search for one now.
Exiting and closing the gate, I walk to the steel door. There’s no latch, just a handle and a key slot above it. I give the door a light pull, not wanting to open it, just to test if it is locked or not. It doesn’t move.
We head around the building to the far side. The paved area extends fifty feet completely around the store allowing people to drive away by completing a complete circle back to the entrance. A tree-lined hill, really more of small ridge, abuts the pavement to the rear and leads up to a shellfish plant on the other side of the trees.
Only two things greet us on this far side; an outside door similar to the rear door, and a darker blue four- door Honda parked nearby. With gun in hand, I approach from the front to get a better look into the interior, angling up to the front corner of the car and peer inside. Nothing out of the ordinary and, more importantly, no one inside. I slide around to the passenger side keeping slightly away from the car to find there aren’t any keys in the ignition. Moving closer, I try the front door. Locked. I test all of the remaining doors only to find the car is completely locked up. No keys on the seat or floorboard. This tells me that whoever was driving the car either was picked up in another vehicle, walked out of here, or is still around. Maybe more than one if there were passengers.
I test the steel door in a similar manner as at the back and find it is also locked. We retrace our steps around the building as I don’t want to walk in front of the store just yet. If there is someone here and alive, they most likely know we are here already but I don’t want to publicly announce the fact.
“There’s the possibility of at least one person around,” I say as we turn the corner to the rear.
“How do you know that?” Robert asks.
“The car is locked with no one in it,” I say and relate exactly what I think that means. He nods thoughtfully.
“Looks like we’re going in through the front door,” I say once we are back at the Jeep. “We’ll do a visual check through the side window and then see whether the front door is locked. If it is, then I’ll tape the front door,” I hold my left wrist with the duct tape bracelet up slightly, “and break the glass.”
“Once inside, both of you will be right inside the door. Michelle, you’ll have the door itself. Robert, you cover toward the back of the store. I’ll go right to check the aisles and the Subway station. If it’s clear, I’ll head back. I’ll then check the back and the refrigeration units. While I’m doing that, Robert, you’ll switch to covering the right,” I say outlining a quick plan. “If something happens, our best bet is to just get out. If it does come down to where we have to shoot, make doubly sure you’re not firing towards each other. Make sure you have a clear shot. And,” I say with emphasis, “I mean a very clear shot. Any questions?”
“How do we tell if they’re alive or one of those, well, things if someone happens to be in there?” Robert asks.
“I’ll call out once we are inside. If no one responds, then we’ll assume that anything is hostile,” I say after thinking about it momentarily. “Always know where everyone is.”
“Any more questions,” I ask looking from one to the other. They shake their heads.
“Robert, get the flashlight off the shotgun. You’ll be using that,” I say reaching to pick up my monster flashlight.
Robert returns and I see from the tape still on the light that he chose to cut it off rather than unwrap it.
I walk towards the wall a little ways from the window waving them behind. Against the wall, I edge up to the window and peek in the corner. There’s something blocking my view from the inside and I have to rise up until I can see in. The light streaming inside through the door in front reveals the first cash register on the front counter, along with several drawers, and the drink machines by the front door on the other side of the entrance aisle. I’m not able to see all of the way to the floor. Crouching under the window, I proceed to the other side of the window and peek in the opposite corner again having to rise up slightly. I see the interior aisles, or at least where they should be. The light from the windows and door doesn’t penetrate very far in due to the building being angled away from the sun but there’s nothing moving that I can see. The rear of the building and the Subway side remain blocked.
I put my flashlight against the window with my hand between it and my eyes to cut some of the glare and play it around the interior. I see end displays with candy and donuts and can only glimpse items peeking out on the shelves themselves. The aisles look to be clear and the light reflects back off the glass cases of the refrigeration units in back. I move to the first window situated just around the corner. From this vantage point, I see more of the front counter and some of the floor. Again though, it is more of the same. I glance back around to Michelle and Robert to find them crouching behind.
Ducking under the window again, although I’m not quite sure why after the light display inside, I move to the front door and peek inside. Again, the natural lighting only extends a few feet inside before fading off into shadows and darkness. I play the light in towards the rear of the store again but it doesn’t penetrate all of the way back and only stillness prevails. I think about driving the Jeep to the front and using the headlights to give us more light inside but I don’t think I can get it angled correctly between the pumps and the door.
I reach up to the handle on the front door and give it a slight pull.
I turn back to my shadows and motion them forward. They don’t have to come far as they are beneath the front window right behind. I tell them what I saw and my thoughts. “If I tell you to leave, you both leave through this door immediately. No questions, no huh’s, no ‘let me see what’s going on’, you just leave immediately. You got it,” I whisper to them.
“Yes, Dad,” Robert whispers with a nod.
“Yes, Mr. Walker,” whispers Michelle.
“Just make that Jack from here on out. I’m rather used to it and more or less respond to that,” I whisper back to her.
A concrete cigarette butt stands next to the door across from me with a garbage can on the other side. I notice a concrete block at the foot of the butt stand, nod to myself, and reach across the door dragging the block over.
“As I open the door and go in, Robert, you grab it and move in behind me. As you move in, Michelle, you grab the door behind him and block it open with this. Robert, you stop about five feet inside focusing on the rear of the store, I’m going in and around to the right. Michelle, you have the door,” I whisper reiterating the plan and push the concrete block out of the way of the door and our path.
They both nod. Crouching by the front door, I swing it open and enter, low and quick, stopping about five feet inside. I look quickly around, my light playing around the interior as Robert settles in beside me. I hear the scraping of the block behind me as I search out the interior. Again, my light still doesn’t shine all of the way to the back but I can see a very faint line of light close to the ground in back that must be coming from the back door. The first aisle looks clear. I lean over the counter clearing the floor behind the registers. I kneel by Robert who is shining his light around the interior.
“That’s your area,” I say pointing to the back of the store with my light. “Stay right here until I return. I’ll be to the right,” I add. He adjusts his light and focuses on the rear of the store. It isn’t penetrating as far as mine did.
“Okay,” he whispers back.
“Is anyone here?” I call out, my voice seeming to echo around the interior. “Come out slowly if there is.”
Silence. “Okay then,” I whisper slowly walking low to the end of the drink counter and focus my light down the second aisle. Nothing but the front end of peanut cans, bags of cookies, and potato chip bags shine back at me. I peek around the corner and see the side door along with the Subway kitchen area entrance. All clear. The third aisle in front of the cooler section to the right is blocked from my view but I notice a musty odor permeating the air.
There is a sharp corner to the right a couple feet in front of me that leads to the Subway counter itself. I edge up to the corner keeping my light alternating between the aisle, the side door, and the Subway counter as more and more of it slowly appears. At the corner, I now play my light across the whole counter. It looks alien here in the darkened building, so different from the place I so often came to. I angle toward the counter focusing my light on the area behind and on the last aisle. I still can’t see too far inside the refrigeration units because of
