Latte Lovers was a small company that specialized in specialty coffee based beverages with exclusive recipes that distinguished them from their competitors and drew them nationwide popularity. Despite being known all around the nation, the Latte Lovers coffee chain remains an exclusive to the state of Arizona, with the first shop opening in Flagstaff in 1978. Gary and Denise Checovinsky were the only ones running the original shop because they felt that having too many coffee makers running around would ruin the serenity and quietude that made the Flagstaff location so often visited by morning and evening folks alike. Plus, they didn't trust hiring new people as it was a threat to their secret company recipes which they kept locked and secured at this pine tree crowded, no internet connection, deer wandering, Bigfoot probably having ass, area location. That's a part of Flagstaff for you.
"I don't understand why we're not just calling the police", Denise Checovinsky poured some water into a kettle sitting over an old fashioned, fire pit stove in the back office of the shop. For some reason their thirty year old coffee maker wasn't working this morning.
"No, we're not calling the cops", Gary replies, sitting in his comfy chair and pondering whether he wanted to take a sip from the boiling water instant coffee that he hated, "We don't want that kind of publicity, it could destroy this company. If our customers found out what we found in that freight batch...it will not be good."
"Well, we can't just send it back, what if they decide to call the cops and blame us?", Denise reasons.
"I already told you, I know someone who can handle this problem without making all the fuss. Ya, he can get to the bottom of it." Gary says, sipping from his mug and scowling at the liquid concrete.
"Who?" Denise asks for the hundredth time just as a loud bang is heard from the warehouse section of the building.
"Well, truckers' here." Gary says and gets up.
*
"Alright, Andy-roo! We made it!", Jay says unbuckling his seat belt and setting the brakes, "Check on that there paperwork and confirm we're at the right place." Andrew glosses over the front page real quick.
"Shit Jay! What the hell are we doing here?" Andrew says.
"What's the matter?"
"We're supposed to be in Montana! We're at the wrong customer!" Andrew yells. Jay snatches the paperwork out of his hands and reads over it.
"I'm just fuckin' around", Andrew says with a chuckle. Jay looks at him with an unamused gaze.
"I knew you were pulling ma leg, you little fuckin square." Jay opens his door and begins to step out, "There is no Latte Lovers location in Montana. On top of that, this is the only location in the state of Arizona that has a receiving warehouse. Come on."
Jay leads the way through the receiving door and through the hall that led to the main office where Gary and Denise spent early morning getting ready to open doors for the early birds. Jay peeks his head around the corner of the doorless doorway.
"Pickup!" Jay yells.
"It's too early in the morning for all that noise.", Denise says mellowly but sternly.
"Over here, Jay", Gary summons from his desk.
"What's going on here?", Jay asks, "Usually when I'm here I'm delivering, and everyone is jolly for the holidays. What's the matter?"
"Oh, Gary turned into a grinch this Christmas because there's something in our freight that's not supposed to be in there." Denise explains, "That and the coffee machine ain't workin. Gotta use a pot of boiling water to make something that resembles the taste and nature of coffee."
"Ya, and I bet it's horrible", Gary takes a sip and spits it out immediately, "Shit!"
"Well, what was in it?" Jay asks.
"Just little pieces of coffee beans and boiling tap water but tastes like sewer sludge and rat piss", Gary replies.
"No, no, what was in the freight?", Jay says.
"Nothing. It's classified." Gary says, "you wouldn't believe it anyway."
"I've seen a lot out there, I'll believe damn near anything at this point", Jay replies.
"I keep saying we should call the police, but he insists on calling some goofball." Denise says, taking a seat at her desk and scowling at the coffee, finally agreeing with her husband for once.
"This guy and his team would get it solved better than the police and without all the noise, I told you a thousand times." Gary takes another sip out his coffee mug forgetting that it tasted like garbage and spits it out again.
"What's the guy's name?" Andrew finally squeaks, "Who is he?"
"I don't know his name, his identity's a secret", Gary explains, "but he goes by some alias, uh...nacho or pistachio or something like that, I don't know. He's apart of some special operations team. They go in after- let's say "happenings" like this."
"Well, let's get to the loading part, we got a bit of a drive ahead of us." Jay says.
"Yep, let's git it started."Gary says getting up and following the drivers out of the office.
For some reason, during the walk back to the truck, Andrew couldn't help but think of Jimmie Dawn. Not just in the fact that both he and Mr. Checovinsky both have this same sort of mystery man connection, but deep in the back of his mind he could only picture Jimmie Dawn, the one fleet manager fitting the mysterious profile...