The Homecoming: Countdown to Armageddon: Book 5 Read Online Free PDF Page A

quarters of the way through.
         “When you’re finished, you’ll have a weakened structure, but one that’s still standing.
         “When you get to this point, call me on the ham, and I’ll bring you the ropes.”
         “Ropes?”
         “Robbie and I collected twenty pieces of rope. Each piece is about thirty feet long and has several knots tied into them, about three feet apart. The knots are just so it’s easier to grip the rope.”
         “Uh… okay.”
         “The ropes go around the studs. You’ll tack nails into the back of each stud about an inch or two above the cut. The nail will hold the rope up and prevent it from falling below the cut. Each stud will have a rope, and we’ll get three or four strong men on each rope to pull the studs out one at a time. If you don’t have three or four strong men, we’ll gather some up from the neighborhood. You can return the favor when it comes time for them to clear their own land.”
         A light came on in Scarlett’s head and she interrupted.
         “Oh, I get it… like tug of war.”
         “Sort of. Just like a small man can take down a very large man by kicking him on the back side of the knee, we can topple the house by kicking the knees out from under it, so to speak. By pulling on each rope, we can go down the line, snapping the weakened studs, until the wall can no longer support the weight of the house and it collapses.”
         “And because we break the studs with ropes, we’re far enough away from the house to avoid being buried when it comes tumbling down.”
         “Exactly.”
         “But the house won’t come down completely, will it?”
         “Sometimes it will, sometimes it won’t. Sometimes, it reacts like a line of dominos. The outer wall can’t sustain the weight and collapses, and the whole house sags. That puts even more weight on the interior walls and they start to collapse one by one. Finally the whole structure starts leaning like a tired elephant looking for a place to lie down, and just falls over.
         “Other times, it won’t collapse completely. But there will be a large rubble pile on the collapsed side of the building. When that happens, it’s relatively safe to climb on top of the collapsed roof to drag away the heavy shingles. That’s where the bulk of the weight will be. Once the shingles are gone, the rest can be busted up with crow bars and sledge hammers and carted away. I’ll bring you a couple of wheelbarrows you can use to get rid of it.”
         “What do we do with all the materials?”
         “Burn what you can. The lumber can be burned in your fireplace. The plywood and rag board can be broken into pieces and burned in your fire pit in the warm months, to boil water and cook food. Most of what’s left is sheetrock and wiring. Use the wiring to repair fences or for binding. Break the sheetrock into small chunks and drop it in the rainwater runoff trench that runs behind the houses. It’ll take some time, but eventually it’ll decompose and the rain will wash it away. But you have to get rid of it because if it gets into your gardens, it’ll inhibit your plant growth.”
         “Where did you learn all this stuff, John?”
         “From living in hell these last two years.”
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    -4-
     
         Linda walked past Sara’s bedroom door and heard her sobbing. She almost kept walking, as it was her turn to relieve Jordan at the security console and she was running late already.
         But some things just can’t be ignored. One of them is a young woman sobbing in the night.
         Linda rapped on the door.
         The sobs instantly stopped. Then, a few seconds later, a plaintive query:
         “Yes, who is it?”
         Linda cracked the door open and peeked inside. Little Chris was in his crib