That night, at 11:42 p.m.
After finishing the party and the rounds of toasts with the Home crew, Gavin waved goodbye to the men still lingering at the party and returned alone to the Alliance convoy. At this hour, only seven or eight people remained with the convoy, standing guard around and on top of the armored vehicles.
Seeing Gavin approach with two guards, the sentries hurriedly saluted him. Those who were not lying on the vehicle roofs simply came over and walked along with him.
As the men approached, Gavin exchanged a few pleasantries with them and briefly discussed the sentry shift changes before returning to his RV.
The moment he stepped inside, a powerful smell of alcohol hit him in the face.
"Whew."
The heavy smell made Gavin narrow his eyes, and he looked toward the RV's dining area.
Around the sofa and table, Eugene, Jon, William, Johnny, Liana, Abel, and the others were sprawled haphazardly in various spots.
Eugene was outright snoring on the sofa, with one big foot resting in Abel's lap.
Of everyone there, only William looked to be in good shape. He did not even have a ruddy flush on his face, so he clearly had not drunk much.
Gavin walked into their midst and clapped his hands softly.
At the same time, William stood and made room for Gavin, who sat down without ceremony.
As Gavin sat, William gave Eugene a hard kick in the calf, and Eugene immediately shot upright.
"Motherfucker, what happened? Fuck."
After cursing, Eugene tiredly rubbed his eyes.
Atlanta's liquor was especially strong, and it was winter now. The weather was too cold.
In his groggy state, Eugene felt as though he might be running a slight fever, as if he had caught a cold.
He rubbed hard, then