CUTC-001
Barista: Jackie Lang
Date: Dec-5-2019
Receipt: CUTC-001
Subject: Clean Up
I’m going.
Tomorrow, the Agency and a few of our own will head into the still-smoldering ruins of the Third Cafe to clear out what’s left of the corpse. I didn’t want to go. I wasn’t sure I could handle seeing it all again. But I have to. It was my Cafe. My baristas died. I can’t just stand back and let someone else pick through the wreckage. I owe it to them to be there.
And I’m not alone. The other managers—Jean-Marc, Jenni, and Jericho—are coming too. We feel it’s our responsibility to do this, not just as managers, but as the people who have held the 8-Ball and shaped all of our connected Fates with it. This isn’t just about cleaning up. It’s about making sure nothing is left behind, that the Agency doesn’t take anything they shouldn’t, and—most importantly—that the baristas we lost aren’t forgotten in the rubble.
If anyone else feels like they need to be there, we won’t stop you. You’re welcome to help. But it won’t be easy. There will be a better time to truly say goodbye—we’re working on that. A proper farewell for everyone we lost. But first, we deal with the mess. Then, we figure out where we’re going to work from. And then—then we can say goodbye. As a Cafe. As friends. As family.
We are leaving at dawn. While we’re out, Nick is in charge.