Shoot scoot and shut up?
Story Market Day
- Thread starter ComCamGuy
- Start date
Shoot scoot and shut up?
ComCamGuy
Remote Paramedical pain in the ass
Road noise, exhaustion, closed up vehicle, and so on and so forth. Sudden noise woke them up, but they weren’t awake fast enough to identify
larry_minn
Contributing Member
+20 years ago that was a option. I was almost involved in a shooting. I did not fire, pulled a fade. Today you will be caught on a couple cameras
Griz3752
Retired, practising Curmudgeon
Even out of urban areas. There've been cameras at road-side or tourist rest areas for many years.
feralferret
Veteran Member
CCG, thank you!
But we are talking about this particular situation in this story. I’m not sure how many resources “they” will have to look into cameras, and our family group needs to survive the trip north for any potential prosecution to happen even if they have cameras.
ComCamGuy
Remote Paramedical pain in the ass
Up North
Barbara was worn out. Between the ride itself, the added stress trying to evade unknown hunters, and trying to teach these two blundering Mooses how to move without setting off giant neon signs screaming ‘I’m HERE!’, all she wanted to do was take a quick shower and crawl into bed. The bad part was she knew she couldn’t. Not yet. She had to debrief the guys, lay the groundwork for the next few days until they get a better handle on what the hell was going on, send Stephen a warning message with what happened so he didn’t come blundering into something, make sure the blackout shutters were down in place, do a light leak check once things got dark, and so on and so on, and so on.
Later
“Does any of this make sense?” Benjiman asked Randolph as they stood in the kitchen.
“Which part? Somebody gunning down Barbara’s car, our twenty-mile forced loop through the middle of nowhere to get back here, Barbara’s one-hundred-eighty degree shift in attitude and personality, the whole ‘hide like Anne Frank’s understudy’, or is there some other part I’m missing?”
“I don’t know. Maybe the one that worries me the most is Barbara. She definitely isn’t acting like herself. Normally she is the one being more the encouraging, assistive type more than the ‘take charge’ one. This seemed like a whole different person, someone I didn’t recognize.”
Randy didn’t seem convinced. “True, but you have to admit, her reasoning all made sense when you think about it, doesn’t it?”
“Yeah, but that was after we had hours to think it all through. She came up with all this ‘hide in thick brush’, ‘danger crossings walk at a diagonal facing away from the direction of travel’, ‘stay out of the water, getting wet makes it easier for tracking dogs to follow’ and that whole seventeen looping circles in the clearing with darting into and out of the trees in twelve places, even though she explained it twice, it still makes no sense to me other than it was a good time for all of us to pee.”
“OK…?” Randy still didn’t get his point.
“She had all that already in her head and just kept whipping it out, one after another, on the fly. Hell, she seemed like she was picking and choosing from a hundred different options, and we just did the most convenient ones.”
“It’s probably reading all those tracking books Stephen had been studying for finding lost people, and she is just back-engineering from there.” Randy didn’t sound very convinced by his own explanation either.
“It’s not that, and you know it!” Benji pointed at him with his mug of tea.
“OK, fine! That’s not it. So, smartass, what is it?” Randy shot back, avoiding the slopped tea from Benji’s mug.
“I don’t know either, but I’m sure Stephen will sort it all out when he gets here.”
“I hope so. Shit is getting weird.”
Barbara was worn out. Between the ride itself, the added stress trying to evade unknown hunters, and trying to teach these two blundering Mooses how to move without setting off giant neon signs screaming ‘I’m HERE!’, all she wanted to do was take a quick shower and crawl into bed. The bad part was she knew she couldn’t. Not yet. She had to debrief the guys, lay the groundwork for the next few days until they get a better handle on what the hell was going on, send Stephen a warning message with what happened so he didn’t come blundering into something, make sure the blackout shutters were down in place, do a light leak check once things got dark, and so on and so on, and so on.
Later
“Does any of this make sense?” Benjiman asked Randolph as they stood in the kitchen.
“Which part? Somebody gunning down Barbara’s car, our twenty-mile forced loop through the middle of nowhere to get back here, Barbara’s one-hundred-eighty degree shift in attitude and personality, the whole ‘hide like Anne Frank’s understudy’, or is there some other part I’m missing?”
“I don’t know. Maybe the one that worries me the most is Barbara. She definitely isn’t acting like herself. Normally she is the one being more the encouraging, assistive type more than the ‘take charge’ one. This seemed like a whole different person, someone I didn’t recognize.”
Randy didn’t seem convinced. “True, but you have to admit, her reasoning all made sense when you think about it, doesn’t it?”
“Yeah, but that was after we had hours to think it all through. She came up with all this ‘hide in thick brush’, ‘danger crossings walk at a diagonal facing away from the direction of travel’, ‘stay out of the water, getting wet makes it easier for tracking dogs to follow’ and that whole seventeen looping circles in the clearing with darting into and out of the trees in twelve places, even though she explained it twice, it still makes no sense to me other than it was a good time for all of us to pee.”
“OK…?” Randy still didn’t get his point.
“She had all that already in her head and just kept whipping it out, one after another, on the fly. Hell, she seemed like she was picking and choosing from a hundred different options, and we just did the most convenient ones.”
“It’s probably reading all those tracking books Stephen had been studying for finding lost people, and she is just back-engineering from there.” Randy didn’t sound very convinced by his own explanation either.
“It’s not that, and you know it!” Benji pointed at him with his mug of tea.
“OK, fine! That’s not it. So, smartass, what is it?” Randy shot back, avoiding the slopped tea from Benji’s mug.
“I don’t know either, but I’m sure Stephen will sort it all out when he gets here.”
“I hope so. Shit is getting weird.”
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223shootersc
Veteran Member
Thanks, CCG!
Dumb Blonde
Contributing Member
Sounds like those two are "red shirts"
ComCamGuy
Remote Paramedical pain in the ass
Down South, On the Road North
No one was talking about what had happened at the picnic pull out. Not while they were driving, not when they were plotting their next routes on the map as they stood looking at the maps spread out on the hood of the truck at an exit pull off, not at all.
They had made it just past Bakersfield and from what they saw on the outskirts, not going through there was the right call. Now they were on divided highway with less traffic and a safer feel than the sprawling chaos of the last couple days. Everyone seemed to be in agreeance that this was the way they wanted the rest of the drive north to be.
The scenery was made up of older ramshackle towns, smaller local gas stations instead of the monster-sized truck stops so popular on the freeways now. No ‘800+ pumps and jerky from 28 different animals’ signs out here. Here it was smaller stations with four to six pumps, and the older-style local truck stops, the kind with a tire or repair shop across the parking lot, or a small bungalow motel with attached diner.
This landscape was more to Stephen’s liking. He felt safer out in places like this. This was the way it was in the ‘boonies’ where a lot of the National Parks were until you got real close to them and the tourist sprawl took over. This was the sort of place he preferred. This was the sort of place you didn’t have to shoot two guys in the face because of what they said they were going to do.
It wasn’t the first time he drew a gun on someone. It wasn’t even the first time he had to pull the trigger at someone, but it was the first time he did it by himself, out of uniform, not in the line of duty. The only other time he shot someone, both him and his partner had shot the guy, and they never told him if it was his or his partner who fired the actual fatal rounds versus the other holes poked in his torso.
Then, he had his partner with him at the time, reassuring him it was the right and only thing to do, and then the investigation team told both of them the same thing. This time he had none of that. This time he shot two people in the face, scooped up their weapons and ran.
He knew sooner or later he would have to talk about it with someone, but right now he wasn’t ready. He wasn’t sure about talking to Gabriel or Samantha about it, at least not yet. No reason to burden them with this right now. Maybe once they got to the cabin.
He wished Barbara was here to talk this through with. Hell, he wished Barbara was here last night. She might have spotted it sooner and they could have avoided the whole thing.
He spotted a sign. A little blip in the road with a motel and gas station ahead. If either were open, that might be a good spot for food, fuel, a decent couple hours of real sleep and a better planning session with the map where it wasn’t in danger of being blown out of their hands.
No one was talking about what had happened at the picnic pull out. Not while they were driving, not when they were plotting their next routes on the map as they stood looking at the maps spread out on the hood of the truck at an exit pull off, not at all.
They had made it just past Bakersfield and from what they saw on the outskirts, not going through there was the right call. Now they were on divided highway with less traffic and a safer feel than the sprawling chaos of the last couple days. Everyone seemed to be in agreeance that this was the way they wanted the rest of the drive north to be.
The scenery was made up of older ramshackle towns, smaller local gas stations instead of the monster-sized truck stops so popular on the freeways now. No ‘800+ pumps and jerky from 28 different animals’ signs out here. Here it was smaller stations with four to six pumps, and the older-style local truck stops, the kind with a tire or repair shop across the parking lot, or a small bungalow motel with attached diner.
This landscape was more to Stephen’s liking. He felt safer out in places like this. This was the way it was in the ‘boonies’ where a lot of the National Parks were until you got real close to them and the tourist sprawl took over. This was the sort of place he preferred. This was the sort of place you didn’t have to shoot two guys in the face because of what they said they were going to do.
It wasn’t the first time he drew a gun on someone. It wasn’t even the first time he had to pull the trigger at someone, but it was the first time he did it by himself, out of uniform, not in the line of duty. The only other time he shot someone, both him and his partner had shot the guy, and they never told him if it was his or his partner who fired the actual fatal rounds versus the other holes poked in his torso.
Then, he had his partner with him at the time, reassuring him it was the right and only thing to do, and then the investigation team told both of them the same thing. This time he had none of that. This time he shot two people in the face, scooped up their weapons and ran.
He knew sooner or later he would have to talk about it with someone, but right now he wasn’t ready. He wasn’t sure about talking to Gabriel or Samantha about it, at least not yet. No reason to burden them with this right now. Maybe once they got to the cabin.
He wished Barbara was here to talk this through with. Hell, he wished Barbara was here last night. She might have spotted it sooner and they could have avoided the whole thing.
He spotted a sign. A little blip in the road with a motel and gas station ahead. If either were open, that might be a good spot for food, fuel, a decent couple hours of real sleep and a better planning session with the map where it wasn’t in danger of being blown out of their hands.
223shootersc
Veteran Member
Thanks, CCG!
ComCamGuy
Remote Paramedical pain in the ass
At the Hotel
They were pulling up outside the office of the mall motel when the dashboard of the truck lit up like a Christmas tree at a rave. Lights were flashing all over, the gauges flickered, the needles darted all over their gauges, and the motor started making horrible noises along with shuddering and racing. Thankfully or unfortunately, all that stopped, along with the engine.
Stephen turned the key off and back on. Lots of warning lights and no starter sounds from under the hood. Just a dead click.
“Sam, why don’t you go see if they have two rooms for the night while Gabe and I try to figure out what just happened.”
Sam didn’t even hesitate or question the plan. She just wanted to get a hot bath and a bed.
Stephen and Gabe had the hood up and were both looking at the engine. Not a bad move except neither of them really knew what they were looking at or for. There were no big neon signs announcing ‘This is the Problem!’ under here.
It didn’t take long before Stephen admitted defeat.
“OK, Gabe. You wait here for Sam. I’m going across the street to the stop and rob to see if the mechanic’s shop or tire shop thing next to them is still in business.”
“And if it isn’t?”
“We can try AAA, but I doubt we could get anyone on the phone, much less get any help. It’s at least forty or fifty miles back to Bakersfield and it didn’t look like someplace we wanted to backtrack for. We might get help out of Fresno but…” He looked at Gabe’s expression and hated the worried look he saw. He was afraid he was wearing the same in his face.
“Look, it’s probably something simple. If the mechanic’s shop is still up and running, they will be able to fix it, then we get on our way again.”
“So, I guess we will just end up waiting here while it gets fixed?”
Gabe was grasping for reassurance Stephen knew. He had to try and give it to him. He and his sister had already been through so much. Stephen was returning to his normal, they had all their normal ripped away, then the quake threw any shed left right into the trash.
“Probably a couple days, but we need to think about how much of our stuff we might have to move into the motel room while they are working on the truck.”
“So, we unload the truck? That’s a lot of shit!”
“That’s one of the reasons why I told Sam to get two rooms. She gets one room and most of whatever we have to unload.”
“Who knows? Maybe we will get lucky, and the mechanic can fix it quick and we won’t have to unload anything.”
Stephen loved the hope on Gabe’s face. He hoped it worked out like that, but Stephen was getting a bad feeling in his gut this wouldn’t be a ten minute fix.
“I don’t know. First step is finding the mechanic.”
They were pulling up outside the office of the mall motel when the dashboard of the truck lit up like a Christmas tree at a rave. Lights were flashing all over, the gauges flickered, the needles darted all over their gauges, and the motor started making horrible noises along with shuddering and racing. Thankfully or unfortunately, all that stopped, along with the engine.
Stephen turned the key off and back on. Lots of warning lights and no starter sounds from under the hood. Just a dead click.
“Sam, why don’t you go see if they have two rooms for the night while Gabe and I try to figure out what just happened.”
Sam didn’t even hesitate or question the plan. She just wanted to get a hot bath and a bed.
Stephen and Gabe had the hood up and were both looking at the engine. Not a bad move except neither of them really knew what they were looking at or for. There were no big neon signs announcing ‘This is the Problem!’ under here.
It didn’t take long before Stephen admitted defeat.
“OK, Gabe. You wait here for Sam. I’m going across the street to the stop and rob to see if the mechanic’s shop or tire shop thing next to them is still in business.”
“And if it isn’t?”
“We can try AAA, but I doubt we could get anyone on the phone, much less get any help. It’s at least forty or fifty miles back to Bakersfield and it didn’t look like someplace we wanted to backtrack for. We might get help out of Fresno but…” He looked at Gabe’s expression and hated the worried look he saw. He was afraid he was wearing the same in his face.
“Look, it’s probably something simple. If the mechanic’s shop is still up and running, they will be able to fix it, then we get on our way again.”
“So, I guess we will just end up waiting here while it gets fixed?”
Gabe was grasping for reassurance Stephen knew. He had to try and give it to him. He and his sister had already been through so much. Stephen was returning to his normal, they had all their normal ripped away, then the quake threw any shed left right into the trash.
“Probably a couple days, but we need to think about how much of our stuff we might have to move into the motel room while they are working on the truck.”
“So, we unload the truck? That’s a lot of shit!”
“That’s one of the reasons why I told Sam to get two rooms. She gets one room and most of whatever we have to unload.”
“Who knows? Maybe we will get lucky, and the mechanic can fix it quick and we won’t have to unload anything.”
Stephen loved the hope on Gabe’s face. He hoped it worked out like that, but Stephen was getting a bad feeling in his gut this wouldn’t be a ten minute fix.
“I don’t know. First step is finding the mechanic.”
ComCamGuy
Remote Paramedical pain in the ass
Across the Street
Stephen was looking around, trying to get clues as much as he could when he got close to the small Qiki-Mart and the mechanics shop next to it. All the signs were in decent repair and advertising tires and mechanical work for cars and trucks. There were several parked in some sort of holding area next to the work bays, but the roll-up doors were down and a sign on the glass door said ‘Closed’.
He walked over to the Qiki-Mart and went inside. It was probably an old 7-11 or Circle-K but no longer part of the franchise. A bunch of snacks, beverage coolers along one wall, some hot food and a wall of lottery tickets and tobacco products behind the counter, along with a middle-aged man.
“Can I help you, sir?”
“I hope so. I was looking for the mechanic next door. My truck just died and I’m stuck. My brother and sister and I, we are trying to get back to my home up north.”
“That sucks! I guess you picked the wrong time to visit Disneyland.”
Stephen tried to not let the jab hurt, but could only give a hint of a sad smile as he replied.
“No Disney on this trip. Family issue. A funeral.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, mister. I was out of line. You have my sympathies.”
“It’s OK sir. You didn’t know.”
“So how can I help?”
“I was wondering about the mechanic…” Stephen pointed in the direction of his shop.
“Oh, yeah. Bill should be back in tomorrow. He had to run down to get his daughter out of the Cal-State dorms in Bakersfield.”
“Is Bakersfield as much as a mess as it looked like when we drove by?”
“Probably much worse, but It depends on what you are comparing it to. Where are you coming from down south?”
“Norco Riverside area.”
“Shit! Probably not as bad as what you’ve already seen.”
Stephen couldn’t help but glance down at his hands before he answered him.
“I don’t know. Things seem jacked up all over right now.”
‘So, what’s wrong with the truck?”
Stephen went through the symptomology, what it did, what they checked, and what it wasn’t doing. All the while, the mad listened intently, just nodding as Stephen described everything.
“Well, mister, it doesn’t sound good, but you might get lucky. Tell you what. I can take a look and see if it’s something simple, like a fuse to a computer box or something.”
Before Stephen could object to the man stepping away from the store to help him, the man yelled towards the back room.
“Elsa! Come out here and watch the counter for a few. I’m going across the street for a minute.”
“Alright, hang on.” Came a woman’s voice from the back room. Moments later a woman came out of the room and walked towards the counter. She was mid-twenties, medium height, medium build, pretty but not stunning. She reminded Stephen a lot of Barbara, if Barbara dyed her hair blonde.
“So, what are you running off to do now?” she asked with a smirk.
“I’m going across to see what I can do to help this young man with his truck. He’s trying to get back north from a funeral.”
“Too bad Bill isn’t here today.”
“He’ll be back tomorrow. I was just going to see if it’s something simple.”
“Like you know what you would be looking at.”
“Hey! I know some. It might be a stuck dingle arm, or a flow problem with the turbo-encephilator.” He grinned.
The woman turned to Stephen.
“Don’t worry. He won’t break it. He might even find the hood latch. Bill will be back tomorrow though. If anyone can fix it, he’ll be able to.”
By now, the man was out from behind the counter and standing next to him.
“OK, let’s go see this truck of yours. Wait. Where are my manners?” he stuck out his hand. “I’m Dave, and the comedian back there is Elsa, my niece.”
“I’m Stephen,” he shook the proffered hand. “I don’t know how to thank you for this.”
“Don’t thank me yet. I haven’t fixed anything.”
Stephen was looking around, trying to get clues as much as he could when he got close to the small Qiki-Mart and the mechanics shop next to it. All the signs were in decent repair and advertising tires and mechanical work for cars and trucks. There were several parked in some sort of holding area next to the work bays, but the roll-up doors were down and a sign on the glass door said ‘Closed’.
He walked over to the Qiki-Mart and went inside. It was probably an old 7-11 or Circle-K but no longer part of the franchise. A bunch of snacks, beverage coolers along one wall, some hot food and a wall of lottery tickets and tobacco products behind the counter, along with a middle-aged man.
“Can I help you, sir?”
“I hope so. I was looking for the mechanic next door. My truck just died and I’m stuck. My brother and sister and I, we are trying to get back to my home up north.”
“That sucks! I guess you picked the wrong time to visit Disneyland.”
Stephen tried to not let the jab hurt, but could only give a hint of a sad smile as he replied.
“No Disney on this trip. Family issue. A funeral.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, mister. I was out of line. You have my sympathies.”
“It’s OK sir. You didn’t know.”
“So how can I help?”
“I was wondering about the mechanic…” Stephen pointed in the direction of his shop.
“Oh, yeah. Bill should be back in tomorrow. He had to run down to get his daughter out of the Cal-State dorms in Bakersfield.”
“Is Bakersfield as much as a mess as it looked like when we drove by?”
“Probably much worse, but It depends on what you are comparing it to. Where are you coming from down south?”
“Norco Riverside area.”
“Shit! Probably not as bad as what you’ve already seen.”
Stephen couldn’t help but glance down at his hands before he answered him.
“I don’t know. Things seem jacked up all over right now.”
‘So, what’s wrong with the truck?”
Stephen went through the symptomology, what it did, what they checked, and what it wasn’t doing. All the while, the mad listened intently, just nodding as Stephen described everything.
“Well, mister, it doesn’t sound good, but you might get lucky. Tell you what. I can take a look and see if it’s something simple, like a fuse to a computer box or something.”
Before Stephen could object to the man stepping away from the store to help him, the man yelled towards the back room.
“Elsa! Come out here and watch the counter for a few. I’m going across the street for a minute.”
“Alright, hang on.” Came a woman’s voice from the back room. Moments later a woman came out of the room and walked towards the counter. She was mid-twenties, medium height, medium build, pretty but not stunning. She reminded Stephen a lot of Barbara, if Barbara dyed her hair blonde.
“So, what are you running off to do now?” she asked with a smirk.
“I’m going across to see what I can do to help this young man with his truck. He’s trying to get back north from a funeral.”
“Too bad Bill isn’t here today.”
“He’ll be back tomorrow. I was just going to see if it’s something simple.”
“Like you know what you would be looking at.”
“Hey! I know some. It might be a stuck dingle arm, or a flow problem with the turbo-encephilator.” He grinned.
The woman turned to Stephen.
“Don’t worry. He won’t break it. He might even find the hood latch. Bill will be back tomorrow though. If anyone can fix it, he’ll be able to.”
By now, the man was out from behind the counter and standing next to him.
“OK, let’s go see this truck of yours. Wait. Where are my manners?” he stuck out his hand. “I’m Dave, and the comedian back there is Elsa, my niece.”
“I’m Stephen,” he shook the proffered hand. “I don’t know how to thank you for this.”
“Don’t thank me yet. I haven’t fixed anything.”
ComCamGuy
Remote Paramedical pain in the ass
Outside the Motel
Stephen and Dave walked up to where Sam and Gene were standing beside the truck.
“We got rooms?” Stephen asked. In answer Sam held up two keys.
“Are they next to each other?”
“Yup.”
“Guys, this is Dave. He’s coming to see if he can lend a hand.” He turned to Dave. “Dave, this is Samantha and Gabriel.”
“Good to meet the both of you. I understand you are having a bit of trouble.”
“That’s an understatement.” Samantha said.
They followed Dave to the front of the truck where the hood was still up. The three siblings stood and watched as Dave reached, touched, wiggled, opened, removed caps, checked dipsticks, and in general poked and prodded over the whole thing. Eventually, he stopped and turned to his audience.
“Well? Stephen asked, afraid of what Dave was about to tell him. There weren’t any encouraging ‘ah ha!’ or ‘that’s what it is’ moments while Dave was inspecting things.
“Bill will be back tomorrow morning to give a more official sort of a look see, but it doesn’t look good.”
“How ‘doesn’t look good’ are we talking? Lots of parts? Lots of labor? What are you thinking?” Stephen asked.
Dave turned and reached into the engine bay and pulled out the oil dipstick. Taking a paper towel he had been using, he put it under the dipstick.
“You see the oil here?”
“Yeah?”
“Doesn’t look right, does it?”
Stephen tried to see what he was talking about. Dave was right. It didn’t look right, but he couldn’t put his finger on why.
“No, sir. What’s wrong with it?”
“If it had been a long time since you changed it, or you ran it hard with too many miles, it’d be dark and smell burnt. If it was freshly changed, it would be about the color of lager and the consistency of warm honey. This is neither. This looks like chocolate milk. The only thing I know that causes that to happen is water or antifreeze in the oil. Since I don’t think you mixed up the filler caps, it’s mixing on its own somewhere in the engine. That’s why it quit. Bill will be back tomorrow and he might know something I don’t that makes this happen, but you’re not driving this truck anywhere until it gets fixed.”
Stephen and Dave walked up to where Sam and Gene were standing beside the truck.
“We got rooms?” Stephen asked. In answer Sam held up two keys.
“Are they next to each other?”
“Yup.”
“Guys, this is Dave. He’s coming to see if he can lend a hand.” He turned to Dave. “Dave, this is Samantha and Gabriel.”
“Good to meet the both of you. I understand you are having a bit of trouble.”
“That’s an understatement.” Samantha said.
They followed Dave to the front of the truck where the hood was still up. The three siblings stood and watched as Dave reached, touched, wiggled, opened, removed caps, checked dipsticks, and in general poked and prodded over the whole thing. Eventually, he stopped and turned to his audience.
“Well? Stephen asked, afraid of what Dave was about to tell him. There weren’t any encouraging ‘ah ha!’ or ‘that’s what it is’ moments while Dave was inspecting things.
“Bill will be back tomorrow morning to give a more official sort of a look see, but it doesn’t look good.”
“How ‘doesn’t look good’ are we talking? Lots of parts? Lots of labor? What are you thinking?” Stephen asked.
Dave turned and reached into the engine bay and pulled out the oil dipstick. Taking a paper towel he had been using, he put it under the dipstick.
“You see the oil here?”
“Yeah?”
“Doesn’t look right, does it?”
Stephen tried to see what he was talking about. Dave was right. It didn’t look right, but he couldn’t put his finger on why.
“No, sir. What’s wrong with it?”
“If it had been a long time since you changed it, or you ran it hard with too many miles, it’d be dark and smell burnt. If it was freshly changed, it would be about the color of lager and the consistency of warm honey. This is neither. This looks like chocolate milk. The only thing I know that causes that to happen is water or antifreeze in the oil. Since I don’t think you mixed up the filler caps, it’s mixing on its own somewhere in the engine. That’s why it quit. Bill will be back tomorrow and he might know something I don’t that makes this happen, but you’re not driving this truck anywhere until it gets fixed.”
Griz3752
Retired, practising Curmudgeon
Daily checks of all fluids, tire pressures et al help avoid such conversations. OK I haven't done those religiously like I did when in uniform but every fill up, it's part of the routine.
223shootersc
Veteran Member
Uh oh! Thanks, CCG!
larry_minn
Contributing Member
.blown head gasket if lucky, caught soon. Cracked block. That driven till failure. Engine swap time. Hope a junk yard you can find a decent donor motor. I have an old tractor dsl gets in oil. Twice between oil change leave it sit a week, drain dsl from oil. I likely could put it back in tank. Water 20x worse
ComCamGuy
Remote Paramedical pain in the ass
That Evening
“No, I don’t have a good answer on what we are going to do,” Stephen turned and pointed at Gabe, “and before you say it, if we brought mom’s car instead, we would have never made it this far. We would have ended up alongside the road like a bunch of others before we even crossed the ten, and only had two suitcases each at that.”
“So, we wait and hope the mechanic has better news tomorrow?” Sam half said, half asked.
“That’s about it. Depending on what he says first thing, we might have to download the truck into our rooms so lets look and do some planning to avoid a huge pile we cant find anything in or repack into the truck easily when it’s fixed.”
“I went back to the front desk and checked with the lady. She said no problem with us staying longer. I projected a week, just in case.” Sam said as she took another sip from her soda.
“Good. Now this is just a wrinkle. We will iron it out and get things underway again and all will be fine. It’ll work out. You’ll see. For now, let’s get some sleep. Breakfast first thing, then depending on how soon the guy can look at it, maybe we start some downloading. I just don’t want to do too much in case the other guy was wrong and it’s a quick fix.” Stephen said as he stood up.
As Stephen and Gabe left Sam’s room, Stephen paused next to the door to their own room.
“I’ll be right in. I’m going to send a quick text to Barbara and let her know what’s going on and that we are delayed.”
“No, I don’t have a good answer on what we are going to do,” Stephen turned and pointed at Gabe, “and before you say it, if we brought mom’s car instead, we would have never made it this far. We would have ended up alongside the road like a bunch of others before we even crossed the ten, and only had two suitcases each at that.”
“So, we wait and hope the mechanic has better news tomorrow?” Sam half said, half asked.
“That’s about it. Depending on what he says first thing, we might have to download the truck into our rooms so lets look and do some planning to avoid a huge pile we cant find anything in or repack into the truck easily when it’s fixed.”
“I went back to the front desk and checked with the lady. She said no problem with us staying longer. I projected a week, just in case.” Sam said as she took another sip from her soda.
“Good. Now this is just a wrinkle. We will iron it out and get things underway again and all will be fine. It’ll work out. You’ll see. For now, let’s get some sleep. Breakfast first thing, then depending on how soon the guy can look at it, maybe we start some downloading. I just don’t want to do too much in case the other guy was wrong and it’s a quick fix.” Stephen said as he stood up.
As Stephen and Gabe left Sam’s room, Stephen paused next to the door to their own room.
“I’ll be right in. I’m going to send a quick text to Barbara and let her know what’s going on and that we are delayed.”
Griz3752
Retired, practising Curmudgeon
Yeah when the ride is no-start, no-go you might as well unload particularly when you can do that in a fairly secure, somewhat defensible and hidden from prying eyes location.
223shootersc
Veteran Member
Hoping for a miricle! Thanks, CCG!
ComCamGuy
Remote Paramedical pain in the ass
Up North at the Cabin
“Stephen is delayed.” Barbara said as she came down the stairs.
“What’s up?” Benji asked her, a touch faster than Randy.
“The truck they are driving broke down just outside Bakersfield. The initial report from him says it might take a couple days to fix.” Barb said as she came to the table where the other two were sitting.
“What did he have to say about the whole car thing?” Randy asked.
“He’s really pissed off and upset he wasn’t here to take care of them. I told him to focus on the problems he had right there and not worry about us. The sooner he’s able to get back on the road, the sooner he can be here to work the issue in the park.”
“So, what are we going to do in the meantime?” Randy asked the next question, one Barbara wasn’t sure she had a good answer for.
“We lay low for the week or so it takes Stephen to get things fixed and get back up here.”
“Shouldn’t we go let the Rangers know about it?” Benji wondered.
“Stephen said to just hold tight. Besides, moving around gets you seen, gets you caught. Nobody knows about this please or has a reason to come here. The assholes who killed my car are looking in the wrong places for us. If we stay close to the cabin, don’t go any further south than the end of the valley, they should never have a reason to blunder this far North.”
“He wanted us to go grab supplies for the bigger group we’re going to have. What about that?” Randy asked her.
“I guess, for now, we conserve and look at how we can extend what we have, and maybe get some more. Stephen has a stack of foraging and hunting and trapping books here. We can start looking at them and planning some quiet stuff maybe?” Barbara said, hoping for buy-in.
She knew exactly how to do all that stuff in the local terrain, but she needed these guys to have a focus. It’s like the POW who built a house in his head. If he thought the foundation would take four or five days, he spent that much time doing it in his head. Boredom, leads to worry, worry leads to mistakes. Mistakes kill. Besides, she had too much of her own contingency planning to do.
“Hell, for quiet, Randy can teach us how to shoot the bow. I know I have about the same wingspan as Stephen. With that, we can add a big chunk of meat to the pantry.” Benji said.
“Yeah, we could do a little subsistence hunting with the bow. It’s nice and quiet.” Randy grinned a little.
“Good. You two orangutangs can go shoot the giant bows but lets give it a couple days before you two go hunting. I want those assholes to get seriously bored and stop looking for us.”
“Don’t worry. Randy’s a hell of a shot, and I can find the game. We’ll keep you fed.” Benji smiled.
“With you two here, I’m not worried, but I’m going upstairs I want to get some reading in before bed. Some of the other books are over on the shelf next to the desk.” She waved towards the corner as she walked up the stairs.
In Stephen and Barbara’s Tower Room
Barbara hated having to put such a happy face on for the guys. She was worried. From what Stephen was saying, it wasn’t good. She had to work on the back-up plan. What were they going to do if they couldn’t get the truck fixed soon?
She had the kernel of an idea forming though. She hadn’t broached it to Stephen yet, but she was going to work on it starting this evening. It was something she could do, something to focus on. Just like the guys, she couldn’t let herself stand still.
If her car wasn’t dead, it would be easy. Now, she had to add extra steps. If Stephen couldn’t get the truck fixed, or couldn’t come up with another vehicle, she would go get them, but now she would have to come up with how.
Her own car was out of the question. She could use Stephen’s truck, though. It would be better anyway. It could carry whatever he had loaded in the other truck, plus a bunch. The main problem was, she would have to go get it, then make her way all the way down south to link up with them. That was a bunch of things to figure out and make happen. She would have to do the planning in segments like she was taught.
Her first big task would be getting his truck. She would have to go to her little bungalow apartment in town and get the spare set of keys for it, then get over to the airport and retrieve it from where he left it when he flew out.
She knew she had to have as much planned as possible if she had to actually execute this operation. She went over to the shelf where the three-ring binder with the west coast topo map DVDs were. They didn’t have enough supplies to print them huge on Tyvek like the old days, but she still remembered her lessons. She could put them on her pad.
Maps and a pad of paper. She had a start.
“Stephen is delayed.” Barbara said as she came down the stairs.
“What’s up?” Benji asked her, a touch faster than Randy.
“The truck they are driving broke down just outside Bakersfield. The initial report from him says it might take a couple days to fix.” Barb said as she came to the table where the other two were sitting.
“What did he have to say about the whole car thing?” Randy asked.
“He’s really pissed off and upset he wasn’t here to take care of them. I told him to focus on the problems he had right there and not worry about us. The sooner he’s able to get back on the road, the sooner he can be here to work the issue in the park.”
“So, what are we going to do in the meantime?” Randy asked the next question, one Barbara wasn’t sure she had a good answer for.
“We lay low for the week or so it takes Stephen to get things fixed and get back up here.”
“Shouldn’t we go let the Rangers know about it?” Benji wondered.
“Stephen said to just hold tight. Besides, moving around gets you seen, gets you caught. Nobody knows about this please or has a reason to come here. The assholes who killed my car are looking in the wrong places for us. If we stay close to the cabin, don’t go any further south than the end of the valley, they should never have a reason to blunder this far North.”
“He wanted us to go grab supplies for the bigger group we’re going to have. What about that?” Randy asked her.
“I guess, for now, we conserve and look at how we can extend what we have, and maybe get some more. Stephen has a stack of foraging and hunting and trapping books here. We can start looking at them and planning some quiet stuff maybe?” Barbara said, hoping for buy-in.
She knew exactly how to do all that stuff in the local terrain, but she needed these guys to have a focus. It’s like the POW who built a house in his head. If he thought the foundation would take four or five days, he spent that much time doing it in his head. Boredom, leads to worry, worry leads to mistakes. Mistakes kill. Besides, she had too much of her own contingency planning to do.
“Hell, for quiet, Randy can teach us how to shoot the bow. I know I have about the same wingspan as Stephen. With that, we can add a big chunk of meat to the pantry.” Benji said.
“Yeah, we could do a little subsistence hunting with the bow. It’s nice and quiet.” Randy grinned a little.
“Good. You two orangutangs can go shoot the giant bows but lets give it a couple days before you two go hunting. I want those assholes to get seriously bored and stop looking for us.”
“Don’t worry. Randy’s a hell of a shot, and I can find the game. We’ll keep you fed.” Benji smiled.
“With you two here, I’m not worried, but I’m going upstairs I want to get some reading in before bed. Some of the other books are over on the shelf next to the desk.” She waved towards the corner as she walked up the stairs.
In Stephen and Barbara’s Tower Room
Barbara hated having to put such a happy face on for the guys. She was worried. From what Stephen was saying, it wasn’t good. She had to work on the back-up plan. What were they going to do if they couldn’t get the truck fixed soon?
She had the kernel of an idea forming though. She hadn’t broached it to Stephen yet, but she was going to work on it starting this evening. It was something she could do, something to focus on. Just like the guys, she couldn’t let herself stand still.
If her car wasn’t dead, it would be easy. Now, she had to add extra steps. If Stephen couldn’t get the truck fixed, or couldn’t come up with another vehicle, she would go get them, but now she would have to come up with how.
Her own car was out of the question. She could use Stephen’s truck, though. It would be better anyway. It could carry whatever he had loaded in the other truck, plus a bunch. The main problem was, she would have to go get it, then make her way all the way down south to link up with them. That was a bunch of things to figure out and make happen. She would have to do the planning in segments like she was taught.
Her first big task would be getting his truck. She would have to go to her little bungalow apartment in town and get the spare set of keys for it, then get over to the airport and retrieve it from where he left it when he flew out.
She knew she had to have as much planned as possible if she had to actually execute this operation. She went over to the shelf where the three-ring binder with the west coast topo map DVDs were. They didn’t have enough supplies to print them huge on Tyvek like the old days, but she still remembered her lessons. She could put them on her pad.
Maps and a pad of paper. She had a start.
Last edited:
223shootersc
Veteran Member
Thanks, CCG!
feralferret
Veteran Member
CCG, thank you!
Armadillo3
Member
Take your time to think it thru, but be prepared to act fast if it comes to that!
Good planning ahead makes sense.
Great story CCG!
Good planning ahead makes sense.
Great story CCG!
ComCamGuy
Remote Paramedical pain in the ass
At the Motel the Next Morning
“So, what do you think?” Stephen asked Bill, who was standing there with Dave, peering under the hood of the truck. They had poked, prodded, turned the key, plugged in some sort of code reader and now had come to some sort of conclusion.
“I got to be honest. It doesn’t look good. This year model has a history of the engines eating themselves. With the anti-freeze and oil mixing like they are, we are looking some serious tearing apart. You might get lucky and it’s only a gasket deep inside that’s screwed, but there’s a high likelihood the block itself is toast. Either way, it’s going to take a couple days at a minimum. If it’s the block, well first I’d have to find a replacement I could get my hands on, then rebuild it with all the good parts from yours. If any of the components are bad, then I’d have to get those as well.”
Stephen just stood there trying to absorb it all. This was horrible. How the hell was he going to get them north now? He’s glad he had Sam and Gabe stay inside.
“What’s the next step?”
“Next step? We take it over to the shop so I can tear stuff apart and confirm my suspicions. If it’s just a gasket? I fix the gasket and anything else wrong that got it the way it is. If it’s not, then we talk about trying to bind another engine block, or a doner to boost another engine from.”
“Sounds expensive.”
“Unfortunately, it is. Cash for Clunkers took out a lot of potential doners around here. I normally have to get something shipped in from the east coast. Problem is going to be getting anything shipped now.”
“You still take credit card?”
“Yeah, the machine was up this morning, but I don’t know for how long.”
Stephen made a decision, well not ‘made’ accepted was more like it.
“OK, how do we get it over to the shop?”
“I got a wrecker. We can just drag it right over into the bay. Did you want to get any of your stuff out? I might have to push it out of the bay temporarily if I have to do something else while we are waiting for parts.”
Stephen shook his head.
“Yeah. Can you give us an hour to unload? Then it will be ready.”
“No problem. Just give a shout when you are ready and I’ll come over and get it.”
“So, what do you think?” Stephen asked Bill, who was standing there with Dave, peering under the hood of the truck. They had poked, prodded, turned the key, plugged in some sort of code reader and now had come to some sort of conclusion.
“I got to be honest. It doesn’t look good. This year model has a history of the engines eating themselves. With the anti-freeze and oil mixing like they are, we are looking some serious tearing apart. You might get lucky and it’s only a gasket deep inside that’s screwed, but there’s a high likelihood the block itself is toast. Either way, it’s going to take a couple days at a minimum. If it’s the block, well first I’d have to find a replacement I could get my hands on, then rebuild it with all the good parts from yours. If any of the components are bad, then I’d have to get those as well.”
Stephen just stood there trying to absorb it all. This was horrible. How the hell was he going to get them north now? He’s glad he had Sam and Gabe stay inside.
“What’s the next step?”
“Next step? We take it over to the shop so I can tear stuff apart and confirm my suspicions. If it’s just a gasket? I fix the gasket and anything else wrong that got it the way it is. If it’s not, then we talk about trying to bind another engine block, or a doner to boost another engine from.”
“Sounds expensive.”
“Unfortunately, it is. Cash for Clunkers took out a lot of potential doners around here. I normally have to get something shipped in from the east coast. Problem is going to be getting anything shipped now.”
“You still take credit card?”
“Yeah, the machine was up this morning, but I don’t know for how long.”
Stephen made a decision, well not ‘made’ accepted was more like it.
“OK, how do we get it over to the shop?”
“I got a wrecker. We can just drag it right over into the bay. Did you want to get any of your stuff out? I might have to push it out of the bay temporarily if I have to do something else while we are waiting for parts.”
Stephen shook his head.
“Yeah. Can you give us an hour to unload? Then it will be ready.”
“No problem. Just give a shout when you are ready and I’ll come over and get it.”
223shootersc
Veteran Member
Thanks, CCG!
larry_minn
Contributing Member
Not knowing their finances. Away from home buying a replacement is always an option I consider. With internet 10 minutes I would have a few options in area. Sadly I stopped doing it. But when I traveled I would put a few grand in ziplock bag duct taped in trunk. Every few weeks ask wife to tell me exactly where. I got spoiled on credit cards. But back in 80s $3000 cash could get darn good transport.
As credit cards still working. Have him run $500 at least. “Sir we know the system has had issues. I want to be sure there is no delay. Even if just head gasket it’s a couple hundred? Let’s get $500 to a grand charged. Do you know of anyone selling a reliable crew cab pickup, solid 4wd *prefer a FORD but in present I would consider a Chevy *. So I have plan if my truck needs new motor, weeks of time? You have time to fix if really bad, you know you are paid. Until I can come back to get it”
things go South I am thinking “plan B, C, and D” before most figure out A.
As credit cards still working. Have him run $500 at least. “Sir we know the system has had issues. I want to be sure there is no delay. Even if just head gasket it’s a couple hundred? Let’s get $500 to a grand charged. Do you know of anyone selling a reliable crew cab pickup, solid 4wd *prefer a FORD but in present I would consider a Chevy *. So I have plan if my truck needs new motor, weeks of time? You have time to fix if really bad, you know you are paid. Until I can come back to get it”
things go South I am thinking “plan B, C, and D” before most figure out A.
Knighttemplar
Veteran Member
Hope its just the oil cooler.
ComCamGuy
Remote Paramedical pain in the ass
Up North, in the Cabin
Benji and Randy came downstairs to find some things they weren’t expecting. Barb was sitting at the kitchen table with a bunch of small tools and equipment spread out in front of her, a mug in her hand.
Randy’s nose told him something else. “Is that coffee? I thought you hated coffee?”
“I don’t hate coffee. I just normally drink tea. There’s maybe enough for a cup or so for you two left, otherwise, you’ll need to make some more” She answered as she set down the cup and went back to fitting items into a pouch.
Randy looked over at Benji who was looking at a stack of books on the far end of the table.
“And the stack of books?”
“That’s some of the foraging and trapping books I mentioned last night. I thought you guys might want to brush up on it before you go out looking for food.”
“You guys? What about you?” Benji asked.
“I’m digging into a couple other ones, but I read a shitload last night.”
“So, you decided to sort through a junk drawer instead?” Benji said as he waved a hand towards the table and all the bits and pieces in front of Barb.
“I already read a bunch of them, and I figured I could let it all soak in while I sorted my ‘possibles’ bag. You know, checking batteries in the flashlight, oiling and sharpening the pocketknife, making some fuzz sticks.”
Randy decided to let it go. “We were thinking, after breakfast we could go out back and do some bow shooting, that way Benji might be able to actually hit something. You want to join us?”
“Only if you can figure out a way for me to use the bowfishing rig Stephen got me to do it. Your bows are too big for me.”
“I think we can do that.” Randy said with a smile.
Benji and Randy came downstairs to find some things they weren’t expecting. Barb was sitting at the kitchen table with a bunch of small tools and equipment spread out in front of her, a mug in her hand.
Randy’s nose told him something else. “Is that coffee? I thought you hated coffee?”
“I don’t hate coffee. I just normally drink tea. There’s maybe enough for a cup or so for you two left, otherwise, you’ll need to make some more” She answered as she set down the cup and went back to fitting items into a pouch.
Randy looked over at Benji who was looking at a stack of books on the far end of the table.
“And the stack of books?”
“That’s some of the foraging and trapping books I mentioned last night. I thought you guys might want to brush up on it before you go out looking for food.”
“You guys? What about you?” Benji asked.
“I’m digging into a couple other ones, but I read a shitload last night.”
“So, you decided to sort through a junk drawer instead?” Benji said as he waved a hand towards the table and all the bits and pieces in front of Barb.
“I already read a bunch of them, and I figured I could let it all soak in while I sorted my ‘possibles’ bag. You know, checking batteries in the flashlight, oiling and sharpening the pocketknife, making some fuzz sticks.”
Randy decided to let it go. “We were thinking, after breakfast we could go out back and do some bow shooting, that way Benji might be able to actually hit something. You want to join us?”
“Only if you can figure out a way for me to use the bowfishing rig Stephen got me to do it. Your bows are too big for me.”
“I think we can do that.” Randy said with a smile.
ComCamGuy
Remote Paramedical pain in the ass
At the Table
Barbara sat there working on her project as Randy and Benji worked on breakfast. She just nodded her head and held out her cup for a refill, even as she knew the acid would hit her stomach like a sledgehammer, just like it always did.
She was trying to work through what she needed for the trip to the city to pick up Stephen’s truck. She wasn’t ready to tell the guys about her plan yet. She wanted all the pieces in place first. If she ended up doing it, she wanted it to be kinda sudden. Tell the guys what had to happen, then walk right out and take off. That would give them no real option of going with her like she knew they would want to. They would want to go along, to protect her.
She couldn’t let that happen. If she did this, it wouldn’t be a game, wouldn’t be a learning experience. She didn’t have time to teach them everything they would need to know. Hell, it took years and years of teaching and experience for her to know what she did, to be able to do what she could do.
Her brain smacked her, hard. ‘Did’, not ‘Do’. She still had everything she knew, but she hadn’t practiced nearly a fraction of what she used to be able to do. She hadn’t kept up with most of it. All she kept telling herself was to focus on getting back physically so they would let you back. She tried to do it. She tried so hard, but she couldn’t make the run times.
She deluded herself into thinking she was still making progress and started taking more classes to pad her resume, to fill more blocks to sell it to them, but it wouldn’t matter. She couldn’t beat the cut-offs to even get in the door.
Stephen understood when she explained it to him. She didn’t want to, but he caught her at just the wrong time and in a fit of frustration, it all poured out of her. He also said he would keep her ‘secret’, that it wasn’t his to talk about.
That wasn’t the only reason she loved him, but it made things easier between them. One of the biggest things she loved about him was she never felt like he felt sorry for her. That was a big thing. She had enough ‘sorry’ with how much she had heaped on herself and how much she got from Jamie.
Jamie. She wondered where Jamie was now. She should be getting the annual ‘I’m so sorry I ****ed up your life’ postcard soon. England? Germany? Japan? Idaho? Texas? Well, wherever it was, she would just dump it in the envelope with all the others.
Her mind was drifting. Time for another shot of focusing fluid. She took another gulp of acid in the cup.
She was trying to sort through and narrow down the gear she would have on her as she rode to the city. Food, water, shelter, fire, weapon. She had more stuff at her little studio apartment she could use for the run down south to pick up Stephen. She knew a heavier sleeping bag, food, jugs of water and a whole lot more survival gear was in Stephen’s truck, a complete kit for each of them.
She was trying to strike the happy medium between carrying a crapload of gear that will slow her down, and taking almost nothing so she is quick and nimble, but worried about having to bid, do, or improvise on the way there, and therefore making it harder to get there quickly. She had enough training and experience she could do it in nothing but a thong, but ‘can’ doesn’t always equal ‘should’. She saw too many try to ‘tough guy or girl’ route and she always ended up having to cover their slack or get them out of a jam. She had to do it right. She didn’t have someone else ready to come rescue her.
She decided on a hydration pack on her back and a poncho-poncho liner combination for shelter and warmth. This gave her the available space she had to work with. Her Puma knife, revolver and speedloaders had their place on her belt, other things would go into her pockets. Now she was sorting what else she would take. She just hoped Randy and Benji didn’t ask too many more questions.
Barbara sat there working on her project as Randy and Benji worked on breakfast. She just nodded her head and held out her cup for a refill, even as she knew the acid would hit her stomach like a sledgehammer, just like it always did.
She was trying to work through what she needed for the trip to the city to pick up Stephen’s truck. She wasn’t ready to tell the guys about her plan yet. She wanted all the pieces in place first. If she ended up doing it, she wanted it to be kinda sudden. Tell the guys what had to happen, then walk right out and take off. That would give them no real option of going with her like she knew they would want to. They would want to go along, to protect her.
She couldn’t let that happen. If she did this, it wouldn’t be a game, wouldn’t be a learning experience. She didn’t have time to teach them everything they would need to know. Hell, it took years and years of teaching and experience for her to know what she did, to be able to do what she could do.
Her brain smacked her, hard. ‘Did’, not ‘Do’. She still had everything she knew, but she hadn’t practiced nearly a fraction of what she used to be able to do. She hadn’t kept up with most of it. All she kept telling herself was to focus on getting back physically so they would let you back. She tried to do it. She tried so hard, but she couldn’t make the run times.
She deluded herself into thinking she was still making progress and started taking more classes to pad her resume, to fill more blocks to sell it to them, but it wouldn’t matter. She couldn’t beat the cut-offs to even get in the door.
Stephen understood when she explained it to him. She didn’t want to, but he caught her at just the wrong time and in a fit of frustration, it all poured out of her. He also said he would keep her ‘secret’, that it wasn’t his to talk about.
That wasn’t the only reason she loved him, but it made things easier between them. One of the biggest things she loved about him was she never felt like he felt sorry for her. That was a big thing. She had enough ‘sorry’ with how much she had heaped on herself and how much she got from Jamie.
Jamie. She wondered where Jamie was now. She should be getting the annual ‘I’m so sorry I ****ed up your life’ postcard soon. England? Germany? Japan? Idaho? Texas? Well, wherever it was, she would just dump it in the envelope with all the others.
Her mind was drifting. Time for another shot of focusing fluid. She took another gulp of acid in the cup.
She was trying to sort through and narrow down the gear she would have on her as she rode to the city. Food, water, shelter, fire, weapon. She had more stuff at her little studio apartment she could use for the run down south to pick up Stephen. She knew a heavier sleeping bag, food, jugs of water and a whole lot more survival gear was in Stephen’s truck, a complete kit for each of them.
She was trying to strike the happy medium between carrying a crapload of gear that will slow her down, and taking almost nothing so she is quick and nimble, but worried about having to bid, do, or improvise on the way there, and therefore making it harder to get there quickly. She had enough training and experience she could do it in nothing but a thong, but ‘can’ doesn’t always equal ‘should’. She saw too many try to ‘tough guy or girl’ route and she always ended up having to cover their slack or get them out of a jam. She had to do it right. She didn’t have someone else ready to come rescue her.
She decided on a hydration pack on her back and a poncho-poncho liner combination for shelter and warmth. This gave her the available space she had to work with. Her Puma knife, revolver and speedloaders had their place on her belt, other things would go into her pockets. Now she was sorting what else she would take. She just hoped Randy and Benji didn’t ask too many more questions.
223shootersc
Veteran Member
Thanks, CCG!