Inside, I found Tom sitting at a table off to the side. The deputy that had been following me entered in a couple of minutes after I did. Tom looked at me and smiled sheepishly and shrugged. "Sorry about that, I have to keep an eye on you for a few days just in case you're infected." said Tom.
"No, problem, I would do the same thing if I was in your place." I said.
Tom motioned for the bartender to bring another round. The bartender brought two cold ones and asked us if we would like a burger. "Sure, thanks. How the hell do you guys have so much beer?" I asked
"The towns' main employer was a beer bottling plant just up the road a few miles. Since the Zombie out break, nothing is being shipped out and we are being forced to drink it all ourselves." laughed Tom.
"Well, I've got a friend back home in Haven that wishes we had our own bottling plant. Finding beer has probably turned into a real scavenger hunt in the last year or so." I told him.
Tom and I ordered a burger and fry's each. While we waited for our food, Tom said," How would you feel about making a supply run Ralph? The town is in need of medical supplies and I would like to have someone check out the hospital at Edwards Air Base. As payment you could stay here in town 6 months all expenses paid. If you are asked to make any other runs, every trip will be a new contract and you can turn down any that you don’t want."
"Throw in a few cases of this beer and I'm your man. That would be more than I could turn down. But why don’t you just put a crew together and go yourselves?" I asked.
"We have tried that twice, none has ever come back. I don’t know if it’s the gangs or Zombies that stop them. They just don’t make it back. No word or trace has been heard from them. But none of them were driving an armored APC with a .50 caliber zombie deterrent mounted on it either." Tom said.
"You can put a list of potential team members together for me. I’ll want to interview each one and only people I approve can go with me. Does that sound like something you can support?" I asked.
"Well, I can certainly put together a list of people that would be willing to go. I think the mayor and I will go along with all these conditions; except for the part about only people you approve. We need a pilot to go with you to the base to select a helicopter and fly it back to town. My pool of chopper pilots is really thin." Tom said solemnly.
"Unless I have a real problem with someone, I can be flexible on that." I said.
"It sounds like we have a deal then." said Tom.
The next morning I went over to the café across the street from the hotel and ordered breakfast, two eggs, fried potatoes, biscuits, and steak. The steak was not beef. It was possibly deer. But, it tasted good so I didn’t ask what it was. This place had a lot going for it I thought. You could almost think it was pre Zombies here in town. If you overlooked the lack of small things like coffee, tobacco, and the variety of fruits and vegetables Americans had come to expect.
I decided I would drive over to the police station and see if I could locate Tom. At the station, I was told Tom was at the road block. I drove out to the road block and found Tom sitting in the shade of the big semi trailer that blocked the road.
"Hey, Tom what are you up to today?" I asked.
"Just looking over the list of possible volunteers I have for your supply run. I'll have them meet you at Fred’s starting at about 10:00 if you’re ready to start." Tom said.
"Is it possible to do it at the station or an empty room at city hall? I think it should look official and city sanctioned, to the volunteers. I don’t want to get into a pissing contest over who’s in charge when we get out there among the Zombies." I said.
"Sure, the station would be good, the deputies can pickup and drop off people before and after the interviews. Let's start at 11:00 then. I need to make arrangements with the deputies on duty." Tom said.
The first person I talked to was the chopper pilot. I asked him if he knew of anyone in town who could fly fixed wing aircraft. He told me that he could and maybe one other guy. But they were both getting up in years.
I talked to about 10 guys during the next day and a half. I decided I had my list of volunteers. I had decided on the pilot, three truck drivers, and two deer hunters. I was sitting in the office Tom had provided me in the station, when he came walking in the door.
"Well, have you identified a team yet?" Tom asked.
"Yes I have." I said as I handed him the list of volunteers that I had selected.
As he reviewed the list, I said, "I think we should try and retrieve as much fuel for the chopper as we can locate. Gus the chopper pilot says you are going to use the chopper for search and rescue. Is that right? At least that’s what Gus believes. Anyway, Gus and I thought that since the base refueled the planes and choppers with mobile fuel points, we might try and find a couple of tankers filled with fuel and bring them back here. And I thought a tanker loaded with gasoline or diesel might be useful as well. That’s why I picked Paul, Jack, and Ron. The three of them were truck drivers before this Zombie crap started. Ruben and Mel were hunters, and they have their own rifles. But I told them we would supply ammunition. That's not a problem is it?" Tom shook his head indicating it wasn't a problem. "Gus will need a shotgun and a pistol. Paul, Jack and Ron will let you know what they want. They have rifles but I want each of them to carry a pistol as well. I will supply my own weapons and ammo. We’ll need a large van to haul supplies back and I’ll take the APC for fire power in case it's needed. It's also a safe haven if we have problems in Zombie territory." I said.
"We will leave tomorrow morning and should be back in a couple of days. The plan is to take the back roads to Edwards Air Base. We will check the hanger area and try to locate an operational helicopter and a couple fuel tankers. I want to get Gus and the truckers on their way back as soon as possible. I probably should add a gunner so Gus can escort the trucks at least until they are clear of the base. My current plan is for them to be on their way back before hunters and I will scout the hospital and determine if it is feasible to raid it for medical supplies.” I told Tom.
Tom said one of the deputies, Dennis, had been a gunner on a chopper in the Gulf War. Tom said he would send him with us.
"Only, if he's willing to volunteer. I certainly don’t want the team to be dependent on someone that didn’t want to be there." I explained.
"I would be more concerned about having someone along who thought going onto a Zombie infested area was a good idea." Tom quipped.
"Everyone that wanders around out there has their reason. Revenge, material gain, adrenaline rushes, or just wanting to kill Zombies. All which are valid reasons in my opinion. For me it was initially revenge and wanting to kill Zombies. But now, I just enjoy the free pass to take whatever I find and want, when price is no object. I love looting." I told him.
The next morning, after fueling up the vehicles, the seven of us met Tom and Dennis at the Road block on the road leading into town. Dennis was armed with an M4 assault rifle. I shook his hand and told him welcome aboard. Dennis, Ruben, and Jack piled into the van Tom had provided and Jack had volunteered to drive. He said he knew all the back roads and had used them to dodge the truck scales outside of Bakersfield lots of times. I followed in the APC with Gus, Paul, Mel, and Ron.