: A Novel of Post-Apocalyptic Collapse Read Online Free PDF Page A

same thing.
    “How much gas did we have?” he asked.
    “A little more than a quarter tank.”
    “Not nearly enough to make it home.”
    “Let's hope we can find a station with power and get more.”
    Gary nodded grimly.
     
     

Chapter 3
     
    After the text from her husband, Jim’s wife Ellen picked up the remote and turned on the TV in their bedroom.  Some of the cable channels were out, but CNN was still broadcasting and she stopped there.  The scale of devastation was almost too much to take in.  Explosions and attacks had taken place across the whole country and there was little information.  No one knew who was responsible or if it was even over yet.  She saw enough though to recognize signs of the “cascading systems failure” that Jim always warned against.  The warning signs were all there.  Enough things were failing that the whole fabric of society could come undone.  The question no one could answer was for how long.
    Jim talked about this stuff enough that even the kids were well versed in disaster preparation.  They'd seen a lot of programs on The Learning Channel, Discovery, and The Science Channel about how disaster scenarios could play out.  By now, the entire family was aware of certain facts about disasters.  Disruptions in communication led to panic, rumors, and fear.  Disruptions in the fuel supply led to food shortages, interruptions in various services that people expected, and high costs for what fuel was available.  Disruptions in power led to fear, looting, and deaths.  In the winter, people froze without power.  In the summer, they suffocated from a lack of air conditioning.  Without power, people who relied on medical devices would likely pass away if the interruption was of any duration at all. From what little Ellen could see, she knew there could be long-term disruptions in all of these areas.  Jim's worst scenarios were playing out in living color.
    She got out of bed, put on her robe, and went to the gun safe that Jim kept in their walk-in closet.  She knew the combination by heart.  She had been practically forced to memorize it, and Jim drilled her on the importance of being able to get weapons to protect the children in an emergency.  Inside the gun safe was a red binder that Jim had shown her many times.  He had never made her read it, just made sure she knew where it was so that she could get to it in an emergency.
    She took the binder out of the safe, took a seat on the bed, and opened the book.  Inside were neatly typed tabs and dividers.  There were sections labeled Insurance Policies, Finances, and Home Information.  It was the kind of stuff that a responsible husband left for his wife to make sure that she would know where things were if he died suddenly.  Toward the end of the binder were red tabs with labels that read Situation Normal, Situation Elevated, Situation Critical, and BUG OUT. 
    Situation Normal dealt with everyday emergency preparations that Jim normally took care of but wanted her to be able to handle should he not be there.  They were things he felt were very important to assure their safety, such as making sure that they had a supply of emergency water, emergency food, and emergency fuel.  Included was a schedule for rotating those items to make sure that the oldest was used first and to make sure those items were continually resupplied so that they didn't run out.  There were also instructions for turning off the water and power.  Basic stuff. 
    The list Jim wanted her to look for this morning was under Situation Elevated.  She knew that from many, many reminders over the years.  She opened that section and began reading.
    In an elevated situation, there may be reason to suspect that access to resources may be compromised for the short or long-term.  Stores will face an interruption in supply if fuel is limited.  We have made preparations for this, but efforts should be made to secure more of the following priority items if