Chapter 10: Taking Action
In this type of situation, panic would be the natural response for most people, but Dominic immediately began poring over the documents for hours until he found several things that were somewhat curious.
There was an excess of information—possibly years of research—in that file he downloaded from the link his father sent him, so looking beyond that with the time he had left was not only useless but also torturous. Whether an incident like COVID-19 would occur again or something much worse, he needed to prepare, and that's what he would do.
This house had a basement, a mandatory feature in all houses in the area, but Dominic's was more than special. It was a large underground space that extended over a vast area. The dimensions of this underground shelter were impressive, with a diameter of approximately 200 meters and a height of 10 meters.
This provided enough space to comfortably accommodate several people and store a significant amount of supplies and advanced electronic equipment. After disasters like tornadoes, Dominic's father began investing a lot of money to make the basement ready, and the best part was its entrance, located in the hallway to the second floor, right next to a piece of furniture.
In other words, the basement entrance was not outside but inside the house. Although there were other emergency entrances and exits, this was the main entrance because it was the fastest way to enter the shelter.
As Dominic thought about this, he walked to the piece of furniture, pressed a hidden button, and then entered the correct password numbers. After finishing the sequence, the furniture shifted forward, and a series of stairs extended downward.
"This might have seemed unnecessary a few months ago, but now it doesn't." Dominic descended the stairs, and the lights inside automatically turned on, revealing the huge, divided space.
Extreme precautions were taken in the construction of the basement to ensure its strength. The walls were built with specially fortified concrete, several times thicker and stronger than that of a conventional building. Furthermore, the walls were reinforced with high-strength steel bars, providing a solid structure capable of withstanding extreme pressure in the event of tornado-induced collapses.
The basement's roof was designed to withstand any additional weight or stress, with strategically distributed beams and pillars to ensure stability. Additionally, the basement floor featured drainage and reinforcement systems that made it resistant to floods and other water-related disasters.
The basement's lighting came from backup generators and batteries that stored power from the electrical panels on the roof, ensuring a constant supply of electricity even in emergency situations. Ventilation and air purification systems were also incorporated, along with water filtration systems, to ensure long-term survival in disasters.
In short, this hidden basement was a maximum-security refuge, designed to withstand the onslaught of any natural disaster or threat that might arise. Its meticulous construction and use of high-strength materials guaranteed the safety and comfort of those seeking shelter in it.
Dominic saw the safe with a shelf full of short- to long-range weapons, some hunting rifles, and many other items within reach.
"My father should have an excessive amount of cash; I warned him many times to invest that money, but he refused." Dominic walked to the safe and entered the password numbers.
Upon opening the safe, there were, besides bundles of bills, some papers that should be the house deeds, credit cards, gold, silver, and a few other things that Dominic didn't pay much attention to.
"2 million dollars; the bars are 10 troy ounces of gold; there are a total of 100 of those bars." Dominic thought about the figures and did some research online; nowadays, the price of gold ranges from $1,800 to $2,000 per troy ounce.
So, at a price of $2,000 per troy ounce, to calculate how many troy ounces equate to 2 million dollars, considering the money in the bank accounts, Dominic had at his disposal at least ten to fifteen million dollars.
An absolutely incredible amount considering that they had never considered themselves a family that was very concerned about money. Dominic thought they were well off, but he never believed it was that much.
Now, what he needed to restock the entire basement and empty rooms on the second floor of the house were essential resources like water, non-perishable food, survival resources, communication systems, appropriate clothing, fuel, medical equipment, and, if possible, attend some first aid courses.
He didn't know how much time he had to prepare, which is why he didn't think big initially. What he wanted now was to have his safe place, and if he had time later, he would do something much bigger.
For now, the first thing Dominic did was go online and head straight to a page to start buying through online deliveries. He needed to stock up on long-lasting foods like canned, dehydrated, and vacuum-packed foods.
It's easy to find these products online nowadays, and it's much simpler to order large quantities without any problems. After all, there were hundreds of people who made a fortune selling 48-hour survival backpacks, vacuum-packed products that can last for years when stored, and military food sold online without issue.
Dominic was in a hurry; he needed to take extreme precautions in what he would do next, so he first spent $100,000 on different types of reliable online sites, and after several confirmation calls, they ensured that they would bring all the items he had ordered. Dominic would do this with official chains; if he liked the product and it was reliable, he would order much more from that place.
"Sure, he could use the money more effectively, but he didn't know when, how, or where it would all start. The events during the quarantine were more than enough to show that everything destabilizes when the alerts start coming. The opportunities he had to stock up would be many, and he wouldn't have any other choice but to be quick.
Moreover, while he knew some things would happen, he couldn't do anything. Idiotic humans would end up condemning the system, and everything would be chaos once all those things the world doesn't know about started happening.
Yes, I need several black water tanks installed in my house that Dominic would gradually fill and seal once they were full. He has ample space in the backyard, so he can place at least ten to twenty water containers of approximately 275 to 300 gallons each.
The amount of time a person can live with 300 gallons of water depends on several factors, such as the water consumption rate and environmental conditions. Under normal conditions, an average person needs about half a gallon of water per day to stay well hydrated. This includes the amount needed for drinking, cooking, and personal hygiene.
So, if he has 300 gallons per water container and an average person consumes around half a gallon a day, he would have at least 600 days of assured drinking water per container.
This means that, under normal conditions, a person could live around 600 days or just under 2 years with 300 gallons of water if consumed at a rate of half a gallon per day.
Dominic didn't plan on living here with more than two extra people: his girlfriend and his mother. If his aunt considers it prudent to come here, he doesn't mind making room for her to live. But other than that, there was no one else with him who mattered.
"Yes, I need you to rebuild the entire fence around my house with a taller and more resistant one that you can find. I also want the backyard to be opened up as much as possible without considering what needs to be done." Dominic was making his last call; he was surprised that the man who owned the construction company answered at this hour.
"Are you telling me you want us to install maximum-security mesh fences in a residential house? Am I understanding correctly?" The man asked on the other end of the call.
"Is there a problem with that?" Dominic asked, slightly confused because he didn't understand if there would be a legal issue with that.
"It's strange, but it can be done... But that's not my problem; as long as you pay, the workers will be there first thing tomorrow morning... By the way, Do you want us to open up space in your backyard and install 300-gallon black tanks? We could maximize space if the architect devised a plan; does it matter to you if it looks ugly as long as we install as many containers as possible?"
Dominic sighed and said, "You're right, I'll transfer a sum of $50,000 so you can start with the construction... After everything is settled, you'll give me the final bill in addition to the deposit."
"That seems fair; I'll give you the company account number right away... Yes, thank you very much for choosing us."
After many more hours of shopping and planning, Dominic devised a very suitable plan to maximize his needs. He had weapons, but he believed they wouldn't be enough, at least in terms of ammunition and other things he couldn't get alone.
"I hope my uncle doesn't ask too many questions." Dominic muttered as he drank his third cup of coffee of the night or early morning; it was now dawn, so he had to go to school.
But truth be told, he needed to receive the workers who would be here first thing in the morning, so later he would come up with something to be absent for a few days. He couldn't just skip school. If he did that, the police would eventually be at his house looking for answers to his absence. He had to be more decisive about this, so he already had an idea.
"I've gone completely mad, Dad. I hope you come back." Dominic murmured as he looked at the list of things he had to do.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
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