John O'Brien - Return

“Hooah, sir,” they respond quietly.

“Lights on. Lock and load ladies and gents. The curtain is rising and the show is about to begin,” I say to the sound of selector switches being flicked from safe to burst.

“Go,” I whisper.

Henderson, followed quickly by Denton, slips in the door and moves quickly the right, both of them panning their lights around the interior. Gonzalez and McCafferty enter on their heels followed by Rogers and Bartel. They all come to stop kneeling right at the light/dark demarcation line shining their lights into the interior. Robert and I follow in with our guns up and ready to throw down a curtain of steel. The hush of the dark greets us. The only sound is the faint shuffling of boots and knees on the ground as everyone shifts positions. As everyone settles into their station, the silence is such that we can hear each other breathing.

The lights reveal a layout similar to any warehouse style store; a large open area similar in size to a medium Wal-Mart or Fred Meyer. The food is fortunately situated on our side of the store with the merchandise on the other side. Our lights can’t penetrate the full length of the interior so half of the store remains shrouded in darkness. I would call out to see if anyone is there but I do not want to overtly alert any night runners. I am sure they must sleep during the day, if they sleep at all, and I definitely do not want to disturb their slumber. Besides, any person staying here would already have found the others or would be outside during the day. Our lights in the store will alert anyone we were there. Unfortunately, that also means night runners. I find myself really wishing we all had night vision goggles. Radios for everyone, with throat mics, wouldn’t hurt either.

The aisles line up from front to back so our lights don’t really give us a clear view of everything. The lights from Henderson and Denton flash over a large aisle in the front of the store and the bank of cashier stands. The ones from Gonzalez and McCafferty show the first aisle clear but only penetrate a little way down the next aisle. The aisles seem to continue to the other end without a break which makes it easier for us and the goods on the shelves appear relatively undisturbed and fairly well stocked. Some items have definitely been taken but from the look of things, it was probably by the remainder of the personnel stationed here to sustain themselves. The strong odor of decaying food I remember from previous stores is absent. Most likely because the generators worked until this morning keeping the food items fresh. There is a hint of mustiness in the air that triggers unpleasant memories. The spots of light from our flashlights constantly move about the area around checking for movement. I wave Horace and the other three inside. Our hemisphere of sunlight becomes very crowded.

“Okay, here’s the deal. Teams of two will cover the end of each aisle and we’ll move forward one by one until we reach the aisle with the water. At that point, Horace, you four will proceed to the aisle and start carting the water out. Silence is key. If we aren’t disturbed by then, we’ll go after other non-perishables. It’s essential that the cover teams stay abreast. Maintain your situational awareness so we don’t have friendly fire in case things turn ugly. A round is no longer friendly once it leaves the barrel,” I say in a whisper only loud enough for all to hear.

“Gonzalez, McCafferty, you have the far end of the aisle. Henderson and Denton, the near end. Robert and I will cover the rear and the flank for Gonzalez and McCafferty. Rogers and Bartel, do the same for Henderson and Denton on this end,” I continue.

I would normally place myself in front but I find myself making slightly different decisions as Robert is with me. Having him with me is more than dipping a toe in the water but it isn’t quite jumping in yet.

“Folks, there are night runners in here. Let’s do our best not to disturb them and let them get their beauty rest.”

“How do you know they’re in here, sir?” Denton asks.

“Smell that faint musty odor?” I ask in return.

“Yes, sir,” he responds.

“Remind you of anything?”

“A little like a locker room,” Denton says.

“Exactly. That is the smell of unwashed bodies and sweaty clothes. They’re in here so everyone keep on their toes. Gonzalez, McCafferty, move out,” I say quietly.

The two rise and begin moving down the closest aisle. Their lights pan out ahead and around as they step into the darkness. Henderson and Denton move behind them and take position at the near end focusing to our right. As Gonzalez and McCafferty reach a point half way down the aisle, I reach out and grab Robert’s shoulder.

“Okay, stay close by me and do what I tell you. Understand?”

“Yeah, Dad,” he answers.

We step across the linoleum floor and the darkness surrounds us. It feels like a cloak suddenly drapes around us. The farther in we get, the more the cloak envelops, a weight pressing in. The only vision we have are the lights from Gonzalez and McCafferty ahead and where ours shine. There is a feeling in the air. That calm, quiet feeling with an underlying tension that says something is about to happen. I am very acquainted with that tension and adrenaline and know this feeling well. It’s like a coiled spring just before it releases. I have the feeling our presence is known. I glance back at Robert about to send him back to the door but something inside makes me hesitates.

“What?” He asks.

“Uh, nothing,” I respond.

Gonzalez and McCafferty reach the end of the aisle and focus their lights down the far end to our right. Robert and I continue quietly up behind them. I tap Gonzalez on the shoulder and she moves up to the next aisle with McCafferty. Looking back towards the entrance, I see the lights from Henderson and Denton disappear as they move forward as well. I have a good team here , I think watching Rogers and Bartel take their place.

The combined lights on our end reveal a cooler section against the wall to our immediate left and what seems to be a small deli counter just past that. The lane in front of us is broken only by the aisles branching off to our right and what appears to be a hallway or entrance to our left just past the deli counter ahead. I move up with Robert behind and shoulder tap Gonzalez again. They move up another aisle. This process repeated as I check down each aisle until we are four aisles down. At that point my light reveals beverages located on the shelves. The pickings are slim on these shelves as there had been down some of the other aisles.

“Horace, this is Jack, how do you copy?” I ask quietly on the radio.

“Loud and clear, sir,” she responds.

“The water is in the fourth aisle. Start gathering quietly.”

“Yes, sir.”

I see other lights pan about the store as Blue Team begins heading our direction. I focus back towards the far side of the store hoping nothing is back there or at least does not get stirred up. I think about the sheer number of times we are going to have to do this in order to get supplies before we are able to be self-sufficient. We are going to have to plant crops, hunt, fish, develop adequate water supplies and such, but until then, non-perishables and bottled water are our friend. Of course we’ll have natural water and it should be easy to find back home in the Northwest but we’ll have to be careful of anything close to cities. Maybe we can cut holes in the roofs and install skylights , I think pondering an easier way to do this. My mind goes through various scenarios including just blowing the roofs off. I immediately eliminate that one as we may need access into the store again and the simple fact that the roof caving in will destroy the very thing we want to get. The skylights or a portable generator with lights seem the best options in my mind right now.