The patrol was delayed about forty-five minutes before departing for Great Falls and since the men really were running short of supplies, Hawk donated the coffee he had just bought from Franklin Pierce to the patrol. He figured he would replace it in Choteau, knowing Pierce would be glad to get the business. “I’ll see you back at Fort Ellis,” Conner said as they prepared to ride. When Hawk only nodded in reply, Conner added, “And you’d better report in or you won’t get paid for this scout.” Hawk nodded again and turned Rascal back toward Grover Dean’s store, not particularly concerned if he got paid or not.

It was a full day’s ride back to Choteau, but Hawk decided to go straight back to the little town, in hopes of getting there before Pierce closed his store. It was important to get back on Booth’s trail, but it was more important to restock his coffee supply, because once back on the trail, there was no telling when there might be another opportunity to buy coffee. And I’ve got to have coffee, he told himself. As it turned out, the store was closed when he arrived, but he could see Franklin and his wife still inside, so he tapped on the door. Obviously surprised, Pierce unlocked the door. “Well, howdy, Mr. Hawk. Didn’t expect to see you back so soon. Matter of fact, I didn’t expect to see you back at all. Was there somethin’ you forgot?”

“I’m gonna need to buy some more coffee,” Hawk answered. “I’m glad I caught you before you left for the night.”

“You sure must drink a lot of coffee,” Flo saw fit to comment. “You ain’t sayin’ you’ve already run out, are you? ’Cause if you have, I’d say you’re making it too doggone strong.” She chuckled in appreciation of her own humor.

“Yes, ma’am,” Hawk replied, japing as well. “I used it all up. Maybe you’d best show me how much you put in a pot of water.” They all laughed then with Franklin and Flo still waiting for the real explanation. So, Hawk told them what had happened to his sack of freshly ground coffee. “And I reckon I can get by without air to breathe, but I need coffee to live,” he said in conclusion.

When the joking was over, Franklin asked the question he was really interested in knowing an answer for. “That cavalry patrol you gave your coffee to, are they likely comin’ to Choteau?” He glanced at his wife. “Because if they are, we might better take stock of what kind of supplies we’ve got in the storeroom.”