6:00 Hours: A Dystopian Novel by Chad Evercroft Read Free Book Online Page B

was packed with all the essentials Danny had read about online and had heard about for years in school and from his parents.
                  “Always know what the expiration dates of foods are.”
                  “Keep rice and sugar in cool, dry places.”
                  “Only store food you know your family enjoys.”
                  These words were what the voices in Danny’s head always said. In the past, they might have said things like, “Don’t have a weak handshake,” or “If you hear a siren while you’re driving, pull over to the side,” but now Danny’s brain (and the brains of many others) were occupied by new social wisdoms. As soon as Danny had dropped out of med school to get married and pursue web design, he began stockpiling. When they were first married and lived in a tiny apartment, Danny reserved his side of the closet for emergency supplies and stored his clothes in plastic bins he pushed up against the wall. When they were looking for their first house, Danny made it very clear to the realtor that storage space was a big concern. He also emphasized that he didn’t want to be in or even near a large city. Miranda never begrudged Danny his commitment, but it wasn’t until that first big storm that she became truly grateful she had married a prepper.
                  The power was out for two weeks. Danny and Miranda had enough supplies to last them a month and hardly suffered in their daily routines. They used their solar-powered stove top to cook food and had enough candles to light the house at night. Other people around them had prepared, but not as thoroughly or for as long. When the power came back on, Danny’s neighbors came to him for advice and he came to be known as an unofficial expert and consultant. In addition to his work as a website designer, he started teaching classes for a $25 fee at the community college. He could have easily charged more, but Danny was adamant that prepping knowledge be available to everyone.
                  “Survival shouldn’t be dependent on wealth,” he said. “And neither should surviving-well be.”
                  The year the twins turned six, Danny had been teaching for five years and expecting a big year for weather. A lot of blogs were reporting on dangerous signs from the oceans and volcanoes. Animals were behaving strangely. No one knew for sure what to expect, but it was going to be big.
                  “Think hurricanes, tornadoes, typhoons, hard winters, hot summers, all that,” the blogs said. “Depending on where you are, you have to prepare for massive rain or no rain. Areas that haven’t historically seen tornadoes will welcome their first ones. Just be ready for anything.”
                  That was the kind of statement that irritated Danny. It was essentially meaningless and didn’t give people a good idea at all about what to do.
                  “Be ready for whatever you can think of,” Danny said. “Within reason.”
                  In his class, he had people write down everything they were worried about, no matter how absurd, and then he gathered their lists. Answers ranged from hurricanes to a zombie apocalypse to freezing temperatures with no power.
                  “What possibilities are literally impossible?” Danny would ask.
                  People would call out answers.
                  “Hurricanes!”
                  They didn’t live near water.
                  “Zombies!”
                  That always got some debate, but Danny usually ended up adapting that answer to a pandemic as the preparation would be about the same. Pandemics were a real possibility. After crossing out all the impossible options, Danny would continue to narrow down the list to what people believed were realistic dangers,