The effect of the blow to his motivation on finding no weapons had gone. With clarity came a calm confidence. Nodding to himself Dave set about to make his plan a reality.
* * *
The supermarket was the building that took up the most area when compared to the other stores near the intersection, and appeared to have a mostly flat roof though it was hard to tell when looking at it from the ground. In order to climb onto the roof Dave had walked about the building to search for some sort of external means of access. He didn't find any obvious way up onto the roof like the previous place he had stayed.
The supermarket was a very open store with the side facing the westward road being floor to ceiling glass windows, and the walls facing the road that went south containing several large doors. Thanks to this visibility Dave was able to build up some confidence that the supermarket was clear of dangers.
Dave went to the side with the supermarket doors, stepped through and into the store. Then he began to close and lock all the doors leading into the store. It was bit of a risk. If there was something in the supermarket with him then he had little chance of a quick escape, but if something were to turn up from outside then the solid looking front doors would provide a decent means of preventing anything following Dave into the supermarket.
Dave walked around the supermarket. He was surprised to see that the fresh food section was completely clear. Someone, maybe trying to prevent the stench of rotting food, or maybe they wanted the food to feed a large community, had completely cleared the supermarket of fruits and vegetables.
There was a closed twin-door to a staff area at the back of the supermarket. Dave listened at the door for a moment before slowly opening one of the doors. Dave stood at the doorway scanning the area beyond. It was a storage area, a bit like a warehouse, with palettes of goods scattered here and there amongst aisles of shelves stacked in goods.
As long as Dave wasn't too picky about what he ate then there was more than enough to eat for a long time.
Dave walked into the storage area and spotted a ladder leading up. He climbed the ladder and unlocked a hatch at the top. He swung the hatch open and looked out over the roof top. It was completely empty. Unlike the other rooftop that he had recently stayed on, this rooftop had no hint of ever been used by someone else.
The hatchway was a bit tight and Dave realised that he wouldn't get through while wearing his backpack. He undid the front clips and took the strap off his right shoulder. Locking his right arm on the ladder, Dave fiddled with getting the backpack off his left shoulder and up and through the roof top. It took a lot of shoving and profanity but Dave eventually got the backpack up through the hatchway and onto the roof. It wasn't that the hatchway was so small, but that Dave's backpack was so oversized and bulky.
Dave climbed up onto the roof and looked back the way he had come. He then looked at his backpack next to the hatch and let out a mild "Fuck!" to express his annoyance. If he was going to be living up here for a while then he'll need to find a better way of getting oversized items onto the roof.
He left the hatch open and began walking around the rooftop. The roof was flat with a hip high wall built right around the edge. Dave looked about from the roof's edge and saw nothing moving. It was incredible to think that only the day before this intersection had been the sign of a massive battle.
To the rear of the supermarket roof and away from the intersection, there was a small hut-like building. Near the door was a dusty window. Dave approached and looked through the window trying to see through the gloom within. The hut was empty and Dave couldn't figure out what it was used for. He had thought that it would have been a tool shed but it was completely empty - also it must have been awkward coming up to the roof to get tools when keeping them in the storage area would have just been more convenient.
Dave opened the door and looked in. There was a stale, dusty smell which implied that the hut hadn't been used in a long time. Dave left the door open and walked around inside for a bit. He looked up at the roof of the hut and saw a simple tin roof - it wasn't great but it would provide shelter from the rain.
Dave looked back at the doorway and noticed that it had a few centimetre high lip extending all the way along the bottom. He looked back out on the roof and noticed little drain-ways that lead off the roof. Dave nodded to himself, that implied that this little hut would be reasonable dry even during heavy rainfall.
One thing that was obvious was that the hut needed some serious cleaning. He hadn't noticed signs of insects like spiderwebs, but something had to be done about the dust and griminess.
Dave left the hut, leaving its door open, and returned to the hatch. He climbed down the ladder and looked about the storage room. There was a closed roller-door towards the back and near that were some large metal cupboards. Dave walked over and opened up the cupboards. Inside were all manner of tools and most importantly there was some cleaning equipment.
Leaving a mop and bucket, Dave instead picked up a broom, a brush and a dust-scoop. He closed the tool cupboard and walked back to the ladder. It was a little awkward, but he climbed up and down with one item at a
