A Long Lonely Road by TJ Reeder Read Free Book Online

head up to the crows nest to keep an eye out and for one of the JR’s to come eat.
     
    After the lad had filled his plate Bill spoke up and asked if I was inclined to do some more trading? I asked what he had in mind. He said they were well stocked with food since they raised almost all they needed.
    He was interested in trading more silver and some small gold coins for the excess stuff I had. I never even thought about it. Just said yes and we headed out the door.
     
    This time they all walked out to see what I had still in the truck. I took a tarp and started going thru it all. When I was done I had a small mountain of goods.
     
    I set one of the remaining 3 lb bags of coffee beans on the tarp.
     
    Also about half the sugar I had.
     
    All but 3 pounds of salt and half the pepper.
     
    The case of toilet paper less 9 rolls.
     
    I set my 10-22 HB off to the keep side and 5 of the Butler Creek 25 round magazines and all my subsonic 22 LR ammo as well as 4 bricks of ammo.
     
    I put 6 bricks on the tarp. Along with 5 more mags for the 10-22 I gave them earlier.
     
    I set my 308 and all the ammo I had for it on the keep pile
     
    I pulled a long case out and opened it, looked at my sweet Savage Heavy Barrel 300 Magnum with the 12 power Leopold scope I laid that on the tarp along with 300 rounds of hand loads.
     
     
     
    I stood there a moment weighing things in my mind and then laid my AR 15 on the tarp along with all the magazines and 2 50 cal cans of ammo. Bill started making sounds like he was out of breath and I smiled at him and opened my last gun case .
     
    There was my beautiful made in America Arsenal Inc Milled Receiver Ak-47 with the Ultimak gas tube scope rail… with a Eotech sight on it .this was going with me.
     
    I knew no matter how rough it got this AK would be right there at the end, still doing it’s job. That’s what these things do, they are just about bomb proof.
     
    I had 10 mags and 1000 rounds of ammo for it. I had kept my 308, AK, 870 10-22 and my Pare 45 and maybe a few other little surprises. Oh and my old Kbar I liberated from the Marines about a 100 years ago.
     
    All in all I had really thinned the herd but I had more then I could use really and had really lightened the load for the mules while allowing me to Pack more food which I was gonna need more then a ton of guns.
     
    I looked at the Brothers and their families who were looking at me like I was either crazy or crazy. Bill started to say something but I stopped him . I told them that I would have had to dump most of this before I ever saw home and seeing home was first and foremost in my mind.
     
    I told them to put their loot away and to decide between them what they could spare for it but to not go crazy as they would need everything they had plus more.
     
    After dinner I went out to the bags I had clothing in and removed a rolled up towel and went back inside, Bills wife jumped up and said she had towels and would show me the bathroom.
     
    I kinda laughed and unrolled the towel and set a quart of Johnny Walker on the table. Bill and Bob I swear had tear in their eyes.
     
    We spent the evening sipping the good stuff and talking about the past, the future and what we thought would shake out after the smoke cleared.
     
    None of us even knew what had happened and with this ranch being so far out in the middle of nowhere it was likely to be a long time before they knew.
     
    As much as I was enjoying their company I knew come first light I’d be moving out and I expected to be wore out by days end. I hadn’t spent a day on a horse in 25 years but I knew it would come back.`
     
    I needed to pack so I’d be ready early, the brothers came with me and we sorted thru the stuff and finely ended up with 2 pretty even loads.
    These packs wouldn’t need to be unpacked unless everything got soaked in a storm or crossing a river, just take them off at night and try to use evenly from each.
     
    I was worried about over loading