Trekking Home Read online

  Trekking Home

  Book 1

  By

  Jeffrey Miller

  Editor

  Nancy Miller

  SMASHWORDS EDITION

  *******

  Copyright 2017 Jeffrey Miller

  Smashwords Edition, License Notes

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Contents

  Acknowledgements

  Introduction

  Chapter 1 - The Noise of the World

  Chapter 2 -The Coffee Mug

  Chapter 3 - The Passage of Time

  Chapter 4 - Closing the Gap

  Chapter 5 - Flying Was For the Birds

  Chapter 6 - Thin Blue Line

  Chapter 7 - The New Arrival

  Chapter 8 - Fly Over Country

  Chapter 9 - The Night Wolves

  Chapter 10 - Happy Trails, Sore Tails

  Chapter 11 - The Why in the Road

  Chapter 12 - One Day at a Time

  Chapter 13 - A Ranger in the woods

  Chapter 14 - Back In the Saddle Again

  Chapter 15 - Mr. Nate

  Chapter 16 - Top Notch Fire Ring

  Chapter 17 - The Town Not On the Map

  Chapter 18 - In The Clear

  Chapter 19 - Of their own accord

  Chapter 20 - The Last Leg

  Chapter 21 - Trails End

  Acknowledgements

  When I started this story I truly had no idea how long or where I would go with the idea. Regardless, my wife Nancy Miller was by my side with constant encouragement. My marriage has produced many great things. The best is having my best friend with me, and understanding my passion. She waited patiently during the long nights of writing and allowed me to run ideas past her for feedback.

  I was very happy when she asked to be the Editor and knew she would give the book all of her attention. I recognize I am blessed and seek now to take this moment to say thank you to my wife. I love you Nancy Miller.

  Introduction

  Society, for the most part, had collapsed into a state many did not recognize. In fact, most of the world's economies crashed. While the rich lost some, they retained their ability to seclude themselves from the masses around the world. The government could not maintain the structures of support. Unemployment was worse that it was during the great depression. The rebuild would take Americans to the brink and force many to return to a time before the great technological booms. Most could not adjust; many had died the first year. When society doesn’t show up to work, things deteriorate fast. Every facet of the great American dream came unraveled. Law enforcement, hospitals, banks, food production, energy production, even religious institutions all nearly collapsed. It is during times like this that many faced with very hard struggles and decisions. Survival means learning to live again on what you have and learning to depend on each other more than ever. The one aspect of Government that still functioned as the rebuild was underway was the military. Its ability was primarily focused now on keeping the American mainland safe from hostiles overseas, and there were many. Only in the largest cities was martial law implanted. Small towns found themselves alone. The Constitution was still in place to the great disappointment of the many liberal progressives in government. The traditional levels that once existed in America; the poor, the middle class, and the upper class were all merged into one now. Only the extremely wealthy flourished, but even they were disappearing quickly with few exceptions. Some tried to use their wealth to help. It is during this period that this story takes place, only two months into the collapse. During times of great hardship, pain, death, and uncertainty, some can find hope, and new friends to take the path together towards a goal.

  Chapter 1

  The Noise of the World

  Week Three of May. Montana

  Every year, for many years, Nate Michaels and some very close friends would meet at John Lipton’s private cabin resort. Located near the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest. For ten days, they would fly fish, hike, and camp. Counting Nate, there were five men in all. Nate had known each one for over 20 years and served closely with them in the army. This vacation was needed. Nate had been working hard on his ranch. Nate took off a week before taking his time driving his way up to Montana from his home in Fritch, Texas. He always loved driving up through Colorado, Wyoming and into Montana.

  The trip was beyond the experience he had the year earlier. This year, he caught some fish. The time spent with friends was also good. He cherished his friends; they were a tight-knit family, having been through life and death together on many occasions. It was never easy when it came time to depart, but they all had made a pact to return and next time, make it a longer vacation. Nate packed up his Dodge Ram pickup. He had brought with him a large military style rucksack. Nate carried numerous items for the trip and just being on the open road. Nate was brought up to be prepared. He carried a few weapons with him, including two rifles and several boxes of ammo. In the back of the truck, was extra bottled water, most of which he didn’t need during the trip because John had plenty on hand at the cabin. Also in the back of the Ram were a few extra gas cans strapped to the tie downs. Nate didn’t have a tool box yet having just bought the truck about six months earlier. The Ram fits him. Nate was 6’5” and nearly 250 pounds.

  After saying all the goodbyes to his friends, Nate headed out. He was the first one to leave, having the longest drive. Most of the others lived only a state away, each year, John tried to convince Nate to move to Montana, invest in some land and some cabins. Nate thought about it but wasn’t ready to make that commitment. He was on I-90 now headed east of Bozeman. Montana wasn’t a very populated state, so there were never many people on the Interstate. He was making good time and planned to stay on I-90 all the way down into Wyoming. Overtime Nate developed a list of favorite places to stop for breaks and food. Some of these stops along the way had audio books he could purchase. Nate loved listening to audio books during long road trips. When he reached Billings, he would stop at The Flying J Truck Stop on the frontage road off I-90 before taking the route to the south into Wyoming.

  Nate was listening to an audio book when he entered the city limits to Billings. He slowed down because of the sudden amount of traffic both on the interstate and the frontage road to the stop he planned to take. It seemed most of the traffic was slowing down to take the exit.

  “Well, that’s odd,” Nate said to himself. He paused the audio book, so he could scan ahead and focus. If he stopped now, it would take a while just to get to an available gas station. The interstate was clear past the exit to the frontage road. He decided to keep going. He had a few more audio books that would last him until sometime into Wyoming. He looked down at his gas gauge. It was just a hair off full. John had many things at his retreat, including a 500 gallon above the ground gravity tank. He was a very generous man and insisted on filling Nate’s Ram the day before leaving Nate filled both five-gallon cans in the back of the Ram. John said it was the least he could do since Nate’s was the one who caught the ten days worth of Trout this year.

  When Nate took vacations, he tried hard to avoid TV’s, radios, and any form of the outside world so as to not impede mentally on his relaxation. That was the main reason he chose audio books during his drive. He continued to drive along the route still only seeing sporadic vehicles. He caught glimpses every so often of trucks loaded down with wha
t appeared to be entire house loads of furniture heading in the opposite directions. It wasn’t uncommon to see people moving, but he had counted no less than ten trucks now in the past hour. He figured it was an enormous family and continued.

  His drive out of Montana was uneventful, minus a few cars he had seen stopped off the side of the road with people gathered around talking. It didn’t look like anything was wrong, and he kept moving. Nate was leaving Montana now and entering into Wyoming. Everything was smooth until right before Sheridan. The traffic became much thicker mostly in the southbound lanes of I-90. The northbound interstate was moving fast into Montana. That was when Nate had the first bad feeling in his gut. Something told him to turn off the audio book and activate the radio to see what was happening. Nate turned on the radio to try to find a local AM station. He found one, but all they kept referring to was the Market crash.

  “The crash last week may be the worst in US history, we are already seeing all forms of social welfare programs and banking shut down” the man on the radio stated.

  Nate had been out of the loop. Everything he saw since he’d left was making sense. That would explain the gas station issues and the traffic jam. The people headed out with loaded down trucks.

  Nate continued to listen to the radio program go on to explain and debate what had caused the crash. Everyone agreed on the ungodly amounts of debt the US owed. The relentless spending and borrowing had finally caught up to the Government and those elected. Nate always knew this day would arrive, but didn’t keep it from being a shock. The station was a national program out of DC with affiliates contributing from the New York stock exchange, but it closed nearly eight days ago. Eight days ago, he was standing in a clear river casting his fly rod surrounded by the Big Skies of Montana. The cabin had TV and Satellite, but no one turned anything on. Most nights they sat around the campfire eating and drinking until late into the night.

  Nate was dumbfounded by the news. He didn’t make it very far into Wyoming before experiencing the first sign of things to come. It was as if the world turned upside down. While driving IH 90 south into Sheridan, the traffic came to a sudden halt. At some time during the day, an armored car had been run off the road and robbed. Police and EMS were at their limits and could not respond to the numerous 911 calls that came in. The criminal elements in America could smell blood. It always starts with the easy targets. Nate was becoming worried as he sat in his truck. Gas was starting to get low, but the traffic was not moving. Even more alarming was the high number of people already out of their vehicles, walking up and down both sides of the Interstate. Some were families with kids. Some were elderly, barely able to walk. He picked up his scanner and tuned it to the local frequencies. The news was bad; this wasn’t just a traffic jam due to a robbery. He looked over his shoulder and could see the two five gallon cans of gasoline he always carried. He knew if he moved now he could make it at least halfway through Wyoming, maybe. He couldn’t move, nor could the woman an older man was carrying past his truck.

  Something in Nate told him to act. He thought of his parents and prayed they were ok.

  Nate jumped out of his truck and ran around the back to the man. The man was scared at first; not knowing what Nate was doing, but stopped and slowly allowed his wife to stand.

  “Sir, where are you going? I mean, why did you leave your car?” The old man looked back as if looking for his vehicle, then gazed back to his wife. She reminded Nate of his aunt. They were nearly the same age.

  “We ran out of gas, and there is trouble up there. Some bad attitudes, if you understand my meaning. Besides that, we don’t live but 20 miles back up that way. We just headed to the store down past the next exit. We have been sitting in our car for nearly 7 hours.” the old man explained.

  The congestion on the roads was far more extensive, he now knew. Nate could hear the sounds of cars on the other side of the interstate going through the median and along the other stalled cars on the shoulders.

  “Gene, we have to keep moving, I don’t think I can keep standing very long,” she said looking up at her husband then back to Nate.

  “I’m sorry, but we have to go, the temps will drop soon, and I get frigid easily, poor circulation, you understand?” she was a sweet old lady. That was it; this determined his next move.

  “How about I give you two a ride if you want you can even ride in the back if you don’t trust me” Gene looked at his wife. She nodded a yes. Gene turned back to Nate.

  “If it’s alright we can ride in the front if you have the room?” he asked.

  “But how are you gonna get through this? We can’t drive across, and there are too many people down that way” He said pointing towards the direction he came.

  “I will just head north on the shoulder and see how that goes, seems no one is trying that yet.”

  “My name is Nate, sorry I didn’t introduce myself.” Nate extended his hand to the both of them.

  “It’s nice to meet you, Nate. I am Gene Hartford, and this is Mattie, my wife.” Nate walked them both to the front of his truck and removed a few bags.

  “Where are you coming from Nate?” Gene had noticed the bags.

  “I was on a fishing trip with friends up in Montana, I wasn’t aware of the market stuff, honestly, until just a while ago.” he explained.

  “Well Nate, let me fill you in while you drive” Nate closed the door for Gene and got in the truck. Gene went on to describe the past few days’ events to Nate. Gene had been a broker but retired a few years back. He and Mattie had family all around and counted their blessings for that now.

  “Family is important right now Nate, do you have a family?” Mattie turned to listen to Nate. She rode in the middle, the seat was small, but she was grateful not be carried along the road.

  “Yes sir, I’m not married, but I do have family down in Texas, that’s where I was heading,” Nate said. Gene kept explaining the causes of the world market meltdown and the effects it was having on everything in society.

  “Well, Gene it appears all the preppers out there were right all along.” He said half smiling.

  “Nate, the Government, knew this was going to happen, you can’t keep printing monopoly money and expect everyone to take it. What most didn’t understand was how fast and bad it would get. I mean once those food stamp cards stopped working, all hell broke loose. The looting in Chicago was the first to break the news, followed by Dallas, and L.A. Let me tell you also, New York is literally on fire as I speak.” The tired looking Gene commented.

  Nate could not believe his ears; he focused hard on the road as the eye could see. Nate hoped where ever these two lived they lived far off and away from the interstate. There was going to be a great horde of people if this got much worse, looking for food and gas.

  The stories Gene was telling him sent chills down his spine. Though in the back of his mind he knew it would fall someday, he just figured it would be later, in the future. Not right this moment.

  “So, what you’re telling me it’s widespread? All over?” Nate asked. He was making surprisingly good time driving like this. Most people were staying in their vehicles. Cars and trucks were very efficient and could last a long time just sitting. And Mattie was correct; the weather was getting cooler.

  “Yes, last we saw on Fox News, authorities were having trouble controlling nearly every major city. The National Guard had to be called in for many places. I figure even that won’t last long because there is no money, and those soldiers will want to be home protecting their loved ones as well.” Nate considered Gene's comment. That was very true if the banking institutions had collapsed it would mean a run on the banks, and maybe at the same time, a run on grocery stores. Nate wondered if he would ever make it back to Texas.

  “Up ahead, you will see what looks like a small utility box. Slow down and get off right at the exit. That will be an old road that we locals use to bypass traffic to jump on the interstate.” Gene said. Nate felt better that at least these two would b
e home and safe tonight.

  “Soon, you will see another dirt road. Turns left, and then go up as far as you can. That will be our home.” Gene said as he held the hand of Mattie, who looked very relieved to be close to home.

  “You will see German shepherd’s, and likely some of our folks coming out since they don’t know this truck. The dogs are our alarm system. The man that will be out will be our son Randy, probably followed by all our grandchildren. They don’t live too far from here. We all gathered together while this is going on, because, you know strength in numbers.” Gene said smiling. It seemed he was trying to reassure Mattie more than anything. Gene was right, he saw several Shepherds, and then several lights came on outside. Several men came from many directions all had rifles.

  “Nate turned on your interior lights. They will see us then.” Nate quickly did as requested and then he saw smiles on the faces of the men.

  “Just pull up over there,” Gene said pointing to an old car that was looking like it had been there for at least 30 years.

  Nate shut his truck off and waited for the man’s son to approach his father’s door. He still had a rifle in his hand and felt a little uneasy.

  “Dad, we were worried sick! They said on the radio the store was set on fire and many didn’t make it out!” Gene hugged his son and turned to Nate.

  “Well Randy, we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for this kind man, Nate this is my son Randy.” Nate got out of his truck and walked up to Randy, shaking his hand.

  “Thank you, sir, so much” Randy slung the rifle over his shoulder and asked his father what happened, and helped his mom into the house as well. Nate was invited in, and once inside the older ranch style home could smell bacon cooking. Randy’s wife came out of the kitchen and hugged Gene and Mattie. She had long blond hair and was wearing an apron over her jeans. She looked about the same age as Randy.