Page 51 of In The Trenches (Owens Protective Services)

“That means having fuel trucks designated just for driving around and refilling generators,” the fire chief stated.

“We’ll have to block off roads to keep a path clear for them.”

“How are the hospitals doing?” I asked the medical director.

“I’ve been in contact with the two hospitals in the area. They’re doing okay for the time being, but as you would expect, things are strained. There are blocked roads, preventing staff from reaching the hospital. And the conditions aren’t ideal for running a hospital. If we can, we need to get more power to the hospitals so they can function at full capacity.”

“We also have the issue of getting people clean water,” Mark spoke up.

“Not to mention food,” the police chief spoke up. “We live in a society where cash is used less and less. Everyone swipes a card now. But you can’t use a bank card if the entire system is down. There’ll be a run on the banks.”

“People won’t have cash for long if they don’t have jobs to go to. What are people supposed to do when the money runs out?”

I stood from my seat, needing to put an end to the endless stream of problems. “Alright, these are all valid points. I’ve already had my team working on some solutions. The governor has ordered the national guard to come in, but they’ll be stretched thin as they aid the entire west coast. Let’s put together our best solutions for the most urgent problems. Red, I want you to contact other cities. Find out what they’re doing. Let’s make sure we share information. Eli, go with Mark and give him whatever help he needs to start reversing the power into the city. The National Guard should be arriving in the next six to twelve hours. Kavanaugh, let’s make sure we’re ready for them. Work with the mayor’s office to find mobile locations to set up.”

“I’ll have my office set up a news conference to set the public’s mind at ease,” the mayor spoke up.

“How are we going to do that with no power?”

The mayor sighed. “I guess we’ll send people around to news outlets and have them gather in front of city hall. I’ll just have to talk really loud.”

“It’s going to be like going back to the 1800’s,” I muttered. Running my hand through my hair, I gave a funny look. “Anyone know where we can find an old printing press?”

* * *

After hours of meetings,I broke away for five minutes to check in with Rae. I despised the fact that Rafe put me in charge of operational controls. The last thing I wanted to do was deal with the Mayor, the Governor, and everyone underneath. Not to mention that because of the lack of power, we were practically living in the stone age. I had to find satellite phones so we could stay in communication with members of the city, but even those would eventually lose power.

“What have you found out?” I asked Rae.

“Well, considering I’m having to go through dark channels, and try to communicate with people halfway around the country when we have no power, and—”

“Yeah, I got it, Rae. The situation sucks. Do you have anything,” I said slowly, emphasizing each word. I was already running low on patience.

“Not a lot yet. Grady works for a company called VTS—Vogt Technological Solutions. My gun did a deep dive on the company, but so far, he can’t find a single thing they actually produce.”

“Grady made it sound like they were a research company.”

She shook her head, keeping her voice low as she looked to the IT door to make sure no one was listening. “There was nothing on research either. Whatever they’re doing, they’re hiding it well. They don’t want anyone to know what they’re really doing.”

“What about other known associates?”

“We’re working on that.” She sighed in annoyance. “I could really use a computer right now.”

“We’re running on bare essentials right now,” I reminded her.

“A computer is a bare essential to me. It’s my lifeline.”

“What about our friend, Rafe? Any idea what he’s up to?”

“He’s off the grid. Whatever he’s doing—”

“He doesn’t want anyone to know either,” I finished. “Does anyone do anything transparent anymore? Fuck, this is annoying.”

“Well, it doesn’t help that we’re basically working in the Stone Age. You wouldn’t be willing to send me out of state, would you?”

“For what reason?”

“Because I could find out things a lot faster if I wasn’t restricted to digging through state records. Give me a company vehicle, and I’ll set up in freaking Kansas or something.”

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