THE ALEX FLETCHER BOXSET: Books 1-5

by Steven Konkoly

  “Well, I don’t mind telling you how much food I have,” Todd responded.

  “How much food do you have, Todd?” Charlie blurted.

  Alex inched away from him. “You’re on your own with this guy,” he whispered to Ed.

  “What do you mean?” Todd responded, stunned by the blunt question.

  “If you don’t care, then tell all of us how much food you have on hand,” Charlie demanded.

  “Well, I don’t know exactly. I’d have to take a good look and figure it out,” Todd said, flustered.

  “Nonsense. You know exactly what you have. In terms of a regular grocery week, how many weeks do you have on hand?” Charlie persisted.

  “Probably…like, a few… I don’t know. Not much,” Todd admitted.

  “Exactly. Now I know why you’re pushing this socialist agenda so hard. You don’t have supplies. That’s why nobody else likes this idea either. Because they don’t want to start supporting other households from the very beginning of this crisis. I agree with Alex here. This pandemic thing isn’t going to last a few weeks. More like a few months, maybe longer. And you want the handouts to start next week? You can still get food at the stores. It’s rationed, but the lines are faster, and each member of your family with a driver’s license can show up once a day. I suggest that everyone take full advantage of this system. There’s just no excuse for anyone to have nothing in their pantry so early in the game,” Charlie concluded.

  Charlie looked red faced and breathless as he barked out his last comments.

  Alex put his hand on Charlie’s shoulder. “You all right, man? I swear, you’re gonna explode.”

  “Look, I’ve got four kids at home and—” Todd started.

  “You work from home, Todd. The stores open at six a.m. Figure it out!” Charlie said.

  Todd moved around the chairs and was restrained by his neighbor, Daniel Lewis.

  Eric Bishop stood up and turned around. “Someone needs to slap a muzzle on him.”

  “What’s your problem today, Eric?” Alex asked, and the entire crowd went silent.

  “What do you mean, what’s my problem? You and your friend came here with the wrong attitude. This whole meeting was put together so we could help each other. Todd’s idea is just as valid as anyone else’s.”

  “Great, another communist with nothing to throw into the pile but empty hands,” Charlie yelled.

  “Charlie, you gotta take it easy. Okay?” Alex whispered to him.

  Charlie actually looked composed compared to Todd, Eric, and several other jeering neighbors. He appeared at ease with the confrontation, which frightened Alex for a couple of reasons: Charlie was either slightly sociopathic, or he was carrying a weapon. Neither possibility comforted him.

  “If you’re not here to help, then just leave,” Tom Hodges said.

  Mark and Beverly Silva edged away from Tom and Vicki, as Mike Lynch echoed Tom’s sentiment. He saw Charlie stiffen.

  “Take it easy, guys,” Alex cautioned, passing glances at Tom and Eric. “I happen to strongly agree. I don’t want anyone else shopping at my house for food or supplies. I can tell you right now it won’t work. I didn’t exactly see a lot of enthusiastic faces when Nicki described the idea. Nobody wants to put an inventory of their house out there. I sure don’t. So don’t get angry at Charlie. He said exactly what most of us were thinking.”

  “Maybe we should just forget about helping each other at all. You don’t sound like much of a team player, Alex,” Eric said.

  “I’m willing to help out, but we’re all dealing with a very unique set of circumstances. When the power goes out after a nasty spring storm, I have no problem opening my house to all of you. Everyone here knows that. We’ve all done last minute babysitting for each other. This is going to be very different. If we want to survive, given how contagious this flu virus is, then we need to isolate ourselves.”

  “I guess I’m not getting it,” Andrew Greene said in a hostile tone.

  “I can answer your question, but first, let me say that I really meant what I said about helping. We all probably have something to offer. As most of you know, I work…rather, worked for Biosphere pharmaceuticals, the company that makes TerraFlu, an anti-viral similar to Tamiflu. When I left the company, I managed to retain about twenty courses of therapy, which is enough for twenty people. I would be more than happy to relinquish these into a communal pool, and then as people get sick, they can be treated,” he said, mentally redoing the math.

  28 to give out. Gave 12 to the Murrays. 16. Close enough.

  “If anyone gets sick,” Andrew said.

  “Which brings me back to answering your question. We all need to get a solid grip on the fact that some of you, maybe many of you, are going to get sick. Especially if you put some of these ideas into play,” Alex said, and the group erupted into a verbal geyser of doubt and anger, all directed at Alex.

  “Hey, hey…let Alex finish,” Ed yelled.

  “Yeah, I want to hear the rest of this,” Michelle Hayes called out.

  The group calmed down, and Alex continued, though he seriously considered just walking away. He wasn’t sure if he was helping or hurting his situation.

  “Don’t shoot the messenger. My point is that the only way to guarantee that you won’t catch the flu is to quarantine your entire family. That means zero, or at a minimum, very controlled contact with anyone outside of your family. That’s really the only way.

  “So, am I going to put my name down on the daycare list? No. Am I going to volunteer to drive potentially infected people to the hospital? No. Am I willing to be part of a neighborhood crime patrol when police service is no longer available? Sure. You all need to start thinking like this, or the flu is going to spread through the neighborhood like wildfire.”

  Eric and Stephanie Bishop were both shaking their heads, with disgusted looks on their faces. Alex made a quick mental assessment of the scene, dividing the group into two factions: those that thought he was an asshole, and those that either didn’t know what to think or seemed to support his ideas.

  Right away, he put Todd Perry, the Bishops, the Hodges, Mike Lynch, Nicki Bartlett, Laura Burton, and Andrew Green in the hostile group. He left the Quinns out of the group, based on Sarah Quinn’s reaction to the food sharing idea, and the fact that she didn’t react either way to his last comments. Ed Walker, the Silvas, Charlie Thornton, the Coopers, and Michelle Hayes fell into the second group.

  As he continued to scan the faces, he put Peter Brady and Michael McCarthy into the hostile group. They were standing side by side, with loathsome faces, talking to each other and glancing up at Alex while shaking their heads. Mary Thompson and Jamie McDaniels appeared to be quietly arguing with each other. Alex couldn’t make a determination one way or the other about either of them.

  Todd calmly stepped around the chairs and approached Alex as the group continued to disintegrate into a chaotic mutter-fest. Todd’s face was no longer swollen red, but Alex could tell by his bearing that Todd was about to get something important off his chest. Most of the driveway went silent in anticipation.

  “Let me handle this, Charlie,” he whispered to his left as Ed put a hand on his shoulder.

  Todd stopped about ten feet in front of him. “You know, Alex, you really surprised me today.”

  “Not me,” Eric Bishop said.

  “I used to think you were a stand-up guy. All that talk about the marines, band of brothers, looking out for the guy next to you. I guess that was all just a bunch of stories. I’m starting to put together a pretty clear picture of your situation. Put in a wood burning stove and some solar panels recently…extra oil tank. You’re not worried about a thing. You don’t need anything from any of us. I see exactly what kind of guy you are now. I guess my only question is: why the hell did you show up to this meeting in the first place?”

  Todd stood his ground with his hands on his hips, awaiting a response. Alex sensed that everyone else was waiting for his response as wel
l. Most of the adults were standing in a loose perimeter around the current epicenter of controversy.

  “I’m starting to ask myself the same question, though I have managed to accomplish one important task. I’ve identified the belligerent, nasty people on the block,” Alex said, letting his rising anger get the better of him.

  Todd took a few steps forward.

  “Well, my offer still stands. Sarah, I’ll bring the anti-virals over to your house later this afternoon. You can all figure out how you want to distribute them. I’ll catch you later, Ed. Derek. Jamie, give me a call when you get home. It’s important. Charlie,” Alex said, nodding to them as he started to walk toward the end of the driveway.

  They all acknowledged him with various gestures and quiet responses.

  “I wonder how much you’re keeping for yourself,” Todd grumbled.

  “You just don’t quit, do you?” Alex said, turning around to face Todd.

  “I guess not. I don’t turn my back on friends, like some of us,” Todd said in a strained voice that betrayed an underlying fear of the situation.

  “Well, that can be a positive quality in the right situation,” Alex said lightly, taking a few steps toward Todd. “Oh, Nicki, could you do me a favor and put me on the security roster? Especially if we need any heavily armed patrols. You know, if looters become an issue. Thanks.” He turned to leave.

  “That jerk’s threatening us? I don’t believe it,” he heard someone whisper.

  Alex heard Charlie call out to him.

  “Alex,” he called again, and Alex turned his head while continuing to walk.

  “What’s up, Charlie?” he asked, as Charlie closed the gap.

  “That was a nice finishing touch.”

  “We’ll see. I don’t have a good feeling about Todd. I think he’s going to need more than a veiled threat,” Alex said.

  “You might be right. I should have said the same thing. I know that guy has it in for me, too.”

  “Well, you called it like most of us saw it.”

  “Yeah, well, I’m sorry to have gotten you involved in that little fiasco over there. Looks like half the neighborhood hates us,” Charlie said, and Alex sensed that Charlie just might be happy about his new outlaw status in the neighborhood.

  “Yeah, I’m a little surprised that so many people rallied against me. I’m not making any of this up. If they execute their little daycare plan, the neighborhood will not survive. How are you guys set? It sounds like you’ve been doing some prep work,” Alex said, as they passed Todd’s house.

  “Pretty good, I guess. You’re probably the expert. We have at least two months of those Meals Ready to Eat…MREs, and freeze-dried meals. I couldn’t believe these were still on the shelves. I guess no one thought about it at first. Now you can’t find that stuff anywhere. Other than that, we have a bunch of dried stuff, like rice, beans, and nuts, a good amount of canned food, some jugs of water. I can melt snow if I have to. I have a bunch of those water purification tablets, from our deep woods hunting trips. Propane stove, plenty of firewood. I thought you were nuts putting in that solar panel system, but now it looks like a pretty good idea.”

  “Yeah, it’s something we wanted to do for quite a while. For more than one reason,” Alex said.

  “Like sticking it to the power company?”

  “In a sense. Unfortunately, it’ll take another fifteen or twenty years for this system to pay for itself. But that’s definitely part of it,” Alex agreed, as they passed the Walkers’ house.

  Charlie looked up at Ed’s house. “Ed seems like a good guy. How are they set for this thing?”

  “All right, I suppose. Ed’s biggest challenge will be keeping his distance from the rest of the neighborhood. Ed understands the gravity of the situation better than most around here, but he’s not far enough along yet for me to say he’s good to go. He’s too nice. The best advice I can give you, Charlie, is to steer clear of the neighbors. If you have to interact, keep your distance, and for heaven’s sake, don’t provoke anyone. You and I both could use some help with that one.”

  “For a minute there, I wasn’t sure if you were the pot or the kettle,” Charlie said.

  Alex laughed, and Charlie joined him.

  For the first time, Alex started to relax around Charlie. The guy was intense, but he genuinely understood what they were all up against. Charlie may turn into the ally the Fletchers need to weather this storm.

  Alex and Charlie stood at the foot of the Fletchers’ driveway.

  “I’d shake your hand Alex, but…”

  “Unfortunately, that’s exactly how we all need to start thinking. I’d definitely steer clear of the McDaniels. Jamie said her husband Matt couldn’t make it to the little soirée today because he’s sick. He’s head honcho for one of the Portland high schools, so who knows? Hopefully, he’s got a bad cold or a case of the seasonal flu. But with his proximity to the schools, I wouldn’t take any chances. Jamie didn’t look that great either,” Alex said.

  “I noticed. Sniffling, coughing, and shivering with that winter jacket and hat. Do you really think it’s going to hit the neighborhood hard?” he asked.

  Once again, Alex got a weird sense that Charlie might actually want the flu to break out in the neighborhood.

  “If it’s already in the schools, we’ll definitely see cases in the neighborhood. If people keep going to work? If they implement that stupid plan to pass kids around among all the houses? It’s going to rage through the neighborhood like a wildfire,” Alex said.

  “Friday was the last day of school for the Thornton clan. For everyone, I guess. I wish I had pulled them sooner. Is there any way to tell if they’ve already got the virus from someone at school?”

  “If they show any flu-like symptoms, you could start them on anti-virals and take them to the hospital. Better now than later. At this point they can still get adequate care and treatment. In a week or two? Forget it. I can give you a few anti-viral treatment courses if they show any symptoms. Just keep it quiet, okay?” Alex said, wondering if it was a good idea to promise those to him.

  “Thanks, Alex, that means a lot to me. If you need anything, don’t hesitate. We should keep an eye out for each other. Never know what’s going to happen around here. I have the ability to reach out and touch somebody, if you catch my drift. How about you?” he said, obviously referring to his hunting rifles.

  “I’m set in that department,” Alex replied, ending the topic.

  “Good to hear that. Hey, I’ll catch you later. Let me know if you hear anything,” Charlie said and started to walk down the block.

  “You too, man.”

  He walked up his driveway and looked down the street toward the Quinns’ before stepping into the garage. He closed the garage bay and squeezed by the 4Runner to get to the mudroom door.

  “Kate?” he called, loudly enough to be heard throughout the first floor.

  “In the great room,” she responded.

  Alex removed his shoes and stacked them in the mudroom closet, hung his coat up on a row of hooks next to the door, and stuffed his hat in one of the pockets of the coat. He smelled freshly brewed coffee.

  “Coffee? That’s a treat in the afternoon,” he commented, walking into the kitchen.

  He heard Kate shuffling through the great room. She appeared, dressed in a thick gray turtleneck sweater and faded jeans.

  “Yeah, I started to feel a bit chilly and sleepy, so I thought I’d brew up some of that Bolivian coffee your doctor friend gave to you. I figured you could use some, too, after standing out there. How did it go?”

  “Well, the rest of the group is still out there,” he said, pouring coffee into an oversized blue mug and giving her an odd look.

  “That well?” she asked, putting her mug down on the island.

  He backed up from the coffee pot and took a seat on a black kitchen stool. He leaned into the backrest and took a sip of straight black coffee. “Well, it certainly could have gone better. I’m not sure
how to describe the scene, but there is a definite divide between the other side of Durham and our side. Todd Perry is a nutcase, that’s confirmed. He’s gonna be a problem. He was pushing for everyone to disclose how much food they have on hand. Basic supplies, too. Apparently, he doesn’t have any supplies, and he was trying to institute a system of sharing food, I think. Anyway, a couple of people calmly voiced their concerns about this idea, and Charlie Thornton came at the idea with guns ablazin’…”

  “Oh boy, Charlie?”

  “You know, I think Charlie might be all right. Maybe a little unstable, but he really seems to understand what’s going on with the pandemic. He says he’s all set at his house with food, supplies, everything. We had a nice little chat on the way back, since we were both sort of kicked out of the meeting.”

  “Are you serious? They kicked you out?” Kate exclaimed.

  “Not really, but it was clearly time for me to go. Anyway, Charlie accused Todd of being a self-interested communist…or socialist. Either way, this really set off Team Hostile, which includes, but doesn’t appear to be limited to the Bishops, who seem to hate me for some reason, Mike Lynch, Andrew Greene, Laura Burton, and the, uh…Hodges up at the top of the street. None of them really cared for my ideas, so we’ll have to keep a close eye on these people as the situation deteriorates. Especially Todd. I think Mary Thompson hates me too now.”

  “Sounds great,” Kate said sarcastically. “Anything in particular you said to upset everyone?”

  “Well, I didn’t like the food disclosure idea, and I made that very clear. Though I have to say that a majority of the group didn’t seem too keen about sharing food either. Todd and the Bishops were all fired up about it. Other than that, I told the group that if they didn’t all stay away from each other, then the flu was going to run unchecked through the neighborhood and kill a bunch of people. Nobody really liked that. This really hits the spot, honey. Thank you,” he said, taking another sip.

  “Did you tell the group that we are off limits here at the house?” she asked him.

  “Pretty much. That was part of the ‘stay away from each other’ speech. One of the big ideas forwarded by the pandemic committee was to organize a neighborhood daycare system. And a volunteer roster to drive sick people to the hospital if the family can’t do it. I told them that these ideas were the quickest way to ensure that the neighborhood did not survive the pandemic. This was not received well. Oh, and I’m pretty sure that the McDaniels’ house is infected with the flu,” Alex informed her.