Good Til the Last Drop (Part 1)

Posted on Sun Nov 19th, 2023 @ 5:18am by Hale Stratton & Alonzo Blazevic

2,354 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Bangor or Bust
Location: En Route to Bangor
Timeline: 28 August 2010 - 08:00 p.m.

Coffee one of the finest substances crafted, and one that Alonzo knew the group's leader, Hale Stratton loved. They both shared that but coffee wasn't exactly something that they had much of. If anything, it was becoming more and more of a luxury. "Hey," said Alonzo as he came upon Hale doing his perimeter check.

The trip into Bangor was ahead and Alonzo couldn't help but shake the memory of what had happened at the Walmart parking lot with Rene and Ethan. "What would you give for a good mug of coffee in the morning?" said Alonzo looking at Hale to see the man's reaction. "Because I might have an idea if you are interested" added Alonzo.

"If it involves coffee," Hale said at once, turning away for a moment from the tree line he'd been watching, "I'm up for it." He smiled at even the thought of it. "I can do without a lot of things … but giving up coffee? That's … difficult."

"Bangor under normal conditions is charming. Plenty of chains selling coffee but there's also several local coffee shops and cafés" prefaced Alonzo. "You know at this point they closed down. It means they probably have a stockpile of coffee beans or grounds just sitting there. We're not talking hardware store, gun shop or grocery market. Those places are probably well picked over, but a little café?" Alonzo looked at Hale.

"Fear does that," Hale said, nodding his agreement, "turns everyone into a hoarder." He returned his attention to the tree line for a moment but saw nothing moving. The lure of a coffee supply drew his attention back to Alonzo and he smiled, shaving years off of his face, "up for a walk?"

Alonzo met the man's smile with his own. "With you?" he whipped back and nodded. "I couldn't think of anyone better to go for a bit of a walk with" stated the man. "You are the safest person to be with" he added.

Hale smiled though the full force was somewhat lost in the gathering shadows and gestured toward the road. "There's a coffee shop about a mile or so down the road," he said quietly. "Just give me a moment to tell the others. "

While most men checked for wallets and car keys, Hale's new normal was more complicated. He made sure that he was armed, that the camp was as secure as it could be, and that someone knew where he was going. Once that was done, he returned to where Alonzo waited for him and smiled. "All set. Guard rotation has been set and they know that we're out and about."

"To think I used to have to just make sure my fly was zipped and I didn't get mustard or anything on my shirt on lunch break" quipped Alonzo. "Now this? Guard rotations and making sure we have guns or something to stab and smash with." It was an unfortunate but necessary change to reflect the new life they all had.

"Hmmm," Hale said, though it came out as more of a grunt. "Welcome to my life as an operator." He had a map of the area, purchased back when this was just going to be a chance to unwind on a long hike, so he had an idea of where he wanted to go though not what he was going to find when they got there. There were still pockets of normality, among the abandoned buildings and the mobile dead, and it was that he hoped to find. A bit of normalcy. Course, he wouldn't be who he was if he didn't prepare for the worst.

"I don't like your life, Hale," Alonzo shot back. It was a bit teasingly and did not have any bitterness or anger packaged with it. In fact, Alonzo had cooled down a bit from the whole incident with Ethan from the botched parking lot scouting. "Something I'm still getting used to honestly" added the journalist.

He moved closer towards Hale. "So, coffee raid?" inquired the man with a bit of a smirk. "I can't think of anyone better to go with" added Alonzo.

"Coffee raid." Hale smiled, the warmer, friendlier version reserved for the few that made it past his considerable defenses, and fell into step beside Alonzo as they headed out onto the road. "Tell you the truth, sometimes, I don't like my life either."

Alonzo thought about how to exactly he wanted to answer Hale had said. "I can't say I blame you. Now more than ever I guess. You seem the type to value your independence and alone time?" It was somewhat of a question.

"Which I get," added Alonzo. "The problem is doesn't that get a bit too lonely? I wouldn't want to be alone though all of this. I think we need one another to keep alive...all of us I mean. You, me, the kids."

"I value down time," Hale said. As they walked, he watched the road and the surroundings, the way he would when he was on a mission, and didn't let himself dwell to much on the notion that this was the new normal. "Listening to birdsong or the sound of the wind in the trees. Grew up that way. But I understand what you're saying though I don't know about the teens. Seems to me that they'd much prefer to be on their own. There's safety in a group," he said as he turned toward Alonzo for a moment, the smile returning to his lips, "... as long as its the right group."

"Down time should be valued and appreciated," Alonzo replied. He agreed with that. "They would be dead by now if they were left on their own or at least bitten, scratched, something awful would have happened to them. They are teenagers. We were that age once" added Alonzo.

He smiled at Hale. "It's the right group. It's a safe group if it has us. We make a pretty decent team, and frankly those kids need us."

"Try convincing them of that," Hale said. "If this were going to be long-term, there'd have to be an understanding between us … but tomorrow we'll reach Bangor and that will be that." For some, having grown up in cities and under streetlights, the way darkness fell over the world when the sun went down was unsettling. Not so to Hale who had grown up in the wilderness. He listened to the sounds around him, alert for danger, but somehow relaxed as well. It was more familiar than walking down a crowded street in a big city. Now that, made him nervous.

"Could end up being just you, me and Ethan," Hale said after a moment and stopped, letting that thought hang in the air. Halfway afraid to chase it much any farther.

That will be that the words were like making a risky journey barefoot down a dirty street and stepping on the sharp lid of can or into a pile of broken glass. It damn near made Alonzo jump and wince, but why? It was supposed to be a good thing. It was supposed to be better.

"I don't like goodbyes," Alonzo admitted and he looked away as to not make direct eye contact with Hale when he said it, and he sure wasn't making eye contact with what followed. "It wouldn't be so bad you know. The three of us."

That was a good as time as any to move, to focus on the mission like a good soldier. "That coffee is calling our names" he added. Alonzo had a lot more on his mind than coffee, but was hesitant to talk about everything going on in his mind let alone the strange sensation he felt whenever he spent a second too long looking at Hale.

The three of us, Hale found himself smiling at that, just a bit of a lift at the corner of his mouth, a softening around the eyes, that slipped by Alonzo who, like Hale, was looking everywhere else.

[Short While Later]

The coffee shop had a sort of weathered charm with its clapboard siding, made to give the impression of an old cabin, though it was obvious to Hale, who had actually built a log cabin with one of his friends, that it wasn't. There were cheerful curtains hanging in the windows and a hand-made sign, wood-carved and painted, that welcomed them to "Luke's - home of the bottomless cup."

Alonzo laughed a little. "Bottomless cup. That sounds like my kind of place, if we weren't dealing with corpses springing up to have the munchies on me" he stated. He looked at the parking lot.

There were no cars in the parking lot still, Hale's hand fell to the combat knife at his belt, as they approached the front door. "Bottomless cup," he said quietly, "bold claim because I can drink some coffee."

"A bold claim and hopefully some bold roast left inside," added Alonzo. Coffee was a luxury item but a bit niche. While everyone undoubtedly clambered their way to Wal-Mart or Lowes, raiding them of tools and guns, grocery stores of food items and medical supplies, Alonzo was hopeful that a coffee shop would be relatively in stock.

He moved close to Hale. He wanted to say something about being careful, but Hale was always careful - paranoid even to some extent, but it was necessary these days. One minute you are safe and the next, you had a chunk of flesh torn from your limb.

The door was open and Hale slipped in side, holding the door for Alonzo, as he took a look at the interior. Nothing out of place which was a good sign. Tables clustered around the windows, behind that, a counter with additional seating, and a pass through from the kitchen.

He leaned in closer to Alonzo, speaking softly, "I'm going to go check the kitchen. Why don't you look behind the counter? See what you can find."

Alonzo nodded understanding the orders his superior had given him. He often wondered where he fell in this unofficial chain of command. Hale was clearly the leader and surely Hale saw Alonzo as higher than the teens. At least he had hoped so. Alonzo made his way over behind the counter.

There, he found a cash register. The tray was open, and there was evident damage to the drawer around the corners. He scoffed. "Don't tell the owner, but I think they've been robbed," Alonzo said. "All the cash is gone and someone definitely wedged it open with something and with force. Dumbasses. What good is money right now?"

Hale waited until he passed through the door into the kitchen before drawing his knife. Commercial kitchens, or at least the ones he'd been in, tended to be clean but never quite as gleaming as you'd expect them to be. This one was no exception. Everything was put away and tidy, nothing out of the ordinary, until he saw the way the walk-in had been wedged shut with a metal shelf.

The pantry had been emptied and he could hear, as he stood in the doorway, a muted thump. "Oh Luke," he whispered as he removed the shelf and took a steadying breath. "I hope its not you."

He opened the door, knife at the ready, and saw one of the ones that just didn't act like the dead were supposed to act. Short and rotund, with a gunshot wound over the heart, the cafe's owner lurched forward, arms outstretched. Hale took him down with a move that was becoming practiced and dragged the body into the walk-in which had, unsurprisingly, been emptied as well.

He came out, closed the door, and hunted around in the kitchen, gathering supplies. A cluster of candles affixed to a small plate by softening the wax on the bottom was first. He found a French Press, bottled water, and an opened bag of coffee, and two mugs.

By some miracle, the gas was still working so he lit a burner and set the water to boil while he went through the shelves. Most were barren, the looting having been systematic, but on the higher shelves, he found a few bags of coffee and a commercial sized bag of soup mix. By then, the water was boiling so he filled the French Press, lit the candles, and put everything on a tray.

He came through the door, back first, and turned slowly, awkwardly theatrical, to reveal his surprise.

"Ooo," Alonzo said greeting Hale with a gleeful gaze. "Have a little trouble back there? I heard a thump. I was about to grab that empty coffee pot and arm myself with it" he teased.

He was pleased with what Hale had found. "It looks like you made out good" he said and grabbed a nearby clipboard with a paper that was marked inventory. "I found this and the date wasn't all that long ago. It mentions beans being stored in the basement."

Hale chuckled, the thought of Alonzo racing in with a coffee pot in hand was both funny and oddly touching, as he placed the cluster of lit candles on the center of a table. The French Press coffee pot went to one side and the coffee mugs placed on either side of the table. He walked the tray back over to the counter and left it there then turned back, gesturing toward the table.

"Have a seat," he said. "The coffee is hot and fresh, thought we could indulge a bit first."

Alonzo took a seat a looked at Hale Not the only thing that's hit thought the journalist, but some things were best left undisclosed. At least for now. "Best service I've had thus far since the world went to shit," quipped Alonzo.

He gestured at the seat across from him. "Indulge with me. I think we may have hit a jack pot here. Coffee will definitely go a long way to boost morale."

Continued in Part 2

 

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